Let's be Cliché || Lashton

The Sun and The Moon

A/N: The picture that Michael sent Luke in Dinner With The Shmucks (also I've been spelling schmucks wrong this entire time, my bad) is the angry pepe meme because I am trash.

"C'mon, it can't possibly be that bad." Michael reasoned, sitting down so his legs were dangling over the edge. Luke and him didn't hang out that often, mostly when they wanted to do stereotypical guy things that Calum and Ashton wouldn't want to do--like drink and talk about girls, Luke wouldn't really follow through with the latter but he did chime in with a few small compliments about each girl while Michael joked about making out with girls because he knew Luke would scrunch up his nose if Michael went into detail.

Luke groaned, "Owen asked how school was going and I said that it was open."

Michael had to stifle a laugh because he was here to comfort Luke, "Well school definitely was open, you're not wrong."

Luke scowled at Michael when the other boy finally did let out a laugh, but he eventually couldn't fight off a smile. Maybe his reply was a little funny, but he was still extremely embarrassed. The only subject he was really good at was math, which mainly stemmed from the fact that his mother happened to be a math teacher, every other subject seemed bleak and uninteresting in comparison, even something as mindless as gym.

In less than two years, Luke would be expected to graduate, he hadn't technically failed a class but a lot of teachers were already watching him like vultures, Luke didn't know what he was going to be, Luke didn't even know who he was going to be.

Luke flicked his cigarette, watching the brightly lit end bounce off his boot before it disappeared into the approaching darkness. "Michael, what are you going to do when you get out of school?"

Michael, who was only a year older than the boy, frowned. A comfortable silence fell between the two lads as Michael thought it over. Luke had taken to sprawling across his skin in Sharpie as he waited, it was a little hard to tell where the tip of the marker was going in the dark but the moon helped illuminate his skin and create a surreal contrast between the stark white skin and pitch black ink.

"I guess I will wait until Calum's done and then go on an adventure," Michael admitted with a shrug as if the plans weren't quite laid out but he'd be up for almost anything the future brings, Luke wished he was that relaxed about everything.

"You aren't scared?" The taller boy asked, readjusting his posture so that only one foot was dangling off the edge and the other's heel was on the roof. Michael shrugged once more, "Are you?"

"Yes," Luke admitted immediately, "Its hard not to when you've got grades like mine. What college is going to want someone with a C average? I'm stressed that my mum is going to be disappointed again.She's already not getting biological grandchildren, I can't just not care about what's next when I've already created such a mess."

"What's the point of being scared of something that hasn't happened yet? It's like being scared of the past, you can't change it. If you look behind you and see your shadow following you, are you really going to get scared? No you're not, your shadow has been following you as long as you can remember, like the past. So if your shadow is the past, then what's in front of you? What's your future?"

Luke stared at Michael, the boy with crazy hair, the boy silhouetted by the rising moon, and didn't quite know how to respond. Not because he didn't know the answer, but because he couldn't find his voice. His mind was so focused on how under appreciated this boy was, then he started thinking about everyone else, Charlie and Calum, and Ashton. All of his friend's were so under appreciated, but at this moment he realized that Michael was probably the least appreciated.

Luke let out a hum instead of an answer because the stars reflected in Michael's eyes and he wanted to hear everything Michael had to spit out, until there was nothing left for the pair to talk about. That was one of the only ways to appreciate Michael, listening to what he has to say because he is a very quiet person when he isn't among friends.

"You're future is the sun, man. It's in front of you and showing you how bright your path is, and even though you've got the shadow of your path on your heels you know that taking a step forward will only make things easier. And when the moon approaches behind you and threatens to swallow you up, there's still the sun you've got to look forward to. You've got a bright future and if you focus on the shadows of your past then you're missing out on all of the things you're walking by. Look forward to the future Luke, because the sunset is beautiful."

If Luke hadn't really been staring before then he definitely was now, he must have been looking at Michael like the guy was crazy, sure he expected Michael to say something inspiring that would calm him down a little but this had exceeded Luke's expectations, there wasn't a single doubt in Luke's mind at that moment that the future wouldn't be any less bright than the smile Michael gave him at the end, white teeth shining against the dark sky.

"Wow." Luke mumbled, looking at Michael a little longer before turning his eyes onto the pin prick stars that dotted the indigo sky. Even though Michael hadn't exactly talked until he had no voice left and Luke really wanted to hear Michael talk about something else that would empower him to do great things, he realized that the pair of them had met a wall, at this time there was nothing else they could really talk about before getting quickly fed up with whatever subject.

The blond's hair looked silver in the dim lighting, quickly shifting to more of a carbon colour as he shifted into a laying down position with both his feet dangling at the edge of the roof. Michael took Luke's lead and sat back until he was resting on his elbows, legs crossed at the ankles with the edge of the roof biting into the back of his knees.

"I appreciate you, Michael." Luke said, exhaling a plume of smoke as he said the words.

Michael looked over at Luke to find a cigarette pressed between chapped lips and a wry smile on the blond's face. Rolling his eyes, Michael shoved the boy a few inches away from him, "I know."

"I'm serious though," Luke added, plucking the cigarette from his mouth to look directly at Michael. "I really do appreciate you."

"I know."

A/N: I wanted it to be longer but I couldn't think of a way to prolong it, sorry.