Chapter 12: No One's Here

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The contents of his bag jiggled as Ian pressed his foot against the pavement, the cold morning air making him grimace

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The contents of his bag jiggled as Ian pressed his foot against the pavement, the cold morning air making him grimace. He rubbed his palms together to create heat and covered his lips, blowing hot air into his skin to keep himself warm. There were 2 days left until Halloween, but the winter can already be felt foreshadowing through the neighborhood. There was nobody else around as Ian made his way to campus, the road void of vehicles, cold and silence creating a creepy ambiance. He liked it.

He pulled his phone out and slowly passed by the bus stop, pausing as he noticed a couple sitting side by side inside the shed. He threw them a glance, observing how they behaved and noticed the boy sliding his arm around the girl's waist, murmuring something into her ear that made her blush and giggle. She whispered something back as she rested her head on his shoulder with a smile. The guy looked at her fondly, pressing a soft kiss to her forehead before returning his focus on the road.

Ian carried on walking as he imagined himself having that type of intimacy with someone. He only had one serious relationship throughout the course of his life, back in sophomore year when he met this guy and they totally hit it off. They dated for a year.

He stopped by a 24-hour convenience store on the way to get something to drink, still a bit lightheaded from lack of sleep. Suffering through a very long morning with the feeling of his eyes being pulled into the back of his brain was definitely not something to write home about, but it's the price he had to pay after the unholy things he'd done with Bryce yesterday.

As Ian entered the premises, the store was empty but for the short lady manning the counter. She seemed happy to welcome her first customer.

Ian took his time to decide on what to get. "I'll have the latte please."

"Hot or iced?"

"Hot."

It took her a few times to get the coffee machine working, which led Ian to believe that she may be new to the job, not that he minds. Eventually, she managed herself, smiling as she asked if he needed anything else. Ian thanked and told her no as he carefully handed her the bill, sighing as his hand made contact with the hot surface of the cup. He couldn't wait to take a sip, he'd been dying for a cup of coffee since he got out of his house.

Bryce's mouth tasted like coffee.

The sudden, out-of-the-blue thought made Ian groan as it invaded his mind, eyes closing as he tried to brush the memory of his recent dream and whatever came after that.

It wasn't the sex that kept him up so late, nor how they were almost caught butt-naked by his mom when she arrived home. No, it wasn't any of that.

It was how he felt after.

A loud horn brought Ian back to his senses, almost spilling the drink on his clothes in surprise. He glared at the driver responsible as the matte red car pulled over beside him. "What's wrong with you?" he yelled at no one. The windows rolled down revealing an apologetic Cameron looking back at him. Ian relaxed and straightened up but the frown didn't leave his face. "Sorry," Cam spoke, voice deep. His eyes trailed from Ian to the road ahead of them. "I can give you a ride if you want."

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