Paint You Wings.

⊱⊱ Riley Van Acker ⊰⊰

"I'm gonna do it." Alex exclaims.

I smiled widely, nodding in encouragement and gesturing towards the door. Jack does the same from his spot next to me, grinning as well.

He stands, taking barely two steps before he spins back on his heel and shakes his head. "Nope, maybe not."

Jack and I exchange glances before we, simultaneously, roll our eyes, letting our heads fall into our folded arms on the table. He'd been doing that for about ten minutes, changing his decision about whether he was going to do it or not every other second. And by doing it: I meant to dye his hair a very obnoxious hot pink. He said that his fans would be so mad at him about it, because they all, apparently, loved his hair.

Jack was intending to get his skunk hair back, something that I found to be ridiculously adorable when I'd looked up old pictures of All Time Low. Blonde Alex was probably my favourite look and when I'd informed him of that, he scowled saying that he would never go blonde ever again.

"C'mon man. It's Warped Tour! Summer!" Jack groaned in exasperation. "It's just a fucking hair colour. The fans will get over it. I bet they won't even pay attention to your stupid face, anyway. Everyone knows I'm the good-looking one."

Alex shot Jack a flat look, flipping him off. "Let's go dye my hair pink." He sighed, although it was easy to see that he was actually excited to do it.

It was the whole Warped Tour, summer and fun sort of concept that made him want to suddenly dye his hair a bright, hot pink. Once he'd told Jack, the taller male decided that he'd go back to his skunk hair, just for old times' sake.

As the two rock stars excited the shop, leaving me with hugs and pecks on the cheeks - Alex's lips lingering on my cheek longer than usual - I went back behind the counter. I was just about to start making a drink when Linc slung his arm around my shoulder - that certain expression on his face. That particular expression he used when he wanted someone to do something for him.

"Can you please go to the supermarket and pick up more chocolate syrup and Oreo cookies and basically all those chocolatey things? I forgot to buy them yesterday." He pouted, blinking his eyelashes at me repeatedly.

With a roll of my eyes, I removed the apron from around my waist, grabbing some cash and my phone. Linc grinned at me, blowing me a kiss as I walked out the door, on the way to the local supermarket which was a ten-minute, give or take, walk away.

Only I never made it to the supermarket.

I bumped into someone and that person who steadied me, recognised me. And I could recognise his voice anywhere, didn't matter if I hadn't actually properly spoken to him since he left.

"Riley?" He questioned once again since I only resorted to staring at him, wondering why he still hadn't let me go.

I nodded, blinking once as I stepped away from him so that his hands from drop from their grip around my upper arms.

His face broke out into a smile. "It's nice to see you again. When you're not shouting at me. Well, I mean, uh -"

I raised an eyebrow. Was that all he really had to say?

Luke brought a hand to the back of his neck, heaving a small sigh. "Look... I just wanna talk. Just... Please. Let me talk."

I started to shake my head, making a move to step around him, but he blocked my way; eyes wide and pleading.

"I just wanna talk, explain things." He repeats. "I promise."



Luke serves me a cup of hot tea as I settle across him on the stool at his kitchen counter type thing. He gives me a tentative smile but I can only manage a half-hearted half smile. It should barely count as a smile, for it immediately slides off of my face a millisecond later.

I don't know why I agreed to letting him talk. I don't know why I followed him back to his apartment which was, oh-so-conveniently, a couple of minutes away from the supermarket which I was intending to go to.

Well, that's a lie. I do know why. It's the whole 'he's my first love so no matter what, I'll always have a soft spot for him' thing going on.

For a long moment, he only stands across from me, leaning on his side against the counter; green eyes - that I often sought comfort in years prior - dancing across my face. I wait for him to say something, anything, but he doesn't. So I reach for the pen that was sat idly on the counter.

'You left. There's nothing to talk about.' I write on the old newspaper that he has on the counter, since he hasn't made a move to start doing the talking he wanted to do so badly.

"I know but..." Luke trails off with a sigh. "I - I didn't mean to... Say those things, you know? I just, I was so glad to be out of that place and I thought you were gonna have to stay in there forever so I didn't want to be with you anymore. That's the only reason why I left."

I narrowed my eyes over at him. 'That's a lie.'

"No, it's the truth. That place just brings me bad memories -"

'You knew that I was given up on. You knew that the doctors and my aunt and uncle gave up on trying to get me to talk. That's not your fucking reason for leaving me all alone. I only had you and when you left, I had no one.'

"I'm sorry, I -"

'You're basically just saying that you've never loved me, aren't you? I was just an asset, since we were both stuck in that hell hole. I was just your convenient escape, wasn't I? You never cared.'

"That's not true! I did love you. And when I broke it off, I was still in love with you but -"

'But nothing.' I scribble quickly, lifting the newspaper up to cut him off.

'I trusted you. I trusted you to confide in. I trusted you to not hurt me, to not leave me, to not... Give up. And you did exactly that.' I shove the paper in his hands, hearing the pen clatter as I throw it carelessly to the side of the counter.

I shake my head, getting to my feet as I make a move to walk away. What he says next makes me freeze.

"You never trusted me!"

I turn, looking at him with a frown on my face. I must've looked very confused, but he let out a laugh. Though this laugh was filled with no laughter, no joy. It was as hollow as a corpse.

"You told me you can't talk. You said it was 'impossible'." He makes quotation marks with his fingers. "I heard you talk. I heard you talking at night. So no, you've never fucking trusted me." Luke spat.

With my eyes wide, I start to shake my head again, slowly, disbelievingly. I feel like the world is caving down on me.

And then I'm running.