Word Count: 2228
A/N: A colour AU because I felt like it :)
DAN'S POV
I look into the mirror, sighing. My eyes have not changed from the dull black for months. In this world, our eyes change colour depending on how we feel. Gray is boredom, green is happiness, pink is in love, so on. And blue is sadness. The more powerfully we are feeling about that certain feeling the more intense the colour would become. My eyes are a result of intense sadness. My life has been horrible recently so my eyes haven't changed from the black. The only time our eyes were our natural colour is when we die. Nobody ever knows what their eyes are until they die. Most people's eyes are naturally brown, very few blue and even less green. The reason natural blue and green are so rare is because they can also mean other things. But brown means nothing but a natural eye colour. I want to know my real eye colour as soon as possible.
I fix my hair in annoyance, flipping it to one side. I have to go to my job at the nearby coffee shop as soon as possible. I grab my jacket and run to get there in time. I throw open the door and rush in. "There you are!" one of my coworkers, Chloe, shouts. Her eyes are silver. Annoyance, I think. I apologise and run behind the counter. It is a usual busy day. A man with red eyes almost punches me. A teenager with grey eyes almost falls trying to pick her coffee up. It is all pretty normal until a boy about my age walks up to me. He has the brightest green eyes imaginable. He must be really happy, I think, much happier then I'll ever be. The boy makes eye contact with me then proceeds to speak, "I will have... uh... number twelve," he says. I look at him. I am entranced in this person's beautiful green eyes, his ebony hair. I write down the order and hand it to one of my coworkers.
"T-that will be $4.15..." I stutter. I feel my face is going bright red. I am afraid my eyes will turn pink from the sight of this beautiful stranger. I quickly lift a spoon up and look at my reflection. Nope, my eyes are still as black as night. I sigh and put it down. I had never seen anyone with black eyes before. Except for me. My parents were worried and actually took me to a doctor. The doctor said there was nothing to do. The sadness was too strong. I just had to wait for a more powerful feeling to take over. I was starting to give up though. I suddenly snap back into reality. The boy is holding the money. I take it from him. I begin to give him the change but he stops me. "It's okay, you can keep it." He says, smiling. I put the money back in the cash register. He looks at me for a while. I hand him his coffee and I accidentally grab his hand. He stares at our intertwined hands then slowly takes the coffee away. He walks away backwards. It must have been a hallucination or something because as he walked away, I swear I could see his eyes turn pink.
"FINALLY!" I shout as the last customer of the day leaves. I sigh and take my nametag off. I hand it to Chloe and leave. As the blast of cold air hits me I remember the boy. My heart went over normal speed when his eyes turned a bright shade of pink. I smile now, remembering the moment. I walk towards my apartment building. I get into it. I climb the many steps it takes to get to my apartment and fling open the door. I fall on the couch, the weight of a hard day's work pulling onto my shoulders. It's only 9:00pm but I am so tired. And hungry. I make myself a bowl of cereal and walk to my room. I flop onto my bed, trying not to spill the cereal. I slowly eat it, trying not to fall asleep while doing it. When I finish I put it onto the bedside table. I pick up my phone and go to the camera app. I sigh when I see my eyes still haven't changed from the black. I put it down and pull myself under the covers. I close my eyes and try to sleep but I can't stop thinking about the beautiful stranger. It makes me sad that I will probably never see him again. I feel myself falling asleep.
I am in the coffee shop again. I have been waiting for the boy to get back. He probably won't. I fell in love temporarily with a stranger. I sigh and hand a coffee to a middle aged woman with yellow eyes. I hear the ring of bells meaning someone has entered the room. I look over to it in hope, but it soon fades when a teenage girl walks in. I need to stop doing that. The line is very long so I keep placing orders. Listen to what they want, write it down, hand it to another person, grab the drink from them, hand the drink to the customer, repeat. The bells ring again and I can't resist looking. And he's there. I almost jump with excitement. The man at the front of the line gives me a death stare. "Sorry." I mumble, handing him his coffee. "Can I leave for a quick second?" I ask Chloe.
"Sure." She replies, not really concentrating. I get out from behind the counter. I see the boy waiting near the back of the line. I decide to do something brave. I take a breath in and walk up to him. I tap his shoulder gently then I suddenly feel discouraged. Well, I think, too late to turn back now. He turns. I notice his eyes are currently grey. He's bored. I think. As soon as he looks directly to me his eyes turn pink. He covers them with his hands. I smile. When he moves his hands, they are yellow. Embarrassment. I smile again. "Oh sorry." He says. He gives me an awkward smile.
"I just wanted to say..." I swallow, "you... uh... look really nice today..." I trail off. I am afraid my eyes will turn pink or something. I look at my phone and look at my reflection on it. Nope, still black. I put my phone away. The boy is staring at me, his wide eyes a mixture of pink, green and yellow. He bites his lip and looks away. He fiddles his thumbs together. Crap, I've ruined it. He looks at me again.
"You too." Is what he replies with. He looks down again. I gasp audibly. He lifts his head.
"What is your name?" I ask so I can stop calling him 'the boy'.
"Phil. And you?" He replies. He really does suit that name.
"Dan." I reply.
"I love that name. It really matches you." He says. I blush.
"Thanks." I reply.
"I have a question," Phil says. "I've been coming to this coffee shop for the last few months, and every day you have black eyes. What does that mean?" He asks.
I take a breath in. How do I respond this?
"I am not a happy person, Phil." I reply simply. He nods sympathetically. He is about to say something when Chloe shouts at me,
"Dan! Come back now, we need you!" Way to ruin the moment. I mouth sorry to Phil and walk back to the counter. I hand a hot chocolate to a boy with purple eyes. Soon Phil come to the front of the line. He hands me a slip of paper. He orders a coffee and I hand him his coffee. "Read the note in private." he whispers, smiling. I nod back. It's getting late now so there is no one in the line anymore. I open the paper. hey dan. just in case you wanted to know, here's my number: is what is says. There is a phone number in smudged letters. I smile at him from across the room. He doesn't notice me. While no one is looking I quickly type Phil's number into my phone. Chloe begins herding everyone out of the shop. I look at my phone and realise it is nine o'clock. I look around to see if I can find Phil. He isn't here. I sigh and walk out of the shop without saying anything to anybody. I climb up the stairs to my apartment and I unlock the door. I walk to to the bathroom. I look at the mirror again. My eyes are still black. I slam my hands onto the sink in anger. "I just want my eyes to change!" I shout. I calm myself a bit and I wash my face. The water will make my hair curly but I honestly don't care right now. I am so angry at myself. If I was a normal human, my eyes would be dark red. But no. I am a messed up person. My eyes aren't going to change. I stare at my reflection in the mirror, begging my eyes to change. They don't. I leave to my room. I change into my pyjamas and flop onto my bed. I want my eyes to change. But... I can't. I know that thinking like that definitely won't help. I close my eyes and urge my body to sleep. I love him...
I stretch my arms out. I smile when I think of Phil. I pick up my phone. It's not too early so I message him. Hey Phil, are you coming to the coffee shop today? -Dan. I read over the text a few times to make sure it's good. I press send. I need to get to work. I begin fixing my bed. I brush my hair quickly, not bothering to straighten it. I leave as fast as I can.
PHIL'S POV
I awake to my phone buzzing. I stretch and sit up. I pick up my phone. iMessage: Hey Phil, are you coming to the coffee shop today? -Dan. I smile when I think of him. I get up from my bed and change quickly. Yeah, I'm on my way. ~Phil. I hit send. I grab my wallet and climb the stairs from my apartment. I walk to the nearby coffee shop. Right before I enter I look at my reflection to see my eyes. Green. Good. I walk in. As soon as I step a foot through the smell of newly brewed coffee hits me. I love that smell. It is still quite early so not many people are here. I spot Dan behind the counter. He is taking an order from a teenage boy. When he looks up I look at his eyes again. The eerie black of them is what is making me fall in love with him. He is so full of mystery. Those eyes hide many secrets. I walk to the back of the line. I make eye contact with Dan and he smiles at me. My heart beats faster. I am sure my eyes are pink by now. I cover them with my hands. Ugh, I wish I could control them. I make it to the front of the line. "Hey Phil." Dan says. His eyes are still the beautiful pitch black. I am not a happy person, Phil. I replay his voice in my head from just yesterday.
"Hey Dan." I reply. I wipe my hands on my shirt. He whispers something to a girl behind the counter. He walks out from behind the counter and walks towards a booth in the corner. He beckons me there. I walk and sit on the chair across from him. We make eye contact for a while. He blinks, distracting me from his dark eyes.
"Your eyes are pink." he states. I feel my face going bright red with a blush. He looks at me more. "Do you..." he begins.
"Yeah." I finish for him. I know what he is going to say. His black eyes widen a bit. I awkwardly move my fringe from my eyes.
"I like you too." He says, partially stuttering. I let out a small sigh of relief.
DAN'S POV
I bite my lip, trying to hide a small smile. He lets out a small breath that seemed as if he'd been holding it for a while.
"Dan?" He says, his voice full of excitement. He looks like a happy puppy. His eyes are a bright green. What's gotten him so happy all of a sudden? I look at him. I realise I am falling in love with Phil. I smile at him. He covers his mouth with his hands. Why is he so happy right now? Well he's usually happy, but never this happy...
"Dan!" He repeats, sternly but still happy.
"What?" I reply. I lean closer towards him.
"Your eyes..." He says, eyes wide with happiness.
"My eyes... what?" I ask, anxious to hear what he means. I think I know.
He replies,
"Dan... your eyes are pink."