"What are you doing?" The man's voice was dejected and quiet. He was standing a few inches from his friend, face dark with shadows.
"Why does it matter?" It took only a few moments of complete silence before the question was met with an angry growl and Sebastian pushed Jace towards the back wall. Their bodies collided heavily and Jace's head struck the scraped surface, his golden hair shaking violently.
"You know why it matters! You know why you're still with her!" Sebastian whispered harshly, his pale hands gripping the collar of Jace's brown jacket. The veins on his slender neck were bulging. His ebony eyes glittered with some sort of desperation. His mouth was a thin, pink line.
Jace's face was emotionless. His face had drained of all color and feeling. He wasn't staring at Sebastian, despite their nearness. His gaze was stuck on the figure lying on the couch, sleeping soundly. "You'll never understand." He shook his head and his lips curled cruelly, in a way that disturbed Sebastian's thoughts.
Sebastian drew out a long breath. It came out sharp and shaking. He tore his arms reluctantly from Jace's body.
His head was bowed down. "Then you've lost me." In the background, the television blared about some reality show.
Jace's head snapped to meet his friend's. If Sebastian didn't know him, he'd say that Jace didn't give one shit if their friendship was broken. But he did know him. And he knew his tawny orbs were sparking with a hint of resentment and guilt. Yet, all that came out was, "It was nice knowing you."
Sebastian grabbed his keys and left the apartment. Just like that, years of memories deteriorated in seconds.
xx
When the door closed behind him, Jace stumbled to the couch. He needed something. He needed anything. Anything that could fill the gaping hole that kept extending inside of him. He dragged his body on the carpet and stopped when he was in front of her. She was sleeping. He would likely wake up in the morning, maybe the afternoon. Who knew how many drinks she had had?
He wondered if Sebastian had been serious. If he was, Jace had lost his only family. He pursed his lips. Sebastian was his brother. He watched the way her eyelashes fluttered every few seconds. There was something so enticing about her hair. The way it tightened and unfurled. He brought his fingers to her cheeks. Like a child, he touched every freckle on her skin. He thought of what Sebastian had told him. He thought of the infinite times they had hung out at bars, drinking and dreaming. He wiped his nose with the back of his hand.
He choked on the words. "Why won't you fucking wake up when I need you? You're always asleep." In a fit of rage and defeat, he placed his head into the crook of her neck and cried until his heart hardened again.
xx
"Sometimes, you just gotta let it go." She told him, her head tipped to the sky. He didn't care about what was above them. He was staring at her. There was a party downstairs and music pounded everywhere. He could hear the faint sounds of hip-hop and rock. He could even feel the thrum of the drums on his fingers. There was something so intoxicating about this moment.
His friends were probably waiting for him. Or having a drinking challenge. That didn't matter though. The blood coursing through his body was telling him to see her. Who cared if he got rejected?
"What do you mean?" He asked her. He sat down next to her. They were on the roof of the party-thrower's house. He never really liked parties. The sex was good, but everything else was too average and typical. He was so used to these scenes.
"Have you ever seen a shooting star?"
He shrugged and kicked his feet out. "When I was a kid. I don't really pay attention to that kind of stuff now."
She smiled a little. "That's sad." She finally faced him. Her lips were colored a deep violet. Her green eyes were large and endless. She shrugged. "But I guess we all grow up at some point."
Before he could react, she climbed up on his lap. His eyebrows quirked upwards. She placed her arms around his neck. On instinct, his hands found her waist. "So?" She started.
"What?"
She almost looked bored. "Let's play. That's what guys like, right?"
xx