The Thoughts Between Us // CHALEX

Fourteen

Making my life more fucked up.

"Hey, Alex."

Damn, it has to be him.

However I tried, there was no way I could get Winston out of my head. This past few weeks were good, we mostly hung out with Tyler whenever outside of school and studied Spanish together in the library.

He didn't have much friends here seeing he just hangs with me and Tyler mostly, and being honest I don't mind it either.

"Yeah, hi." I greeted him as we reached my locker and he leaned on the one besides me. He kept staring at me as I put my locker code in. "What? What is it?"

"You have your worried and thinking face on." Winston implied, which surprised me to think he knows what my face looks like when I'm worried. "What are you thinking about?"

Obviously I couldn't tell him about my thoughts on love, so I started talking about the other major issue.

"It's kinda messed up, like," I replied, opening my locker and gave him a questioning look. "They install the cameras the day before Valentine's Day? What is that about?"

"It's all performative, really." He replied, observing me with his warm but focused eyes. I just continued getting the books I needed today. "You can't tell the difference between true love and a really good couple selfie."

"Sure, you can. A selfie lasts forever."

"Ouch!" Winston joked, then looked at me with a meaningful look. "But, Alex, love is love."

I shaked my head at him.

"Who knows what love even is?"

Closing my locker, we made our way towards our respective classes. I had a history lesson to get through first.

"It's love." Winston stated, then pointed towards one of the many posters stuck to the wall. "It's on the poster."

I scoffed at his poor attempt of explaining love.

"I mean," I started saying. "We just waste so much time going through these motions of, like, romance, and Valentine's Day is a whole day that we're never gonna get back."

Instead, I could just sleep or pity my life for a whole day without any disturbance.

"What would you rather waste your time doing on Valentine's Day?"

I pondered over Winston's question for a second.

"Well," I replied. "I think Tyler mentioned that there is some slasher marathon at Crestmont tomorrow. Maybe we could all go?"

I wanted him to say yes because I would actually like to spend my day with him instead of going to a lame dance. Even if we will have Tyler with us and would just watch some crazy horror movies.

"I wish I could," Winston replied, with a neutral look on his face. "But I'm obligated to document dance-related lameness tomorrow night for yearbook."

Ofcourse, how can I forget he is in yearbook too? Maybe because whenever there's a school event, it's always Tyler to do this job.

"I could hang tonight, though." He stated next, as I didn't reply.

"I think that Tyler said he had plans, right?"

"Right."

I thought it was the end of the conversation, but the next thing he asked me got me struggling to think further.

"But, well, we could do something?" Winston asked, as he stopped walking. "You know, just, like, the two of us. I mean, unless you have plans too?"