Through the Screen novel Chapter 81

"no noah i can't let you—"

"oh come on, this will look good on you, go try it on," noah's hand reached to the curve of abel 's waist, pressing his fingers in the flesh gently as he handed abel the shirt, abel 's cheeks flushing a light pink as he muttered something under his breath before making his way to the changing rooms.

abel 's muscles were tensing up every second at the thought of facing noah, telling him that all his efforts of making things better are ultimately going to go to waste, that abel is not someone worth his time or his affection or the little hopeful smile noah kept giving him.

he looked over his shoulder momentarily, watching as noah's lips pulled into a thin line as his fingers skimmed over a few patterned shirts, the tip of his nose still holding the zenith colour from the cold. abel sighed, crumpling the soft fabric in his fists as he took faster steps towards the cubicles, quickly getting into one and locking the door behind.

he looked just as miserable as he thought he looked, his hair a mess of frizzy waves and his skin colourless and pale. lumps of tiredness and guilt settled in purple bags under his eyes and no matter how many times he licked his lips, they always appeared to be cracked.

he slumped against the door, dropping the shirt in his hand on the floor and running his fingertips along his face, the pads pressing into the skin of his forehead harshly to relieve the throbbing pain in his head. guilt was pooling rapidly, chaining abel 's lungs into place to restrict them from breathing and birthing lumps to settle down under his tongue so he is unable to speak.

"abel, which one are you in?" noah's voice was soft as it bounced off the walls of the small cubicle and abel opened his mouth to reply but was afraid that he might choke on the giant lump in his throat— so he resorted to simply tapping his knuckles twice against the door to let noah know.

"did you try it on?" noah's voice was clearer now and abel stared at the black piece of clothing on the floor, quickly replacing his jumper with the chiffon material. he didn't like the way the thin fabric clung to the dips in his waist or how it exposed his collarbones just the tiniest bit—his confidence had completely drained and his self esteem was blustering on the last of its flames.

maybe it was just in his head, but he felt like covering his body as much as possible, even the slightest amount of skin visible made him feel self-conscious about nothing in particular, and he pursed his lips before adjusting the collar and heaving out a sigh, unbolting the door so he can show noah what it looks like.

he peeked his head outside the cubicle, watching as noah's eyes averted from his shoes towards abel, a small smile stretching across his lips.

"well come on out, show me," noah beckoned and abel flushed yet again, biting his lip and shaking his head meekly.