Pretty Girls ⇼ Luke Hemmings

It’d been more than a week since I last saw Luke. He stopped coming to the classes that we had together and Lea kept up her promise and didn’t invite anyone besides Michael over. I only saw him in passing and Lea spent almost every night in his room. I appreciated the fact that she understood that I needed alone time. Mandy invited me to hang out every day, but I declined. I just needed some time to think about everything.

With all the extra free time, I was able to complete a lot of my homework ahead of schedule, but I found myself falling back into the boredom that I grew accustomed to in my first semester. I found the boredom unbearable now, and I wished that none of this ever happened. I wish I was still friends with Lea’s group.

I’ve never felt so lonely. I didn’t have many friends growing up, and having that glimpse of how my life could have been if I did, broke me. It wasn’t fair. Why did this happen to me? Couldn’t they have just left me alone and went on with their business? I’d be much better off if they did. I felt miserable. God was just playing some sick joke on me. I was the butt of everyone’s joke and I didn’t even have anything to show for it.

My heart felt so heavy. I really felt like Luke and I were starting to get along great. I thought that Ashton and Calum could be there for me. And I thought Cass, Lea, and Michael actually gave a shit about me. I thought Luke actually found me attractive. Lea and Michael had expressed how sorry they were, but no one else did. I didn’t even know if Cass was in on it.

It’s Saturday night, 11 days since I saw Luke. Lea was at a party at the frat house and I was sitting alone in our room, watching a romantic comedy on Netflix in my favorite pair of fuzzy pajama pants. My hair was tied into a messy bun and the baggy shirt I was wearing was extremely unflattering. But I didn’t care what I looked like, I was having a nice time just enjoying the relaxation.

I hadn’t realized I fell asleep until I awoke from a knock on the door. Groggily getting out of bed, I pulled the door open expecting to see Lea. But it was Luke. His hands were pulling at his hair and he was drenched from the rain.
“Can I come in?” He asked, out of breath. His hands were shaking.
“No,” I told him. “Lea isn’t here. Go find her somewhere else,” I tried to shut the door, but he stuck his boot in and stopped me.

“Please, I-I need-” he stopped, covering his mouth and running down the hall to the bathroom. My curiosity led me to follow him and I walked in to see him throwing up in the toilet.
“How much have you had to drink?” My voice was quiet. I wasn’t sure if I actually cared or if I was just asking because I felt like I had to. He shrugged, lying the side of his face on the toilet seat. I cringed at the unsanitary sight as he lifted his head to puke again. The process continued for a good five minutes before he finally leaned against the brick wall.

“Are you done?” I asked with crossed arms.
“I think so,” his voice was hoarse. He looked miserable and I pitied him. I grabbed him a wet paper towel before helping him stand.
“Let’s go,” I snapped when he gave me a confused look. I guided him down the hall and sat him on Lea’s bed before grabbing some crackers and tossing them at him. He caught them and stared at me. “Eat,” I ordered, sitting on my bed and staring at him from across the room.

“Can we talk?” He asked through a mouthful of crackers.
“There’s nothing to talk about,” I stared down at my nails, picking at the skin around them. “I don’t want anything to do with you,”
“Come on, Valerie. Hear me out,” he pleaded. I almost felt bad for him. He looked horrible. Much different from his usual, put together self.
“You have five minutes before I’m kicking you out,” I finally decided.

“I tried to back out, Val. Don’t you remember? I kept begging you not to go in,” he set the crackers next to him and stood, walking over to me. “Don’t you remember?” He asked again, kneeling on the floor and grabbing my hands. I quickly pulled them out of his grip and set them back in my lap. Instead, he placed his hands on my thighs.”You didn’t belong there,”
“None of those girls did,” I snapped, finally meeting his eyes.
“I know,” his eyes were sad. God, I missed how blue they were. I looked away. “Fuck, I’m sorry,”
“No you aren’t,” I refused to believe him. “People like you are never sorry,” he had pain written in his face, and that made it that much harder to reject his apology.
“Come on, Val,” his voice was almost a whisper. “Don’t tell me that you don’t miss me,” I couldn’t help but scoff.
“I don’t,” I lied.

“Well, I miss you. I miss you terribly,” I rolled my eyes. He can’t be serious. “I’m serious, Val,” he read my mind. “I don’t know what it is about you, but I just can’t stay away,”
“Well, you need to,” I countered. “Luke, you hurt me. You hurt me so bad and I don’t think I could ever trust you again,” his hands left my legs and he tried to grab my face but I pulled away. “Even after what I told you, you still went out of your way to make me feel unwanted,” he closed his eyes for a brief second.
“That’s not who I want to be. I don’t want to be some douche who hurt you. Val, I like the person I am with you. I like being able to control my anger and I like being able to tell someone how I feel,” he studied my face. “I like that you’re making me a better man,” my eyes met his and I couldn’t look away. “This wasn’t just hooking up for me,” he said. “You know me. I’m a hit it and quit it guy. But not with you,” I rolled my eyes at his choice of words. Why did he always insist on being so vulgar?

“No, Luke. I don’t know you. Not at all. I know your name and I know your dog. That’s it,” he pulled at the roots of his hair before rubbing his eyes.
“Then I’ll tell you about myself,” he insisted. “Just give me another chance. Please just let me make it up to you,” he paused. “Please,” he repeated. “Please,” and again.
“Just as friends,” I gave in. “Nothing more,” Luke immediately grabbed my body and pulled me into a hug.
“I won’t let you down this time,” he promised.

“What are you doing tonight?” He asked, pulling away and sitting next to me.
“I was watching a movie, but I fell asleep,”
“Can I watch one with you?” He pouted and I couldn’t help but roll my eyes.
“Fine, but I get to pick,” a small smile played at his lips and he kicked off his boots, moving to the corner and leaning against the wall. I followed in his lead, pulling up Netflix and scrolling through the romantic comedy section.
“A rom com, really?” He complained, causing me to glare at him. “Alright, fine,” he held up his hands in defense. I grinned and put on The Notebook before pulling my blanket up to cover me and relaxing into the mattress.

Notes