𝘿𝙀𝘾𝙀𝙋𝙏𝙄𝙊𝙉 • 𝙇𝙍𝙃

34. i needed you

I NEEDED YOU

Lila couldn't tell you how she ended up in Stella's car.

Or how Stella knew where they were. She assumes Luke told her, which means Stella and Luke were together. The thought almost hurts worse than the gaping hole in her stomach.

It's like her body has been through so much trauma in the past few hours that she's nearly numb.

All she knows is Ashton is beside her, pressing his t-shirt to her abdomen to stop the bleeding. Stella is speeding, driving like a professional. Her and Luke have that in common.

Ugh, she's got to stop thinking about him.

Ashton has a few cuts and bruises adorning his face. Lila hopes he wasn't hurt too bad. He's been panicking for a while, murmuring something about sutures and anesthetic and blood. Lila can't be bothered to think about the severity of her injuries when Jack could be minutes away from capturing her again.

The girl is exhausted. Everything hurts. She wants to close her eyes and sleep, maybe even cry a little. Actually, that's a lie.

All she wants is Luke. To fall into his arms and block the world out as his arms circle around her, acting as her own personal shield. The safety in his touch will swallow her whole until she feels nothing else.

He is the most dangerous man in every room, and yet she feels safest by his side.

One minute Ashton is sitting beside LIla in the car, the next he's holding her door open. She hadn't realized they parked.

Stella arranged to meet Luke and the others in a vacant commuter lot so they wouldn't have to drive all the way out of town. She snagged a dose of propofol and gave it to Ashton, knowing Lila will need it when she gets stitched up.

"I would hug you but I don't want to hurt you. Just know I'm glad you're okay." Stella's smile reaches her eyes as she and Ashton help Lila out of the car.

Sucking in a breath as she's pulled from the vehicle, she manages to say, "Thank you, I owe you."

"You don't owe me a thing," Stella says. "Just take care of that one for me and we'll call it even." She bobs her head in the direction of the blond, who's slamming his car door shut with a scowl that softens when he spots Lila.

Luke and Lila lock eyes. And although it's impossible, she swears she can hear his heart crack. It hurt, it hurt him so bad he almost couldn't bear to look at her any longer.

Pushing off Ashton, she walks with as much strength as she can muster, happiness snuffing the pain right out of her body.

Her excitement is fleeting, for Michael is quick to cover the distance and pull her into an awkward side hug with Calum hot on his heels. "You're alive. Thank God you're alive. I was so worried."

"You're talking to me now?" That might've come off a little rude, but she doesn't have the patience nor the energy to care. She just wants Luke.

He flinches at her words. "Lila I tried to... you know. And you turned me down. Then I got hit for it. I'm sorry for ignoring you, but Luke told me to stay away, and I have no choice but to listen to him. Maybe after everything that went down, he'll be less of a douchebag about it. But I wouldn't hold your breath."

She understands why Michael had been avoiding her, but that didn't make it hurt less.

"I get it. Just... stop being a stranger. I miss you, I miss our friendship."

He smiles and is unable to respond as Calum shoves him off Lila. "Don't touch her! She's hurt and bleeding."

Lila clutches her stomach, swaying with dizziness as she's standing on her own. "I'll be okay. I think Ashton is going to help me once we're back at the house." She looks past her friends, gaze fixated on Luke.