Chapter 5

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Keith's pov

I handed the phone back to Axca, my smile unwavering as I made my way downstairs to grab a little late night snack. On my way back upstairs, I heard Adam and Shiro in their room, talking...about me.

"I'm just...worried about him Adam. His grades are even worse than before, and he hasn't been sleeping recently. I'm worried about his mental health too. He struggled a lot after the accident and I know he's still struggling."

"Takashi, it's alright. Keith's a strong kid, and he'll be able to get through it. He has good friends that support him. But...if I'm being honest...taking his phone if you're that worried about his mental health may not have been the best idea. His phone is the only way for him to communicate with his friends outside of school, and you know he's going to tell them more than he tells us."

I heard a loud sound, like one a phone makes if it's on vibrate and on a table or something. I heard Shiro sigh before speaking again.

"There's that person again. 'LoverboyLance'. He keeps blowing up Keith's phone. First he kept saying he was worried about Keith not answering, now he's saying goodnight. Who is this guy?"

I peered through a crack in the door. Shiro's face was lit up as he seemed to scroll through some of my messages.

I held myself back as I felt the urge to barge in and take my phone back from him. Adam grabbed the phone from him and set it on the nightstand beside his, where Shiro couldn't reach it.

The room was cast into darkness once again, save for a bit of moonlight streaming in through the window. Adam hugged Shiro and Shiro turned on his side so he could put his arms around Adam.

"Takashi, I don't think it's wise for you to look through his phone. That's a huge privacy invasion."

"I know, but there's something about this whole situation. I feel like there's stuff Keith isn't telling me, and it worries me."

"I know Takashi. For now, we should get some sleep. It's almost midnight."

I slowly crept away from the door. Once I was a safe distance away I bolted to my room and shut the door. I thought about Lance, and how we met...

Flashback
"Romelle, I can walk home by myself, you don't have to babysit me." I slurred, stumbling over my own two feet.

Romelle struggled to keep me on my feet as we made our way towards my house.

"Keith, face it, you're a wreck...and too drunk to do anything on your own right now. You're lucky Shiro and Adam are away on a trip right now or you would be so dead."

I was only half listening, now more interested in the sky above me.

"Romelle...have you ever realized how pretty the sunset is?"

She rolled her eyes. We finally made it to my house and she carefully helped me get comfortable on the couch. I giggled.

"Do you think it's possible to touch the sky? I wanna touch the sky!" I said, throwing my arms up and letting myself fall backwards towards the couch.

"Keith, seriously, you need to stop doing this. I know you keep drinking so that you can forget about what happened to your dad, but this needs to stop. You need to start taking better care of yourself. Drinking isn't going to make your problems go away. They will still be there when you sober up again."

I crossed my arms and pouted. "It does make them go away. At least, until you reminded me." I said, a childish tone making itself evident in my voice.

I grabbed my phone and started scrolling through Instagram. I looked through my explore page and my eyes landed on a beautiful shot of the ocean. I instantly lit up.

"Romelle! Romelle come here!" I yelled to my friend, who was in the kitchen.

I heard her sigh and footsteps, informing me she was on her way over.

"What is it Keith?"

Her annoyance was clear in her voice, but I was too messed up to notice.

"Look at this pretty picture of the ocean! I bet it feels real nice on the beach...with the sand between your toes!"

My words were sometimes interrupted by giggles, but I tried not to let that slow me down too much. I clicked on the profile it came from and scrolled through more of the pictures.

They were all so pretty. Some were of this shorter girl, with short hair, some of a guy with blackish hair, and some of them together. In some of the pictures, there was a tall lanky boy standing next to them, smiling, caught mid laugh, usually.

"He's pretty!" I exclaimed. I followed him and sent him a message.

Keith_Kogane: hi labce!!
mr_mcclain_pix: um...hi?
Keith_Kogane: i jyst wanted to say how mucj i lived ur pics!!!!
mr_mcclain_pix: oh,,uh,,thanks, ig? r u alright....?
Keith_Kogane: perfecrly wonderfil ;))
mr_mcclain_pix: right...
mr_mcclain_pix: r u drunk right now?
Keith_Kogane: no!!!! i'll prove ir to u!! i'll vid chay

I pressed call and he actually picked up.

"Um, hi?"

I waved and smiled really big. "Hi!! I'm Keith!! Let's be best friends!!" I slurred.

He chuckled. "Um...I don't even really know you. How could we be best friends?"

I thought for a moment. "Well, let's get to know each other then! I'm Keef, I'm 15 and I'm from New York. I like to listen to music, read, and sometimes, when nobody's around, I sing." I explained giddily, erupting into a fit of giggles afterwards.

"Tell me about yourself, Lancey!!"

He raised an eyebrow, and opened his mouth to speak, but Romelle came around the corner.

"Keith, I got your bed all ready so you can sle- What are you doing?"

I gasped as she looked at me on the phone. She started towards me, but I took off running.

"Uh, Keith? Is everything alright?" I screamed as Romelle caught up with me and yanked the phone from my hands.

She left me lying on the ground as she turned her attention to Lance.

"I'm so sorry about him. He's going through a rough time right now and dealing with it in all the wrong ways."

"Hey!" I pouted. "No fair!! I wanna talk to the pretty boi too!!"

I crossed my arms and Romelle rolled her eyes.

The next morning I woke up with a severe headache and a message from Lance regarding the night before.
Flashback end.

"I can't believe I have to go so long without talking to him." I sighed and ate my snacks, not bothering to throw away the trash at that second. I could take care of it in the morning.

I climbed into bed and was out almost as soon as my head hit the pillow, which was odd, since I was usually up until around 2 to 2:30 ish.

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hhhhh chapter 5. i'll post another one soon, as soon as im done with a few edits :))

distance // klance internet friends auWhere stories live. Discover now