how many people does it take, for someone to feel crowded?
the answer is none.
as tyler sits alone in his bedroom he can feel the walls caving in, in an all new form of suffocation.
he releases a shuttering breath, the kind you have when your lungs know they will have a hard time breathing in again and they don't want to release the air you've somehow obtained.
a shaky hand rests on the cold glass of the window. the chillness of the clear-though barely because of all the fingerprints-glass sends goosebumps down tyler's arm that stop just short of his collar bone.
"j-josh i know you're mad but-"
thunder booms from near by and tyler closes his eyes tight, his eyebrows furrowing toward the bridge of his nose, the intensity of the bags under his eyes dimmed as the new wrinkles appear.
"i-i'm sorry for making you upset, i tried to get him to leave, really josh, i did." tyler begged, opening his eyes again to the monstrous clouds in the horizon. his voice is scratchy from the strain of talking so much after speaking so little for so long.
tyler had been walking home from school when a boy came up to him. his name was jack, and it was known around the school that jack had feelings for tyler long before josh was in the picture.
jack had rested a gentle hand on tyler's shoulder, and as tyler's eyes widened at the touch, jack gave a small squeeze.
"i'm so sorry about what happened tyler, you know i'm always here for you right? if you ever need to talk?" jack had said, ducking his head low to make eye contact with tyler as he stared at the cracks in the sidewalk.
tyler brushed his hand away and took a step back, still looking at the ground.
"thanks jack, but i'm okay."
even as tyler walked away, jack followed him home.
"to be sure you're safe," he had said.
"i'll walk home with you again tomorrow?" and then he had left, without giving tyler a chance to say no.
"josh please don't be mad, i hate it when you're mad," tyler said, his eyes beginning to water.
the thunder stopped instantly as the first tears fell and tyler lifts his free hand to his face to brush the water away. droplets cling to his eyelashes as he attempts to dry his damp cheeks.
the clouds peel away, almost as curtains do, and reveal a beautiful shade of pinks and blues. it's enough to take his breath away again, though this time his lungs burn for a different reason.
tyler let's out a watery chuckle, and wipes his cheeks again.
"you always know just what to say."
YOU ARE READING
SKY BOY ; JOSHLER
Fanfiction"you mean to tell me," dr.greyson pauses, "that you're dating the sky?" tyler looks up to his therapist, who holds an incredulous look on his face. "yes, his name is josh," and tyler smiles. ---------------- in which josh dies in a car accident a...
