ghost town.

there she was again. mentally preparing herself for a stressful week where, despite being organized to celebrate her sister's wedding, she'd be the center of attention. not to everyone, of course. only to the ones who have made her feel inferior in every aspect of her life when it comes to comparing her with bailey. no love could ever come close to the one summer felt for her sister. trust me, there was no one in the world who could ever care for that girl as much as her, but it all became a little too much when her life was full of achievements and goals reached, while summer watched her own fall right in front of her. it has been around three months since the older dropped out of law school. it's important to state that she never actually liked it in the first place, but her parents had made her follow her dad's steps and she wasn't exactly academically dull, she was actually pretty smart. that's how she managed to get into harvard and pass all her exams for the last two years. still, summer felt like something wasn't clicking. she knew that wasn't her place, she knew she had another calling – but her fear of, once again, letting down her parents held her back. with time, and most definitely a lack of purpose ever since her and aiden had broken up, things ended up collapsing and summer dropped out of university. so the point is, she now found herself waiting for her bags at the airport, bali weather waiting for her outside, and all she could think about was how to break the news to her parents. “ how much worse can it get? they're already pretty disappointed in you for throwing away a seven year relationship with the guy they absolutely adored.. worse case scenario, they disown you! ” she shivers at her own words, shaking her head before looking around for a second. “ okay, your parents already think you're crazy, no need to make everyone else believe that too.. ” as her eyes fall back on the baggage carousel, she reaches for what seems like her bag, only to feel her hand get swallowed by someone else's. “ oh, sorry! that's my ba– ” you have got to be kidding me.

     being touchy was definitely not one of sin’s traits. actually, he was one of the coldest people you could meet, but every time kai was involved, things turned a little different. was he still an asshole? yeah. but he unconsciously ended up being a little softer with him than with anyone else. like right now, as kai gently brushed sin’s hair off his face, his first instinct was to let him do it, instead of moving back and calling him out on it, like he usually did with everyone else. the older’s hands gently started drawing circles on the other’s skin as he hummed, thinking about his next words. “ i don’t know. i’m kind off brain dead right now. ” he shrugged, taking in a long breath as he tried to think of something.

     it was funny how the two were so different, yet so alike. if mina was being completely honest, she only had this superficial knowledge of the things rae likes or dislikes. that being one of the reasons the girl didn’t really know if they could be considered friends or simply co-workers that seemed to have some kind of weird, yet powerful connection. they both knew they were their co-workers favorite gossip, but that had never changed the way the two – mostly rae – helped each other when needed. matching the boy’s eye roll, mina let out a quiet laugh at his words as the taller’s arm wrapped around her. “ why ask if you’re not gonna give me a chance to actually answer, dummy. ” she teased him before wrapping her own arm around him, not really being able to deny the help due to how lightheaded she felt. the two walked to his car, slowly making their way there. mina only let go once she managed to find some safety by pressing her body against the door – it was not like she’d fall at any point, but it was always better to keep that possibility from happening.

      it was almost ridiculous how sky’s voice made gun feel. there was not a single hint of anything other than a friendly conversation between two exes and the younger could still feel goosebumps on his skin. maybe because it had been too long and the minimum immunity he had once managed to create against the other had completely crashed down at his feet the second his eyes landed on him again. gun simply shook his head at sky’s words, eyes trying to keep eye contact but clearly failing since it took him less than three seconds to break it every time their gaze met. that’s when sky finally offered to take them all back to the vip section. great, now how was gun supposed to run away from the boy? if it was apparently impossible while being in the same bar as him without even knowing it, having the two inside the same room with alcohol involved sure as hell didn’t seem like the safest route. “ oh. s-sure.. ” he barely had the time to say anything back before sky shot him a smile and left the bathroom. gun made his way back to his table, quickly gathering up his friends and making their way up to the vip section. something about the whole moment that was about to unravel made gun extremely nervous – but definitely intrigued.

     everything felt pretty much out of a romance. from how nice the girl was to the shyness that took over malee, it would most definitely end up being brought up in her next conversation with her best friend. the younger kept the smile over her lips as she heard her next words, only to bring up her tiny hands in a failed attempt to cover her face. “ ugh, yeah.. i rushed out of that situation because of how embarrassed i was. not to mention how upset my actual date got once i met up with her! you have no idea. she didn’t complain right away, she just kept saying it was okay, only to continuously keep bringing it up like ‘ oh, maybe if you had gotten here in time.. haha! just kidding! ’ – i swear those have to be the worst type of people. ” malee groaned out before raising her hand, pointing at her small apartment’s window. “ you can stop right there! i live on the third floor. i sure hope you’re ready to go up some stairs, i still have to complain about how long they’re taking to fix that elevator. ” she giggled out as she waited for kida to park her car.

      despite his cold and quiet personality, deep down sin couldn’t really blame kai’s mom for always trying to keep in touch with her son. it sure had to be a noticeable change when her nerdy, quiet and pretty much perfect kid is suddenly going out every night or staying at someone else’s place until late hours – if not until morning. sin clearly didn’t have to worry about that. with his parents always away on business trips or long vacations, paying barely any attention to him, a simple text from time to time to let them know he was alive and breathing was enough. deep down, his annoyance over how much kai’s mom worried about him was almost jealousy – but he would never say that out loud. the older waited as the other gave his mother a heads up before he was turning back his attention to sin. “ good. ” he said quietly before wrapping his strong arms around kai, pulling his upper body on top of his as sin started biting down on his shoulder. “ what time do you have to get ready for your morning classes? it’s clearly not right now but i wanna have some mercy on you and actually let you function tomorrow – or i mean, today. just so you can tell your friends i’m not a full on asshole. ” he scoffed, letting his head fall back into his pillow with a sigh.

     mina could almost feel some disappointment coming from the boy in front of her, which didn’t actually surprise the younger. they had caught themselves in that exact situation a few times before, enough for rae’s worry over mina to sparkle a question inside of her. ‘ is he into me or am i reading too much into this? ’ – that’s the one thought that kept coming in and out of her head every time she laid eyes on the boy. maybe because she was scared the answer to that would end up ruining the quite fragile friendship – if she can even call it that – that the two had built over restless nights and worried glances. mina’s eyes followed rae’s body as he got up from the tiny couch, smiling at him despite noticing his frustration. “ thank you, raerae! i looove ya! ” she raised her voice a little, hoping the other could hear her before slowly trying to stand on her feet. clearly, skipping over meals wasn’t for her. with a quiet sigh, mina grabbed everything she had brought in, putting on her jacket as she walked up to the main door so she could wait for the boy to finish his business.

     if it wasn’t sky, maybe gun wouldn’t have completely freaked out over that dry chuckle, but yet again, it was him. it’s not that the boy was paying close attention to every detail of that short conversation the two were having – but that’s exactly it. still, his thoughts were washed away a bit by the other’s explanation, even though it seemed to show a bit of a nervous feeling behind his words. one that gun almost felt thankful to notice. “ if i’m being honest with you, i didn’t think they’d choose this place either.. but i didn’t want to be annoying and change the spot. i mean.. i’m sorry if it makes you uncomfortable that i’m here. i don’t know, but yeah.. it’s nice to see them again. ” he said, shrugging as he shook his hands, waiting for the other to grab the paper towels before moving to do the same. their closeness almost made his head spin, which ended up making gun move away as he dried his hands. sky’s next question caught the boy off guard. he fought hard against looking up with widened eyes, simply clearing his throat as he tried not to show any emotion or read too much into his question. clearly he was just asking that out of curiosity, it’s not like he actually cares. “ uhm, no. just here with them. trying to catch up with their lives.. ”

     it sure is a good thing that the two are so different. with malee’s all over the place personality and kida’s chill and laid back feeling to her, the two ended up finding balance in each other in a situation like this. somehow, the younger managed to stay quiet for a bit and listen to the older, simply nodding and letting out a sigh at kida’s comment before her hand is taken by the other and the blush comes straight back to her cheeks. needless to say, malee lived in a pretty, pink little universe. she had always been a bookworm and there was something about the other that made her feel straight out of a fairytale. the tiny one made sure to follow kida to her car, holding on to her hand before letting go so she could get inside. “ i love your car.. i just hope we don’t get it all messy with our clothes.. god, i feel like i should keep apologizing but that’s just annoying of me.. ” she let out a laugh, not reaching for her seatbelt since they were stopping right above the street and she didn’t want to mess up the other’s car. “ i just.. hey. i don’t think i said that already. i wasn’t expecting to see you again, much less in these.. conditions. ”

      there was no doubt the relationship between the two could sparkle some talk around the town. sin wasn’t exactly someone unknown and his fame had rubbed a little on kai. maybe because he was the only one the older managed to keep around without getting tired of him after a round or two. don’t get him wrong, there were no actual feelings involved. never had sin felt anything for anyone. it’s always just about the sex. but weirdly enough, kai had the power of keeping sin around without making him bored. whether it was for a quick fuck after a long party or a whole night of messing around while getting high, kai always managed to do a good job. if sin had to describe it some kind of way, he’d probably be the only person he actually assumed to be a friend with benefits. eyes now examined the younger’s face as his so well known pout made it’s way to his lips. on sin’s though, all you could find was a lustful smirk as he shrugged. “ i could almost say you’re getting lazy. ” he teased him some more before stretching his arm that kept kai close to his body so he could grab his phone. sin rolled his eyes at his words. “ every time.. i’m starting to think she knows when you’re with me. ”

      the girl found it quite endearing of rae to try and keep her safe, but that was simply not her way of living her life. she had always been the adventurous and honestly, quite careless type of person. mina wasn’t the kind of girl who sits back on a party just because she felt a bit nauseous before hand – even if that was clearly an understatement when it comes to how she was feeling about five minutes ago. “ even though i would love to spend some time with you, you have to trust me! i have partied in way worse conditions, a little headache isn’t going to stop me from having a good time! ” she chuckled out, patting the boy’s thigh before getting up on her feet, only to be shaken down on her ass again in less than a second. mina moved her hands up, harshly massaging the sides of her head as she let out an awkward laugh. “ okay, maybe i will sit down for a little longer.. but still! if you’re so worried, i’ll let you grab some mcdonald’s with me.. but only if you promise to leave me at the club after.. i promise i’ll be brand new as soon as i get some food in my system! please? ” mina smiled widely at rae, hoping somehow that would make him cave in.

     gun’s thoughts were all over the place and, at the same time, the boy’s head was empty. it sure should’ve been a nice guess to think there was a slight possibility the two would cross paths, especially with him being at the place he was. it would be a lie to say he didn’t know sky kept frequenting that bar, even after the two broke up. call him obsessed, but he sure kept a close eye on the other, only actually letting go around a few months ago when he started dating rain. maybe it was that heavy feeling of guilt taking over, but he couldn’t allow himself to keep checking the boy’s social media with such an angel next to him, trying to cheer him up and keep him feeling his best. but the truth was clear, there was never a moment that rain made him feel the crazy amount of butterflies that were now planted on gun’s stomach as his eyes land on sky. “ hi. yeah.. i haven’t been here in a while. i’m hanging out with.. with some friends. i thought maybe they would’ve told you about it. ” he spoke calmly, wanting to send out the same confidence the other was being able to exhale. eyes moved down to his hands, starting to wash them despite not actually having any need to.

     malee could only imagine how red she was at the moment. not only did she ruin her whole outfit, which was definitely one of her favorite ones, she was also standing in front of the girl that had been taking over her thoughts for days now. a quiet groan escaped her lips before she quickly smiled back at the girl, despite being ashamed of the whole moment. “ kida, i– hey! god, i just made a mess, didn’t i? i’m so sorry! ” she fought back against a pout, even though it was useless since it immediately took over her lips. malee reached for some paper wipes once kida grabbed hers, clumsily trying to wipe some of her drink from kida’s clothes. “ i’m okay! i hope you’re okay! geez, why do i keep embarrassing myself every time i see you.. ” her last words were almost a whisper as her head fell down, eyes on the floor to avoid herself from blushing even harder. her thoughts were a mess, definitely going too fast for her to function. still, after taking a deep breath, the girl tuck her hair behind her ear and looked up at the other, trying not to trip over her next words. “ i feel so bad! please, let me take you back to my place! i live up there, you can clean yourself up better.. ” malee’s hand moved up, pointing up the street as an apologetic smile made itself visible.  

      sin almost felt prideful of the tiny demon he had created. there was once a time when he had to ask the other to turn off his phone, not wanting him to get distracted by anything other than sin. but now, there he was, hiding his face on the crook of the older’s neck, whining over his sleepiness and not even paying attention to the annoying bzzz that could be heard from the nightstand. a quiet chuckle escaped sin’s lips as the other complained, hands gently caressing his back with a smirk. “ you slept enough. you used to be way more energetic than this before, pretty boy. where did all that neediness go, hm? ” he said it all in a teasing tone. that was usually his way of getting what he wanted from the other. somehow, delivering the idea that kai was no longer able to fulfill all his desires sparkled up a flame inside the other, one that sin really enjoyed. it made him feel powerful, almost as if he was the only thing kai could think about – day and night.

      mina felt ridiculous. it’s not like she wasn’t used to drinking, obviously the girl had quite an alcohol influenced lifestyle, but she usually tried her best not to chug down a whole bottle without having, at least, one decent meal during the whole day. whenever rae used to help her, which was actually quite a few times, he usually found her in a funny and way too energized mood, not a barely awake and breathing one. mina took a deep breath as she focused on drinking the water, the boy’s words making her shake her head quickly. “ hey, i’m fine! you know how i work, this will be gone soon and i’ll be okay. i promise you don’t have to worry about me. plus, i have plans.. it’s a saturday night, do you think i’ll be going home, rae? ” she smiles at the boy, grabbing his hand from her forehead and gently squeezing it a bit, then placing it over his own thigh. “ i should’ve eaten something before all that pre-game.. it was dumb of me, i’ll let you call me out for that. ”

     it had been a while since gun last hung out with his old friends. since the beginning of his new relationship with rain, he had pushed himself away from his old habits – which automatically included his old friends, since they were once his ex’s peers too. if he was aware that that was wrong? yeah, he sure was. but gladly everyone understood his need to step away and were extremely gentle when he texted them, trying to make some plans for next friday. despite being nervous, the day had finally arrived and he was excited to see them again. gun stopped right in front of the bar, the one he used to go to every night before everything went down, and took a deep breath. he could feel that funny feeling at the bottom of his stomach, the one he used to feel when his eyes locked with the person he was once madly in love with. he shook his head, trying to shake those thoughts away, and walked inside, his smile growing bigger at the sight of familiar faces. “ hey guys! god, it has been too long. ” he chuckled out, hugging each person before sitting next to them and ordering a beer. the night went smoothly from there, loud laughters and dumb jokes as everyone tried to catch up. gun nudged his friend, not wanting to interrupt the conversation that was going on, and whispered to him that he would be back in a second, then getting up to make his way to the bathroom. as per usual, it was practically empty, the last guy making his way out as gun walked inside – or at least, he thought so. the boy looked in the mirror as he fixed his hair, the sound of a toilet flushing behind him catching him off guard, eyes shooting up as the bathroom stall door opened. he felt his heart sink the second their eyes locked and his body froze, mind blank as he stood there, quiet. there was no freaking way this was happening to him right now.

     “ you’re driving me insane! ” those were the words that kept being repeated by the young girl, this time in front of her mirror as she got ready to go out. it had been two weeks since those funny jokes and charming laugh had gotten stuck inside malee’s brain and it was starting to get desperately exhausting for the girl. surely, this could all have been avoided if malee hadn’t been embarrassed enough by the whole situation to not even be able to ask for the other’s number. but clearly she wasn’t able to, and now she was stuck with only the thought of the other, not knowing if she will ever lock eyes with what could’ve been the love of her life inside her head. “ no reason to be sad now.. it’s not like you can do anything about it. ” she sighed, disappointed smile on her lips before she finally finished getting ready and left her place. the girl had decided to treat herself to some starbucks before heading to her favorite bookstore, that being the only way to cheer her up and distract her a bit lately. soft chuckle escapes her lips at the kind man handing her her drink, a gentle ‘ thank you! have a nice day! ’ leading to a genuine smile from the barista before malee turns around to leave, her clumsy self immediately bumping into someone, causing her frappuccino to spill everywhere. “ oh my god! i’m so, so sorry! fuck, i’m so clumsy! did i– ” she’s cut off by a tiny gasp, eyes meeting with those that had been stuck in her mind for the last couple of days. now that was an unexpected turn of events.