Young Hearts - Elias x You Part 1

Chapter 1:New Streets, Old Ghosts(Part 1)

It was the kind of move that didn't feel real until everything was already packed.

Boxes full of clothes you barely remembered owning, notebooks with half-written thoughts and scribbled lyrics, a cracked phone charger, a random keychain from some vacation years ago — all shoved into cardboard and sealed with tape. Your life condensed into stacks. Just like that.

You stared out the window of the train as it pulled into the station. A new town. Not huge, not famous — just quiet, green, a little grey around the edges. The kind of place where everyone knew everyone. Where you'd stick out without trying.

You pressed your forehead to the glass and exhaled. Your breath fogged up the window. Wiped it off with your sleeve. Then stepped off into your new life.

Your mom was already ahead of you, dragging a suitcase and chatting with the taxi driver. You didn't hear a word. You were too busy soaking in the stillness.

⸻

The house was a decent size. Beige walls. Thin carpets. A little balcony that overlooked the high school and a stretch of trees that looked like they'd whisper secrets if you got close enough.

You were starting there next week.

A new school. New people. New everything.

The first few days blurred together. Unpacking. Getting groceries. Walking aimlessly. You memorized bus routes, found a corner store you liked, and mostly kept to yourself. You didn't post anything online. Didn't message old friends much. "Yeah, I moved" was all you gave them. You didn't feel like explaining why. Maybe you didn't know either.

But by the end of the week, you found the skate park.

It wasn't much. Cracked concrete, a few old ramps, graffiti on the walls, and two sun-warped benches. But it was alive. Music played from someone's speaker. Kids laughed, argued, flirted, skated, smoked. It was chaotic in a way that felt strangely comforting.

You stood at the edge, earbuds in, watching.

You weren't planning to talk to anyone.

And that's when you saw him.

Elias.

He was sitting on the edge of a ramp, elbows on his knees, hoodie up, headphones around his neck. His boyfriend — Alexander, as you'd learn later — stood nearby, joking with some guy you didn't know.

But Elias wasn't joking.

He wasn't laughing, smiling, or even pretending.

He was just... quiet.

Like he was there, but not really.

Your eyes met his for a split second. Just long enough to freeze you in place.

Then he looked away.

And something in your chest shifted.

⸻

"Hey," someone said beside you, startling you.

You turned. A tall guy with messy blondish-brown hair and a denim jacket covered in patches held out a half-eaten bag of chips.

"I haven't seen you before," he said. "New?"

You nodded. "Just moved."

"I'm Lukas." He grinned. "You skate?"

You glanced at the ramps. "Not really."

"That's cool. Most of us don't. You can still hang."

And just like that, you weren't a stranger anymore.

⸻

That afternoon, you met the rest.

Mieke, sharp-tongued and quick-witted, with dark lipstick and rings on every finger. Thomas, loud and constantly joking, always with a camera in hand. Valerie — Elias's ex, though you wouldn't know it from how casually she leaned against him when she talked. Later, Maxime arrived, Elias's older brother, along with his girlfriend Liz, who looked like she stepped out of a fashion magazine and somehow still felt chill.

They were close. Like they'd seen some shit together.

But they didn't make you feel like an outsider.

Not even Elias.

Especially not Elias.