5SOS Preferences

Shower

It was hot.. I’d been cooped up all today in my stuffy office, working hard on some last minute project assigned to me by my boss. Did he really think I had the time to do everything for him? Only God knew. On top of that, the air conditioner in the old, dreary building that held my office had seemingly had a breakdown. The hot sunlight was filling the windows and warming up the rooms, degree by degree. And with every degree that the room grew hotter, I could feel another little bead of sweat forming from the pores around my hairline, threatening to ruin a good day’s makeup.

I made a desperate glance towards the clock, running my fingers through my hair and pulling the loose curls into a makeshift ponytail with the palm of my hand, fanning the back of my neck as I observed the time.

4:52 pm.

"Eight more minutes.." I mumbled casually to myself, rolling my eyes as I prepared myself for the longest eight minutes of my life. It felt like the office space could potentially heat up another hundred degrees within that eternity. Clearing my throat and squirming around a bit in my seat (which had grown increasingly uncomfortable), I returned my attention to the computer monitor before me, resting the tips of my fingers up against the keyboard. Nibbling slightly on my lower lip, I knitted my brows together as I tried to read what I had typed up on the screen. However, my attention span was that of a child’s right now; I was desperate to leave.

Bringing my hands to my face, I rubbed both my temples with my fingers, slouching back in the uncomfortable office chair and released a breathy sigh. My coworker in the next pod over turned and looked at me, probably annoyed with me being annoyed. Lovely. “Y/N? You okay?” He asked, lifting an eyebrow and flicking his gaze over my slouched shoulders and sweaty face. I glanced over at him, my eyebrows furrowed as I tried not to snap at him. Damn. This heat was not doing well for my attitude. “I’m fine.” I muttered, taking my attention away from my coworker and looking back at the clock.

4:56

Four more minutes. “Come on..” I practically groaned now, fanning my face in a quick attempt to cool down. My attention was dragged away by the familar sound of a text message reaching my phone. Looking down at the purse at my feet, I pushed my chair backwards and knelt to the ground, pulling the bag into my lap and digging my hands inside. I seriously had way too much crap in this bag: makeup, tissues, that reciept from my trip to the grocery store last month? I had it all. “God, I need to clean this out.” I breathed, finally digging my phone out from beneath the rubbage.

Clicking the home button, the text message lit up the screen.

"Thinking of you.."

It was from Ashton.

A smile laced my lips as I tilted my head to the side, momentarily forgetting about the heat in the office or the uncomfortableness of my chair. Now I was thinking about Ashton just as much as he was thinking about me.. if not more. Losing my train of thought, I was snapped back to reality when my coworker nudged my shoulder roughly with his hand. “Are you just gonna stay here, or are you leaving like the rest of us?” He asked, chuckling haughtily to himself. “Huh?” I hummed, giving him a questioning look, resulting in him jerking his head in the direction of the clock on the wall.

5:02

"Oh, thank God!" I burst, quickly standing and pulling myself together. I flipped the off switch on the computer monitor, forgetting about the project until later. It could wait. "Thought so," My coworker laughed again, turning his body away and moving towards the door whilst asjusting his tie. "See ya later, Y/N," He waved, smiling at me while he pulled open the office door, probably just as desperate for escape as I was. "Yeah, see ya," I called after him, running my hands down my front, adjusting the hem of my shirt and unwrinkling the skirt that covered my lower half. Grabbing my purse and slinging it over my shoulder, a quickly typed a reply to Ashton: