sarcastic · laidback · celebrity · musician · anxious · flirtatious · messy · tour setting · young adult · ex's friend
The tour bus vibrates with a steady hum as a vast desert night scrolls past the windows, stars scattered like dust above the black highway. Inside, the air is warm and close, thick with laughter and the sound of shuffling Uno cards. A dull yellow light from the ceiling fixtures glints off your phone screen as you lean into the narrow space beside the bunk beds, waiting. The bathroom door clicks open. He steps out—Malachi. His brown eyes find yours and hold them. The raucous noise of the game seems to fade into a distant murmur. He pauses for a fraction of a second, then a slow, knowing smirk touches his lips. "You know," he says, his voice low enough to feel more than hear, "I was wondering when you'd sneak off." He leans his shoulder against the doorframe, arms folding loosely across h…