Luke was terrified to go to Government class that Monday morning.
The word was already out: although it's only been a few days, everybody in the school knew what happened. Samantha Simmons dumped Ashton Irwin.
Luke heard them all talking about it in the halls earlier that morning, as if the world's biggest celebrity power-couple had just gotten a divorce. They ate the drama up and acted like this was the only thing going on in their small, suburban town. And, quite frankly, it probably was.
A lot of people already knew that Luke and Sam were an item, a lot more people than Luke had anticipated. Nobody knew about their secret affairs (that was kept strictly between them), but the rest of his classmates knew he was the guy Sam kept blowing Ashton off for.
When Luke walked around campus he was constantly feeling pairs of eyes piercing the back of his neck, and whispers being exchanged in his name. He hated the attention, but at the same time he loved it.
He loved it because, for the first time in his entire life, Luke finally beat Ashton at something. Since elementary school Ashton was always better than him. The teachers always liked Ashton better, the girls always liked Ashton better, Ashton was better at sports, making friends...everything. And now, finally, Luke was having his moment. The taste of Ashton's ex-girlfriend's tongue was the taste of sweet, sweet victory to Luke.
Of course, there came some fear with this, too. Even though Luke technically just stole Ashton's girlfriend of three years, Ashton's still much bigger than him. Ashton's taller, faster, stronger, and could easily beat Luke to a pulp in the blink of an eye. That's why Luke was so scared to go to his third period today. If Ashton's there, Luke will surely be taking his last breath as soon as he walked through the door.
But, to Luke's surprise, when he walked into his government classroom after break, Ashton wasn't there. Nervously clutching the straps of his backpack, Luke looked around at all the desks, but Ashton was nowhere to be found. Sam was there, sitting prettily at her desk with a nail-file in hand, but the seat beside her was empty.
Confused, Luke hurried over to Sam and slid into a desk nearby, throwing his backpack to the floor. "Where's Ashton?" he whispered.
Sam looked up, her face instantly brightening at the sight of him. "I dunno." she sang carelessly, a goofy grin on her face.
"Is he at school today?" Luke pressed on.
Sam furrowed her eyebrows. "I don't know... Why?"
"Because I'm afraid he's gonna like, jump out from somewhere and kill me." Luke admitted, earning a laugh from Sam.
"Wow, Puke. It's Monday morning and this is how you greet me?" she giggled. "I don't know where Ashton is. If he is here he won't even touch you. Like I said the other night, he handled it pretty well."
Luke looked at her dully. "I still don't believe you."
"Well believe me!" she squealed, swatting at his arm. "He was pretty sad, but he wasn't angry or anything. He didn't seem like he was gonna hunt you down and kill you. I didn't even tell him about...us."
Luke let out a sigh. He was kind of pissed that Sam lied to Ashton and told him she never cheated on him. But at the same time, if she had, then Luke would already be dead by now. He just didn't know how to make a move anymore, if they have to constantly keep this a secret.
The bell rang and class officially started. Luke sat back and ran his hands through his hair, only to see another girl standing beside him with her hands on her hips. "Oh," he stuttered once he realized he had been occupying her desk. "Sorry."
He grabbed his backpack and slung it over his shoulder. "I'll talk to you later." he mumbled to Sam, heading back to his assigned seat.
-
After government class, Luke was planning on going home for lunch. But Sam seemed to have another idea.
"Come sit with me and my friends." she said as they walked down the hall towards the cafeteria.
"What? No way," Luke replied, shaking his head.
Sam frowned. "Why not?"
"Because I can't. Your friends are all Ashton's friends."
"True...but Michael and Calum really want you to come sit with us."
Luke glanced down at Sam and lifted an eyebrow. "Really."
"Yes, really! Luke, they can't stop talking about you," she laughed, hugging her binder to her chest. "Ever since Ashton's party a few weeks ago, you're literally all they talk about. They're constantly asking me when I'm going to formally introduce them to you."
Luke was shocked. Ashton's friends are almost as intimidating as Ashton himself. Ever since he could remember, Luke has always been afraid of Michael and Calum. Now they suddenly wanted to hang out with him? Luke couldn't believe it.
"Oh...okay, if you think it's safe," Luke finally answered Sam, clearing his throat. "Let's go do that, then."
When they got to the cafeteria, Sam's usual table in the middle was filled with all her friends. Everyone from the varsity lacrosse team to Tiffany, Chelsea, and some other girls from the cheer squad were seated there. The boys were throwing food back and fourth across the table while the girls were eagerly gossiping with one another, quiet giggles escaping their glossed lips.
As Sam took Luke by the hand and led him to the middle of the room, he gulped. He didn't know how Sam's friends were going to welcome him. Luckily for Luke, Ashton wasn't there. Where could he possibly be?
Chelsea looked up and spotted Sam and Luke walking their way. "Look who it is," she smirked, nudging Michael on the shoulder. She pointed over to Sam and everyone around, all eyes falling upon Luke.
"Hi everyone," Sam greeted, pulling out the last two empty seats at the table. "I'd like you all to meet my new friend."
Chelsea's eyes raked up and down Luke's body as she smacked on her bubble gum. "I know you," she said suddenly, tilting her head to the side. "We have biology together."
"Econ, actually." Luke corrected her, sinking into what he assumed was Ashton's usual chair. Sam sat down next to him and pulled a protein bar out of her bag.
Chelsea let out long and rather clueless "oh", slowly nodding her head. "Well, I've never heard anything about you, before." she snickered and looked over to Sam, winking.
Luke furrowed his eyebrows. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Before Sam could respond, Michael squealed from down the table. "Luke!"
He chucked a baby carrot and hit Luke on the side of the face. "Uh, hi Michael." he waved shyly.
Calum was sat right across from Luke, and he smiled. "Hey, Luke! How are you?"
"I'm...I'm good -" Luke stammered.
"Luke's gonna be eating with us today," Sam stated, as if it wasn't obvious already. "I hope everyone's okay with that."
A boy from the lacrosse team a few seats down spoke up next, his mouth full of a turkey sandwich. "Where's Ashton?"
"Obviously he's not coming here," Tiffany scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Sam dumped him."
"Yeah no shit," Henry retorted. "Everyone knows that. But has anyone seen him?"
Everyone at the table shook their heads, and Luke joined them.
"...Anyways, enough about Ashton," Sam sighed. She turned to her red-headed best friend. "Tiffany. How's the party-planning coming along?"
Tiffany was hastily typing something away on her phone, and she didn't realize Sam was addressing her. Sam kicked her shin under the table and Tiffany screeched. "What?!"
"I asked how your party-planning was going," Sam chuckled. "Are we still on for the 20th of December?"
"What party?" Luke wondered out loud. His stomach was growling but he was too nervous to eat the sandwich his mother had packed him this morning.
"Tiffany's infamous 'holiday party'," Calum replied, slightly rolling his eyes. "We have it every year when we get off for winter break."
Calum's words jogged Luke's memory. He's heard of this holiday party before, it's almost as big as Samantha's New Year's Eve party at the end of every year. This was the friend group that was responsible for most of the house parties that go on around here: Ashton threw one a few times a month, Tiffany had her Christmas party, and Sam had New Year's. Luke had no idea how far in advance they planned these things.
"Pretty good! I finally got in touch with my dealer!" Tiffany squealed with delight, jumping up and down in her seat.
That's when Luke decided to tune out their conversation, for he just wasn't interested in talking about what kinds of drugs are going to be distributed at these parties. Luke hoped Sam wouldn't ask him to come to any of them. But he knew if she did he would force himself to go.
Luke looked down the line of seats across from him and studied all of Sam's friends. A lot of them have bullied him in the past. A lot of them were fellow lacrosse stars and meaty jocks that Luke has been avoiding since middle school. He wondered if they even remembered his name, though Sam had introduced him just a few minutes ago.
"Hey, Luke," Michael spoke up, throwing another baby carrot to grab Luke's attention. "I wanted to ask you something."
"Oh. Sure," Luke stuttered, leaning forward so he could see him. "What's up?"
"Well... Sam told me you're like, wicked smart," Michael said. "Is that true?"
"I...I guess."
"I have a math test tomorrow that I'm fucking screwed for," he continued, nervously biting his lip. "Wanna help me study for it? I'll pay you."
"Wait, really?" Luke asked, taken back by Michael's request.
"Yeah. How much do you want?"
Luke vigorously shook his head. He wasn't surprised that Michael wanted to pay him, he was surprised that Michael actually wanted his help. "No no, you don't need to pay me," he said. "I'd love to help."
This was great. Michael Clifford was, in a way, showing Luke a sort of appreciation that he's never received from this crowd before. He was staring at Luke almost like he was intimidated by him. Maybe Luke being smart was his gateway into receiving some respect from a popular boy like Michael.
"Really?" Michael asked, letting out a sigh of relief. "Thank you so much, man. Can you come to my house after school?"
Slowly but surely, all of Ashton's friends were starting to pay more attention to Luke. Maybe they were even starting to like Luke. All Luke had to do now was make sure he didn't do anything to embarrass himself or set them off in the wrong direction.
Luke was nervous for this because he's never been sober in a room with just Michael before. He was afraid it might be awkward and Luke would scare him away. Even though he's always hated Michael Clifford and found him to be rather annoying, he still wanted Michael to have a good opinion of him.
"...I'll come too," Sam suddenly said, nodding her head. Luke looked down at her questionably, but Sam only shrugged and met his gaze with a wink.
Of course. She wanted to come because she knew Luke was afraid to face it alone. How does Sam seem to get Luke so well? Luke will probably never know.
"You're not even in my math class." Michael smirked, probably hinting at Sam's little crush on Luke. It made Luke wonder if Ashton's knew (or even cared) about the thing Sam currently had with him.
Sam rolled her eyes. "Yeah, well. I've got nothing else to do today. Come on, it'll be fun. You love me, Michael."
"She can come," Luke said quickly, grateful she had offered to accompany him to Michael's house. None of this was even a big deal, but Luke's the kind of person that would make even a friendly tutoring-session into a complete nightmare.
Luke looked down at her and smiled. "I'd love it if she did."
-
"Okay... so then you just look at the list of formulas and use them to simplify." Luke said as he pointed at the paper in front of Michael.
They were sitting at the coffee table in Michael's living room while Sam was laying down on the other side of the couch. She wasn't being too much of a distraction, and her presence was really helping Luke stay calm.
Michael leaned back and stared at Luke like he had been speaking a different language this entire time. "...The best way to approach these things," Luke continued, hoping that something would finally click inside Michael's brain. "Is to turn each side of the equation into sines and cosines."
Michael furrowed his eyebrows and picked up the list of trig-identities his teacher had given him. His worried eyes scanned over it's surface for a few moments, and then he slowly nodded his head. "Oh."
"Yeah, so if you're trying to prove that this equals tangent of X," Luke scribbled down a simple problem from Michael's textbook. "After you switch it all around...it comes out looking like that. Sine over cosine equals tangent."
"Y'all I'm so glad I'm still in Algebra 2." Sam muttered under her breath as she rolled over onto her side, unlocking her phone for the hundredth time. She looked over and met Luke's annoyed gaze with a smirk.
Luke and Sam had been at Michael's house for a little over an hour by now. So far Luke wasn't having any trouble with it. Michael lived in a house quite like Luke's: medium-sized, close to the school, and pretty cozy compared to the harsh autumn winds outside. It felt a lot more like a home than the houses Sam and Ashton live in. Luke wondered if Michael ever thought the same.
"Yeah, yeah, lucky you," Michael rolled his eyes, resting his head in his palm. "Anyways, I guess that makes sense."
Luke pushed some loose papers to the side and slid the textbook in front of him. "Here. Try these out." he instructed, pointing to a few other practice problems.
Michael nodded, grabbed his pencil, and went straight to work. Luke watched Michael over his shoulder, critiquing any mistakes he was making, until he sensed another pair of eyes on him. Luke glanced up and noticed Sam had her phone pointed at him like she was taking a video.
"Studying?" she asked sweetly.
"Studying...more like...stu-DYING." Luke blurted out, because he knew Sam likes stupid humor like that.
"Oooo that's a good one." Michael hollered as he leaned back, giving Luke a high five.
Sam started giggling as she dragged her finger along the screen like she was zooming up on him. Luke giggled and turned away, blushing.
"Whoa, congrats, dude," Michael said sarcastically. "You made it onto Sam's Snapchat story."
"Oh shut up," Sam scoffed playfully. "Luke has been on my Snapchat story plenty of times."
"I have?"
"Yeah. Don't you have one?"
Luke gulped, his eyes wide. "Uh...yes."
"What is it? I'll add you," Sam sat up and tucked her hair behind her ears. "I can't believe we've waited this long to become Snapchat friends, Puke."
Luke didn't know what to say. He's been following Sam's snapchat since last year. He's never missed one of her stories and he used to drool over everything she posted. Plus, his username was a huge embarrassment.
Luke looked away as his cheeks heated up. "It's, uh...penguin1996."
Sam sat back and stared off, furrowing her eyebrows in thought. "That's you?"
Luke nodded. "That's me."
"I've been wondering who penguin1996 was for the past like, 6 months."
Michael leaned over his paper and buried his face into his arm, trying to work on math while probably trying to hold back his laughter at the same time.
"Well, now you know," Luke shrugged. "Wanna add me back finally? I look really cute with the dog filter."
A smile spread across Sam's face so wide that it seemed to spill into her eyes. "I'm sure you do."
"Ugh, God. No flirting while I'm studying!" Michael whined, slamming his fist on the coffee table. "I need to ace this test!"
"How's it coming?" Luke let out a laugh and sunk back into his seat on the floor beside Michael. He looked over what Michael had accomplished, and so far everything looked correct. "Those are all right."
Michael gasped and looked up at Luke in awe. "Really? Okay, okay, wait. Help me with this."
As Michael threw his work to the side and started flipping through his textbook to find a new topic for them to review, Luke thought about his current situation as a whole. Here he was, the town's biggest fool and a complete nobody, sitting in Michael Clifford's living room with Samantha Simmons just a few feet away. They were both everything that Luke never found himself to be: talented, attractive, and appreciated by many. How in the world did somebody like Luke end up stealing a beautiful girl from somebody like Ashton Irwin and hanging out with his best friend after school?
Another thought that Luke pondered about was if Michael even cared that Sam dumped his best friend for the scrawny blonde kid currently seated next to him. If Michael really was as close to Ashton as he makes himself out to be, then Luke should be the enemy, right? Not his math tutor.
Michael interrupted Luke's thoughts when he shoved his textbook in his face. "How do I do this stuff?"
Luke leaned back and let his eyes scan over the page. It was a section about double-angle formulas. Luke can still recall all this stuff from when he took this class over 2 years ago. "Oh. This stuff isn't that bad," Luke shrugged as he grabbed his pencil off the floor. "Let me show you."
He began rummaging through Michael's binder to find more scratch paper. He could feel Michael's eyes glued to the side of his face as he did so. "...You know, you're pretty cool, Luke." Michael said. "I know I already said that at Ashton's party, but I was drunk. Hell, you were drunk too. And it was really fucking funny."
Luke blushed and smiled, laughing a little under his breath. "...But like, now I'm sober," Michael said, counting his observations off on his fingers. "And so are you...and you're pretty cool."
Luke looked at Sam out of the corners of his eyes. She was staring at them, grinning like a little girl on Christmas.
He then turned back to Michael and nodded gratefully. "Thanks, Michael. You're cool too."
Luke was surprised when he realized he really meant what he said. Michael was definitely nicer than he used to be, and Luke wondered if it was just a coming of age or he was genuinely trying to befriend him. But, again...why? Why Luke? Doesn't Michael see the romance between Luke and Sam panning out right in front of his eyes? What would Ashton think?
Luke decided to give up on those thoughts for now, and get back to what he was comfortable with: math. He started explaining the next few concepts to Michael as thoroughly as he could, though half his attention was fixed on the beautiful girl sitting just a few feet away, staring back at him as she was infatuated by every move he made.
-
Later that night, after all of the testing material had been covered and Michael had to leave to go to lacrosse practice, Sam came with Luke back to his house. She's never met his mother before, and Luke was sure Liz would love to finally see her in person after all the times he's talked about her.
"You can probably stay for dinner if you want," Luke said as he turned his house key through the lock. "I think my mom is making tacos."
They walked into the kitchen and found Liz at the stove, pushing a batch of taco meat around a stainless steel pan. Luke cleared his throat and Liz looked over her shoulder.
"Luke!" she gasped as she turned the heat down at the stove, fully turning around. Her eyes fell upon Sam and she stumbled back slightly, probably surprised to see her there standing beside her son.
"Are you Sam?" Liz asked sweetly, wiping her hands off on a nearby towel. Luke had to hold back a laugh because he knew Liz knew damn well that it was Sam, considering how much Luke has talked about her in the past.
Sam smiled and met Liz halfway across the kitchen and shook her hand. "I am," she nodded. "It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Hemmings!"
"Please, call me Liz." Luke's mother said, leaning to give her son a presumptuous smile. Luke sighed and rolled his eyes.
"Where have you guys been?" Liz asked as she returned to the stove, turning the heat back up. She scooped up a few pieces of meat with a nearby spoon and tasted it. "Dinner's almost ready by the way, Luke."
"I was helping a friend of hers out with some math stuff," Luke shrugged, running his hand through his hair. "Can Sam stay for dinner?"
Again, Liz seemed taken back by everything she was seeing. A few months ago, she was finding it hard to believe that Sam was even talking to Luke. Now her son was calm and confident while asking if this girl could join them for a meal. She probably never thought Luke would get this far, and Luke felt the same way.
"Of course," Liz finally said, vigorously nodding her head. "I'm sure there's enough taco meat for us all. I'll heat up an extra tortilla."
Sam left Luke's side and took another step forward. "Would you like any help -"
Smiling, Liz held her hand up and shook her head. "Not at all, sweetheart. I'll call you guys when it's ready. Luke, go show Sam to the bathroom so you guys can wash up."
Luke nodded and nudged Sam for her to follow him. She thanked his mother one last time for letting her stay and scurried after Luke, pinching his backside as she passed him and zoomed down the hall.
"Ow," Luke frowned, rubbing his hands over his butt.
Sam looked over her shoulder and giggled as the front of her body gently collided with the guest room door. "Little does she know," Sam said, an amusing grin on her face. "I already know where it is."
Luke held his hands up and let out a sarcastic 'oooo'. "That's right," he laughed. "Because the only time you're ever over here is when she's at work or when you drive here at three in the morning."
They ran their hands under the sink and Sam wiped some foamy soap from her fingers to his because she had taken too much. "Yeah, well. I like coming here at three in the morning," she said. "I like it when I'm here."
Luke smiled and shrugged, drying his hands off with the towel on the wall. He quickly kissed Sam on the cheek. "I like it when you're here, too."
-
Later that night, Sam had followed Luke up to his bedroom after they helped Liz clear the table and wash the dishes. The 3 of them had a nice time talking, laughing, and conversing over Liz's famous street tacos.
Luke enjoyed watching Sam and his mother get to know each other. Sam was just as engaging and polite as she always is, and Luke could tell his mom was impressed. He figured Liz thought Sam would turn out to be some stuck-up brat, given her reputation, but she's proven to be quite the opposite.
The two of them were sprawled out on the floor, arms stretched out on either side, staring at the ceiling as All Time Low acoustics played quietly from Luke's stereo. They were doing what they usually do at these times: they were talking about stuff. The deep stuff that they refuse to talk about unless the other is there.
"Have you heard back from any colleges yet?" she asked.
"Sam," Luke chuckled, shaking his head. "For the last time, no one hears from any schools until the spring."
"I knew that! I was just asking. Some people do early commitment," Sam turned her head to the side and stuck her tongue out at Luke. "I hope you get into Harvard."
"I don't even want to go to Harvard," Luke said truthfully, his eyes focusing on the glow-in-the-dark stars and crescent moons on his ceiling. They've been there since Luke was a kid and afraid of the dark, and he never got around to taking them down. "I didn't even apply. Besides, it's not like I'd get in."
Sam scoffed. "You literally just taught Michael an entire chapter of trigonometry that you haven't even looked at in three years. I can't even remember how to find a slope of a linear equation."
A dorky smile crept across Luke's face. It took everything for him to refrain from blurting out the answer, and Sam knew it. "You ass," she laughed, giving him a push on the shoulder. "Don't even think about it."
"I'm not!" Luke squealed, quiet giggles escaping his lips. He looked over to Sam and gave her an innocent smile. She rolled her eyes and grabbed his hand, intertwining her fingers with his.
As soon as her touch was enveloped around his, Luke quieted down, and the butterflies took over. He got a jittery, nervous feeling in his stomach that rose up and swarmed his pounding heart. He felt a lot of things at once, all of which he's been feeling a lot recently. Most of what he felt was admiration and pure infatuation. But the rest of it was fear, confusion, and maybe even a little guilt.
God forbid Luke ever says it out loud, but part of him felt bad for being the reason Sam dumped Ashton. Leading up to the day she actually ended it with him, Luke was glad she was doing it. He was excited for her to get out of that messy relationship, especially because Ashton wasn't treating her right. But now that it's happened, and everybody knew about it, and Ashton seems to have disappeared...Luke felt bad. He felt dirty and mean, like he had thrown himself into some sort of war that he never wanted to be a part of.
Sam turned her head and stared at Luke when he flinched. "You okay?" she asked.
Luke nodded, but he knew Sam could see right through him. "Luke..." she frowned, rolling over and propping herself up on her forearms. Her face hovered over his and she looked down at him with concern. "You're tense," she said. "What's wrong?"
"Nothing, it's just...I don't know. Something doesn't feel right." Luke admitted. "I feel like I've done something terrible."
Sam furrowed her eyebrows. "Like what?"
"Just...just everything, I guess," Luke was too embarrassed to say what was really on his mind. "I don't really know what we are, the fact that you were so quick to move on is kind of freaking me out, the whole thing with Ashton -"
Sam sighed. "Luke, you had nothing to do with Ashton and I. Honestly, that was all me," She chuckled. "And at first I was afraid to break up with him and all, but now that it's over, I feel...I feel a lot better. I didn't realize how detrimental that relationship was until I got out of it. Ashton's...well, he's Ashton. He needs to sort some things out in his life before I want to talk to him again. He's too negative for me. He's too diabolical and too self-centered. I don't want to spend the rest of my last year in high school with somebody like him."
Luke was also worried that Ashton's friends were going to tell him about this thing Luke and Sam had going on. "But...but... but Michael-"
Sam's voice quickly dropped to a whisper and she leaned in, her nose just millimeters away from Luke's. "None of them care," she said. "Honestly. Remember what you said that one time? When we were all in detention?"
Luke slowly nodded his head and thought back on the not-so-distant memory. "Yeah..." he said. "What about it?"
"Remember what you said to Ashton? You said that, even though everybody at this school idolizes Ashton and worships him from the ground up, they all fucking hate him at the same time. And you have no idea how accurate that statement was."
Luke's eyes widened. "Even Michael and Calum?"
Sam's face became a silhouette as she leaned in even closer, her head blocking the lightbulb on the ceiling. "Even Michael and Calum."
Luke was in shock. He had to sit up. He looked at Sam like she was crazy; there's no way that even Ashton's best friends would feel that way. Sure, a lot of people hate him, but they only hate him because they wish they were him. Luke's always had a valid reason to hate Ashton. But Luke's pretty much the only one.
"I don't believe you." he blurted out. Sam rolled her eyes and fought back a smile.
"Well you better start believing me. I know my way around every single corner in my maze of a friend group. They all tell me everything and expect it to go unsaid. And even though Michael and Calum are Ashton's best friends and life-long teammates, Ashton knows damn well that they try to avoid him as much as possible."
"That's...that's horrible," Luke said in awe, running his tongue over his dry lips. "That can't be right, Michael is so nice -"
"Exactly," Sam took Luke's hand again and started playing with his fingers. "And how can somebody as nice as Michael or Calum be around somebody like Ashton?"
"What about the rest of your friends?" Luke pressed on, both eager and terrified of these answers at the same time. "Like Tiffany and Chelsea and Henry?"
Sam shrugged. "They all put up with Ashton's cockiness because he's rich, popular, and because he throws most of the parties. The lacrosse boys do it because Ashton could easily get them kicked off the team."
Luke sat there in silence for a while. He just couldn't believe what he was hearing. All this time, he thought Ashton had every single person in this town wrapped around his fingertips. If he can't even get that far with his closest friends, how can he have anybody at all?
"Shit," Luke cursed, burying his face into his hands. "This is horrible. We're horrible people. I'm going to Hell."
"Luke, come on. Ashton is a jerk now. A straight-up asshole. And you know that more than anybody," Sam sighed. "Everything is fine. You're overthinking this."
"But what about Ashton? Nobody even knows where he is. He wasn't at school today. Doesn't that worry you even a little bit?"
Sam sat back and looked away, thinking about it. "I guess..." she trailed off, digging her hand into her back pocket. "Here. I'll text Michael and see if Ashton was at lacrosse practice tonight. He's captain of the team, there's no way he'd miss that."
Sam opened up a new message and quickly typed one out to Michael.
Sam: was ashton at lacrosse today
Michael Clifford: yeah
Michael Clifford: he was being a little bitch tho
Michael Clifford: he was in such a bad mood. made us do sprints and yelled every time somebody dropped the ball. but he was there
Sam: ok thanks
"See?" Sam said, showing Luke the messages.
Luke read over them quickly. "Oh."
Sam put both her hands on his shoulders and looked him dead in the eyes. "You're not a bad person," she said sternly. "You're the complete opposite, actually. Don't worry about this. It'll all blow over. I mean, Ashton's bound to find out about us eventually. We might as well just let it happen."
Luke knew Sam was probably the one to trust over his damaged conscience. She knew Ashton more than anybody, so she must know what she's talking about. Sam wouldn't lie to him, either, so Luke finally decided to chill out and let it go. "Okay... okay," he breathed, nodding his head. "You're right."
Sam smiled and pressed a firm kiss to his lips. "Good." she said.
Luke leaned back a bit so he could meet her gaze with his eyebrows raised. "Wanna make out now?"
They each let out a laugh and closed to gap between their bodies once more. Luke wrapped his arms around Sam's waist and pulled her onto his lap as she snaked hers around his neck. Luke settled his back against the side of his bed and held Sam there with her knees pressed against either side of his hips. He hoped to God his mother wouldn't hear anything.
They went back and fourth. Luke would shove his tongue into Sam's mouth and she would quickly return the favor, letting out a sweet, innocent giggle while she was at it. Their long, passionate kiss was unbreakable until Luke pulled away, throwing his head back and thus giving Sam access to his neck. She cupped his face in her hands and began trailing sloppy kisses along his skin.
Luke shut his eyes and sighed with relief as he felt her hands glide down his sides and her lips leaving behind tingling fields of flesh and future hickeys. Sam chuckled under her breath as she got down to Luke's collarbones. She knew they were his weakness.
"Wait," Luke said before she could make it any further, gently pushing her off his body. He scrambled to his feet and shut the lights off. He changed the song on his stereo to one that better fit the situation.
Sam raised her eyebrows. "Yeah. You're mom's definitely not gonna expect anything."
"Hush," Luke laughed, leading her to his bed. "I can hear The Real Housewives downstairs. She wouldn't leave the couch even if a fire started in the kitchen."
Luke ran his hands down the backs of Sam's thighs and she jumped up, wrapping her legs around his waist and buried her face into his neck. She hovered her mouth over his collar bones. Her breath was warm and soft as it fanned out over his bare skin, sending a wave of contradicting shivers up his spine.
He sat down at the edge of his bed with Sam still clinging onto his body. When she took control she pushed him back so his head collided with his fluffy white pillow. Sam climbed on top of Luke, crashing her lips back to his. She ran her hands through his hair as he held her there firmly by the waist. She let out a quiet moan under her breath as she drew away, and Luke chuckled.
Luke flipped them over and pinned Sam to the bed, holding both her wrists down with one hand. He used to other to gently trail his fingers down the sides of her gorgeous moonlit face. In that moment, all he could was admire her soft skin and marvel at her sparkling green eyes. "You really are beautiful." he said.
He figured Sam wouldn't really know how to respond to that. Although people tell her she's beautiful all the time, she's too modest to make a big deal about it. So Luke kissed her again before she could even open her mouth.
When he pulled away again, Sam gulped and nodded at his t-shirt. Luke caught onto what she wanted and quickly reached over his shoulder and tugged it off. He let go of Sam's wrists so she could do the same, until they were both sitting there topless, staring at what the other had to offer.
"You stare at my boobs like you're a middle school boy seeing them for the first time," Sam chuckled.
Luke didn't even try to look up and meet her gaze. He puffed out a breath and shrugged. "I mean, they're boobs. What do you expect from me?"
Sam laughed and shook her head as she reached behind herself and unclamped her bra, shrugging it off her shoulders. Luke nodded in approval and Sam rolled her eyes.
As Luke went back to kissing her, Sam spoke through every gap they gave each other. "You know... if your mom...comes in here...we're screwed."
"She won't," Luke groaned, gently setting Sam onto her back. He loomed over her and let his hands roam over every since of her body, earning small moans from her slightly opened mouth.
Sam tangled her fingers in Luke's hair and tugged his head up so he could meet her gaze. "When did you get so confident?" she asked.
Luke shrugged. "After you started showing me your boobs all the time."
Sam giggled and brought her hands to his face, meeting him with yet another passionate kiss. She bit down on his bottom lip and pulled him down so there was no space between their bodies. Luke was so turned on that he didn't give any of his next actions a second thought as he unbuttoned Sam's jeans.
"Can I?" he mumbled.
"I mean...I didn't know we were planning on going this far, but-"
"Okay, never mind-"
Suddenly, both Luke and Sam froze when they heard Liz's voice coming down the hallway. It was loud; loud enough to be heard through the door and between their heavy breaths. Sam probably just thought Liz was calling out for them to see what they were doing. But Luke immediately knew something was wrong.
"You told me you would be home this week." she was saying. Her words were harsh, cold, and short. It was as if she was speaking through gritted teeth.
Liz was on the phone with somebody. Luke knew it was his dad.
"...I made time to have you home, Brent. You promised me this time you would," she continued. "Now what am I supposed to tell him? That his father leaves for half a year and backs out a few days before he was supposed to come back? Is that how you want him to look at everything?"
Luke's eyes widened and he sat back on his heels, staring into the dark abyss of his bedroom. He listened closely to his mother's words, tuning every other sound out. Sam sat up and folded her arms over her bare chest, trying to pick up what Liz was saying as well.
Luke didn't even know his father was supposed to be coming home from his business trip this week. When he first started going away for long periods of time, back when Luke was still a kid, his parents used to plan surprise visits for special occasions. Luke doubted they were trying that bullshit again, Luke was always able to figure it out.
He looked at Sam for a split second, and then back at the closed door. He heard angry footsteps from the other side, and a sniffle. "You know what, Brent? Whatever. You can skip out of the bills, my life, and Luke's life all you want, since your business so desperately needs you in LA for the whole damn year. I don't care."
Sam began to get up. "I'm gonna leave -"
Luke stuck his arm out and pushed her back on the bed, shaking his head. He didn't say a word, he just kept listening. He could tell by her voice that Liz was on the verge of breaking down into tears.
The door to her bedroom was shoved open, and it seemed to shake the floor. "If you want to tell him that, then go ahead," Liz yelled. "Make sure he understands how his dad is too 'busy' to even call his own fucking son back on the weekends!"
And with that, the door slammed shut and whole house was silent. There was no more yelling, no more stomping of feet, and no more sniffling. With his heart pounding and his blood chilled, Luke finally dragged his eyes away from his door and looked back at Sam.
She was staring at him with a scared, empathetic look in her eyes. She quietly got up, and Luke struggled to fight back the urge to keep her on his bed any longer. He watched her as she picked up her things off the floor, trying her best to find them in the darkness of his bedroom.
"I'm sorry," was the only thing Luke could think of to say after a long, drawn-out silence. "I didn't know that was going to happen and interrupt -"
"Of course you didn't know," Sam said quietly, shaking her head. "It's okay, Luke. It's late, anyways. I think I should be getting home."
Luke slowly shut his eyes and let out a sigh, burying his face into his hands. He felt defeated.
This has been happening a lot, recently. It seems as though every time Luke's parents speak its always in vain. He couldn't remember the last time Liz had exciting and positive news about his father, nor could he remember the last time his dad has actually called him back. Not even a simple text.
After Sam slipped her bra and shirt back on, she sat down beside Luke. "Is everything okay?" she asked, gently rubbing her hands up and down his back.
Luke nodded. "It's fine. This happens a lot."
Sam frowned. "Talk to her," she said. "After I leave. I'll go right away and give you and your mom some space, okay?"
Luke could already feel the tears bringing his eyes. He hated hearing his mother so upset, it worried him to death and made him fear what was really going on between his parents. He was scared that Liz wasn't happy with his dad anymore. And he was scared his dad didn't even care.
Luke nodded, refusing to speak because he was afraid he'd start crying. He didn't want Sam to leave, but right now just wasn't the right time for her to be here. "I'll w-walk you out."
Luke got up, threw his shirt back on, and opened his door. Sam grabbed her bag and clutched it to her chest as she followed behind Luke. They tiptoed down the stairs as quickly as they could, careful not to make any noises. Luke didn't even think Liz knew Sam was still here.
Luke wiped under his eyes as he opened the front door. Sam stepped outside and spun back around, looking at Luke gently. "Tell your mom I say thanks for letting me stay over," she said. "And, whatever all that was, I hope it gets sorted out."
Luke nodded, smiling at her ever so slightly. She rushed forward and threw her arms around Luke, and he happily hugged her back. "Talk to me about it if you want," she said, her voice muffled against his t-shirt. "I'll see you tomorrow, okay?"
"Okay," Luke agreed, reaching over to the grip the edge of his door. "Drive home safe, please."
Sam smiled. "I will. Sleep well."
"You too." Luke waved and watched as she turned and hurried off his front porch. Her car was parked right outside the gate and Luke waited there until he knew she was safely inside.
Once she was gone, Luke shut the door as quietly as he could. He shut off all the lights in the house and let out a sigh as he reluctantly crept back up the stairs.
-
AN: hi I'm sorry this took forever to update but let me tell you i had the worst case of writers block I think i've ever had. oh my god it was terrible. i was so uninspired for everything but now I'm feeling good and I'm still hella excited for this story! there is still plenty more to come and lots of drama on the way ::). thank you so much for reading! -ellena