johnten ✧ oblivion

One

Johnny sauntered on the side of the road. The hoodie of his dark green sweater hung over his head and his hands rested in the cotton pockets. Both his hood and black hair concealed his face and darkened expression as he walked into a brightly lit coffee shop.

With a sullen and dull expression he looked at the menu then the barista who had been awaiting his order,"Just one large coffee with extra cream."

He pulled three one-dollar bills and three quarters on the counter before finishing the transaction and waiting silently at the opposite end of the counter.

Few minutes passed before women's voice heard, "A large coffee with extra cream."

Johnny grabbed the coffee cup and left without a word. He wandered along the slightly busy road, listening to the lively chatter and laughter of people that strolled along by him. He caught glimpses of pairs of people together; one's holding onto each other's fingers as if they would never loosen their grip.

That was what he lacked. He couldn't love someone. He couldn't fall in love with anyone out of fear. He wouldn't allow himself to selfishly fall in love with anyone knowing they were bound to die; a fact he had to repeatedly learn the hard way.

He had no where to go besides the silence of his apartment. He had nobody to talk to; his social circle was "distant" or simply put, non-existent. No one would socialize with him after seeing a repetitive pattern of deaths that associated with him in some pattern.

He sipped the coffee, slightly burning his tongue on the liquid, only showing reaction by softly flinching back.

Johnny eventually grew sick of the sweetness and tossed the cup in a nearby trashcan. He shoved his hands in his pockets, finding no change left for anything else.

Walking past the surrounding stores, he caught a glimpse of his reflection in the window. He espied the dark circles around his tired eyes, pale skin, and his slouched posture. It served no difficulty to tell he was unhappy and exhausted by his demeanor.

He dragged himself to a stop light, eyes traveling to the crimson light on one side and the green on the latter. He shifted his footsteps onto the blackboard road before being tugged back my a grip on his arm.

"The lights not green to cross, can you see?"

He looked hastily looked down to spot a shorter male grasping onto him,"Hm?"

His facial expression tightened as his voice laced with sass,"You could at least thank me? It's common curiosity."

"Oh, thanks for, um," Johnny failed to finish his second as his voice began to drag on into nothing.

The latter softened his expression and observed Johnny's face,"Hey, are you okay?"

The taller male suddenly perked up at the question,"Yeah, I'm good."

He drifted his eyes from Johnny's face to the floor and back up,"This is probably out of pocket but, do you have any social media?"

Johnny hesitated before answering,"Just an old Instagram account."

"Do you mind if I follow you? Or vice-versa?"

Without a word or question Johnny handed his phone over and received it back a minute later.

"God, this reals weird. If you need anybody to talk to or vent to, I'm usually active on it," he paused for a few seconds,"Just, pay attention to the traffic lights next time, okay? Be careful and wary of your surroundings." He flashed a small smile before turning the corner and walking down the sidewalk bordered with trees.

Johnny blankly stared at his black phone screen then back at the strolling male.

~~~~

The blue light from the phone remained the only thing that illuminated Johnny's dark room as he scrolled through the male's lively profile and posts.

It made little sense as to why an encounter as such would occur. It's as if it was bound to happen again. He wouldn't survive it another time.

Johnny scrolled through all the posts, shortly afterwards finding himself hovering over the "message" button. He hesitantly clicked. As he chewed on his bottom lip, he began to type a simplistic message.

ᵀᵒᵈᵃʸ ⁶:³² ᴾ.ᴹ.

hi um lmao.

tenlee_1001 : johnny?

tenlee_1001 : i mean, that's your
name im assuming?

yeah. it's johnny.

and you're ten?

tenlee_1001 : yeah, it's more
of a nickname though.
my real name is hella long

hey, uh. i just wanted
to thank you for earlier.
it was out of pocket for me
to not thank you.

tenlee_ 1001 : id do the
same for almost anyone.
and no need to guilt
trip yourself.

yeah

tenlee_1001 : hey i don't
know if this would be
considered personal but

tenlee_1001 : when's the
last time you've been out?
like to hang out with someone

tenlee_1001 : jfc i know I've
probably been intruding your
life so much today

it's fine dw and
i don't remember?

tenlee_1001 : hm

tenlee_1001 : im gonna
trust that you're not a
serial killer and ask if
you wanna go out this
weekend?

tenlee_1001 : i prefer
getting to know people
in person than over text yk

oh. that's okay then

tenlee_1001 : i have to go now
but i lyk when and where

tenlee_1001 : tc, okay?

i will, bye

ₛₑₑₙ

Johnny closed his phone and faced it screen down towards his wooden desk. It was funny; nothing, nothing at all had even happened but small bits of déjà vu had already caused an immense amount of regret. He refused for any of it to ever happen again.

The beginning of a heavy patter became heard from outside. He stood up off his desk chair, moving the navy blue curtains and setting them aside to see the raindrop stained window. He opened the hatch, allowing the sound of heavy pouring rain, the feeling of cold air, and the sound of petrichor to evade his confined space.

~~~~
this chapter probably isn't that good but i just got out of a 5 month writers block so yeah lmao 🥴