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OLIVER FLETCHER

PAST
OCTOBER 2018

Max's words replayed in my head for four days, I should say yes to things more.

Maybe I should bring myself out of my comfort zone for once and surprise myself with how far I could go.

Still feeling suspicious of Max's sudden interest but I guess I'll never know unless I try. I'd be an idiot if I said I didn't find him attractive, he was unbelievably handsome and confident. Everything that I wasn't and yet he still wanted to speak to me.

I hadn't seen him since the night of the party, the rest of it was fairly average. Ruby got drunk and Peter and I had to carry her home safely. Making sure that Peter didn't try to take advantage of her at all considering that she could barely speak or stand up. But Peter puts her to bed and says goodnight to us.

Ruby and I had a hangover day on the Saturday even though I felt fine, we went for a walk and we spoke about how she felt for Peter. I listened because she seemed to like him a lot and I didn't want to barge in with my own opinions but I enjoyed her company.

Classes resumed on Monday and by Tuesday I was feeling a little calmer about the hectic workload. Walking across campus to the art studio, needing to look at resources and materials for my first big project.

My eyes catch onto Max as he strolls out of the same coffee shop as last week, his Americano in hand and jacket slung over his shoulders.

Stopping instantly as I watch him walk away from the direction of the art building, courage builds up in my feet as I grip onto my hands tightly. Finding myself bounding up to him before I turn back around and scold myself for this stupid idea.

My body almost collides with him because I forget to stop, Max glances up at me and takes a step back. A smile covering his face almost instantly as I part my lips, panting slightly from the sheer fear inside my body.

"Oliver," he says in surprise.

"Hi," I let out as I clutch onto my bag over my shoulder tighter.

"What's up?" He questions, the sunlight had begun to set and the golden rays were shining against his face. He raises his palm to cover his eyes so he could look towards me.

"The answer is yes," I say with a harsh swallow.

His dark eyes light up at my response. "Yes to what?" He narrows his eyes to me with a smile on his lips.

"Yes to going out," I say, feeling my cheeks burn with blood.

His head tilts for a moment, his gaze stretching over my face. "Now I didn't see that coming," he tells me.

"I thought about what you said," I admit, my mouth becoming incredibly dry. "And maybe I do need to say yes to things more."

Max steps forward and flashes a full bright smile. "Left a good impression on you then, huh?" He continues to smile, folding his arms over his chest, being careful of his coffee cup.

My eyes flick between his as I gather my thoughts, trying to not say something stupid or cringey. "You're right, uni is a chance to meet new people, make bad decisions."

Max's eyes sparkle in my directions. "Oh trust me, I am a bad decision." He tells me, noticing how he straightens his spine and stands over me for a moment.

"Don't make me regret this," I shake my head to him.

He laughs quietly and looks down to the floor. "I won't," he says confidently. "I'll come by your halls at about six?"

My tongue swipes across my lips as I take in his words. "Okay," I say with a nod. "Sure."

"Great," he says with a small smirk, he takes a step backwards. "See you then Oliver."

Watching as he walks away, my body vibrates with a rush of adrenaline, feeling my heart thump aggressively against my chest. Did I really just do that?

Who even am I?

. . .

Max arrived on time and took us to a fast food American style diner not too far from campus. I wasn't really complaining considering I didn't quite have enough money to dine at The Ritz, I guess it's a student ritual to eat at cheap places and save your money for booze.

"So, Oliver," Max says as he digs his fingers into the basket of chips covered in cheese and ranch sauce.

"No one calls me Oliver you know," I cut in before he gets the chance to say anything more.

His dark eyes remain on mine for a few moments, his jaw chewing softly. "Then what do they call you?" He asks in response.

"Oli," I state simply.

Max shrugs. "You're Oliver to me now, it would be weird if I just started calling you Oli now." He says with a playful smile, piling in more chips to his mouth.

"I mean it wouldn't," I shake my head towards him. "It's more weird that you call me by my full name."

"Anyway," Max says, getting back on topic. "What do you study?"

"Fine art, specialising in painting." I tell him as I reach for my drink, sipping through the paper straw.

"Realism or abstract?"

"Realism," I say. "I just love when paintings are painted to perfection. Clean edges, smooth lines, perfect blending. It just does something to me."

"Well they're going to push you to do abstract as well," Max leans onto his elbows, my eyes glancing over his tattoos.

Inhaling a deep breath. "I know," I say. "I'm already preparing myself for it."

"Who's your favourite artist?"

"Jason De Graaf," I shoot out as I place my hands down onto the table.

Max's eyes widen at me and leans back into his chair. "No question about that then?"

My head shakes. "Nope, he's just amazing. I wish I could be nearly as good as him one day."

"You should show me your art sometime," Max responds in which my eyes find his instantly.

"Maybe," I tell him as I latch my mouth around the straw again. "You study illustrations?"

His lips flick up into a smirk. "You know everything about me then?" He says deeply.

My lips part as I shake my head. "No, it's just from what Peter said. I've got a good memory." I respond quickly before I embarrassed myself anymore.

"Chill," he shakes his head, his brown hair flicking slightly. "But yeah I do illustrations."

"Did you draw your own tattoos?" I ask curiously.

Max raises his wrist to take a look over the random dotted tattoos. "Yeah," he nods towards me, his eyes still latched onto his skin. "That way I knew they were completely original."

Flicking my eyes down to his arms, noticing a small strawberry tattooed onto his skin and then down to a shark with its teeth flexing.

"Do those mean anything to you?" I ask suddenly.

"Does that piercing mean anything to you?" He responds, watching his eyes look down to my septum piercing.

"I mean... no. I just liked it." I say as I pull my jumper sleeves down across my knuckles.

"Exactly," Max says as he leans back and rests his arm onto the back of the seating. "I just liked them."

My lips curve into a small smile at his response, he was right. Tattoos, piercings don't have to mean anything. Sometimes it's about expression of who you truly are, making us individuals.

"I was nervous about today," I blurt out, feeling a blush raise on my cheeks.

"I know," Max says with a smile.

"I thought you were going to be a prick," I admit, then my eyes shoot wide suddenly. "I mean no offence."

Max chuckles and leans forward again. "None taken," he shakes his head. "Can I ask why?"

"I dunno," I shrug as I look down to the table. "I just thought you'd be arrogant, make fun of me or something. I was just a bit cautious as to why you wanted to get to know me. This is completely alien to me if you didn't already know."

"I might look like a fucking douchebag but I'm not a bully or a cunt," he sighs as he adjusts one of his rings on his finger. "I just wanted to get to know you. I liked your style and I liked the chase."

"The chase?" I repeat.

"Playing hard to get," he shrugs simply.

"Ohhhh," I breathe out loudly, causing Max to blink back at me. "You mean people usually fall at your feet?" I quirk an eyebrow up at him.

"I wouldn't put it like that," he responds as he pulls back his head slightly. "But I admire your honesty."

"Just pointing out the facts," I say as I latch onto my drink again.

Max smirks towards me, his eyes remaining on my face. "You wanna go out again sometime?" He asks as he pulls out his wallet from his back pocket.

My shoulders shrug. "Dunno," I say instantly. "I've got a lot of work to do and I don't want to fall behind."

"Fine," he smiles as he drops a couple of notes down onto the table. "Guess I'll wait then."

"You don't have to pay for that," I shake my head as I pull out my card.

"You can just pay next time," he says confidently, raising his eyebrows once to me.

"That's if there is a next time."

"There will be."

PRESENT
JANUARY 2021

"Where are you going?" Jamie asks as I throw on my coat and straighten out the collar in the mirror.

"I'm going out," I respond.

"Where?"

"With some friends from uni," I say as I turn to him. "Nothing crazy, I just need to get out of the house for a bit and take my mind off Max."

Jamie nods as he dries his hands onto a tea towel. "Okay," he says in response. "Have fun. Don't get too smashed."

"Cya Jamie," I nod to him as I open our front door and stroll out of our building.

Meeting a few old course friends at a bar not too far from the university campus, I needed to get out of our apartment before I ripped my hair out and threw a tantrum thinking about him.

By the time I get to the bar and have a couple of drinks, it's like he never even existed. I knew that he doesn't need to take over my mind all the time. I deserved a night off where I didn't think about him constantly because it wasn't healthy to be consumed by someone that hasn't been in your life for a year.

Our group mingles with another when one of my friends spills a drink over a girl, luckily they were kind about it and we ended up mixing.

My eyes were glued to a guy stood tall with short blonde hair and warm brown eyes, stocky arms and broad chest. This was definitely the drinks talking but I could still admire him from a few meters away.

We talk as a group and occasionally we'd catch eyes but it didn't seem like anything more. After a few moments he worms his way around the group and settles beside me happily, his forearm budging mine slightly.

"Hey I'm Oli," I turn to him boldly.

The guys smiles in my direction. "Nice to meet you Oli," he nods down to me. "I'm Christian."

"You having a good night?" I question as I take a sip of my cocktail.

Christian nods towards me. "Yeah, I've had a bit of a rough week but glad I'm out now."

"Agreed," I sigh out towards him.

"I like your jacket," he comments, his fingers picking at the edge of the collar.

"Thanks it's from Urban Outfitters," I smile.

"Is it now?" He says slowly, his eyes flick down to my lips for a split second.

"Yeah," I say with a small smile, my eyes still latched onto his. "I've got loads of jackets at home that are similar."

"Well maybe you should show me," he mumbles quietly as he takes a step closer.

My lips part as I feel my heart rate increase inside my chest. "Maybe I should." I whisper back.

. . .

Chapters 5-9 are on Patreon now. Link in bio or link is www.Patreon.com/dreammcatcher

Hello my lovelies!! What did you guys think of this chapter??

We diving deeper into Oliver and Max's original relationship

I can't wait for you to see the dynamic between the past and present, it makes the heart break even more real!

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