Hard To See (Gawsten)

three

Geoff walks into the library. He has a confident aura, and it shows in the way he carries himself over to the third beanbag chair and sits down right in front of Awsten. He gives a small polite smile to the blond boy and receives a soft smile back. Jawn is talking about something that happened the other day, and Geoff doesn't wait for him to finish before he interrupts.

"So, I heard you throw pretty legendary parties with college kids," he mentions, and doesn't miss the way Awsten's smile disappears.

Is that all they want from him? The blond boy can't help but wonder if any of them actually want to be his friend at all. It seems like they genuinely like him, but what if they just want to go to one of 'his' parties?

"Um..." he starts, trying to figure out how to avoid the topic. He doesn't want to embarrass himself, but he also doesn't want to lie.

"Geoff, we're not talking about parties right now. And besides, the last thing you need is to party with college kids," Jawn interjects, "anyway, as I was saying..."

Jawn continues talking, and Awsten tries to focus on what he's saying, but he can feel Geoff's eyes on him. He has a feeling that Geoff doesn't like him, and he doesn't know why.

***

The house is quiet when Awsten arrives home. The door shutting echoes through the dusty air. The smell of vodka is strong, and Awsten knows he needs to grab his stuff and leave quickly.

He peeks into the kitchen, and sees his mom pouring liquid into cups and lining them up on the counter.

Awsten is glad that she at least doesn't drink, because he knows that he'd have a whole plethora of new problems to deal with if she did.

"Hi mama," Awsten mumbles out as he makes his way down the hallway. He hears a grunt in response.

He puts his backpack down and locks his door. He isn't going to stay, but he also doesn't want anyone to be able to get in his room while he's gone. He grabs his wallet out of his bag and his phone, which has a notification. He makes a mental note to check that once he gets out.

He grabs his laptop just as he hears a car door close. Almost a second afterward a loud bass blares through the house. His mother's first party guests are here, so she's started the music.

Awsten knows from experience that as soon as the first car arrives, more will follow within minutes. He unlocks his window and pushes it up. Carefully, he climbs through until he's completely out of his room. Thankfully it's only a single floor house- he doesn't know what he'd do if he had to climb down half the house.

He walks across the yard and onto the sidewalk just as two more cars pull into his driveway. He keeps walking, knowing his destination.

The further away he gets from his house, the quieter the music gets, until, finally, he can't hear it anymore. He keeps walking until he gets to town. It's only fifteen minutes later, a moderately short walk, when he opens the door to the coffee shop.

The smell of the coffee beans float through the air, making his mood instantly perk up. He walks up to the counter, and a guy with dark hair grins at him from behind the register. Awsten comes here at least twice a week, if not more, and he's never seen this guy before. The blond boy concludes that he must be new.

"Hey, what can I get you?" He asks. Just as he finishes his sentence, a guy with brown hair and a red bandana walks out of the kitchen. He smiles warmly at Awsten.