outlines ✰ l.h.

chapter twenty-three

I hurried out to my car, running a few minutes late. The air was cool and crisp. It had rained the night before and felt a tad humid. I could feel my hair frizzing while the dew sprinkled over the grass began to seep into my shoes. 

I turned off my radio as I drove towards Settler's bridge. It was a hot spot in the summer. Cliffs to dive from, a massive swimming hole that was always freezing, and a gravel road that headed straight back to the water. To get to the swimming hole, you had to cross over a massive old and rusted bridge. There was decades of wear and tear on the beautiful baby blue bridge. Well, at least I considered the vintage appeal to be beautiful. It was covered in locks and graffiti and bright pink flowers grew from the bottom of it. 

I pulled into the gravel parking lot. Luke was already there. His car was running and his windows were fogged up. I turned off the ignition and stepped out. Luke was doing the same.

His curls were pulled back into a small bun, a look I hadn't seen him wear before. It was definitely something I could get used to. You could see his high cheekbones and bright eyes just a little easier. 

"Good morning," Luke said. He pulled me into a hug. I clutched onto his navy blue sweater and shut my eyes. He was always so warm and comforting. 

He pulled back away from me and left a hand grabbing my shoulder. His other hand grazed over my cheek and his smiled lovingly at me. His fingers curled around my loose and frizzy strand of hair and he pushed it over my ear.

"You always look stunning. I think that every time we meet you get more beautiful." 

I looked down at our feet and smiled. My mind replayed how this morning went and I simply had no words for him. He pulled me back into his chest. A breeze was caught under my sweatshirt and I shivered. Luke's hand grabbed the back of my head gently as he kissed the top of my head. His fingers gently twisted around the stray pieces of hair that were falling from my bun. 

"You're so much more than that, too. You're intelligent, kind, independent, and strong. There's a whole list I could run through."

"Stop," I said, now smiling up at him. I could feel the blood rushing to my cheeks. Luke wasn't typically as straight forward with his words and feelings like this. It was too off-brand for him. 

Luke pulled away from our embrace and grabbed my hand. He began to lead us towards the highest point of the rocks that I'd jump off every summer.

The sun wasn't up yet. There was the most faint hint of electric blue peaking from the skyline. It was foggy, but not cloudy. The rain from the night before was to thank for the beautiful scene that was laid out. 

We climbed to the top of the cliff. My body temperature had risen from the climb and I pulled off my crewneck. I laid it down on the damp rocks and sat down. Luke followed and we both stared down at the calm water below us. Memories of me, Ashton, and Calum jumping off of the rocks and into the water below. I turned my head to the left to see the broken rope swing. And to the right was the beach you could only access if you swam to. 

The fog floated about the water. The ripples created a butterfly affect on the fog, making it look like it had a heart beat. It seemed like gravity pulled the clouds from the sky to land. My head was truly in the clouds. 

I stopped admiring the nature around us when I felt Luke put his hand on my thigh. I looked down, the veins on the back of his hand bulging. My eyes led back up to his. They looked almost grey. Maybe it was the weather, maybe it was the mood. 

"Andy, I...", he trailed off. Luke looked into the distance ahead of us. I stayed focus on his face. His nose curved perfectly. Lips curled elegantly with every syllable he spoke. "I'm sorry," he said.

His eyes met mine eyes again. His front teeth held onto his bottom lip carefully. I studied his face carefully. He looked tired. His eyes blinked slowly and appeared to be heavy. His skin was more pale than usual, and he spoke quietly.

"For everything I've done wrong. For not responding to you for days, for Kat, for acting like I don't care, for going way too fast with you. I'm sorry."

I looked back to the water. The sun was starting to rise. The light glimmered on every crest of every small wave. It twinkled like the floor at a New Years Eve party.

"Andy, in the last week I've really made a conscious decision to treat you right," he said. My eyes stayed fixed on the scene in front of me. "And I hope that you've been able to see that."

It took me a second, but I nodded. I thought about the cups of coffee, the breakfast, the kind texts and phone calls. The attention and respect he's shown towards me. Asking me if things are okay, and respecting my boundaries. It seemed like Luke from a couple months ago was a stranger compared to now.

Luke scratched the middle of my back slowly, bringing comfort to my mind. "I understand if you don't want to forgive me for those things, but that's what I'm asking from you. Let me be a better person for you," he asked. 

I scooted closer to him, squishing the sides of our thighs together. 

"Okay," I responded, smiling softly. I leaned back onto my hands and pulled my knees up. 

Luke's expression fell. He looked almost upset with himself. "I mean, you don't have to, Ands. I just thought that talking to you would be-"

I brought my hand to the back of his head and pulled him to my lips. He reached out and firmly grasped my hip. I felt him melt into our kiss. Our lips moved slowly, instead of a quick and heated season we were used to we took our time. Kissing him always got better and was at the top of my list of favorite things to do.

Luke pulled back from me, leaving only a few inches between us. My lips tingled from the moment before and it seemed like his did too. 

"Do you want to come to prom with me?" Luke asked.

Luke didn't seem like the "type", so to speak, to go to prom. He seemed like to type to show up beforehand to pregame and then not be seen until the after party. AKA, not go and only participate in the business before and after. Which, I don't blame him for.

I chuckled, shaking my head. Not because I didn't want to go with him, but because I was so overly flattered and felt like a giddy school girl. 

Luke furrowed his eyebrows at me, "No?"

"No, not no." I laughed. His expression flipped to a much happier one. His eyes lit up and he smiled wide. "Yes. Yes, yes of course I'll go with you," I told him.

Prom was a little less than a month away, and that meant I had a lot to take care of before then. Buying tickets, getting a dress, jewelry, shoes, if we're going in a group or not, pictures, the whole nine yards. I don't think either of us had been to a prom before, but I stopped caring after I remembered the most important thing here:

Luke in a suit. 

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LMFAOOOOOOOO i love myself and andy, she's so funny, "the most important thing here: luke in a suit" MEEEEEEEEEEEE

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i hope u like this because it took me forever to write for no other reason then i wrote chapter 24 first because it's juicy af and i had to write this as a filler/fluff LOL ENJOY

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