Page 127 of Full Body Hit, Part 1

He stared at the message, not expecting a reply but hoping for one anyway, when a text came through. His heart leapt, hand clenching and accidentally shutting the screen off.

He turned it on again.

Charlie

Lol I didn’t know you were vegan???

Aunix

I’m not, it’s just healthier

How are you, baby?

Charlie

Wait, you don’t eat cheese?

What about pizza

Aunix

I eat cheese, I just use vegan options when possible

There are some pretty good vegan cheeses out there you know

Charlie

Hmmmm

Aunix

You didn’t answer my question. How are you?

Auston tapped his foot on the tile floor, waiting for a reply, regret scratching at him like nails on a chalkboard. He should have just let it be—been a distraction for Charlie and left it at that.

Charlie

I’m ok

Kind of tired

I always forget what being here is like haha

Which is dumb because I spent all summer here but I guess I forgot

Auston felt sick at the thought of Charlie spending months on end with that fucking woman. He might not know a lot about her, but he’d learnt enough to want to keep Charlie as far away from her as possible.

Aunix

It’s not easy to keep up that level of tension

It’s not a bad thing that your body learns how to relax when you’re away from her

Silence. Auston tried again

Aunix

Wanna talk later on the phone?