We Come Alive (Julie and the Phantoms #JUKE imagines)

Voice Like An Angel Never Heard Before

After I mostly recovered from the soda in my hair, lovingly sprayed by Flynn (who only had the best intentions, as always), we made our way back to my mom's studio. I wasn't looking forward to confronting Luke about whatever was bothering him, but it obviously had to be done. 

The crunch of the pebbles under my sneakers in the driveway punctuated the beating of my heart. From outside the door, I could already hear the muted vibrations of the amplifiers and their loud voices yelling chord progressions over the noise. 

"I guess they started practice without you." Flynn shrugged, and motioned toward the closed double doors. 

"Yeah, guess so." I shrugged, took a deep breath, and pushed through the doors. 

Alex was at his drums, and smiled at me brightly while keeping the beat. Reggie nodded at me from his perch on top of the coffee table, rocking out on a bass solo. And Luke was sitting on one of the larger amps, next to the piano. A blush spread over his face for a quick moment while Flynn shut the doors behind us, but he shook it off quickly enough while they let their jam sesh come to a halt.

"Well look who decided to show up." Luke took his guitar off his shoulder, placing in the stand to his left. Mid-afternoon sunlight glinted off the metallic hardware of his dark blue Fender as he pursed his lips together and crossed his arms.

"Sorry guys, Flynn and I needed some girl time, so we got food right after school." Dropping my backpack on the couch, Flynn followed suit and sat down next to it. 

Reggie's eyes widened while he tilted his head. "Oh, like unicorns and glitter?" 

"Not everything is unicorns and glitter with us, okay! Show some respect." Flynn crossed her arms, sticking her tongue out at the bassist. "It's a good thing you're cute," she mumbled.

"What?"

"Huh?"

Flynn's face drained of blood, making her look the ghastliest of them all. "Nothing! Just, get to practicing, boys. Mama needs her eye candy." Clapping her hands, they had no choice but to comply, lest they face her wrath. And trust me, Flynn may look cute and all, but she could be your worst nightmare if challenged. The more I think of it, that's probably what I loved the most about her.

Rolling my eyes, I settled behind the piano and tried to get a read on the boy who snuck in my window last night. He was tough to read, avoiding my gaze and strumming mindlessly on his guitar. Connecting with Alex and Reggie, they could tell something was up too by the way they offered me sympathetic smiles and shrugs.

"What were you guys working on?"

"Nothing, just jamming." Alex offered a goofy drum beat, waiting for the other guys to join in. "Anyone? Yeah? Okay." Dropping his sticks into the fabric pocket hanging off the kit, he sighed. "Maybe it's time for a break. Things have been a little weird today anyway."

Luke's eyes snapped to mine, with a fire in them I'd never seen before. Maybe he thought I told the guys about what was happening between us. Even though I couldn't be sure, I shook my head almost imperceptibly, just enough that he wouldn't worry. 

His shoulders relaxed immediately - so that must've done the trick. 

"Sorry we got our scheduling messed up. I promise I really will come straight home tomorrow after school, okay?"

"No worries, Julie. We know you have a life. At least, more of a life than we do. Unless you count this as some kind of afterlife." Reggie poked Alex, who turned to give him his patented withering death-stare, then turned back toward the couch to sit opposite Flynn.

"Yeah, I'm just gonna go for a walk." Luke got up, marching toward the doors. He flung them open without a second thought, and I felt myself following him without being all that sure as to why.

"Yeah okay, talk to you later, Jules!" Flynn mumbled behind me, and I didn't waste time waving to her in my haste. It was now or never, and I had to know what was ruining our chemistry before it even began.

"Luke? Luke. What's going on?"

He kept walking, and for a second, I was worried maybe he couldn't see or hear me anymore for some reason. But then I realized that was probably impossible, so I grabbed his sleeve until he was forced to stop at the end of my driveway. 

"Come on Jules, like you really don't know?"

Tilting my head, I waited for him to say something, but he didn't. "If I knew, I probably wouldn't have chased you down, now would I?"

He shrugged, and looked out to the street and the neighboring houses. "I dunno, maybe. maybe not."

"Okay, so uh, last I remember, we were... in the supply closet at school."

A rosy blush crept over his neck and cheeks, but he still couldn't look at me. "Yeah. And?"

"And... Nick found us."

That's when he turned to look at me, and I saw the hurt threatening to tumble out of his glassy eyes. He wiped it away before it could be too noticeable.

"That bothered you, didn't it."

He nodded, wordlessly. "Well, it wasn't just that. It was, well..."

Struggling to find the words, I took a step closer to him, and tried to read between the lines. "... and I ran away to get to class. Well yeah, I had class. So what?"

Exhaling sharply, Luke met my gaze, leading me over to a nearby shady tree. The lingering sunlight as afternoon became evening was still warm. Settling onto the prickly, fresh-cut grass, he leaned his back against the trunk and sighed. He didn't seem angry anymore - now, his face only played notes of sadness in a minor key. That's how I knew it was my turn to try and transpose it. Or at least, use my voice to modulate his mood into something brighter. 

"I knew you had class. But you seemed... ashamed."

Staring at my feet, suddenly I was at a loss for words. "No, I wasn't. Well, not like you think."

"Enlighten me, then." He crossed his arms, building an invisible wall between us despite sitting outside in the fresh air. 

Taking a deep breath, I planned my words carefully. "Well uh, I'm not used to... this." I motioned in between us, hoping he'd understand. "I've never been in a relationship. I didn't know how to handle it."

He nodded. "Go on."

"And so, it's just been... a lot, really fast. And I didn't know how many people I wanted to know about it yet. And at school, I bet people are gonna find out, because - "

"of Nick." He nodded, but there was still something nagging at the back of his mind. "You still like him?"

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I KNOW, SO INTENSE RIGHT?!!? Guess you'll just have to wait for the next update (I know, it sucks. Sorry, not sorry, LOL). 

BUT... if you have an idea of what should happen next, feel free - as always - to comment below! I always take requests, and honestly, I think it's way more amusing if the storytelling is more interactive. So have fun with it, and give me your best ;)

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