This happened every so often. However, when it happened, was unpredictable. He could be fine for an entire month, then the next day he could be distant and sad. Luke sometimes seemed withdrawn from the conversation, almost like he did not want to talk. He would respond to my texts slowly. Or not at all. Sometimes, not often though, Luke would leave me waiting for a response that he was not planning on sending.
Tonight was one of those nights.
I was laying in my bed. It was only eleven p.m., usually we both stayed up until two a.m. talking, but Luke's texts were already begining to come farther and farther apart. The replies, on a usual day, always came almost right away. Unless one of us was busy, which wasn't often. When we were busy, we were usually together.
It was the end of June. I was laying on my bed on top of my dark blue comforter in nothing but a large t-shirt, underwear, and a sports bra I wouldn't dare wear while i was doing anything athletic. My bare legs were soft as a newborns skin, due to the fact that I had shaved them ten minutes ago. It was hot and gross out. Warm air blew in through my open window. A thin layer of sweat was resting on my forehead and legs. I layed on my bed, listening to The 1975, waiting for a reply from Luke.
Finally, after waiting nearly half an hour, my phone vibrated on my belly. I snatched it up and looked at the text. "Night" was all it said.
I exhaled loudly, frustrated. "Goodnight. Call me if you need anything." I sent back. It didnt bother me that he was going to bed. What bothered me was the fact that he had not answered my question. He never did.
I gently tossed my phone to the foot of my bed. It bounced dangerously close to the edge, but managed not to fall. My hands run over my face. Already, I knew where Luke would be in the morning.
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When I wake up, it is still slightly dark outside. It is four-fifteen. I stretch my body until it is at its maximum length. A yawn stretches out my face as I swing my legs over the side of the bed. My toes curl into the yellow bushy rug that rests on my light wooded floor. Pushing myself off my bed, I walk over to my dresser.
From the already open drawer, I produce a pair of light denim short with a small hole in them, a fairly new black sports bra, and a shirt. The shirt has black, mid lengths sleeves, with red stars on them. The rest of the shirt is a light grey. I toss my current shirt and bra onto the floor. And slip my clean clothes on as I walk through my hallway towards my bathroom.
Quickly, I brush my teeth and hair. Before slipping out of the bathroom and into the hallway, I snatch my glasses up from the sink and put them on. Everything is a little less blurry.
As I enter the kitchen, I look for my bucket of shoes. It sits under the counter, near the sink, to the left of me. Near it, on the counter sits a random five dollar bill. I pick it up and stuff it in my back pocket.
From the shoe bucket I grab my worn down Birkenstocks. I drop them on the floor in front of me and slip them on. From years of wearing them, they fit like a glove. I stand in the kitchen looking for nothing. Then head towards the door, at the back of the kitchen, that leads to the garage.
Inside the garage it is hot and sticky. My bike sits in the middle of the mostly empty garage. I walk towards it and pick it up. Then bike out of the already open garage door. I don't bother closing the door, because I live in the middle of nowhere, and nobody has ever put in the effort to rob me.
I bike on the gravel road for almost twenty minutes before pulling up to the small coffee house. Dropping my bike near the entrance, I walk into the coffee house.
"Hi, I will have one chai tea and one black coffee, please." I pull the five dollar bill out of my pocket. "To go." I add handing over the five dollars. The barrista gives me a dollar back. I slip it in the tip jar, then wait for my drinks.
A thanks slips out of my mouth as the barrista hands me my drinks. Both of them have little stoppers in the lid, so nothing spills out.
With a struggle, I lift up my bike. I set my drinks in the basket and head off again.
By five-thirty, I can see the old swimming pool that no one uses, no one except Luke that is.
By the time I strategically ride through the changing room, it is a five-forty. I awkwardly hop off my bike and lean it against the wall of the lifeguard room.
In the pool, Luke is mercilessly swimming laps. His arms appear and disappear every second. His back muscles are taut and shiny in the water.
I slip my shoes off and kick them towards the rear wheel of my bike. Before walking over to the edge of the pool, I grab the drinks from the basket of my bike.
My bare feet walk towards the pool's edge, setting the drinks down behind me. I sit down on the almost dry edge of the pool, and stick my feet into the pool, leaning back on my hands. I wait.
(Luke)
My feet hit the wall and I push myself off of it. My arms and legs are sore, and my lungs hurt. I keep swimming until I see something swaying in the water. By the time I am ten feet away from the wall, in the shallower part of the pool, I can see her swaying tan legs, that have never been skinny enough, for her liking, and her toenails that are painted a lavender color.
I smile under water and swim up to her.
(Me)
My feet sway back and forth in the water, waiting. His fast swimming slows down ten feet away from me. From there, he swims over to me and pops his head out of the water.
His hair hangs loosely around his face, dripping with water. The muscles on his tan arms and chest are noticeable and make me stare a second too long.
"Hey." Luke says. He sounds sad and tired.
"Hey. I thought you would be here. And." I reach behind me and grab the two drinks. "I brought you something to drink. Would you like chai or coffee?"
"Chai.." Before handing the chai over to him, I take a sip of it. Luke drinks it, in the pool. A silence sits between and around us. Finally, I decide to break the silence.
"So do you want to talk about it?" I know something is bothering him.
Usually, Luke is hesitant to talk about whatever it is that is wrong. But today he sets his drink down and hops up on the side of the pool next to me, getting water on me, and spills out everything that was on his mind, like word vomit.
Luke talks for about an hour. He talks about his first year of college and how he does not know what he wants to go to school for. He talks about work, how his boss is a stoner and the employees are all douche bags, and how he does not want to quit because he likes everything else about the local record shop. He talks about his parents fighting and countless hours of sleep lost because of them.
When he stops talking, we sit on the side of the pool. Our feet and legs dipped into the water and swaying. Our thighs touching, my hands in my lap, him leaning back on his hands. My head rests on his shoulder and his head resting on mine.
"Come on," Luke breaks the silence. "let's go swimming." He detaches his body from mine and slides into the pool. He grabs me by my waist and pulls me into the pool. Water soaks into my clothes.
Luke pulls me close and falls back, pulling me with him, into the water. The water envelopes us. Our hair floats around our faces.
Underwater, I smile at Luke. He pulls me towards him and kisses me.
The rest of the morning is filled with swimming, splashing around, and chlorine flavored kisses.
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Hey. I wrote this a while ago. Finally publishing it. Yup...If you're reading this and like it even the tiniest bit, I love you. Bye.
