Colder Than My Heart

Lisa pressed the button which would lock her phone after checking the time. She slipped the device into her bag and slung the strap over her shoulder. Pushing her light hair behind her ear she grabbed her keys and swung the front door open allowing the cool summer breeze to whip past her. She smiled contently before shutting the door behind her.

She took in all of her surroundings, using all of her five senses to keep a vivid picture of Baltimore in her memory. She loved being home, she couldn’t ask for more. She hadn’t heard much from Alex since she’d returned home. She’d receive the odd phone call every few days and send him a few texts which he rarely returned but other than that they were close to being strangers.

Approaching a small coffee shop not too far from her house she scanned the windows looking for a familiar face. She pushed against the cold door causing a bell to chime from above her. Her eyes scanned the room once again to no avail. She rolled her eyes; she should have known she’d be late. She glanced up at the menu above the counter and quickly scanned it, deciding what her friend would probably want. She placed the order before watching the short woman behind the counter scurry off.

Lisa leaned against the worktop letting out a low sigh before feeling her cell phone vibrate in her pocket. She attempted to fish out the phone but managed to drop it to the floor before her slender fingers could wrap around it. She groaned, walking towards the small white object before it was swept up by a brunette boy not too far away.

“Here,” was all he said as he stood back up next to the end of the large counter, handing it to her with a warm smile on his face.

“Oh thank you so much,” she breathed returning the smile and taking it from him. “It’s the lack of coffee. Makes me forget what my hands are for,” she joked earning a laugh from the boy. She opened the text, quickly reading it only to find that Kara was most likely going to be slightly late. Lisa rolled her eyes. “Great,” she muttered before sliding her phone away.

“Is something wrong?” The boy asked picking up on her disgruntled expression. Lisa let out a sigh, tucking her hair behind her ear once again.

“I’m supposed to be meeting a friend here but it doesn’t look like she’ll be here for a while,” she explained nonchalantly. “No big deal, I just feel kinda stupid hanging around,” she added causing the boy to nod.

“Tell me about it. The amount of times I’ve been stood around waiting for people, I want my life back,” he rolled his eyes earning a giggle from Lisa. He broke out into a grin at the sound of her chiming voice and she could see it touch his eyes. His eyes were a vibrant blue, the brightest she’d ever seen and she could see the natural happiness dancing in them. He was a good looking guy, she couldn’t deny that. His hair was messy, much like Alex’s but an inch or so shorter. He was tall, with an average physique that complimented him well. It was then she realised she had no name to pin to the boy leaning on the worktop before her and shook her head.

“Sorry, I didn’t catch your name. I’m Lisa,” she greeted. The boy smiled extending his hand in her direction before answering her question.

“Max,” he replied softly. Lisa looked at the hand before her before returning her sight to the owner. She returned his warm smile and let her hand meet with his in a firm handshake.

Alex huffed throwing the phone in his hands across the bus so it landed with a thud in the middle of the aisle.

“Dude what are you thinking? That’s my phone!” The second Alex exclaimed in horror as Derek looked down at the device near his feet and shrugged.

“Yeah, fetch.” He replied dryly as he folded his arms over his chest. Alex Garcia grumbled, taking to his feet to get his phone before going and sitting back opposite the other.

“Why did you do that?” He whined pouting at the seemingly unharmed object.

“Because I can’t beat your high school and anyway it’s not like it’s broken,” he retorted.

“That’s beside the point,” the other rolled his eyes before slipping the phone onto the counter next to him.

“On a totally different subject, how’s Warped been for you so far?” Derek asked popping open a can of root beer and holding it to his lips.

“It’s been pretty good,” Alex nodded, leaning forward and resting his elbows on his knees. “Had some amazing crowds, met some awesome guys, plenty of gorgeous girls. What more could you ask for?” He shrugged smiling up at the two guys who each nodded in agreement.

“Except you’re taken, so that means more for us,” Derek teased earning a high five from Garcia before the two started laughing and Alex rolled his eyes.

“Whatever. When the cat’s away, right?” Alex smirked taking to his feet and swiping the root beer straight from Derek’s hands.

“You can’t do that!” Derek exclaimed with a disgruntled expression written all over his face.

“Why not? She knows what’s going down,” Alex muttered in reply.

“I meant you can’t just take other people’s things. I don’t care about your relationship,” Derek groaned grabbing the drink back before sipping it and walking into the back lounge of the bus. The two Alex’s shrugged to each other before lounging across the place.

“Finally!” Gaskarth exclaimed making sure his comment could be heard from behind the divider separating both half of the bus.

“I heard that!”