Freak (Troyler AU)

Chapter Fourty-Three

*Tyler's POV*

It was actually a little embarrassing how excited I was for Troye to pick me up from work. Twenty minutes before he was even scheduled to get here I already had all my closing up chores finished, the only thing left to do was count the money and lock the doors. I had my backpack slung over my shoulders and was repeatedly looking up at the clock, like it was going to jump a good fifteen minutes in the ten second intervals between each time I looked up at it. I wish it would, I really do.

By the time it was ten minutes until he got here, I was starting to get antsy. I couldn't stay sitting in my chair, instead getting up and strolling down every aisle to see if anything was out of place. I knew nothing was, I'd already checked earlier, but it was an excuse to do something other than sit around waiting for him.

When the time rolled around that he was actually supposed to be here, at 5pm, and the parking lot was still empty, I was about ready to lose my mind. I was angry at myself for getting so creepily invested, but also angry with him for being late. Okay, that's not true, I could never be angry at him, but I was definitely irritated. I bit my lip, standing in the middle of the r0om and trying to find something to do that I hadn't done already. When my eyes landed on the office I knew exactly the thing I could do, but I wasn't sure it was the sort of task I'd finish by the time Troye got here. Actually, so what if I keep him waiting, he did it to me first.

I'm going to clean the supplies closet, and it's going to take forever.

I managed to walk into the office and rearrange about four cleaning products, before I inevitably got distracted. Something sitting on the paperwork desk had caught my eye and before I could stop myself I was walking across the room to inspect it, humming softly. I nearly lost it when I realized it was a photo of Bruce when he was younger, trying to ward off laughter at the fact his hairstyle was practically an Afro. After I'd set it back down I realized it was a pointless effort to even try cleaning the closet. I mean, it was a good idea, but why had I ever thought I had the patience to follow through with it?

I sighed in defeat, walking over and falling into the chair by the desk. I'd just wait for Troye to get here I guess, he couldn't be too much longer. I took out my phone, deciding to use my favorite form of distraction; Tumblr. As the minutes ticked by I began to get less and less patient. How late was he now... fifteen minutes? Did he forget he had to pick me up altogether or something? His house was less than ten minutes away, it's not like he could have gotten stuck in traffic either. Ugh, maybe I should just lock up and start walking toward his house. At least then I wouldn't have to put up with straggler customers. I sighed quietly as I rose from my chair, staring at my texts with Troye as if one would come in any second explaining and apologizing for how late he was. It didn't though, and I actually found myself muttering angrily under my breath as I walked out of the room, slipping my phone back into my pocket just as I walked through the door.

"Boo!" My eyes shot open at the sudden noise, my entire body tensing as my head snapped up just in time to watch someone jump in front of me with outstretched arms. I didn't have time to worry about who that someone was before a scream crawled out of my throat, my body instinctively lurching away from the figure. I regretted that movement seconds later when the back of my head smacked against the door, right on the corner so it'd surely form a bruise. I cursed under my breath, bringing a hand up to rub at the spot. Only now that I had a growing headache did I realize the person was laughing like an idiot. Only after their laughter cut off abruptly and they took a tentative step closer to me, did I realize who they were.

"Hey, are you alright?" Troye whispered, his voice so meek it was barely audible. Someone clearly feels horrible about scaring me. It wasn't actually that big of a deal, and the headache was already beginning to subside, but I might as well milk the injury for what it's worth. Maybe I'll get something out of it, like Troye offering to nurse me back to health or something. A guy can dream, right?