Repairing the Hurt

Chapter 31

"These locks are awful," Luke hisses as he continues trying to open the back door into the school.

"Or maybe you just get performance anxiety," I supply with a smirk.

He stops what he's doing and stands up, placing a hand on his chest, "Not a chance," he reassures, and reaches over, pulling me close and kissing me firmly, before going back to picking the lock.

My stomach flutters and my toes curl, wishing we had more time to kiss.

The lock is open a moment later and I have to focus, finding that hard with the lingering feeling of his lips on mine.

We slip through the door and quietly enter the school, weary of the dark, empty space.

"I hate this place during the day enough, I didn't need to see it at night," Luke murmurs, the dark creepiness getting to him as well.

"At least you don't actually have to sit in class here," I remind him.

Not that he needed the reminder. I know he worries about me, and he hates that I have to be here.

He stops in his tracks and turns to me, placing his hands on my face. My heart beats harder, aware of his close proximity and the warmth eminating from him.

"Sweetie, I can't imagine how hard this is for you. But you are the bravest person for taking this on. I want to take you away from all of this, maybe run away with you to some beach where you'll be safe and mine forever. But I'm also so proud of you for doing this. You'll never have to face this kind of thing alone."

His face is obscured by shadow, but I don't need to see him. I feel the trust I have with him, the support he gives me, and the love. Nothing seems to have changed between us after North and I had our intimate night, and I'm not sure how to feel about that yet.

At the same time, my heart swells knowing that he means every word. He'll always support me and protect me. He's giving me so much and never asks for anything in return.

I reach up and kiss him again, being washed in vanilla.

I gently pull away and try to look at him in the darkness.

"We haven't talked about what happened with North," I say quietly.

This topic has been backburnered for days, on the edge of my mind and sitting like a stone in my stomach.

I can only take that feeling for so long. And with little chances of being with them alone, it's hard to find the time to have these kinds of conversations.

Even if we're currently breaking into the school in the middle of the night.

I feel Luke sigh slightly, his shoulders dropping, "Was he careful?" His voice comes out as a whisper, slightly worried but also asking to reassure himself more than anything.

I let out a breath between my teeth, "Yes," I whisper, worried what his next words will be.

He seems to hesitate, "It was bound to happen sometime. Before, you weren't even kissing all of us, and that was just making out, nothing as intense as sex. But now that it's happened, it doesn't make sense to be upset over something we all wanted." He runs his hand through his hair, "It's weird, but I guess it's something we'll just have to get used to."

He doesn't say anything more but I know something's on his mind.

"How do you feel about it though?" I ask quietly.

He sighs again, "I wish it was with me," he admits slowly.

Guilt floods my system. I knew there was a chance of jealously, there was always that risk, but we never got far enough to worry about this level of jealously, with this type of situation.