Everyone thinks that we're perfect. Please don't let them look through the curtains. D-O-L-L-H-O-U-S-E. I see things that nobody else sees.
Dollhouse - Melanie Martinez
Horrible.
This is how Luke's weekend at his father's went. He hated every seconds of it. It sounds dramatic but the blonde was truly impatient to go home to his mother. Not because he prefers her to his dad - he loves them both - but there, at his mother's place, he feels loved and wanted.
When Luke arrived at his dad's place on Friday night, he was confused to see a second car in the driveway. He thought his dad had friends over or something but no, it was actually his girlfriend- fiancé, Marie. It was the first time she and Luke met and he could feel she hated him and did not want him there. But Andrew is his dad, she can't forbid him to come over.
On Sunday night, after he got back from his dad's, Luke slipped a few words to his mum about Marie. He couldn't keep it in, he had to tell someone. He had to get this out of his chest.
''I'm sure you're exaggerating,'' Liz said before taking another bite of pastas. ''She can't be this bad. Give her time, she'll warm up to you. It's not easy for her either, Luke. She's young, she probably wasn't expecting your father to have children.''
The blonde snickered. ''She knew. Ben met her already and she loves him. It's me she hates, always me.''
''Why do you say that?''
''You should've seen the way she was looking at me the whole weekend. I bet she hoped I wasn't a part of the package when she accepted to marry my father. Now she's seen me, she's not happy with the poisoned gift.''
A beeping sound was heard and Liz reached out for her phone, reading her incoming text as Luke rolled his eyes and continued to eat his dinner.
Sometimes, Luke wonders if her phone is more important that her son. She always pick up her phone but doesn't always listen to Luke when he speaks, like now.
''Ray wants me to come over tonight. Will you be okay on your own?'' she asked, waiting before typing her answer.
Luke rolled his eyes. He's sixteen, he doesn't need a babysitter. ''Yeah, I have homework to do anyway,'' he replied.
She texted her answer to Ray, then got up, putting her plate on the counter after rinsing it clean. ''I must go,'' she announced. She opened the dishwasher, seeing it still full. ''Can you unload the dishwasher while I'm gone? You'd be an angel.''
Luke frowned, lifting his eyes from his plate to land on his mother. ''Wasn't it Ben's turn this week?''
''Yes, but he's busy with school and work, it's your chore now.''
It's your chore now. Luke is sick of hearing this. Ben doesn't do anything in the house anymore. He always claims to be busy and not have time to help out. Just because he got a job and goes to college doesn't mean he can escape house chores. Luke goes to school too - not college but high school isn't easy either - yet he has to do all of his chores or else there'll be consequences.
''So, will you do it?'' she repeated impatiently. ''Ray is waiting after me, Luke!''
He breathed in annoyance. ''Sure.''
As much as he loves Ray, Luke wishes his mother wouldn't spend so much time with the man. She's always over at his place or out somewhere with him. Luke understands that she's in her 'honeymoon phase' with Ray but he still wishes she was home more.
When he was finish with his food, Luke did as told and unload the dishwasher before placing tonight's dirty dishes in. He doesn't like this chore. It takes a lot of time and his mum is never happy. She always complains he doesn't put things in their place or doesn't place them correctly and Luke just want to tell her to do it herself if she's not happy.
But he doesn't.
He's polite. He wouldn't say something like that to his mum.
When he was done, he went to his room and started unpacking his weekend bag. There isn't a lot in there but he needs to take out his dirty clothes and put them in the laundry basket. He needs his bag for school tomorrow, he can't leave his dirty clothes stay in there, it's gross.
He was at his last sock when his phone went off. Dropping his bag on the floor, Luke jumped on his bed, reaching for the small device.
[From: Ethan]
Aiden and I are going to the local football game to celebrate the end of the school year, our parents got us tickets, you coming?
School ends is a month and Luke is really excited. For the summer, he signed up for a summer local play. He's been practicing with the group for two months already and he cannot wait for the first show. They'll be playing in front of big crowds all summer which is both scary and exciting.
Luke is not afraid of big crowds though. He enjoys being on a stage in front of people. This play is a cult in their town and he's always dreamed to be a part of it. People from outside cities comes for this play; most of the dancers, signers and recurrent actors are not locals.
Since entering that play, Luke's been seeing Aiden and Ethan a lot less than usual. The blond has gotten pretty busy during the weekends with these weekly practices for the play, he doesn't have as much free time as he used to. He's also made new friends there which is another reason he's not hanging out as often with the twins.
His new friends are a lot more exciting. They smoke, drink and look a lot cooler that Luke's high school friends. They don't wear polos or go to camps during the summer. They wears leather jacket and band tees.
[To: Ethan]
I don't know, I might be at my dad's...
Another reason Luke doesn't like going to his dad's is because he's basically confined inside. Mr Hemmings works all week so when weekend comes, he likes to relax inside and do nothing. Even when his son is over. At first, it wasn't too boring. It was quite nice to stay in and watch movies with his dad but after a while, it became boring. Luke hates that his dad moved in another city.
Luke opened his laptop, clicking on the Spotify icon. Music soon filled the room and he smiled, loving the sound of Vic Fuentes's voice in Hold on till May. He's not that cute but he has a nice voice. Their acoustic songs are bomb.
[From: Ethan]
Oh... it would've been cool to go all together one last time seeing as we won't be seeing you till school starts again. Let's hope we have more than two class together this time! Can you ask his to stay at your mum's that weekend? Maybe they could switch or something?
The twins are going to band camp all summer long. It's a tradition for them, they've been going for years. Ethan plays cello and Aiden plays piano. Their parents are into classic music, that's why their kids play music.
Luke stared at his phone and sighed. Even if he could stay at his mum's on that weekend, he couldn't go. Football tickets are expensive and he can't afford them. Not since the divorce. Both his parents are financially tight right now. Not everyone bath in money like his twin friends.
He doesn't want them to know about his financial situation so he makes up a quick lie.
[To: Ethan]
Impossible. My mum is going away that weekend, she's going to a spa with her girlfriends.
He felt bad for lying to his friends but it's nothing big and they'll never know he lied. They won't call his mum and ask if she's really going to the spa, it would be weird.
[From: Ethan]
:(
Luke put his phone aside and didn't bother sending anything else. Instead, he did his homework and sang his favorite songs as loud as he wanted given he was home alone and his mother - or brother - couldn't complain about how much noise he was making. The neighbors might have banged on the wall, telling him to keep it down but Luke completely ignored them.
It wasn't eleven anyway, they can't call the cops yet.
***
English class is boring. Learning about grammar isn't interesting. It's confusing and Luke hates it. There's so many rules to follow and he just wants to pluck his hair out of his scalp when he thinks about the upcoming test during finals week.
Mrs Lancaster isn't a good teacher. She speaks super fast and yells at her students if they don't understand, claiming they didn't listen. Luke prefers to say nothing and struggles than ask for help. But finals are coming and he needs to pass so he tries to pay extra attention in class though it's not exactly working.
''We could do flashcards together after class? Our mum used to do this when we were younger, it was helpful,'' Aiden suggested during lunch.
''Yeah, you could study with us,'' added his twin brother, swallowing his bite of sandwich.
Luke pursed his lips around his straw, gulping some orange juice. He really needs help in English. He can't ask his mum, she's not the best when it comes to school and academics. Mostly Maths and English - not that she's better at Science or History...
''I can try.''
The twins smiled. ''Will you take the bus with us or will you come over after dinner?'' Ethan asked.
''My mum doesn't want me out after dinner so I'll come after school. Is your bus driver okay with that?''
Ethan nodded. ''People does it all the time, our bus isn't full.''
Luke nodded. It was settled. He will be going to his friend's house after school and hopefully he'll be less confused about with these damn rules. He sent a quick text to his mum to warn her and continued eating his lunch. He had to hurry, he had Science after lunch and the classroom is on the other side of the school.
After school, they did as planned and Luke went over to the twins's. Their parents weren't home - they work till five - so they were alone in the big house. It's not as big as a mansion but it's definitely more spacious that Luke's appartement.
They were sitting in the Hawks's living room, English books sprawled on the coffee table with some colorful sharpies and pieces of cardboard for the flashcards. It was a lot of work but Luke is their friend and they can't leave him in his misery. Friends help each other out
''You can't just guess them, you need to know them, Luke,'' sighed Aiden, the older twin. They're been studying English for a couple minutes and they're already exhausted.
''That's impossible, there's too many!''
Aiden rolled his eyes. ''I can't believe you don't know all the irregular verbs, it's primary school stuff.'' He didn't want to make Luke feel dumb so he moved on. ''Let's pick another card. What is a semicolon? And when is it used.''
Semicolon? Luke doesn't remember hearing about this in class... He's seen
''Erm, are you sure you're in the right book, Aiden?'' he asked, making Ethan laugh loudly, crawling over his brother to see if he was in the wrong book. Aiden has the tendency to pick up the wrong stuff and Ethan never miss an occasion to make fun of his brother.
Frowning, Aiden lifted up the English book he used for this flashcards and shook his head. ''It's the right textbook, we've seen this a few months ago I believe.''
The blonde whined is desperation. ''Really?''
''I confirm, Mrs Lancaster did speak about semicolons. She didn't stay on the subject a long time but she did went trough it. It's easy, I'm sure you can do it.''
Luke tried something but it wasn't the right answer. He was getting frustrated, having missed more than six flashcards since they arrived. ''Ugh, I don't know!''
Ethan smiled apologetically at him, trying to be encouraging as Aiden read the answer. ''Semicolons help you connect closely related ideas when a style mark stronger than a comma is needed. By using semicolons effectively, you can make your writing sound more sophisticated.''
They continued for another hour, going trough flashcards and helping Luke when he needed help. The two boys were proud of him after he answered seven flashcards in a row and got them all right. When Mrs and Mr Hawks arrived from work, it was time for Luke to leave and for once, he was proud of himself.
Maybe he'll do good with his English test at the end of the month if he continues like this.
Walking home was kind of a bummer. It was almost six and his stomach was screaming. He couldn't wait to get home. Aiden and Ethan don't live in the same neighborhood as him so he has to walk for fifteen minutes since he doesn't have a buss pass on him - why did he left it at home this morning?
''What's for dinner?'' Luke asked when he came home. He could hear his mother and brother talking ion the living room so he toed off his Vans and followed the voices.
''I made roast beef, there's some left in the oven for you.''
Luke scrunched his nose. ''I hate roast beef, it taste like death,'' he said, making Liz roll her eyes. Luke is so picky with his food, a real princess.
''You can heat up some lasagna from the fridge, I believe there's some left.'' She turned to Ben. ''Did you take the lasagna for lunch?'' she asked. The older blonde shook his head. ''There's no juice left in the fridge, I'll pick up some tomorrow,'' she added as Luke walked to the kitchen.
Honestly, Luke's not surprised they're out of juice. They're always out of something and sometimes, the fridge is completely empty. Divorces are expensive, groceries too. With Liz working as an hairdresser, her pay check isn't always the same. Some week they have more money and some they have less. It depends on how busy she's been at the salon that week.
After putting the lasagna in the microwave, Luke went to the table to eat it, alone. Family dinner have never been a thing in their family. Even before his parents's divorce, they never really has dinner together as a family. His dad was working most of the time so it was always Ben, him and his mum.
His dad never being there is one of the reason they got divorce.
Liz had enough of doing everything on her own, it was like they were already divorced since he was - almost - never there. Andrew has never been really present in his children's live. He's always been busy with work and away shifts.
When he was done eating, Luke went to his room and changed into comfy clothes, annoyed with this itchy button up. Why did he wear this today? He hates button ups.
Laying on his bed, he grabbed his phone and started texting back his friends from the play.
[From: Michael]
Why the hell there isn't a cat filter on snapchat?! I'm talking for all the cats lovers on the planet: We NEED fucking a cat filter!! Not everyone is dog people...
Luke rolled his eyes at Michael's over-dramatic text. No one loves cats as much as the colorful haired boy does. Once, Luke went to his place and his bedroom was filled with cat stuff... It was a little creepy but Luke didn't judge. Michael can like and do whatever he wants.
[To: Michael]
Maybe there is more dog people than cat people? And they're probably creating the cat version soon anyway, they can't discriminate cats.
Honestly, Luke doesn't care if they make one or not, he just didn't want to start a fight with his friend about snapchat filters. It sounds dumb but when Michael gets engaged in something...
Michael is the first person Luke met at the play. He is friends with practically everyone (actors, dancers and staff) and everyone loves him. He's funny and very goofy. He also has really cool, colorful hair.
[From: Michael]
You need to do the puppy filter!
Luke groaned. Snapchat isn't his thing. He likes watching other people's stories but he never posts. He says his life is too boring to be documented. What's the point posting when no one will watch it?
Knowing Luke wouldn't do it, Michael insisted an sent him multiple texts, making the blonde's phone go mad. Can he be any more more?
[From: Michael]
Come on, Luke, you'd be cute as a puppy - you're not cute enough for a cat, ha!
Sometimes, Michael doesn't make sense and it's best to ignore him. Or give in and do what he wants. Luke sighed and opened his snapchat app, trying to figure out ow this shit work because it's so confusing. Luke is used to the old snapchat, not the new one with filters and whatnot.
[To: Michael]
Sorry I'm so awkward... now I hope you'll shut up about this damn filter!
[From: Michael]
Don't talk! That's why it's not working well, you idiot... God, do I need to teach you how to use snapchat?! You're embarrassing, Hemmings...
Of course Michael would correct him and tell him his wrongs. That's so typical of him. Luke rolled his eyes as he typed on his phone.
[To: Michael]
I don't care about filters and all that shit, Mike.
[From: Michael]
And that's why your life is so fucking boring! Learn to live a little! I'll teach you about life!
Shaking his head, Luke laughed. He checked the time and saw it was almost ten o'clock. He should shower now if he doesn't want to do it in the morning. Luke is more or a morning shower person but with school, he needs to shower at night. It's more convenient when he accidentally sleeps in.
[To: Michael]
I'm going to shower, see you Sunday!
[From: Michael]
Heyyy! Don't shut me out, I wasn't finished talking to you, asshole.
[From: Michael]
Have you talked to him yet? Maybe I could help? I'm a good matchmaker ;)
Blush went to his cheeks.
Why did he told Michael about that? He really needs to learn to shut his mouth sometimes, now, Michael won't stop pestering him...
A/N When I got this idea, I never thought it would take me so long to write/plan this book. Like always, the hardest part is the songs (ugh -_-) but I'm getting there...hopefully. Don't forget to vote and leave comments down below, xx
Thoughts on Luke's friends? His friendship with Michael? His crush?(who can it be?) His familial life?
p.s. Keep in mind that Luke is young in the first chapters of the story. He doesn't have piercings or dress like he does today. He's kind of a goody two shoes, haha.