count on me (l.h)

"if i'm with you, i'm home"

"Guess who!" I turned abruptly as I heard Jenna's voice and I smiled widely before rushing over to three familiar faces. "It's already looking great, Jo."

"This is about the only room we've gotten entirely completed," I admitted through a laugh as I wrapped my arms around her. I made eye contact with Kate, who was standing behind her, and sent her a smile before hugging her next. Danny stole me away before long which caused me to laugh.

"Luke's here, right?" I smiled at Danny's hopeful tone, thinking it was cute that he sounded as though he wanted to see him.

"He's in the backyard with Cam and Howie. They're setting up some lights—"

"Not anymore, we're not." Coming from the kitchen, the three boys made their way over to us. Luke made a beeline for me before standing behind me with his hands on my shoulders.

"You go away with your little band and suddenly you're too good to say hello?" Jenna reprimanded Luke, which caused me to snicker.

"Hello, Jenna—I've missed you," Luke said, which earned him an eye roll. "Danny, it's good to see you."

"It's good to see you, man." One of Luke's hands disconnected with my shoulder and the two boys casually shook hands; I found it to be a funny gesture, but didn't bother making fun.

"Luke... this is Kate," I introduced the two, finding myself nervous to do so. "Kate, this is Luke."

"Ah—we finally meet," Luke said before holding out a hand for her to shake, as well. Kate let out a quiet laugh before gingerly shaking his hand.

"I've heard loads about you, Hemmings," Kate said as she offered him a smile. "It's nice to meet you."

"Likewise."

While I couldn't see Luke, since he was behind me, I could tell that the two of them held prolonged eye contact. I suddenly sensed a tinge of tension and my stomach filled with nerves.

"I cannot believe everyone beat me here!"

Thanks to Emma barging into the room, the tension dispersed. I broke away from Luke's hold and stole a hug from Emma, who was all smiles despite her sad tone just seconds before.

"It's good to see you, Em," Luke said once the two of us had pulled away from our hug. To my delight, he gave her a kiss on the cheek and a swift hug. I was sure they had gotten closer over the couple weeks that Emma was with them, but it was nice to see them so buddy-buddy.

I looked back at where I had left my dad standing, but realized he was no longer there. My brows furrowed as I looked for him; he had taken a spot between Howie and Cam.

"Dad! This is Kate—I think she's the only one here you haven't met." My dad offered a wave and Kate did the same. My dad told the rest that it was good to see them before making an excuse to go find my mom.

"Emma, Kate—come with me. I wanna show you around." I told Luke that he could come with me if he wanted, but he told me he wanted to stay and get caught up with the others.

I gave them a tour of the house, starting with the ground floor. I explained to them that there was a basement but that it wasn't anything special. I showed them the backyard before taking them upstairs to look at the bedrooms.

I saved my bedroom for last. It was nearly finished, but I knew I'd be reorganizing it for the next few weeks until it was practically perfect. I showed them the loft last, which had both of them in awe.

"God... this place is a dream," Kate said in a daze as she slowly spun around in the middle of the room. "Does Luke like it here?"

"Yeah, I think so," I told her with a shrug as I let out a quiet laugh. "He's not moving in or anything, at least not right now—"