Mr. Brightside

He woke up with a blinding headache. He sat up, but to quickly. A wave of pain crashed its way through his head. He ran long fingers through his short strands of brown hair, groaning. Clothes were scattered everywhere and a body laid next to his. Long brown hair covered the boy’s face and long dark eyelashes casted a shadow on his pale cheekbones. His breathing was slow and steady, but his eyes moved inside of his eyelids, slowly. The boy looked beautiful, he admits, but the boy was just someone to take his mind off of something. Or particularly someone.

He got up, found his boxers on the floor and slipped them on, walked down the stairs, and into the kitchen. He thought the least he could do was make the boy breakfast. Aaron was sitting at the island reading the paper.

“Morning, Aust.” His bestfriend said, not taking his eyes off the sports section.

“Hey, A. How did you sleep?” Austin asked, pouring himself a cup of coffee. Aaron gave him the ‘what the fuck do you think’ face. Austin smiled, taking a sip of coffee.

“Are you drinking it black?” Aaron raised an eyebrow. The tall man just nodded. Aaron shook his head.

“I know. It’s getting worse.” 



“And sleeping around is not gonna help, Austin. You need to get over him. It’s been a year.” Aaron raised his voice a bit.

“I know.” Aaron got up and grabbed the sugar and half ’n half, putting the contents of the packages into Austin’s mug.

“You are killing me, kid.” Aaron stirred a spoon into the mug, creating a the tan coffee color that they both have grown to love.

“Thanks for taking care of me, Aaron.”



“Any time. Now, I am going to get dressed and go to work. Don’t have a party while I’m gone.” The smaller man started to get up.

“That was one time, let it go.”

Aaron stopped all movements and whispered, “Never.” Then he set his mug on the counter and ran out of the kitchen. Austin smile and began getting out ingredients and supplies for pancakes. The door opened, and Austin turned around to be face to face with the boy. Austin turned back to bowl he had begun cracking eggs into.

“Good morning.” He said to the boy.

“Good morning.” The boy answered back, sitting on a stool at the island.

“I’m making pancakes if you would like some.” Austin poured the milked into the bowl and started to stir the ingredients.

“If you don’t mind.” The boy said.

“Not a problem at all.” He smiled to the boy, his head turned to face him. He faced back towards the bowl, starting to stir the ingredients again. There was an awkward silence.

“How did you sleep?” Austin asked.

“Well, and you?”

“Like a baby.” The boy giggled.

“Umm, I am really sorry, but what’s your name again?” Austin asked. He felt embarrassed that he slept with someone who he didn’t know his name.

“Jace.”

“You have a cool name.” Austin mentally slapped himself, multiple times. He greased up the pan and started to pour the batter into the pan.

“Thanks. Hey, I was wondering who you were talking about earlier and about the black coffee? Sorry for snooping.”

“It’s fine. It was my ex, and he drank his coffee black. We broke up a year ago.”

“How long were you dating?” Jace asked while Austin flipped a pancake.

“Four years.”

“Wow. Was he your ‘Vos es meus unus quod tantum?’”

“What?”

“It means, ‘you are my one and only.’ Sorry, I’m kinda in love with the Latin language.” Jace shrugged. Austin’s face dropped.

“Yeah, I guess he was my one an only.” Austin set a plate of pancakes in front of Jace along with butter and syrup. Jace smiled in thanks and dug in. Austin got his own plate of pancakes, cleaned up, and sat along side him.

“These are really good.” Jace complimented Austin with his mouth full, and still shoveling food into his mouth. Austin smiled and went back to eating. The pair heard the door slam, telling them Aaron has left the building.

“Well, Aaron has left.” Jace nodded and captured Austin’s lips with his. He slid his tounge into the taller man’s mouth and ran a hand through his hair. Austin soon kissed back less enthusiastic as the night before. His mind was still stuck on a particular someone. He broke the kiss and began to cry.

Jace pulled him into his arms. Austin buried his head into Jace’s neck. He thought it felt good to be held again. He just wasn’t being held by the one person that he needed.

“I miss him so much.” He cried. Jace just kissed the taller mans forehead and rubbed his back. Jace knew that he was broke.

“I think I just loved him to much. I really don’t know.”

><

Austin was drunk out of his mind dancing with some of his friends. It was about five months after the break up, and Austin took it really hard. Everything reminded the tall man of Alan. So when his friends offered him to go out to get shit-faced, how could he decline.

Austin was in the middle of the dance floor, when Aaron pointed to a mop of ginger hair. Tears pricked at the taller man’s eyes. Alan was grinding on a guy. Alan then turned around and smashed his lips to guy’s. The new guy’s hands found their way to Alan’s ass, while Alan’s found their way to his hair. Then Alan broke the kiss and whispered into the man’s ear, a smile immediately finding its way to his face.

Alan, then, took the guy by the hand and led him outside. Austin followed them to the front to see Alan talking on the phone. The man lit up a cigarette and inhaled the poison. Alan took the death stick out of his mouth and inhales the smoke himself. After a while a yellow cab pulled up and the two men feel into it after putting out the cigarette, and closing the cab door behind them.

Austin went back into the club, finding Aaron dancing with a bland with makeup caked on her face and big boobs. Austin pulled his bestfriend off of the blonde and yelled over the loud music that he was going home. Aaron nodded and went back to the blonde. He pushed his way out of the club through all of the dancing sweaty bodies, and went home.

“Aaron found me a crying on his couch. Alan was my neighbor and I could hear everything that was going on. It was horrible, so I went to Aaron and I moved here.”

“Didn’t you ever see each other everyday before that?” Jace asked.

“No, I really didn’t leave my apartment.” Austin said softly. Jace traced the tattoos on Austin’s hands. Jace took Austin’s hands in his, and kissed them.

“Thanks for telling me this, Austin. I know its hard to talk about.” Jace said. Austin nodded his head, sadly.

><

They walked into the club, holding hands. Austin still felt like Jace’s plan wouldn’t work, but what did he has to lose? Jace stalked Alan’s twitter page and found out Alan was going to the bar tonight. Austin’s eyes searched the crowd for the familiar flop of ginger hair. Jace tugged on his hand and pulled him over to the bar. They both sat down to be faced with a handsome bartender. Jace automatically let go of their hands and put on the charm, like he did for Austin the night before.

Austin’s eyes still searched for his love when someone bumped into him. The man quickly started to apologize to him when they locked eyes.

“Austin?”

“Alan.” Austin said. He looked good. His hair was cut short and a black fedora was placed on his head. Black skinny jeans covered his legs and an ACDC shirt along with with a leather jacket covered his upper half.

“How are you?” He asked, leaning on the counter.

“I’m okay.”


“Just okay?”

“I’m not good, I’m not bad, I’m just okay.” Austin said quietly. The taller man started playing with his hands, a nervous habitat he had since he was younger. Alan placed a tattooed hand on his, causing Austin to look up.

“I took the break up hard too, Aust.” He said. Austin just shook his head.

“No, I’m great. I have a boyfriend now.” Austin lied through his teeth. Alan caught on.

“Oh, really. Who?”

“Him.” Austin said turning around to see Jace making out with the bartender over the counter.

“Nice boyfriend you’ve got there, Aust.” Alan smirked. Austin rolled his eyes and glared at Jace.

“Are you dating anyone?” Austin retorted. Alan nodded.

“His name is Andy.”

“Still sticking with the ‘a’ names, aren’t you?” Austin smirked a little.

“Yeah.” Alan smiled. There was a silence between them.

“I miss you, Al. I have for every single day that we haven’t been together. I love you so much, that it hurts, and I know you will never be mine again. I just need to tell you that. I’m sorry.” Austin said, getting up. He walked out of the club, ignoring Alan calling his name. Alan pushed way out of the club and ran in front of Austin. Alan smashed their lips together and wrapped his arms around his neck. The taller man was shocked, but soon kissed back. They both put everything that had into the kiss. Everything they couldn’t say or couldn’t explain, was explained. Their lips danced together in a slow passionate embrace, but eventually they need to breathe so they broke the kiss.

“I love you, too.” Alan whispered against his lips, causing him to smile. Austin pulled him closer and hugged him tight.

“But, what about Andy?” Austin whispered

“I made him up.” Alan whispered back. Austin smiled again. But then a thought occurred in his mind, why?

“Why did you leave me?”

“Aus-“

“No, why did you leave me?”


“I was scared.”

“Why were you scared?”

“I was scared of just life, Aust. We were together for four years, and I was afraid you were getting sick of me.” Alan had started cry. How much Austin wanted to wrap his arms around him, but he couldn’t.

“I could never get sick of you, Alan. I love you so fucking much, and it just hurts to think that you could think i could ever do that. I love you.”

“I love you, Austin. I love you so much.” Alan went to hug him, but Austin stepped away.

“I’m sorry, but I have to get my head straight.” Austin said walking away. Alan started to sob. It took all of Austin’s will power not to go back. He just kept walking. Austin never thought he could ever do that. Alan never thought he would.