Thick and Thin [l. hemmings]

seventy-one

He bursts into laughter, "You guys just make it so easy, I can't." Calum closes the door while laughing at us.

"I can't believe he's been your best friend this long. I'd kill him if I were you." I mutter, before the two of us get in the car.

Luke laughs, shaking his head, "I've thought about it. I'll let him think he's funny."

I just shake my head, thinking about Calum being his annoying self.

"You look beautiful, by the way. I wanted to say that before Calum started acting like an ass, but you know how he is." Luke tells me, keeping his eyes on the road.

I blush, looking down at my lap before I mutter a quiet "Thank you."

It's strange, how nervous I've now become around him. I've always been anxious about seeing him, but it's not the same. I feel like a kid again, nervous for our date and feeling butterflies. A few months ago I was having panic attacks because I didn't know what to expect from him, I didn't even want to see him.

"Are you okay?" He asks, looking over at me as he stops at a red light.

"Huh? Yes, sorry." I mumble, embarrassed that I'm already zoning out on our date.

"Overthinking?" He questions.

I nod, nervously fidgeting with the zipper of my purse, which is currently on my lap.

"I understand. I wish I could distract you but I too am nervous."

Quickly chuckling I look over at him, "I think we both need to calm down and remember we've known each other forever."

"I know. I just know what I did was unforgivable, so the fact you're even here is so slim. I just can't fuck this up again, Kels. I know you're probably nervous about trusting me, but fuck, I'm trying."

"Hey, stop. We're putting the past behind us. You have to stop bringing it up, or, yeah, it'll be hard for me to work this out."

"Fuck, I know. I'm sorry." He stops, taking a deep breath, "I'm trying to stop that."

I weakly smile, as he pulls the car into the parking lot, "This is going to be a learning experience for both of us. We've got this, okay?"

Luke smiles, nodding at he reaches over to grab my hand, gently squeezing it.

"I never even asked what the plan was, but now I think I know what's happening." I tell him, as I move my hand away from his, and getting out of the car.

He quickly get out as well, then grabbing something from the backseat, "Yeah, uh, I just thought that doing something we used to do would be familiar and make us a little less nervous."

Smiling at him, I grab his free hand as we start walking. My first reaction was why would Luke bring me here, but I'm glad he did. I think we will be more comfortable since this is something we always did. Luke guides me to our usual spot at the park, the place we always came when I lived here.

As we walk to our usual spot, Luke begins to explain, "I figured a picnic here would be nice, to bring us back to old times. I hope it's okay, I just assumed this would be chill but also nice enough for you to not hate me."

I chuckle, shaking my head at him, "Luke, don't worry. It's perfect."

We stop at our usual spot after a short walk there. There's not a lot of people around which is nice. Luke sets everything up, and pulls the food and drinks out of the bag.

"Uh, also, please tell me if I'm overstepping, I'll put it away... I brought these as well." He says, pulling out my old sketchbook and some pencils.

I gasp, when I see the sketchbook that I haven't used since high school, "You kept this?"

He shrugs, "I thought you'd want me to. It was in our apartment and I found it when we moved. I couldn't bring myself to just get rid of it. I had it tucked away and I almost forgot about it. When I was planning today I remembered I had it. I'm sorry if this is pushing any boundaries or anything, it's just, you would draw most time we were here so..."

"No, of course not! Thank you, Luke. I appreciate it. I just can't believe it, honestly." I tell him, taking them from his hands.

His smile is wide while he watches me scan through the pages. It really brings back a lot of memories I have with Luke, and it makes my heart flutter.

The two of us continue our date, having dinner and dessert as we discuss our lives. It's nothing too crazy, it's just a great time for the both of us. We both got over our nerves pretty quickly, which is why we were both actually able to enjoy ourselves. I had decided to sketch closer to the end of the night. Now that the sun is setting, we start packing up.

"Thank you for tonight, Luke. I really, truly enjoyed this time with you."

"Of course. Same here. Thank you." He replies as we get in the car.

The drive back to Calum's seems shorter than earlier.

"Well, thank you for bringing me back here. Just- thanks for everything." I smile, before getting out of the car.

Luke quickly follows me, rushing to my side, "I have to walk you to the door!"

"Luke, relax. You don't need to do that." I chuckle, "I'm not going to be upset about you staying in the car."

He shrugs, as we arrive at the front door.

"Well, I had at great time." I tell him again, reaching out for a hug.

Smiling, Luke quickly accepts the gesture, holding onto me tightly, "Me too."

The front door swings open, Luke and I quickly pull apart as we are both startled by it.

"Hey best friends. What's up?"

I laugh, shaking my head at Calum standing in the doorway with a beer in his hand.

"Dude, stop getting drunk alone!" Luke exclaims.

"Um, no thanks." Calum replies, rolling his eyes.

"I'm gonna go get him to bed. Goodnight, Luke." I tell him, quietly giggling at Calum.

Luke smiles, waving at me, "Goodnight, Kelsey."

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I'm so sorry for disappearing for a month I'll try to do better I HOPE THIS WAS GOOD????