savior || luke hemmings

ch. 30

It's been one week since Prom. One week since Luke has come back home to me. One week since I fell in love all over again.

Tangled together in my bed sheets, I lay my head on Luke's chest. His heart is beating like a drum, loudly in his chest and I smile to myself knowing that after all these months, I still have the ability to make his heart beat like that.

Luke is smoothing my hair over with his hand; his large fingers working thought any knots that formed during the night while I was sleeping. He pulls me in closer until I'm practically on top of him.

He nuzzles into the crook of my neck, and I gently presses his lips against my skin. I dip my head down and quickly peck his lips before stretching and removing myself from his hold.

"Where are you going?" Luke ask all groggily as he rubs sleep out of his eyes.

"I graduate in a few hours, remember?"

"Ah, that's right. I forgot you're still in high school."

"Well, you'd be graduating with me if you didn't go to Australiaaaaa." I sing as I look through my closet for something suitable to wear. I rake my fingers over various articles of clothing before settling on a burnt orange sundress.

I turn around and hold it up against myself, causing Luke to avert his attention from the ceiling to myself.

"Hey," I ask with a bit of motherly concern in my voice, "you okay?"

'Yeah, just thinking..."

"Okay? About?"

"You. Me. Us."

I raise an eyebrow and walk over to the bed, sitting beside Luke.

"Is everything, you know, going okay or....?"

"It's nothing bad, Vera. I promise you."

______________________________________________________________

"Vera Jennings!" My principal, Mr. Duggan loudly as I stand from my seat, balancing myself. I walk out of my row and toward the makeshift stage at the far end of the football field.

Eexcitedly, I walk along the stage to the sound of cheers, claps and whistles. Mr. Duggan has extended his right and which I grafefyly accept. In my left hand, he places a rolled up prop diploma. 

"Congratulations Vera. We were honored to have taught you."

Smiling, I nod and turn. Obviously, my eyes search for Luke and when I find him, my smile grows bigger. I wave my diploma at him as he gives me a thumbs up and I walk off the stage. 

After we moved our tassles from left to right, signaling our the end of our high school career, Mr. Duggan dismissed us one more time. 

It was a sad and bittersweet moment. Suddenly, I realized how fast childhood was stolen from me and thanked my lucky stars that everyone decided to stay local for school. 

I, on the other hand, had decided to take a semester off and begin school in January. I would be attending the University of Bridgeport, a quick half hour drive from my house. Luke had told me that he would apply, and that made me happy because then for sure we couldn't be seperated. I wonder if he had applied yet?

Some may say that taking a break in my educational career is dumb. But, with the revelations that had emerged this past year, and the level of stress that I had endored, college was the last thing on my mind. I don't even know what I want to do in my life anyway. I'm only seventeen years old.

Do I want to go on and work toward that American History degree that I've always wanted? That way I can become a famous historian and a lead curator at a museum such as the Smithsonian? Or, do I want to work toward an average degree that way I can get an average job and live an average life?