white noise

⋯ ❛ YOU NEVER KNOW. MAYBE WE WILL HAVE SNOW this year, ❜ she said, although she was well aware that the possibility of that happening was quite small. a soft sigh fell from her lips and she shook her head, before moving her hand to brush her hair away from her face. ❛ are you excited about halloween? or christmas? ❜ harper questioned curiously, even though it was still months to go. ❛ i usually start shopping for my christmas presents early, mostly because i hate going to the shops when it’s packed. ❜

⋯ ❛ IT’S OKAY, ❜ josephine spoke quietly and softly, keeping her eyes trained on him ash e placed the box under his arm as he had stepped forward. i just uh, i haven’t been in the best place lately. didn’t want you to deal with that. ❛ leo, babe… ❜ swallowing against the lump in her throat, she shook her head and walked over to him. putting her hand carefully on top of leonardo’s shoulder, she squeezed it softly before tilting her head a little to the side. ❛ i –– whatever it is that you’re going through, i want you to know that i’m here for you. i’m going to be there for you, if you ever feel the need to talk to me about whatever is going on in your head. ❜ taking a deep breath, josephine moved her hand to his face and gently caressed his cheekbone with her thumb moving across the skin. ❛ hey, i REALLY DID MISS YOU. ❜

leo shook his head a little at that. it wasn’t okay. he knew deep down that it wasn’t okay. there was no justification for ignoring anyone, let alone her. he took a deep breath, moving to set the box down on the ground as she stepped towards him again. the last thing he wanted was to drop it again. “yeah,” he let out gently as she said his name, looking down at her intently as her hand came to rest on his shoulder. if only it were that easy to talk to someone about it all. he knew deep down, though, he couldn’t talk about it. he just couldn’t. he took a deep breath, giving her a small nod. “yeah, i’m sorry.” he let out again, knowing that she was only telling the truth. “i’ll be okay. just needed a few days to get my head straight.”

⋯ NARROWING HER EYES A LITTLE, harper shrugged her shoulders when he shook his head at her offer. ❛ okay, if you’re sure, ❜ she spoke softly, keeping her dark eyes locked with the hot chocolate cup that rested in-between her hands. ❛ it’s pretty insane, isn’t it? how the stores put up halloween and christmas stuff at the same time, ❜ she said and laughed, while her hand pushed through her raven-colored hair. ❛ i’m excited about christmas though. and i really hope it will snow, i mean… snow is MAGICAL, don’t you think? ❜

⋯ JOSEPHINE WAITED FOR LEO to put everything away, and when he rose to his feet, a soft giggle fell from her lips at the sound of his voice. ❛ hey, ❜ she whispered, tilting her head a little to the side as she watched his every move. licking her lips absentmindedly, josephine wanted so DESPERATELY TO KNOW what’s going on with him, as there was clearly a lot going on in his head. when he pushed a hand through his hair and no words followed, she decided to take the next step. ❛ i’ve missed you… ❜

even despite leo not being around near as much as he should have after their night together, here she was, still treating him the same. he didn’t deserve it. god, he knew now that he absolutely didn’t deserve it. he placed the box under his arm as she stepped towards him, shaking his head a little at her words. “i’m sorry,” he immediately responded. “i just uh, i haven’t been in the best place lately. didn’t want you to deal with that.” he let out, shrugging his shoulders a little. 

“hey, not quite.” seb chuckled softly as he stepped further into the shop. “i came in to see if you needed a hand. i saw you with the boxes and next thing i knew, you both disappeared.” the male smiled softly and walked closer, kneeling down to help gather what had fallen. “you alright, leo?”

leo relaxed as soon as he realized it was only seb. it was a relief because he knew he didn’t have to have his guard up around him. thank god. “thank you,” leo let out sincerely as ever, genuinely appreciative of his help. the younger sighed softly as the question arose and nodded his head a little. “yeah, it’s been a long week.” he murmured out. long week, long month, long year, he figured it was all the same, really.

NARROWING HER EYES A LITTLE BIT, harper blinked and looked at the male standing in front of her, who looked a little out of it. ❛ uhhh… are you okay? ❜ she questioned and looked at the male with a curious expression on her face. ❛ and, just so you know, it’s not halloween yet, ❜ she said and laughed, shrugging her shoulders casually before taking another sip of the drink. ❛ can i get you anything? ❜ harper questioned, pointing towards the door of the starbucks building. ❛ you don’t have to get anything hot, by the way. ❜

AS JOSEPHINE HADN’T SEEN LEONARDO IN WHAT felt like forever, she went to the vinyl shop, in hopes to find him there. she was worried about him. it seemed like he had a lot on his mind. as she opened the door and walked into the vinyl shop, the sound of the bell announced her arrival and once she entered the room, she heard the familiar voice she had longed to hear. hey, we’re closed. ❛ oh, i’m really sorry, mister. i just wanted to check if this cute guy who works here, and is also in a band on his spare time, is in. i haven’t seen him in a while and i thought i’d stop by and hopefully catch a quick look of him, ❜ she said and chuckled softly as she walked over to the counter and leaned against it. ❛ i believe his name is leo? and he has this cute smile and hazel eyes? would you happen to know where i can find him? ❜

leo kneeled down to begin cleaning up the mess, although the voice that followed the bell indicating that someone had come in was enough to make him freeze in place. josephine. he closed his eyes as he listened to her, cursing gently under his breath. truth was, leo had been having a hard time dealing with, well, everything. the best way he knew how to deal with any of that was shutting everyone out, too. her included. he figured everyone else would just be better off, honestly. he cleared his throat, hands making quick work of picking everything up before he placed it all back into the box. he rose to his feet slowly, “hey, j,” he let out gently, unsure as to where to begin. an apology would be a good start. he pushed a hand through his hair and no words followed. 

HARPER KNEW THAT IT PROBABLY looked a little weird, that she was enjoying a cup of hot chocolate in the middle of august, especially as it was still pretty warm outside, but she was excited about fall and winter coming up. it was her favorite time of the year. ❛ am i the only one who is excited about halloween coming up? and the fact that pumpkin latte will be back at starbucks? ❜ harper said and giggled softly, looking up at the person who stood in front of her from behind the hot chocolate cup she had bought earlier. ❛ as much as summer is pretty and all, i’m so excited about fall –- when you can wear jeans and big sweaters and beanies without sweating away, you know what i mean? ❜ she said and laughed softly. 

━━ the words shot andy backward. up to this point, she’d thought she was helping – or trying to at least. had she overstepped? inserted herself into a situation leo didn’t want her in? he clearly hadn’t meant for her to hear about it. fear that she was simply making things worse had andy taking a couple of steps backwards and away from leo. “right. i’m – i’m sorry. I was just trying to help.” a fact that seemed silly now. “I didn’t mean to - I’m sorry.” 

as soon as he’d seen the look on her face he felt sick to his stomach. he shook his head quickly at himself, looking up for a moment as he forced out a breath. “see,” he let out slowly, “this is what i didn’t want. i never wanted to hurt you or make you upset, okay? believe me.” leo told her sincerely with a slight shake of his head. it was true. that was the last thing he’d ever wanted to do. “i’m sorry.” he let out before he pulled open the door and stepped out. 

━━ it wasn’t what she’d heard that lingered in her mind now. it was what was right in front of her; leo pushing her away. slow steps came to a stop and andy was rocking at her heels before she so much as mustered up the courage to speak up again. “come one, you know chris is already half way to the dog park by now.” it was a lame excuse but it was the only one andy had. even her ever optimist mind wasn’t fooling her into thinking leo would change his mind because of it. 

she wasn’t getting it. leo didn’t want to snap at her. she was the last person that leo ever wanted to hurt, in any kind of way. simply because she didn’t deserve it. he couldn’t let her come, though. god, he couldn’t think of anything that he would hate more. mostly because her coming along would mean lying to her as soon as she started asking questions. he wanted to avoid doing that, too. “andy,” leo forced out again, shaking his head quickly. “please respect my space and let me go.”

CHRIS: leo  CHRIS: hey, i’m only trying to help

❝ i have so many hidden talents, leo, you have no idea, ❞ she said and winked at him teasingly, before pressing her lips together as a playful smile wanted to escape. the way he squeezed her side gently caused the girl to sigh happily at the contact. looking down at him, there was honestly so much admiration inside of her when looking at leo, that she felt like she was going to combust right there and then. yeah? sinking her teeth into her bottom lip, the girl giggled as he moved a hand to brush her hair away from her face, tucking it behind her ear. but i’m glad. you deserve that. you don’t deserve the shit that happened to you, but you deserve this. blinking back the tears threatening to fall, josephine kept staring at him. it meant a lot to hear those words. is that so? i’m all ears, then. she smiled into the kiss as she pressed her body further into his as the kiss deepened. her eyelids fluttered shut and she moved both of her hands from his chest and into his dark locks. she moved her hands back down and she let them rest against the male’s neckline, gently caressing it with her thumbs. a soft hum escaped her lips and she moved her lips from his, and to his jawline, which she began to gentle nibble at. looking up at him, josephine’s smile softened and she completely forgot about the fact that she had been out drinking the night before. moving her lips from his jawline, she made sure to nibble on the skin some more as she moved towards his neck and once she got to his neck, she sucked on the skin before letting his tongue press gently against the slowly bruising skin. 

CHRIS: okay CHRIS: so help me get it?

CHRIS: youre good too. one mistake doesn’t change that. CHRIS: Leo, Andy would take you ignoring her worse than what you think she heard. Trust me.  CHRIS: it’s a small town, you can’t avoid her forever

LINA: Genuine thought! LINA: Aren’t rockstars supposed to be awful in the kitchen? LINA: And FYI— boxed and/or ready-mix stuff doesn’t count

“I keep you around by keeping you down.” the quote rolls off her tongue easily, but she can’t keep the grin off her face. her name gets called and she steps forward to take the first box. there’s about six flavors represented, each in a half batch, and she opens it a little, letting him have a peek. “Sweet treats, hand delivered; which one do you want first?” 

her words were met with another roll of his eyes but honestly, what else was new? not a single thing about that, honestly. leo isn’t even remotely aware of the way his eyes widen slightly at the sight before him. “pb&j. you keep talking so highly about it, i’ve got huge expectations.”