Let's Stop Running From Us

it hasn't been easy

When Jacob came home the next morning, he and Troye didn't talk about what happened. Troye decided it was best not to push the issue, if his goal was going to be to learn to live with and accept the way things are.

Quickly Troye learned that the way things were, were quite lonely. It was like Jacob had an endless number of friends lining up to worship him and steal him away, while Troye sat and stared at the wall. Days passed with no more than a few words each day spoken between the two boys and Troye began to despise living in this manner. And then Jacob's birthday arrived and Troye woke up alone, which was also becoming part of their new norm.

Still, Troye gathered the gifts he had purchased for Jacob, wrapped them nicely, and placed them on the dining room table for, when Jacob would come home, and then Troye curled up onto the couch with Nash at his feet. Troye then eyed Jacob's stack of books and picked one up and started to read. It wasn't really the sort of book Troye would have chosen, but he thought maybe it'd bring him somehow closer to Jacob.

It wasn't until Troye was about 100 pages in when the door opened and closed and the distinct sound of multiple pairs of feet walking through the foyer filled the house.

"Troye?" Jacob said in question.

Troye took a deep breath, stood and walked into the dining room clutching the book he was reading.

"What's this?" Jacob asked Troye not giving Troye a chance to speak.

"Umm presents. Ha-happy birthday," Troye answered.

"You've hardly spoken to me for like a week and you think a pile of presents was appropriate to greet me with?" Jacob scoffed.

Troye sighed, a feeling of defeat washing over him.

"Ooh, I'll take them," Jacob's friend, Jasper, said walking into the room.

Jacob scoffed, "You might as well. And what's this?" Jacob said stepping over to Troye, plucking the book from his hands. "Wouldn't you prefer something like, I don't know, Entertainment Weekly? This might hurt your brain."

"Jacob," a disappointed voice said behind him.

"Sorry, Hari. Just don't enjoy coming home to this facade of normalcy when I have much to do before the rest of our people get here," Jacob explained and placed his book on the table next to the gifts. He then picked one up and shook it.

"You could just open it," Jasper laughed.

"Nah, I'm sure it's shit anyways. Right, Troye? Everything in our lives is, isn't it?" Jacob said.

Troye recognized the package as the one that had the really cool vintage Polaroid camera he found for Jacob, still in the package and everything. Troye remained silent.

"Guess I was right," Jacob said and dropped the package to the floor.

Troye gasped.

"Jacob!" Hari said again, "don't be such an ass." Quickly she picked up the box and placed it back on the table.

"It slipped," Jacob tried.

"Alright, well, I didn't realize things were so tense between you two," Hari said looking at Troye.

Troye looked away and let out a shaky breath, "I should go."

"Where?" Jacob challenged.

Troye thought about how Brett was in Sweden and how he really didn't want to bother either of his managers and again he was left realizing how lonely he was in LA. Troye shrugged and walked out of the room. He quickly moved upstairs and into the bedroom where he sat on the bed and leaned over the side to pull his shoes on.