Chapter Two: Convenient Fate

Josh walked through the quiet night while his glasses slipped down his nose. A rotting stench suddenly filled the air and made him grimace. He covered his face in disgust and let the faint scent of soap on his fingers fight the smell.

He stopped in front of the convenience store where blinding fluorescent lights spilled onto the dark street.

Josh hesitated. He was a smart sixteen-year-old with critical thinking skills, but his feet wouldn't move. Finally, he sighed and pushed open the massive transparent door.

Wonderful coldness hit his skin like thin ice. He wore a plain white t-shirt that gave his tan shoulders an agonizing flex as he walked toward the counter.

“Hi, miss. Good evening,” he said with a charming smile.

The young woman behind the counter didn’t even look up from her phone. She chewed gum and scrolled with rapid fingers.

She gave him a quick and professional smile that held zero interest before returning to her screen. No greeting. Nothing. Josh stood there as the silence stretched.

The lights felt too harsh and exposing. He adjusted his glasses and clicked his tongue before fleeing to the drinks section.

He reached for the refrigerator handle, but the door wouldn't budge. Even the drinks didn't want him.

“May I help you?”

A deep and pleasant voice roared behind him. It sounded dangerously familiar. Josh rolled his eyes and ignored it.

“You're messing up with the handle,” the voice said.

Josh finally turned around, and the sight caught him off guard. Tristan stood there with sympathetic eyes that made Josh’s stomach twist. Crimson crept through his cheeks.

“Tristan?” he yelled.

His handsome features struck Josh even harder in the midnight light.

Tristan wore a dark blue hoodie, and then the most distracting view hit Josh like a sucker punch.

His gaze dropped to Tristan’s pants. They were a sharp and blinding white that made him memorize every angle and curve.

Josh knew he shouldn’t stare, but the world had contracted to just the two of them.

“Uhm, are you fine, Josh?”

The teasing voice cut through the tension. Josh froze as his ears burned with guilt. He had been caught.

“Of course I’m fine!” he yelled louder than necessary.

He spun around to walk away, but Tristan wasn't done. Tristan’s hand shot out and grabbed the refrigerator handle right over Josh’s. The grip was firm and deliberate.

“Relax, Josh,” Tristan said. His eyes sparkled with a smirk that meant he wasn’t letting Josh off easy.

Josh swallowed hard. Heat spread across his neck. He wanted to squirm, but the grip held him in place. They stayed locked in a ridiculous standoff.

“Are you dumb? This is harassment,” Josh snapped. “It is against the school code of conduct for personal space!”

Tristan’s smirk faltered into genuine confusion. He loosened his grip, and Josh immediately yanked his hand away.

“I’m just helping our President,” Tristan argued as he leaned back and scratched his messy hair.

“I don’t care,” Josh mumbled. He kept his eyes on the floor.

He needed to get away before his racing heart revealed the truth. He hated the way his pulse spiked and his skin buzzed.

He just wanted to go back to a time when Tristan was a stranger.

“Cool t-shirt by the way, Mr. President,” Tristan said. “I also moved a few blocks away.”

Then he disappeared into the night. Josh stood there reeling with a mix of ease and discomfort