Wanted ✘ Luka Couffaine

chapter nineteen

I didn't know what I expected, but Luka's room takes me by surprise.

One of the walls is a wash of blue, and a Jagged Stone poster hangs in the middle of it. It's a limited edition print and the fact Luka has it tells me he's a big fan. A collection of guitar picks line the wall too, and it takes me a second to notice the missing space before the memory of our first meeting hits me full force. The pick is currently sitting on my desk at home, untouched since I put it there after my first day of school.

I need to return it soon.

The light spilling in through the circular windows reaches the papers on Luka's desk so that they're backlit with a glowing tinge of gold. There are scribbles of music notes barely recognisable on the crumpled pieces, but the others are flat and clean and seem to resemble something of close to a song, though I have no idea what about. Judging by the sad melody he was playing before I came in, they're his thoughts translated into music. A light feeling of curiosity makes itself home in the back of my mind, but at the same time, it's so endearingly human knowing he has all these thoughts he doesn't tell anyone. A part of me wants it to stay that way, for me to admire him from afar and just watch the pieces of him unfold without interacting with them.

There are stray pens and a couple of concert tickets littering the rest of the surface, and a laptop sits in the middle of all the clutter. That's all there is really, along with Luka sitting crosslegged in the centre of his bed, guitar in his lap.

With one look at the room, anyone could tell how much music means to him.

I knew he liked music, but I thought it was just a hobby. Music isn't just something he listens to and plays in response. Music is his whole life.

The low sound of Luka clearing his throat draws my attention back to him. He moves to get up so he's standing facing me in his oversized t-shirt and shorts, leaving the guitar behind on the bed. A bashful expression tugs at his features and his teal blue hair tumbles into his eyes as if trying to hide them away.

There's a hesitance to him. He doesn't say a word as his gaze flits to the Jagged poster and to the floor, but that's all I need to decipher what he's feeling. Luka's nervous. Nervous that he's showing a different side to himself for once. Nervous that a new friend has been let in and is freely wondering around his innermost thoughts, perfectly capable of destroying any and all of his confidence with just a few words.

A smile spreads across my lips, and I hope it's reassuring enough to calm him down. "Don't be ashamed of what you like," I say softly, and this time, his big blue eyes look up to meet mine. His shoulders are still tense so I test him with a little teasing to try and lighten the atmosphere. "Even if you're a massive Jagged fanboy."

At the added comment, his eyes widen and a hot blush rises to his cheeks as he shakes his head and crosses his arms in defence. The sight of a flustered Luka is so rare and incredibly irresistible that I can't help but take pride in his shy reaction.

"I'm not a fanboy," he says as calmly as he can manage, and if it wasn't for his low voice, it wouldn't be hard to believe the words were coming from a tiny child trying to deny their interests in fear of being judged. "I just really like his music."

I know he's not actually hurt by my comment though. His posture is much more relaxed now and I have to fight back a sigh of relief from coming out.

"Okay, okay," I say, masking my amusement with a look of innocence, as if I hadn't been searching for this exact reaction. When he directs a cool glare in my direction, the grin returns to my face and this might be the first time I'm fully comfortable in his presence. I transition the conversation before Luka's embarrassment wins him over. "By the way, I forgot to give this back to you before."

Luka's eyes drop to the hoodie in my hands and he reaches for it. I gladly hand it out to him. Black paint coats his nails like usual, and there a few festival bands dancing around his wrist before he draws back and instinctively pushes each arm through the hoodie sleeves.

"Thanks for bringing it back," he says, fiddling with the strings of the hood. "I remembered when I got home but I couldn't message you or anything."

The sun must move to perfectly align with the window then, because suddenly Luka is doused in light. His eyes become brighter and his skin glows on the left side. The wisps of his hair are so much more evident and the full sight of him appears so radiant I don't know what to do.

"Oh, right," I murmur, and then an additional sentence slips out without realising. "We should exchange numbers."

I don't regret what I say when it starts to register, or when I know exactly what I said. Maybe I would if the impulse was purely romantic, but in that moment, it's not. Mostly, it's just seeing such an interesting person in front of me and wanting to know them. Wanting to be someone to them in the simplest way possible. Wanting to know what they like and what they dislike. Wanting to know their favourite colour and see the little things they do for the people they care about.

That could be the reason Luka says, "Yeah, we should."

I'm in my own world as he pulls his phone from his pocket and unlocks it, tapping the screen a few times before he turns it to face me. A blank contact waits for me to type my number in, and strangely, my hand doesn't fumble at all for once as I complete it and pass it back to him. Luka presses the call button so I have his number too, and it rings once in my pocket before he ends it.

We smile at each other at the same time and a surge of warmth spreads through my body so naturally it's as if it was meant to be there all along. A strangely real sense of happiness builds within me.

At this point, the realisation that I like Luka Couffaine has actually settled in, and to my surprise, it doesn't hurt.

It doesn't hurt because I'm not going to act on it. Marinette and Luka are together and they're going through some things right now, but they'll work it out and everything will be happy and normal again. We'll all hang out and laugh and it will all be okay.

If all I'll ever be to Luka is a friend, then I'll be the best friend he has, because really, that's more than I could ever ask for, and I'm lucky to be given the chance.

💌
a/n: word count: 1222

okay it's been a few months but THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR 26K READS and 1.3K VOTES !!💗💞💕💓💖💘

thank you for all being so patient with me and I'm going to try and update more regularly <33 it's made me so happy to see people liking this story so I want to share more with you,, this chapter is small but I hope you like it 🌱

relating to the chapter's ending, don't worry, (Y/n) and Luka will end up together, but there are still some things to come before that happens 😌

And regarding (Y/n)'s thoughts at the end of the chapter, she subconsciously convinces herself everything is good to the point she actually believes it, even when she's settling for second best again. Luka isn't going to make her unconditionally happy either, of course, as romance doesn't fix all your problems, but he'll help her along the way :)

I know it's been over a month but Dynamite was absolutely amazing and I love all of BTS so much !!💞

as for a question, do you prefer night or day? Any particular reason?

Love from,
starraika 💗