Petals and Thorns / l.h ✔️

21

~Juno's POV~

My whole body ached in the most wonderful way as Luke fell beside me in bed, our naked chests heaving as he slid his arm around my waist and pulled me into his chest. I felt my heart flutter and buried my head into his chest, hearing the fast paced beats of his heart under my ear. I couldn't help but to smile slightly, wrapping my own arms around his torso and placing a gentle kiss on his chest.

The atmosphere of my room was calm and quiet once again as we cuddled, no longer filled with the sounds of our pleasure or the knocking headboard. It was comfortably quiet now, minus our heavy breaths and the sound of Luke's racing heart under my head. I felt so at peace that I felt like I could have fallen asleep right then, my eyelids fluttering sleepily as I slipped a leg between both of his and hummed in content at his body warmth. He was so unbelievably warm, but I bet the blanket that covered the two of us certainly didn't help with that. I felt his chest begin to rise and fall more evenly along with mine once we both caught our breath, chests no longer heaving, but his heart still raced. And so did mine, but he didn't know that.

"I heard you and your mom talking in the kitchen on Wednesday night, Juno." Luke muttered suddenly, the sound of his voice surprising me. I had sort of thought he'd fallen asleep already, but clearly not.

"What?" I asked in surprise, looking up at him with confusion. How had he heard us and how had I not known he'd been listening? "You heard me, Juno." He murmured, his fingers brushing smoothly through my hair. I couldn't help but to feel anxious, looking down at his chest just to avoid eye contact. "Are you angry at me?" I asked quietly, half expecting him to call me an idiot and then leave. I wasn't sure why, but I just was.

He paused for a moment. "Yes." He answered eventually, making me frown deeply. I felt my eyes prick with tears but I refused to look up at him, not wanting him to know that I was about to cry. Of course he didn't love me. It was stupid of me to even hope that mom had been right. Stupid of me to think he could love someone like me when he could get anyone he wanted. "I'm s—"

"How could you ever think that the only thing I want you for is your body, Juno?" He cut me off, not giving me the chance to apologize. I blinked in surprise and cocked my head to the side in confusion, peering up at him through slightly wet lashes. "H-Huh?" I stuttered, lost. He sent me a look. "You said that you don't know if I like you for you or for your body. Why would you ever think that all I want from you is just your body?" He asked, but I didn't know how to respond to that, so I just stared at him quietly. "I-I..." My mouth betrayed me and I shook my head, unsure exactly how to respond. "W-We never spoke about what we were again. You said we'd get to know each other before anything like that but then we still didn't talk about it. I thought you had decided you didn't want more with me." I confessed quietly, forcing myself to hold eye contact.

"Goddamn it, Juno." He muttered, shaking his head. "I told you that you are mine. I wasn't talking about just your body, pumpkin. Every bit of you, inside and out and everything that may be in between is mine." He said.

I couldn't help but to blush and squeeze him tighter, feeling so embarrassed that I just buried my cheek into his chest to hide the color in my face. "I love you. I thought that was self evident." He added softly, sending my heart into overdrive. My chest tightened and I blushed so bright that I knew my cheeks were incredibly pink as I looked up at him, his lips turning into an amused smiled when he saw the blush. "I l-love you too." I squeaked out, my voice small even though I tried my best to sound casual and not as affected as I actually was.

Luke's eyes sparkled and he smiled, placing an affectionate kiss on my forehead. "But why would you want someone like me?" I asked quietly. My question immediately caught his attention, making him look down at me with his brows raised. "Someone like you? What do you mean by that?" He asked, a frown on his full lips. I traced my nails down his chest and shrugged softly. "Well, I'm always sassing you and you're always teasing me, and I'm stubborn. Why would you want that when you could have a girl much prettier, much...much better than me?" I wondered, frowning.

A scowl formed on his face. "There is nobody better than you. Not for me." He snapped, causing my lips to twitch up.

"You are like a rose, Juno, which is ironic since I call you pumpkin." He teased, his comment making me laugh softly. "A rose, huh? How's that?" I whispered, curious to know. He smiled and nuzzled his face into my hair, holding me protectively to his chest. "I could pick any rose if I wanted, even one without thorns like yours. A rose is a rose but it's not mine without its thorns. I love your beauty just as much as I love the thorns, the things other people may not see worth in. Things you may not see worth in, either." He murmured, causing me to blush. Nobody had ever said anything like that to me before.

"You do?" I whispered, staring up at him. He smiled and nodded his head, pulling me as close as he could possibly get me against his body. "Mhm, always, pumpkin." He whispered back, a little grin on his face. "Say it again." I asked quietly, making him chuckle and nod his head.

"I will always love your petals and your thorns."