Gossip Boy (Ziam)

Two

Liam ran in a haste, asking that everyone pardoned him as he brushed through the thick crowd. He could hear the train's engine come alive, one of the attendants announcing their upcoming departure. He held on to the strap of his messenger-bag tightly, securing it closely by his side; and it wasn't long before he boarded, taking the first seat that caught his eye. It was an early, Saturday morning; and the sun shined bright, the train's thick smog clouding its harsh rays. Liam handed his ticket over to the attendant, a small exhale leaving his mouth before he turned his attention towards the window and watched the outside landscapes and buildings swiftly pass him by.

"London, East!," the attendant announced, the train slowly coming to a stop. Liam exited the train, and then made his way up the stairs. He journeyed through the busy streets filled with various characters and several places that would accommodate his thirst, hunger, and entertainment; however, there was one particular store he had in mind, a small smile playing upon his lips at the ideas running through his mind. He came into contact with a small, brick-built building, one with missing letters on the sign and expired displays in the window. He opened the door, the signal bell chiming the moment he stepped on the black mat. The store was a cross between a pawn shop and a thrift store, anything from moderately new to as old as the building itself.

He made his way onto the electronic aisle, eyes analyzing the various cameras. He had spent a month saving up as much money as possible, from the weekly allowance his parents placed into his bank account to the pennies he found on the ground. The idea crossed his mind not too long ago, the idea to expand his "business," so to speak. His website was growing by the day and he felt as though it was time to take it to the next step. A descriptive, written piece was interesting, without a doubt; however, the visual aspect of it all would be just as enticing. Besides, how would he know if people truly believed him without valid proof? "Are you looking for something, young man?" Liam looked away from the camera and found the store's clerk standing before him, a pair of old, blue overalls on and a bent out of shape spine to match.

"The red, Nixon camera - how much?," Liam asked, pointing at the camera in the glass case. The clerk walked over to him, and then looked at the case, vision strained as he squinted. He retrieved a pair of glasses from the pocket of his shirt, and then placed them, taking another look at the camera. Liam watched him with a sense of disinterest and a little impatience, wanting nothing more than to get back to campus and start on his day; however, he remembered the sermons his mother always preached about being respectful towards the elderly. So, he grimaced unsubtly and awaited the clerk's answer.

"That one's been here for a few months now," the clerk informed him. "A boy pawned it, said he needed the money to pay for his college books. Gave him three-hundred, roughly." The clerk retrieved a set of keys from his right pocket, unlocked the case, and then took out the camera. It was medium in size, but nearly perfect in quality. "I can give it to you - say, a hundred bucks." It was a little more than what Liam had budgeted for; however, his sensibility, and the urgency of the moment caused by his guilty desire, he was willing to take it out of the man's hands for whatever price. "You can test it out if you like," the clerk offered, accent husky and genuine. Liam contemplated it, eyes darting from the camera in the clerk's hand to the clerk himself.

"That's alright," Liam shook his head. "I'll take it to go."

That evening, when the sun began to set, Liam found himself at the school's garden, located atop of the science building. He looked over the ledge, his fellow peers appearing as small as ants, the way they each walked around clueless as to what was going on around them. There was a small breeze, the timing of things nothing short of perfect because Liam knew that Harry engaged in a repetitive process of meeting his friends at the campus' water fountain. He would converse with them, laughing about who knew what, and then leave a quarter to seven. And it had always been that way for the past couple of weeks; and it was that very aspect of Harry's day that led Liam to follow him and find him and Niall in each other's arms not too long ago. If Liam's sentiments were correct, today wasn't going to be any different, despite a Niall's failed attempt at convincing Liam that what he and Harry had was over.