Consequences

3. fawlty towers

I don't know how long we spend watching the city from his balcony, but it feels like an eternity. In this context an eternity should be interpreted in the most positive way possible. A rush of freedom and independence dawns upon me as I continue to listen to Axl, his green eyes shifting back and forth between mine and the skyline ahead of us. I try to focus on the sentences leaving his mouth, but my mind somehow ends up scurrying off to other places. Each time I pinch my leg discreetly in hopes of regaining my concentration and not coming off as uninterested or bored by his storytelling.

"Are you cold? Let's go inside."

I hadn't noticed how tightly my arms were wrapped around myself or the slight chatter of my teeth before he asks me. Before I can protest he pulls the handle and motions for me to step into his living room once again.

"Uhm... I don't really know, like," he begins once we're inside, the heat slowly warming me up again. "You know, you can stay here tonight if want. My couch isn't the worst place to sleep actually, and I have a ton of blankets and shit, so..." he offers, watching me warily.

A battle is currently taking place in my head, debating on whether it is a good idea to accept his offer or not. Seeing as I don't have many options at hand, I run a shaking hand through my hair and nod. "That sounds great. If it's too much hassle, I can alwa-"

"No hassle at all," he smiles what seems to be a very genuine smile and saunters off to another room.

I stand awkwardly, my hand reaching up to fiddle with my lip before catching my own reflection in a large mirror I hadn't noticed when I first entered his apartment. I cringe visibly as I take in my own appearance. I look like hell. Absolute hell. The very limited amount of makeup I had put on this morning is smeared all over my face from crying my eyes out earlier, my cheeks still stained and flushed. My eyes are a dull blue, pupils contracted almost entirely, and my blonde hair seems as uncontrollable as ever, sticking out in every direction. Why the hell hasn't he told me I look beyond hideous?

The sound of his footsteps coming closer make me look away from the grotesque reflection in the mirror, trying my hardest to ignore the embarrassment creeping up my neck before settling in my cheeks.

"I don't know how many pillows you like to sleep with, but I have this big one and some smaller ones," Axl mutters absentmindedly, walking towards me with his arms full of blankets and pillows.

"I don't really have a preference," I shrug.

"I'll just give you all of them then," he chuckles and puts the comfortable looking warmth providers down on the couch before turning to me. "Uh, you're okay, right?" His eyes are full of worry, which only causes the gap in my chest to grow, a feeling of helplessness easily invading my entire being.

"I'm fine, really," I force a smile. "Thank you again...for all of this."

"Don't thank me anymore, I know you're grateful," he smiles. "If you're not too tired, we can watch a movie or something. I mean if you want to," the red headed guy suggests with a hopeful smile. Even though my eyelids are heavier than ever, I don't think I can sleep once I lay down. My mind will just start whirling and protesting loudly that I am in fact awake and fucked up.

"Sure, that's fine with me."

Ten minutes later I find myself sitting on his couch with an ice cold can of beer in my hand and my precious backpack next to my feet, the clock on the wall letting me know it is nearly 3AM. Axl sits beside me, jabbing the buttons on the remote while sipping on his own beer. I notice how slender his ring-clad fingers are, entirely too pale for someone who lives in Southern California.

"Is this okay?"

My eyes snap up to meet his, an amused grin plastered on his face. Great, he caught me staring at his hands. He nods his head in the direction of the TV, my eyes widening immediately when I notice good old Mr. Fawlty trying to lecture his Spanish employee, Manuel. I laugh and nod my head, "I love this show."

"Me too. I used to have this weird crush on Polly. It lasted like a month before it went away again," he laughs as he fiddles with the metallic tab of his beer can, his gaze shifting from me to the screen in front of us.

"Well, she's not bad looking," I agree, smiling at him before focusing back on the intense conversation taking place between Mr. Fawlty and his wife. "Personally I think Manuel is adorable."

Axl laughs, "Adorable?"

"Well, he's so clueless and confused all the time, and I don't know. I think we're secretly related or something," I shrug in a playful manner, biting my inner cheek to suppress the grin threatening to spread across my face.

"Well, he does say 'thank you' a lot, and I've noticed you tend to do that too," he winks and nudges my knee with his, the blood pumping quicker in my veins at the brief physical contact. "But you'd be the first Spanish person I've seen with blonde hair and blue eyes," he points out with a smile, his eyes lingering on my dominant features for a moment longer than necessary.

"¿Qué?"

We both burst out laughing as we continue to banter back and forth about the British sitcom. I find myself wanting to stay awake as long as possible, because Axl is rather great company and he manages to keep my mind somewhat off of things. It does feel strange to be staying at a stranger's place for the night, but I honestly don't have much of a choice. Wandering the streets of such an unfamiliar and enormous city at night with no certain destination doesn't seem appealing at all. Even though Axl thinks I say 'thank you' too much, it won't keep me from doing so in my head. Kindness and hospitality are great personality traits that shouldn't go unnoticed.

By the time we've watched three episodes my eyes are practically burning from lack of sleep. The last thing I register before drifting off is the TV lighting up the room and the sound of Axl's contagious laughter.