What Doesn't Break You (Ashton Irwin Fanfic)

Chapter 3

A.J.'s POV:

I don’t know if I was expecting the houses to be extremely different in Australia or what, but I was shocked to see that it was just….well, a perfectly normal house. It was a brick house with a light brown roof and the front yard had a bunch of bright and colorful flowers all along the boarders leading up the drive. I could hear my Aunt oohing and ahhing at these as I stepped out of the car.

I could see some tall trees peeking out from behind the house, and I sighed a sigh of relief. I loved trees. Nature was always something I loved about my home. Growing up in the middle of nowhere had its perks. It was tranquil and beautiful to live in. I was afraid that we would be living in the busy city surrounded by concrete. I was relieved that we seemed to be moving into a very typical suburban home and neighborhood. At least I have a little space, I thought.

The rest of the morning went by pretty quietly. We all took turns taking a shower. The showers were weird here, but I eventually figured out the taps before I froze to death. I also picked out my bedroom. I had a choice between the two spare bedrooms in the house. I chose the larger of the two that, thank goodness, had its own bathroom and had a large window with a good view of the greenery outside.

The window had a small bench built into the wall also, which was awesome because I could definitely see myself sitting there to do homework, listen to music, or read. Yeah, besides being a huge music lover, I’m also a book worm.

After everyone was refreshed and had a chance to stretch their legs a bit, we all trooped back out to the car and headed back to the city for some exploring. I was keen to start learning some of the ins and outs of the city. If I was going to live here I wanted to be independent enough to know my own way around without needing help or having to just stay at home.

My Aunt and Uncle said they would get me a car if I promised to follow a curfew and be responsible. I was excited about this. I had a car back at home that I shared with my Aunt, but being from a small town, the only places there were to hang out was the local library or the park. The first things I was going to be on the lookout for were a bookstore, a music shop, and a place to hang out with free Wi-Fi. I know. Typical teenager hangouts.

We drove around for a little while. We ate lunch at this outdoor barbeque place that had very good chicken. We took some group photos. My Aunt shamelessly asking people to take our picture in front of big buildings (including the “Finding Nemo/opera house), and the Sydney harbor itself. It was a beautiful day and I was even feeling slightly relieved that I seemed to like everything so far.

But then I heard some low volume music coming from a an old brick building across the street. The music was quickly muted when the door shut behind someone that had obviously just walked inside, but my attention was caught. Looking at the building, it looked like an old pub. But as I watched I saw some kids my age, and some even younger looking, walking inside.

Again, I heard snippets of music coming from inside, and even caught a glimpse of dim lights, TV screens, and pool tables on the inside. I wanted to go over there and see what the place was about, but when I pointed it out to my Aunt and Uncle, my Aunt almost snapped at me saying “A.J. you can’t go in a bar!”

“It’s not a bar if kids my age are allowed in” I pointed over to the door as two girls my age casually walked inside. I knew better than to raise my voice at her, even though I was offended by her assumption that I wanted to go to a bar in the first place.