^^this song I put in is used later in the chapter so listen to it if u don't know what it is (it's terrible things by mayday parade) yeah the lyrics in the video are kinda off sometimes but oh well (I'm sorry if u cry bc I did too ok)
I just realized that this story started out around the beginning of December but I never had Christmas in this and the weather is kinda off bc no snow?? Oh well haha but merry (late) Christmas guys!
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"I know you're tortured within,
And your eyes look hungry again
But I'll never wander, my friend
I let you down,
And I started to run,
Never meant to be your pain.
Oh my god, what have I become?"
~ Tangled In The Great Escape by Pierce the Veil
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"Do you think my uncle will find us, Mikey?" Ashton questioned the cat as they laid down in Ashton's small bed, trying to fall asleep. He had left Luke awhile ago, feeling like a burden to the boy. Michael simply looked at Ashton as he curled up by his side, his yellowy green eyes glowing in the dark.
Ashton sighed, letting his lungs completely fill with air before he breathed out again. His fingers lightly pat Michael's furry head, making the cat lean towards his touch. Ashton realized he would be a lot more lonely without the black cat, although he reminded Ashton of his old best friend. It brought back painful memories Ashton had been trying to swallow down and forget for a long time.
His eyes were refusing to grow heavy, and he knew this was bad. It gave him time to think, and thinking was never good for Ashton. His thoughts went from simple things to slightly upsetting things to things that Ashton didn't want to think about (like how much he didn't like himself).
Hearing Michael's slight snores from beside him (he had no idea cats snored) Ashton's eyes trailed to where he sleeve slipped down on his left arm. He reached out to the skin, lightly trailing one of his fingers down it.
Old scars. They never went away from when Ashton was in high school, being a constant reminder of how much those years sucked. They were very faint, so you'd have to be expecting them to be there to see them.
He shook his head, pulling his sleeve back down. Knowing that Luke could potentially see what he was doing made Ashton nervous, restricting him from doing things Luke would hate him for.
Ashton squeezed his eyes shut, forcing himself to finally fall asleep.
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"Oh my stomach's tied in knots, I'm afraid of what I'll find if you wanna talk tonight-" Luke softly sang to himself as he strummed his guitar, sitting cross-legged on the grassy earth.
Ashton quietly approached Luke, not wanting to disturb him. He was simply there because he and Luke always met at this secluded field in the afternoon, but now he felt like he was intruding.
"See the problem isn't you, it's me I know, I can tell I've seen it time after time-" Luke paused for a bit, taking a breath. Ashton took that as an opportunity to make his presence known.
"H-hey," he stuttered shyly, making Luke turn around. Instead of being flustered or angry, he smiled widely.
"Hi, Ash," Luke breathed, all white teeth and a dimple popped on one of his cheeks. He patted the ground next to him, beckoning for Ashton to sit down.
Ashton sat at a safe distance, feeling a little awkward as he glanced over at Luke, his eyes accidentally flicking down to his lips. To think that those lips were on Ashton's stomach not that long ago made him blush and squirm. He knew Luke was only doing it to help, but it still made Ashton nervous.
They sat quietly, Ashton afraid to say anything in fear he'll say something stupid. Luke studied him, a small smile on his face as he set his guitar on the ground.
"Aw, don't get shy on me now." He teased, nudging his shoulder against the hazel-eyed boy's. Ashton couldn't help but blush, a shy smile on his lips as he avoided Luke's gaze.
"Sorry," he stupidly muttered, plucking dried up blades of grass from the ground. Luke frowned, not even realizing as he shifted closer to the smaller boy.
"No need to apologize." He simply reassured, making Ashton shrug.
After a tense silence, Luke smiled sheepishly at Ashton. He looked down at the boy, leaning over so he could look at Ashton's face, "Y'know, I knew you were standing behind me the whole time when you got here. I just pretended like I didn't so I wouldn't embarrass you." The angel confessed, making Ashton's cheeks turn red as a smile grew on his face. Luke chuckled, "Oops, I think I just embarrassed you now."
They were quiet again, making Ashton frown a little. He hated how he was even more awkward around Luke now, but he didn't want to talk about what happened yesterday. Just when Ashton thought he was comfortable with Luke, he had to screw it up by being stupid and shy. Luke was just trying to help him, that was his job, wasn't it?
Luke sighed and picked his guitar off the ground, gaining Ashton's attention. Luke turned to him so they were face to face, his lips curving into a small smile.
"Any songs you wanna hear?" Luke raised an eyebrow, adjusting the instrument slightly. Ashton's heart tripped up and stuttered (as if mimicking how he spoke) at the thought of Luke singing to him, as stupid as it sounded.
"U-uh..." Ashton thought for a moment, biting his lip to hide a smile. "Maybe... Terrible Things? By Mayday Parade?" Luke immediately smiled in recognition, shaking his head teasingly.
"That song is so depressing, Ash." Ashton just shrugged, his face burning a bit. Luke bit his lip as the shorter boy looked down in embarrassment, avoiding Luke's gaze. The blonde boy's eyes softened, feeling bad for embarrassing Ashton again. "I know you like that song," Luke continued, making Ashton look up at him with hopeful eyes. "And I'd love to sing it to you, even if I'll cry at the end." Luke joked, making Ashton giggle. Hearing Ashton's laugh made Luke smile widely as he opened his mouth to sing,
"By the time I was your age, I'd give anything," Luke began softly, hands simply resting on his guitar. "To fall in love truly, was all I could think." His voice sent chills down Ashton's spine, the good kind of chills. The best kind. Luke paused for a moment, staring into Ashton's eyes and smirking slightly. "That's when I met your father, the boy of my dreams-"
"I-it's mother, and 'the girl of my dreams.'" Ashton squeaked and played with his sleeves, making Luke's smirk grow.
"I'm singing this song to you, and you're a boy. Right?" Ashton's face grew hot as he slowly nodded, not even bothering to argue further. It was kind of sweet that Luke did that, in a way. Luke smiled and continued to sing,
"The most beautiful man that I'd ever seen," Ashton blushed even harder, even though it was just the song and he was sure Luke didn't mean that. "He said..." Luke stopped, looking at Ashton expectantly.
"What? You want me to sing, too?" Ashton sputtered nervously as Luke nodded. "But I can't--I'm not good at singing like you are." He crossed his arms, looking down at the grass sadly. Luke reached over, gently touching Ashton's arm to get his attention.
"Your voice is amazing, Ash. Ive heard you sing many times--when you thought you were by yourself, anyway--and I want hear it in person. Please?" Luke gently urged the boy, who looked doubtful.
"Fine, but I'm really not that great. I don't know what you're talking about,"
So they sang together, Ashton singing particular parts by himself. He was almost too quiet for Luke to properly hear, but he thought Ashton's voice was beautiful.
By the end of it, Luke's heart clenched when he saw Ashton's bottom lip tremble and tears well up in his eyes. He quickly moved his guitar out of the way as Ashton wiped away a tear that rolled down his cheek. He was trying hard to stay composed, hating the thought of crying like a baby in front of Luke.
"And you said that you would be the one crying," Ashton hiccuped, shaking his head. "I'm sorry, that song always makes me tear up." Luke smiled gently,
"Aw, that's okay. I think a lot of people cry over that song," Luke chuckled, but immediately frowned when Ashton pressed his lips together tightly, only to burst into tears. "Oh, Ash."
Luke scooted over and tried to hug the sobbing boy into his chest, but Ashton weakly pushed him away, shaking his head rapidly.
"I-I'm fine-e, I'm s-sorry I'm just--" Tears ran down Ashton's face, some dripping all the way down to his chin. He sniffed and breathed sharply and shakily, his face scrunching up with tears.
"C'mere, Ash, it's okay." Luke soothed, and the boy thankfully let him comfort him. Ashton rested his head on Luke's chest, letting Luke wrap his arms around him. Luke reached down with one of his hands and wiped away the tears with his thumb, frowning sadly at the boy.
"T-the s-song means s-something to m-me--" Ashton mumbled into Luke's chest in between shaky breaths and tears. He sniffled and held on tightly to the angel as Luke rubbed his back.
"I know," Luke muttered soothingly, tilting his head down to bury his face in Ashton's hair. Luke closed his eyes, his hand making circles on Ashton's back. Thankfully, Ashton began to calm down, his breathing slowing down and his tears stopping. But he didn't let go of Luke, and Luke was fine with that.
"Thank you." Ashton softly whispered, still hiding his face in Luke's warm chest.
"Anything for you," Luke found himself saying again, just like he did yesterday when he was healing Ashton.
But he really meant it, even if Ashton thought Luke was just there because he had to be. Because he was 'sent' by god or whoever was in charge of the angels.
Little did Ashton know, Luke was the one who begged to be sent down in the first place.
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Kind of a filler chapter idk
AlsO I DON'T WANT CHRISTMAS BREAK TO EVER END BECAUSE I HATE SCHOOL NO