~ Chapter 1 ~
Ally stared at the books on all the shelves. She pushed her black rimmed glasses up her nose, and watched the person browsing the books. She sat mindlessly on her chair, with a computer in front of her. She played with the collar of her blouse, and moved it away from her neck.
She felt like she was being suffocated, and it wasn't an odd feeling. She got it all the time. Ally watched the woman pick up a book, and she began to walk over to her desk. She handed Ally the book, and she stamped it quickly, then handed it back with a shaking hand.
"Thank you," The woman muttered, then left the library as quick as she had come, and Ally brought her thumb into her mouth, chewing the side of it.
It was five minutes before closing time, and she was ready to go home, and curl up on her couch, and watch TV. Ally lived alone, in her one bedroom apartment. It was a small space, but it was fine for her. She enjoyed the quiet. Who was she kidding, almost everything in her life was quiet.
Considering I don't speak.
Ally released a breath of air, and she tapped her fingers against the wooden desk.
I haven't spoken for fifteen years, and I won't ever again for the rest of my life.
She had only managed to get this job, because her mom had done all the talking for her. Her mom had suggested becoming a librarian, because it involved not talking as much, and in Ally's case, not at all. Ally needed the money, so she didn't mind sitting behind her desk for eight hours of the day.
Her mom has always been a huge help in her life. She did everything for her that involved communicating. Also, her best friend Trish did a lot for her as well. She was her only friend. They had been friends since they were babies, and she had been around when she had been talking for the first ten years of her life, so she understood her situation. It was only her mom, Trish, and a few therapists that knew her situation.
She had seen quite a few therapists, but they never got her to talk. It was just them asking a lot of questions, and her blinking blankly, not saying a word. She couldn't. She had only tried once to talk, and she had hyperventilated, having a panic attack in the middle of the street.
The door opened, and Ally looked over to see Trish standing there. Relief fell on Ally's face, and Trish walked over to her desk.
"Have you almost finished work?" She asked, and Ally nodded her head. "Good, because we're going out!" Ally's eyes widened, and she shook her head. "C'mon Ally, you need to let loose for a while. We're going to go to a bar, and have some drinks."
Ally shook her head again, and Trish sighed. "Ally, it'll be fine. I won't let anything happen to you...I promise."
Ally blinked, and she glanced at the computer. She turned it off, and grabbed her bag. Trish smiled, and grabbed her hand. "Ally, I promise," Ally stared at her for a few more seconds, then nodded her head. "Good, I'm already dressed, so let's go and get you ready," Ally glanced down at her pale pink dress, and her grey cardigan. "You can't go to a bar dressed like that, now c'mon," Trish nodded towards the door, and they both walked out. Ally locked up the library, and she got into Trish's car.
They drove for ten minutes until they came to her apartment building. They got out, and made their way into her apartment. Ally awkwardly stood in her lounge/kitchen, and looked at Trish. She reached out, and pulled her along to her bedroom. Ally sat down on her bed, and watched Trish rummage through her closet.
She played with her shaking fingers, and stared at her reflection in the mirror, which was hanging from her bedroom wall. Her skin was pale, and she had bags under her eyes. She slipped off her glasses, and placed them on her nightstand. She rubbed the back of her neck, then released her hair from its ponytail. It cascaded down her back in messy curls of brown and blond. She only saw dullness.
That's what I am...dull.
"Here, this dress will do," Trish held out a dark blue, chiffon dress, and her black leather jacket. Ally didn't like how short the dress was, but Trish passed her the clothes. Ally quickly changed, and the dress stopped at her upper thighs. She awkwardly twisted her legs, and bit her bottom lip. She felt uncomfortable.
Trish turned around and gasped when she saw her. "See, you look beautiful," Ally shook her head, and Trish tutted. "You do Ally, you need to have more self-confidence."
Trish moved Ally's hair, so some of it rested over her shoulders. She brushed some of the stray strands from her face, then smiled at her. "If you feel uncomfortable at any point, you tap three times. On your leg if you're standing up, or on the table if we're sat down, and we will leave straight away," Ally nodded her head, and Trish sprayed some perfume on her.
They walked out of her bedroom, and Trish handed her a black clutch. Ally saw her only pair of heels by the door, and her feet curled inwards. She hated how uncomfortable they were.
Who am I kidding, everything in my life is uncomfortable!
Ally slipped them on, and followed Trish out of her apartment. They made their way back to Trish's car, and Ally could see the sun beginning to set. She got into the passenger seat, and she played with the hem of her dress. She tried to pull it down, but every time she did, it pulled it lower at the top, showing more of her breasts. She decided that she'd rather it be short, then have it flashing her breasts.
They drove for a while, until they pulled up outside a bar called Ed's. She could see motorbikes parked outside, and she swallowed the lump in the back of her throat. She could already hear the loud noises coming from inside, and she immediately wanted to tap three times.
...
Austin was sat at the bar, spinning his beer bottle around, before taking another sip. His eyes were heavy, and his throat was sore. He had just finished having a massive fight with his older brother Tyler. They both lived together in a shitty house, which was falling to pieces.
His brother Tyler was an alcoholic, and a frequent drug user. Austin was a keen drinker, but he never touched drugs. Both of their parents were dead and gone, leaving just them two behind. They always fought, it was just the way they were with one another. By tomorrow they'd be back to normal, and Austin would be cleaning up all his mess, getting him out of all this shit he was knee deep in.
Austin finished off his beer, and asked the bartender for another. He nodded his head, then a few seconds later, another beer was placed in front of him. He could hear the loud roar of bikers from behind him. He knew a few of them, hell he even considered some of them his friends, but tonight he just wanted to drink, alone.
He was always going from one group to the next. He had to, because somehow Tyler managed to screw things up, and piss someone off, and Austin was left to clean up the mess. They had moved houses three times, because he had fought with drug dealers, and people from local gangs. He could never keep his temper under control.
Austin had a short temper. He got it from his dad, and so did Tyler, which was the reason why they both got into arguments all the time. They couldn't help it.
Austin had a job as a mechanic. He needed the money, but it still wasn't enough. It was never enough. He was always left to pay the drug dealers money, because Tyler didn't have any. Most people would've left him to sort out his own problems, but Austin firmly believed that 'blood is blood', meaning no matter what Tyler does, he's still his brother, and he would always help him.
Austin chugged down his beer, and quickly got another one. He rubbed his eyes with the heel of his hand, then sighed. He was sat on the stool in his black leather jacket, a worn grey top, and his baggy trousers, which had rips in, and were tucked into his black work boots. He never considered himself a person to care about his appearance. He didn't go out looking for attention. He didn't like it.
Austin glanced down the bar, and saw two women standing a few stools down from him.
"Sit down," The shorter girl ordered, and the taller girl shook her head frantically. Austin couldn't see her face, as her back was to him, but he could tell she didn't want to be here. He could see her body was trembling. She reached her hand out and tapped on the counter three times. "Ally, no. We just got here," The girl grumbled, and the girl he now knew as Ally, continued to tap on the table in sets of three's.
What the hell is wrong with her?
Austin looked away, and took a sip of his beer. He glanced back at them to see the darker skinned girl was forcing Ally to sit on the stool. She continued to shake her head, but the other girl waved at the barman.
"Can I get two beers?" The girl asked, and he watched Ally shake her head. She shifted on the stool, and Austin finally caught a glimpse of her face. Her skin was flawlessly pale. She had plump pink lips, and he glanced at her deep brown eyes.
Whoa, what the fuck, stop staring!
Austin looked away, and he knocked back his beer. He heard the drinks being placed down in front of them, and he glanced back at them. He cursed to himself, but he watched as Ally pushed the beer away.
"What do you want then?" The other girl asked. "Do you want water?" Ally nodded.
What? Could this girl not speak for herself?
Soon a water was placed in front of her, and Austin told himself he should leave, but he didn't. He stayed where he was.
"I just need to go to the toilet," The girl said, and Austin watched as Ally's eyes widened, and she shook her head frantically. "Ally, don't worry. I'll be back in a few minutes," She left the girl at the bar, and she took a nervous sip of her water. Austin looked away, and he stared at his beer.
He could feel someone's eyes on him, and he quickly took a sip of his drink.
"This is from the guys on that table over there," Austin glanced over and watched the girl stare at the new alcoholic drink in front of her. She stared at the barman, then looked at the group of men, who were smiling.
Her eyes searched around the bar, and her eyes landed on him. She suddenly froze like a deer caught in the headlights. He watched as her finger began to tap on the counter in sets of three.
"Hey darlin'," Her gaze tore away from his, and she glanced at the man who had slid up next to her. Austin watched her finger move faster on the counter.
Kind of like a distress signal...
He squinted, and saw the scared look on her face.
That is a distress signal.
Austin placed his beer on the counter, then he got to his feet. He watched as the man slowly reached out and went to touch her shoulder, but Austin got there first. He grabbed the man's wrist, and they both looked at him.
"Can't you see she's uncomfortable? Go, and find someone else to harass," He growled, and let go of his wrist.
"Alright man," He walked off, and he turned his head to see her staring at him. She blinked, innocence's on her face.
"A thank you would be nice," He muttered, and she just gave him a blank stare. "Whatever," Austin walked off, and returned to his seat. He could feel her eyes still on him, and he went to snap at her, but she got to her feet. He watched her walk over, and she grabbed a napkin from the counter, then reached behind the bar, and found a pen. She began to scribble something down on it, then she held it out to him. He saw that her hand was trembling, and he carefully took the napkin away from her.
He glanced down at the letters on the napkin: Thank you.
"What? Are you mute or something?" He took a sip of his beer, and she slowly nodded her head. "Oh..."
She looked at him with her wide, doe, brown eyes, and Austin placed his beer down with a thud. Austin saw someone walking over to them, and he realized it was her friend.
"What did you do to her?" The girl snapped, her voice pouring with venom.
"Me? I didn't do nothing!" Austin snapped back, and Ally began to shake her head at the girl.
"Oh, sorry," She mumbled. "I'm Trish by the way," Austin looked her up and down, then turned away from her.
"If you know your friend is uncomfortable around other people, you might not want to leave her alone at a bar with drunk men, especially if she's mute. It doesn't take a genius to work that out," Trish squeaked, and she grabbed Ally's wrist, pulling her away from the bar, and out of the exit.
Austin quickly finished off his beer, then ordered another one. He glanced down at the napkin that was still on the wooden counter. He stared down at her etiquette writing, and he turned to look at the exit.
Without a second thought he slipped the napkin into his pocket.
AN: Hi! I hope you enjoyed the first chapter, so please leave me a review to let me know whether I should continue. Updates will be every weekend, since I'm very busy on weekdays :)
Song: Hozier - Arsonist's Lullaby
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