Fall.

Chapter 22.

"Ha, very funny." Michael shook his head. "You like each other. That's why Stella broke up with Ashton, isn't it?"

I laughed, mostly at the fact that Michael was just now putting this together. It had been almost three weeks since I broke up with Ashton, surely if he had actually been spending time with either of us he would have caught on how different Luke and I had been acting around each other by now. But that clearly wasn't the case.

"That wasn't the only reason, actually." Luke said before I could.

"What was the other reason?" Michael asked, still looking very confused. I looked at Luke, hoping that he would he able to tell that I didn't want Michael to know about Ashton hitting me.

"Ashton's an asshole." Luke replied. He leaned back in his chair and folded his arms over his chest.

"So Luke, you like Stella?" Michael questioned. He suspiciously raised an eyebrow at us.

"She's okay. She has nice boobs." Luke shrugged, glancing at me out of the corner of his eye. He leaned into me and rested his head on my shoulder, looking up at me innocently. His lips broke into a smile, not being able to hold back his laughter any longer.

"I can't argue with you there." Michael smirked, throwing his hands up in the air like he was surrendering.

"Why do you always have to bring that up?" I whined as I shoved Luke away from me.

"Don't get mad, I compliment you on other things all the time!" Luke countered. "I said you have pretty eyes, pretty hair, pretty-"

"Anyway," Michael spoke, cutting Luke off. "Luke likes Stella. Stella, do you like Luke?"

"Well, um," I paused, suddenly feeling uncomfortable with Michael questioning me about this. Of course I liked Luke, and he knew that too. I just wasn't really ready to talk about us yet. I didn't really want to rush into things, I liked the way everything was now. "Yeah, I guess."

"You guess?" Luke shouted, acting offended. He sat forward again, but I ignored him.

"Are you guys going to...do anything about this?" Michael laughed, looking between the two of us.

"I'd prefer if you don't try to get in the middle of our relationship, Mr. Clifford." Luke snapped, clearly getting a little annoyed with Michael - which wasn't a hard thing to do.

"I'm just trying to help!" Michael chuckled.

"I don't need you help, I have a plan. It's all in my head." Luke said, and turned to me. "It's only a 5 step plan."

"If it's only 5 steps then why don't you just ask Stella out right now." Michael argued. I knew that Michael had wanted Luke and I to get together from the start, and the fact that this was almost happening had gotten him a little excited.

Sure, it did make me feel a little strange listening to Luke explain how he had a plan to make me his girlfriend, but it was honestly no big deal to me. Luke and I weren't exactly the ordinary couple, so obviously we weren't going to have an ordinary way about doing this. I really didn't mind it, it was different and I liked different.

"Let me stick to my plan!" Luke demanded.

"Why don't you just start it right now?" Michael pressed.

"I'm working on it," Luke groaned. "Besides, I'm trying to stall a little. I don't like step 3 at all."

"What's step 3?" I asked, though I knew that Luke wasn't going to tell me anything.

"I have to do steps 1 and 2 first! They have to be in order!" Luke giggled, he didn't seem aggravated with Michael and I anymore, more amused.

"What kind of guy makes a 5 step plan to ask a girl out?" Michael scoffed. I wasn't surprised that Michael seemed completely clueless about this, I couldn't even remember the last time I had seen him with a girlfriend. He was more of the type to hook up with a girl at a party and then never speak to them again. Not because he wanted to be mean, but because he was afraid of making a commitment.