intro: hello

so this is a muke fanfic bc lesbihonest its the best ship around am i right

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LUKE

I'm not exactly impressed by my new town. There is no pavement for cars to drive on, only dirt with a couple sharp rocks that could easily pop your tire. The stores are old, with dull signs hammered into the dusty wood walls. Torn tents hang above each front door in a failed attempt for a shady area or shelter from rain. While the inside of the stores are mildly updated, the rest of the building looks as though it's part of a ghost town. I lick my lips, standing on the gravel, and wonder what the hell I'm doing here.

"Okay, so that's the hang out area our school normally goes to- the Mini Mart." my cousin, Ashton, points toward a slightly renovated store among the others. It is flocked with high school kids, all crowding around the few tables set up outside the building. "I'll introduce you to a few friends of mine in a minute." I stare at the loud teenagers, my eyes shielded by my dark sunglasses, so thankfully they can't tell I am looking at them. I break away when I hear Ashton continuing on with his tour, his high voice blabbering about more of the stores and the people who work in them. I could care less, but I shove my hands in my pockets and follow him, dully listening.

Ashton and I walk down the narrow sidewalk, him talking mindlessly and me barely listening. Our shoulders bump into each other occasionally and I apologize quickly every time, while Ashton just lets out this huge laugh that shocks me every time I hear it. It's weird seeing a muscular boy with a tough looking bandana around his head giggle. Thats one of the few things that hasn't changed since I last saw him.

Ashton continues to show me to all the run down areas of the town, and when he finished, he crosses his bulky arms and grimaces. "Not much, eh?" He laughs and dimples sink into his cheeks. "Greenwood is a pretty small town. I don't even think it's on maps."

I smirk and chuckle a little. "Yeah, not much." I look around me, and let out a small sigh. I don't know if I can ever get used to this. The town is so quiet, so peaceful. Where I'm from, I'm used to cars blaring horns and bright lights and sirens, all day and all night. I can't tell which I prefer. As I look around, I see the tall oak trees towering over everything in the town, their bright green leaves slowly fading into brown. A few red and orange leaves are beginning its fall transition into winter, coming loose from its home on its stem and fluttering to the ground. It is rare to even see anything that breathes carbon dioxide in the city where I live. The air is stuffy and over used, unlike the crisp, fresh air here. I take a deep breath and sigh, enjoying the clean air. That is definitely a plus.

I can hear Ashton talking somewhere a little while away, but I am distracted by something I overlooked when I first observed my surroundings- a river. Nearly hidden behind a wall of shrubbery, water flows smoothly, tumbling over rocks. I suddenly notice the sound of the river, magnifying from its even hum now that I am aware of it. Ashton notices my absence by his side and wanders back over to me.

I peer around me for a moment before something caught my eye. A flash of purple disappears beneath two towering stone rocks, providing some sort of a canopy above a stone platform, which is dangerously carved above a strong, rushing river flooding the area, and nearly hidden beneath the forest of trees.

"What was that?" I say aloud, stepping forward as I try to squint and see if I saw any more purple. I don't see anything else remotely close to that color, and I lean back, crossing my arms over my broad chest and chewing on my lip.

"What?" Ashton pipes up from behind me. "Nothing is down there but the river. Don't go down there though, dude. One wrong step and you're gone. That current is strong."

I turn to look at him again, a small shiver traveling down my spine at his words. He grins, two dimples dipping into his cheeks. He turns me around and leads me over to the swarm of students by the Mini Mart. The curls on his head bounce as he walks, while he wears a stupidly large smile on his face.

"I've heard all kinds of crazy stories that have happened down there." Ashton informs me, having to talk a bit louder to be heard over the roar of people as we arrive at the crowded Mini Mart. "None of them are good!" I peek back around to look at the river, and it does look pretty strong. I can't swim very well, either, so I make a mental note to stay away, convincing myself that the purple I saw was only an imagination from my flustered mind.

He then grabs my arm and practically drags me over toward a huge group of guys, all surrounding a table. They are all talking and laughing over each other. My heart rate picks up. I have never been good at meeting new people.

"Guys!" Ashton hollers, and the group quiets a bit and spins around. "This is Luke, my cousin. He just moved here. He'll be here for the rest of the semester." Heat rushes up to my cheeks.

All the guys look over to me and glance at me, muttering a few surprised comments. Ashton already told me this was to be expected, since it seems they do not get new visitors very often, if any at all. They give me a few waves and murmurs. It's awkward for a few moments, and Ashton nudges me to say something, but my mind is completely blank.

Suddenly a boy with dark hair and tan skin says, "Dude, you're tall."

He smiles though and laughs, along with all the other guys. I don't see myself being very tall, I don't think I am any taller than 6 ft, but people tell me I am tall all the time. I'm still trying to decide if that is a compliment or an insult when some of the other boys clap me on the back and laugh. Their muscular arms pat me roughly on the shoulder and I am tossed forward a few steps by their strength. Ashton stifles a laugh beside me and my cheeks flush. This is embarrassing.

"But seriously, you should try out for the basketball team." the same dark haired boy comments. He sticks his hand out to me. I tentatively lean forward and take it, and he shakes my hand with a surprisingly strong grip.

"I'm Calum Hood." he introduces himself with a proud smile. The boy is wearing a dark grey t-shirt and tight jeans that cuff at his ankles, and he has on a pair of black Vans. His dark hair is styled and covered by a thick, grey beanie and his skin seems to be naturally tan compared to my pale skin.

"Luke Hemmings." I answer in a quieter voice. When Calum looks me over, I try to interpret what he would see. Black t-shirt under a dark sweatshirt, the hood draped over my head. Skinny jeans, boots, dark sunglasses. Blonde hair styled in a quiff- I stop. Do people style their hair like that here? I take a quick glance around to see that there are only about 5 people who wear their hair like that, but 5 people is a lot in such a small bunch. I suddenly feel very self-conscious. Should I cut it short? Should I style it down, like I used to?

Calum doesn't seem to have a problem with it though, because he gives me a smile and said, "Welcome to Greenwood, Luke." The others murmur welcomes as well, and I just sort of nod my head. Ashton grips my shoulder and pats it solidly.

"See, they love you already!" Ashton gushes to me while the others make light conversation with each other. He releases my shoulder and steps back to talk to some of the other guys.

"I'll see you back at the house-" I begin, but Ashton has disappeared into the group of guys, and cannot hear me anymore. The group of boys seem to swallow around my short cousin, engulfing him in the group and leaving me out. Not that I mind, of course. I want to head home anyway.

I bite my lip and turn away, walking away from the busy store and down the small pathway toward the houses. I watch my feet as I walk, carefully stepping on the soft dirt instead of the rocks. The air is light and cool with a slight breeze that I hope doesn't mess up my hair. I chew on my lip, running my tongue over the lip ring as I stare up at all the large houses around me.

It actually doesn't take too long to find the house Ashton described to me. It stands on the corner of the neighborhood, a bit pushed back from the rest, earning a bit of solitude. I try to imagine living here instead of my former busy life in the city.

My mother had taken my brothers to America as a vacation. They invited me too, but I had no desire to travel that far. Ashton lived here with his siblings and mother, so my family shipped me off here on a bus. I had only met Ashton once before, when I was fourteen and his mom insisted on a family reunion at my place. Ashton is now a bit taller with curlier hair, but he still talks a lot. Being my introverted self, I mostly hid out in my room with my computer.

I walk up to the tall French doors framing the towering structure, and hesitantly open the door. It creaks loudly as I push the heavy door forward. I am shocked to find a grand interior foyer with high ceilings, and a massive chandelier dangling way above my head.

"Luke?" I look up to see a lady standing in the doorway of what looks to be a kitchen. She has messy blonde hair falling out of a low ponytail, and she wears an apron caked with flour. The woman breaks into a huge smile and comes rushing forward. "Luke, oh wow! You look so much older. You're a lot taller!" She stands in front of me. "I would hug you but I'm covered in flour." The sweet lady smiles at me, and I can see the resemblance between her and her son. She looks much older than when I last saw her.

"Hello, Ms. Irwin." I greet, somewhat formally. I rock back on my heels awkwardly and clear my throat, taking another look around the room just so I won't have to look her in the eye.

"It's so wonderful that you're here! Has Ashton showed you around town?" Ms. Irwin asks. I nod silently in response.

"Oh, good. He talks a lot, I bet he told you more than enough about Greenwood." Ms. Irwin laughs lightly and then backs up, pointing up a staircase to a second floor. "Luke, your room is to the left of Ashton's. It is at the very end of the hall, so you should have plenty of privacy from my crazy children." I stare up the staircase up to the five doors, my eyes trailing over the one at the end that will be mine. I stifle a sigh.

"Thank you very much." I say stiffly, feeling a bit uncomfortable. Ms. Irwin doesn't seem to notice as she hurries back into the kitchen. I stand there, alone, awkwardly for a second before stepping back outside the house.

I want for Ashton to tell me more about the school I am going to have to go to, but instead of waiting for him on the front porch, I go around to the back of the house, where there is a clean slate of pretty grass, a field of green. The grass ends abruptly a few feet away, and then the woods start, going so far back no sunlight is able to stream through the trees. Having nothing else to do, I walk off toward it. The tall grass tickles my ankles until I reach the edge of the woods. I contemplate turning back but see no point to, so I step into the area and start walking into the dense woods.

It drops a few degrees each step I take, making me wish I brought a jacket. The sounds get quieter the deeper I get, which I like immensely. Soon though, I hear some sort of rushing sound, getting louder and louder. The dirt below my feet gets damper and the air gets moist. The sound is soothing, but the texture of the air is suffocatingly thick.

I finally reach a wall of tall bushes, lively and green. I step forward and push back the leaves, peeking through to find a strong, racing river rushing through in a fury directly below me. The dirt crumbles away at my feet, falling down off a small cliff into the strong water. My breath catches in my throat and I shuffle my feat, trying to get away from the edge.

A hand suddenly grabs my shoulder in a death grip.

"Watch out, Luke. Didn't I tell you it was dangerous by the river?" Ashton's high voice instructs me in my right ear. I jump back, nearly falling into the river if it weren't for Ashton's grasp on me. I stumble back and grab onto a thick tree for stability, trying to slow my rapid heartbeat.

I turn to look at my cousin, who jokingly gives me a scolding look.

"In my defense, you never told me there was a river over here." I manage, a bit out of breath.

"Well, the river sort of circulates around this entire town. Wherever you go, you kind of need to watch your step." Ashton explains, wrapping his arm around my shoulder, leading me away from the river. He has to walk a bit on his toes to be high enough to put his arm around me. "Though, the most dangerous spot is that rocky area by the Town Center. Those rocks get so slippery. It's nearly impossible to stand."

"Have you been down there?" I ask.

"Hell no. Nobody has. But the rumors have passed around from a few incidents a while back, and now nobody dares to go down there." Ashton replies casually. I scoffed softly, not quite believing it was that bad. I think everyone here is overreacting a bit.

"How did you know I was back here?" I question him again, feeling a bit guilty for asking him so many things. Ashton doesn't seem to mind as he opens his mouth to answer.

"I was walking back when I saw you go into the woods. It's harmless back there, as long as you don't go too far." Ashton says. He pauses and adds teasingly, "Like you did."

I laugh and push him away from my shoulders. "Shut up."

We arrive at the edge of the woods again, and we stroll lightly across the grass in silence. The air has risen a few degrees back up now that we are away from the river, but the goose bumps still prickle across the surface of my skin. I'm not at all excited to go to school tomorrow, considering I'm going to be the "new kid".

"Hey," Ashton turns to me randomly when we get inside the house. He smiles sincerely up at me and says, "I'm really glad you came here."

I smile back at him and reply, "Thanks, Ashton," although I don't particularly feel the same way.

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A/N hey! this was a really crappy first chapter but whatever

i'm american, so i don't really know if australians play basketball or anything but they do here haha. so just ignore any american stuff please.

it would mean a lot if you guys voted and commented! ily!