Summer In Barcelona

T W O

"Llegas tarde" (You're late) was the first thing barked at Jorge when he arrived at the studio, causing his face to heat up. Jorge took a deep breath, contemplating whether or not he should tell him why or if he should just apologize. Before he could decide, he began to talk.

"Montano, y lo siento, es sólo que me iba a ir antes pero mi nuevo vecino pasó por aquí y no pude decirle que se fuera, eso habría sido grosero " (I know Mr. Montano, and I'm sorry, it's just I was going to leave sooner but my new neighbour stopped by and I couldn't tell him to leave, that would've been rude)

"No me importa George"(I don't care) he dismissed, raising his camera, aiming it at the models.

"Um, e-es Jorge" (It's Jorge) he corrected, his heart dropping. He had been working at Montano Photography for over three years now, having started as an intern when he was still in high school, and Jonathan, the owner, still didn't know his name. No matter how many times he reminded him, even it was daily, he'd forgot by the next time he needed something. It made no sense to Jorge since he was asked to be his assistant by the man himself.

"No me importa, mira, necesito que estos se desarrollen rápidamente, ¿crees que puedes llevarlo a la habitación oscura?" (I don't care, look, I need these to be developed quickly, do you think you can run it down to the dark room?) he asked, thrusting the camera at him, not caring whether he said yes or no. Jorge nodded, scurrying down the hall, reaching the steps at the end of it. He grabbed his key from his lanyard inserting it into the slot. He really hoped Noen was there today, he didn't like Harold, the man who did it whenever Noen called in. Noen reminded him of a character in those backward comics from Japan. He was tall and had whitish hair, the tips died purple. He wore baggy clothes that seemed like they blended together. He was tall too, almost half a foot taller than Jorge

"Noen?" he called quietly, shutting the door quickly as not to disrupt the development.

"Down here Jey-Jey" he yelled, he sounded distracted.

"Mr. Montano-"

"Just call him dickhead when your down here" Noen suggested, smiling at him, his hair looked

pink in the red light. Jorge blushed at that.

"He wants these developed" he finished, handing the film over. Noen nodded, popping the film out easily. Jorge watched in awe as he did that, he had tried to pry open the slot before but couldn't.

"I have a new neighbour" he announced, hopping on a stool by the line.

"That's great Jey, want to tell me about him?" he asked. Jorge was silent. He did, he really did. He considered Noen to be one of his closest friends, one of his only friends, but he kind of wanted to keep it to himself for a bit. However, he wanted to tell someone.

"His name is Benjamin" he informed; his hands tucked in his lap. Noen nodded, beginning the process. Jorge was quiet as he worked on blowing up the film.

"I'm listening, you can keep talking" he suggested. Jorge nodded, chewing his lip.

"He moved to Barcelona to get...away" he nodded. Noen hummed.

"He wouldn't be the first person to do that" he shrugged. Jorge tilted his head. He didn't know much about Noen's past, just what went on the time they knew each other.

"Did you?" he asked, leaning forward slightly. Noen looked up surprised. Jorge wasn't supposed to hear that.

"Something like that yeah, my parents were shit and I hated my town, so I hopped on a flight to a place I picked with my eyes closed" he sighed. Jorge nodded. He liked how Noen spoke. Slowly so Jorge understood, but not slow enough so that it made him feel stupid. Jorge understood that, not the leaving part but the parents being shit part. His parents weren't horrible, but they weren't very accepting of who Jorge was. That's why no one else knew. No one else would know.