Love Me Tender (Wattpad version)

The plan

Natalie

I told Krystal about my date, and she asked me a ton of questions. We sat down at the lunch table as Rodney and Bradley looked at us.

"What are you two discussing?" Bradley asked as Rodney ate.

"Natalie's date with Luke Langston," Krystal answered, making Bradley and Rodney spit out their drink. "Eww, I didn't need a shower."

Krystal took a napkin, cleaning herself.

"You had a date with Luke," Rodney said incredulously.

"We had pizza and talked," I mentioned.

"How was it? Did you make a love connection?" Bradley asked.

I looked at Bradley strangely.

"It was good, and I'm not sure," I replied.

"Well, you need to hurry. I heard my mom discussing wedding plans," Bradley told me.

I sighed. I didn't even know how I felt. I had one date with Luke, and he said he would call me. I'm still waiting for that call. While my friends discussed a plan to speed things up, I sat there, thinking about Luke. I didn't want to rush anything, but I enjoyed spending time with Luke. He had this laugh. It made you smile every time you heard it. You couldn't help but smile when he smiled. The way he flirted. It wasn't sexual, but fun. I never met anyone like Luke Langston.

"Natalie?" Krystal asked, knocking me out of my dreamlike state. "Didn't you hear anything that we said?"

I looked at everyone. I didn't feel like lying, which I did most of the time to avoid conflict.

"Bradley suggested that you two pretend to date, then he would drop you off to meet Luke. That way, your mom doesn't know," Krystal mentioned.

Yep, I hated the ideal already. That gives my mom a reason to continue with wedding planning.

"How does that help? You were planning when it was one date. Luke hasn't called me," I mentioned.

"He will," Rodney said casually, and we looked at him. Luke doesn't lie. Every time he says he will do something, he does it. That's why I trust him," Rodney said, surprising Krystal and me.

When we met Rodney, he seemed angry all the time. He would lash out at people. People said he had emotional issues, but we didn't know what was wrong with him. Then we noticed his behavior change. We saw Rodney hanging out with Luke and becoming more sociable. I never asked Rodney about it.

"What if he doesn't?" I questioned.

"Luke doesn't lie," Rodney repeated himself with a shrug.

"I thought everyone lies," Krystal mentioned.

"Not Luke. He said it serves no purpose and hurts people. When he didn't want to go out with someone, he was polite about it. People thought it was an act, but it's not. That's who Luke is," Rodney explained.

How is a person friendly to people without something thinking they're a pushover? Aren't they afraid of people taking advantage of them? I lie to avoid conflict and still encounter issues. I don't think it would matter.

"Okay, so we have a guy that doesn't lie and likes Natalie. That's a plus. Now, we pretend that I'm taking her out, and she meets Luke. They fall in love, I'm off the hook, and everyone is happy," Bradley declared.

"It's disturbing that you want to help me," I mentioned.

"Why? You're not my type, and I don't want to marry you," Bradley said.