teenage gaze | h.s.

one

1:27 in the morning aurora sauntered into a yellow lit laundromat slightly drunk. 1:27 in the morning a flask of vodka sat in her coat pocket and snowflakes melted in her pale blonde hair. 1:27 in the morning slightly drunk in a laundromat, shivering from the bitter air, aurora was met by a pair of green eyes.

aurora let the door shut behind her with a click. somehow after wandering around the city she'd managed to find herself in the poorly lit store. her worn backpack and oversized coat protected her from the cold, but the exposed skin on her face and neck burned. aurora wished she'd thought to wear a scarf. but in all honesty, when she climbed out her bedroom window as silently as she could, the cold wasn't the most pressing thing on her mind. although, she should have known considering she endured the bitter philadelphia winter for the nineteen years she's been alive. digging her small hands into her large coat pockets feeling the cool metal flask, she squinted against the wind, while strands of hair whipped around her face. the open 24 hrs neon sign beckoned the girl in, and desperate for warmth she entered the laundromat. the bell above rang signaling her arrival and a blast of heat stung her flushed cheeks. a middle aged lady sat behind a desk and the lone costumer was a boy. he wore a grey hoodie with the hood pulled up underneath a black coat with dark jeans and sneakers. dark curls spilled from beneath his hood and green eyes glanced at aurora before returning to the floor. aurora sat six seats away from the boy and stared at what once used to be white, but now a grimy, dirty off-white washing machine, accented with tacky turquoise rims on the wall. though, she was acutely aware that six seats away a rather pretty boy was staring at the floor. aurora secretly hoped he was staring at her. she heard the boy cough and she was clenching her fists so tight that her palms began to sweat. she forced herself to relax and sighed trying not to look so odd considering she had no dirty clothes to be laundered. he coughed again.

"um," aurora looked six seats down in confusion. "do you, er, have twenty five cents on you?" the pretty boy spoke chewing on his lip. he shyly looked up at her from underneath his messy curls and aurora blushed.

"i think so," she said while swinging her black bag over her right shoulder and onto her lap. she dug through the pockets before finally reaching into the smallest pocket on the inside lining of the bag and pulled out a few coins. one nickel, four pennies, and one quarter. aurora dropped the unwanted coins back into her bag and scooted over to him one seat away. she held her hand out towards him. one seat away and aurora could see his long eyelashes and the few freckles on his face. she could see the pinkness of lips and his rosy cheeks. she could see the darker flecks of green and gold in his eyes and she found herself blushing again as his palm brushed hers to take the coin.

"thank you," he said lowly, eyes still cast downwards.

"you're welcome," aurora answered and silence engulfed the two of them. the only noise was the hum of his washing clothes and aurora contemplated moving six seats away again. but aurora kept thinking about his eyelashes and warm fingertips, so she stayed.

"um, i'm not some beggar who washes his clothes in the middle of the night because i...?" the green eyed boy drifted off, his words sounding more like a question rather than a statement. aurora shrugged.

"it's okay. i'm not even here to wash clothes."

"why're you here?" he asked, sounding almost relieved, but his pretty eyes still wouldn't meet hers.

"i'm kinda drunk," aurora spoke shrugging once more. "i'm also kinda a writer. writing is easier at night." she elaborated. the boy blushed.

"i know you are," aurora shot him a look and frowned. "we have a class together at the university." he recovered quickly. "creative writing with professor rhodes." aurora's lips formed into an "o."