Sequel: Afterglow ›
Status: Complete! Sequel coming soon.
Miles Away
One.
John O.C.V tweeted:
I refuse to be infected by the ignorance and fear that's currently swirling in the atmosphere.
The notification flashed across Alex Gaskarth's phone screen as he scrolled through his Instagram one night, boredom slowly getting to him.
The tweet grabs his attention, luckily, considering the account was one of his favourites. It had been since 2012, and he had looked back and liked (and most of the times) retweeted all the tweets.
Of course he had to have its notifications on.
Alex often wondered about the person behind the tweets – all that he knew was it was a guy, and his name was John and that he was from Arizona; the bio said AZ, even if his username did throw Alex off at first.
Just like he usually does, Alex clicks on the notifications as soon as he can, reading over it a few times before clicking like and retweet. A smile graces his face, and he can't help but even type out a reply, something his anxiety kept him from doing most of the time.
@johnmaine all of your tweets and poetry leaves me speechless, how do you do it??
Considering that this guy barely tweeted people back, followed nobody, and had no media or liked tweets, Alex wasn't expecting for a notification saying 'John O.C.V followed' you to flash across the bottom of his screen, and he figures that this just has to be a mistake, but when he checks the 0 next to following has turned to a 1. Was it an accident? If not, what was different about him? He was baffled, his jaw actually slack at what he just happened.
Alex expected the words 'follows you' next to John's user to disappear, so he keeps his app open for a few more minutes but it remains, and suddenly Alex is happier than he's been in a while.
Was this really happening right now?
Before Alex can process this, he gets a DM, and while he's expecting it to be someone that occasionally sends him memes, it's John. Fucking John. Again. He was scared to open it, but with shaky fingers he clicks the small button, and then reads over the short, but kind, message.
Thanks for all the support. I always see you in my notifications.
Another one comes through before Alex can type anything, one that makes him laugh. He knew John was silly sometimes, but he never experienced it first hand. Of course he didn't.
Vibe up, my dude.
He can't help but snort as he reads it, and then while he begins typing something that would probably mark the end of their interactions already, another message pops up. This one nearly makes his heart stop.
Love your tweets. Let's talk sometime. Intellectual on intellectual. Jk I'm actually secretly an idiot.
Or not. Maybe this could mean Alex would be friends with someone he's followed and had some sort of strange crush on forever. Just that thought has him nearly pissing himself, both from laughter and happiness, and he can't even think of a way to reply.
He decides to leave it for a moment while he calms down, taking deep breaths, and then he hunches over on his bed, eyes squinting as he types out his own message.
haha, i'm an idiot too. but you don't seem like one. i would love to talk to you, you don't know how much i'd love it. i kinda adore everything you have to say.
He's scared that this is too straightforward, maybe borderline creepy, but when John replies he feels the anxiety in his body slowly fade.
Apparently, I adore what you have to say... you're the only person I follow, after all.
That was true, Alex thinks to himself, though he's not quite sure what's so special about himself. He won't think too much about it, though, instead taking note on how John always seems to have perfect punctuation and almost perfect grammar. It's something that's pretty rare on the internet these days.
that's true lmao. i'm still kind of shocked.
Would you say you're what the kids call 'shook'?
Another round of laughter erupts from Alex, and he lays back on his bed, pulling the blue fleece blanket over his torso. He hadn't been aware of the humour that John actually had, and he was loving it. He hoped to continue having this in his life, not just this one night.
He could get used to it and having somebody as sarcastic as him in his life, if he was being honest.
His life didn't consist of too many friends at the moment, just three from school, and lately they had been busy with other things, like sports and their academics. Alex was somehow keeping his grades up high enough, and so he wasn't as concerned.
That being said, connecting with someone new, and someone he could potentially have a special bond with was, in his mind, smart. He was hoping not to fuck this up or scare John away already. Or bore him. Either would break his heart – or at least hurt and embarrass him or something.
Although he could try to think of something better to say, he decides on just continuing to say the first thing he thinks, and in his opinion, the conversations going pretty well.
yeah, i'm pretty shook. i really didn't expect for you to follow me at all, and to talk to me?? dude, this is like some kind of dream.
Would you say it's a good dream?
i'd say it's the best dream i've ever had.
Well, it's an honor that I've given you that, Alex. I'm excited to talk to you and see all the kinds of things that you tweets. Before this, all I had were a bunch of ads and suggestions. Seeing your tweets on my timeline will make the twitter experience much more enjoyable for me.
Reading over this, a wide smile immediately appears on Alex's face again. He couldn't believe any of this was happening, and that message? It made his heart warm, as well as his cheeks. He's not even quite sure how to respond to it.
dude, that's too sweet of you. i may or may not be blushing.
Alex takes a moment to look at the time, and when he notices that it's a minute to two, he curses quietly to himself. He has school in the morning, and he has to be up early. He also can't miss any more days, or his morning classes.
as much as i love talking to you, i have school in the morning, and i can't really afford to sleep through it again.
ill message you in the morning tho.
As much as Alex wants to, he doesn't keep his phone in his hands long enough to see the message John sends in response. As Alex closes his eyes and rolls over onto his side, his phone lights up one last time with a message from a somewhat disappointed John.
Sleep tight, man. Can't wait to talk to you tomorrow.
Don't message me before 9 your time. I need my beauty sleep. #dontwakedaddy.
I refuse to be infected by the ignorance and fear that's currently swirling in the atmosphere.
The notification flashed across Alex Gaskarth's phone screen as he scrolled through his Instagram one night, boredom slowly getting to him.
The tweet grabs his attention, luckily, considering the account was one of his favourites. It had been since 2012, and he had looked back and liked (and most of the times) retweeted all the tweets.
Of course he had to have its notifications on.
Alex often wondered about the person behind the tweets – all that he knew was it was a guy, and his name was John and that he was from Arizona; the bio said AZ, even if his username did throw Alex off at first.
Just like he usually does, Alex clicks on the notifications as soon as he can, reading over it a few times before clicking like and retweet. A smile graces his face, and he can't help but even type out a reply, something his anxiety kept him from doing most of the time.
@johnmaine all of your tweets and poetry leaves me speechless, how do you do it??
Considering that this guy barely tweeted people back, followed nobody, and had no media or liked tweets, Alex wasn't expecting for a notification saying 'John O.C.V followed' you to flash across the bottom of his screen, and he figures that this just has to be a mistake, but when he checks the 0 next to following has turned to a 1. Was it an accident? If not, what was different about him? He was baffled, his jaw actually slack at what he just happened.
Alex expected the words 'follows you' next to John's user to disappear, so he keeps his app open for a few more minutes but it remains, and suddenly Alex is happier than he's been in a while.
Was this really happening right now?
Before Alex can process this, he gets a DM, and while he's expecting it to be someone that occasionally sends him memes, it's John. Fucking John. Again. He was scared to open it, but with shaky fingers he clicks the small button, and then reads over the short, but kind, message.
Thanks for all the support. I always see you in my notifications.
Another one comes through before Alex can type anything, one that makes him laugh. He knew John was silly sometimes, but he never experienced it first hand. Of course he didn't.
Vibe up, my dude.
He can't help but snort as he reads it, and then while he begins typing something that would probably mark the end of their interactions already, another message pops up. This one nearly makes his heart stop.
Love your tweets. Let's talk sometime. Intellectual on intellectual. Jk I'm actually secretly an idiot.
Or not. Maybe this could mean Alex would be friends with someone he's followed and had some sort of strange crush on forever. Just that thought has him nearly pissing himself, both from laughter and happiness, and he can't even think of a way to reply.
He decides to leave it for a moment while he calms down, taking deep breaths, and then he hunches over on his bed, eyes squinting as he types out his own message.
haha, i'm an idiot too. but you don't seem like one. i would love to talk to you, you don't know how much i'd love it. i kinda adore everything you have to say.
He's scared that this is too straightforward, maybe borderline creepy, but when John replies he feels the anxiety in his body slowly fade.
Apparently, I adore what you have to say... you're the only person I follow, after all.
That was true, Alex thinks to himself, though he's not quite sure what's so special about himself. He won't think too much about it, though, instead taking note on how John always seems to have perfect punctuation and almost perfect grammar. It's something that's pretty rare on the internet these days.
that's true lmao. i'm still kind of shocked.
Would you say you're what the kids call 'shook'?
Another round of laughter erupts from Alex, and he lays back on his bed, pulling the blue fleece blanket over his torso. He hadn't been aware of the humour that John actually had, and he was loving it. He hoped to continue having this in his life, not just this one night.
He could get used to it and having somebody as sarcastic as him in his life, if he was being honest.
His life didn't consist of too many friends at the moment, just three from school, and lately they had been busy with other things, like sports and their academics. Alex was somehow keeping his grades up high enough, and so he wasn't as concerned.
That being said, connecting with someone new, and someone he could potentially have a special bond with was, in his mind, smart. He was hoping not to fuck this up or scare John away already. Or bore him. Either would break his heart – or at least hurt and embarrass him or something.
Although he could try to think of something better to say, he decides on just continuing to say the first thing he thinks, and in his opinion, the conversations going pretty well.
yeah, i'm pretty shook. i really didn't expect for you to follow me at all, and to talk to me?? dude, this is like some kind of dream.
Would you say it's a good dream?
i'd say it's the best dream i've ever had.
Well, it's an honor that I've given you that, Alex. I'm excited to talk to you and see all the kinds of things that you tweets. Before this, all I had were a bunch of ads and suggestions. Seeing your tweets on my timeline will make the twitter experience much more enjoyable for me.
Reading over this, a wide smile immediately appears on Alex's face again. He couldn't believe any of this was happening, and that message? It made his heart warm, as well as his cheeks. He's not even quite sure how to respond to it.
dude, that's too sweet of you. i may or may not be blushing.
Alex takes a moment to look at the time, and when he notices that it's a minute to two, he curses quietly to himself. He has school in the morning, and he has to be up early. He also can't miss any more days, or his morning classes.
as much as i love talking to you, i have school in the morning, and i can't really afford to sleep through it again.
ill message you in the morning tho.
As much as Alex wants to, he doesn't keep his phone in his hands long enough to see the message John sends in response. As Alex closes his eyes and rolls over onto his side, his phone lights up one last time with a message from a somewhat disappointed John.
Sleep tight, man. Can't wait to talk to you tomorrow.
Don't message me before 9 your time. I need my beauty sleep. #dontwakedaddy.