just friends • luke (julie and the phantoms)

you're a part of me

Amber let go of the boy in shock, feeling drained of most of her energy. She could feel herself turning invisible and light-headed.

"I take it that hasn't happened before?" Alex asked, leading her to a chair and sitting next to her.

"No, never..."

"Do you mind if I try really quick?" Reggie asked.

"Yeah, of course, Reg." Amber took his hand, but when Julie looked expectantly at Flynn, the girl looked as confused as ever.

"That's really weird," Julie started but was interrupted by a tap on the shoulder from the girl who had been performing. While the two other girls dealt with the drama of the living, the other boys knelt around the exhausted girl, unsure of whether they wanted to perform or not at that moment. But when they voiced it, she glared at them and stood, not caring that she nearly fainted at the sudden movement. Amber knew that if they thought she was strong enough to stand they would be fine performing, and that was all she wanted at that moment.

"Go, but most of all..." Amber began, waiting for one of them to finish her sentence. It was an Amber Mercer classic to say the same words before every Sunset Curve performance, and she wanted to carry the tradition into the newly founded Julie and the Phantoms.

"Have fun and rock it out!" Reggie yelled with enough enthusiasm to make Amber's heart glow. She had always had a soft spot for the loving boy, and she knew exactly how much he cared for her at that moment and how he had never forgotten her words. Hugging the boy, she nearly cried with relief that her best friend was still there.

With blinding smiles, the boys took the stage as Julie stepped up to the mic and corrected the name of the band. She began to play, and Amber truly realized how talented the young girl really was. When she sang, it made it seem like her presence was magic. Literally.

The beat dropped, and the boys appeared behind her, all of them feeling more alive than ever by being able to play their music. Amber stood next to Flynn and held onto her shoulder for support, but even at her weakest, she couldn't keep the smile off of her face. Her brother was happier than she had ever seen him before, her best friend was dazzling the crowd, and Luke... as hard as she tried, Amber found that she couldn't take her eyes off of the shaggy-haired boy. Her heart ached to hold him in her arms again, to kiss him again, but she knew that she couldn't.

Then came the moment where Julie shared the mic with Luke. One would assume that the two of them would look at each other, but at that moment, Luke couldn't take his eyes off of the girl he still loved after all that time. Julie sang to her audience but found herself wearing a knowing smirk as she glanced at her new friend. Everyone who could see the two at that moment knew that they were as in love with each other as they had been the night Amber died, but the two of them would never admit it. Even Flynn noticed, and she could only feel the other girl.

"And you're a part of me..." Luke sang, knowing that Amber would get his meaning. She felt the memories wash over her as she brought herself back to 1995.

"It's like I've been saying, our instruments aren't just connected to us physically, they're connected to our souls!"

Amber couldn't help but smile at the boy's passion and enthusiasm. The two had been secretly dating for almost three months, but it had felt like a lot longer. They had feelings for one another long before they made it "official," but the two of them were both too scared to say that they loved each other. They were in the middle of another one of their late-night walks after getting street dogs, and they were sitting on the beach, letting the waves lap at their feet.

"Your souls, huh?" Amber replied. "Now that's a religion I would get behind."

"Hey, you're just jealous you don't have that same connection."

"I don't know... my fifth-grade clarinet seems to be calling me..."

Luke winced at the implication. "Oh, absolutely not. The world got enough of your 'inspired playing' back then. Just face it, you're never going to have the same connection I have with my guitar," the boy teased, tickling Amber mercilessly.

"Luke, oh my goodness, stop it!" He finally stopped but grew scared when he noticed Amber's evil smirk. She threw sand in his face and ran away as he started to chase after her. The ever-athletic girl was able to outrun him for a little while, but she was never much of a sprinter. He caught up to her, wrapping his arms around her waist and spinning her around before running into the ocean with her, clothes on and all. Before long, the two of them were laughing hysterically, holding each other as if they would never let go.

"I never had a chance, huh?" Amber whispered with a ghost of a smile.

"What do you mean?"

"Your guitar. It's too bad there's only space in your heart for one woman, and let's be honest the curves on her..." she joked.

"Well even if my guitar is connected to my soul, you're a part of me too. And I'm about to be so cheesy that I might throw up in my mouth saying this, but it needs to be said. You're a part of my heart, and no one will ever take that from me."

"That was cheesy," she laughed as Luke blushed. "And yet I love that cheese."

"Y-you love me?" Luke stuttered, his heart jumping at the words.

"Don't be silly, I said I love the cheese," Amber smirked, unwrapping herself from his embrace and walking towards the dry sand.

"I love you," Luke whispered, thinking she couldn't hear him, but she turned around with the biggest smile the world had ever seen. She ran towards him, tackling him and kissing him as the waves washed over them.

"I love you too."

Little did they know that they only had two weeks left. But at that moment, they were infinite.

(AN: the cheese!! there was so much oh my goodness i'm so sorry! anyway i hope you liked it, i wanted to do the l-word scene after watching the bachelorette last night haha love you all please don't forget to let me know what you think!)