Vicky's Pov
The rest of the evening we spend in bed, kissing and touching and the sex was incredible. Eventually, after a long while we both wore ourselves out and in the most comfortable silence, we lay in each other's arms.
"Is it weird, but it feels like I've known you for a lot longer than just a few hours." I shake my head and bury my face in the pillows. He's gotten to know the more intimate parts of me that my ex-boyfriend took a year and a half to get to know. And he explored it thoroughly. I feel so free to say this, even though I am totally mortified.
He laughs, it a mixture of happiness and nerves, "Yeah, but I feel the same way, especially after all of that." He brushes my hair away and I peek up from the pillow.
"Hey. It's been the best few hours of my life honestly." He tries to comfort me and my subconscious escapes into the air before I can stop it.
"As short as it may be," I mumble and I try to recover, with "young Luke Skywalker" and laugh, but it wasn't funny and it sounds more strangled. He laughs and it sounds more genuine than the last, the sound making the hair raise on the back of my neck.
I could fall in love with that laugh. And my body instantly tenses at the thought. I groan and bury my flaming face further into the bed. Luke gently kisses my shoulder and gets out of bed. I raise an eyebrow while keeping my face deep in my pillow.
"I need to use the bathroom. Are you hungry or something?" And suddenly I realise how much I'm starving.
"I'll meet you in the kitchen," my voice is muffled by the pillow.
I'm thankful for the moment alone as I need to gather my thoughts and my clothes. I pull on my underwear and pick up the pants and shirt from the lounge floor. As I reach the kitchen, lost in thoughts of what just happened, I find Luke's back to me. When he turns around and he's not wearing a shirt, my mouth goes dry.
He's smirking at me, "I think it looks better on you actually." I scrunch my face and when I look down, my face instantly flames when it dawns on me that I grabbed his shirt and put it on, without realising it.
"Oh, um. I didn't mean to... I didn't even..." As I fumble for words.
He smiles, a twinkle in his eyes, "Keep it on, as I said, it looks better on you." He walks over to me with a glass of water in his hand and kisses the top of my head.
The small gesture of affection makes my heart swell even more and the feeling makes me uncomfortable. The pending doom of what is to come, when he leaves for tour creeps back in and I need to get away from him.
"What do you want to eat?" I move to the fridge and look for food. My body instantly missing his touch. This can't be happening.
"I could make lasagna or something?" I suggest, knowing that it'll keep me busier than offering him something simple. He regards me coolly but keeps quiet. When I open the cupboard and pull out a pan, I expect him to say something, but still silence.
"Or..." I draw out the word, "Would you want chicken or I guess we could order in." I stop when he shakes his head.
"Allow me," he says as he takes the pan out of my hand.
I sit at the island and watch as he cuts the onions and slices the tomatoes. He refuses my help and only allows me to tell him where the items he's looking for are. The silence is broken by one-word questions and answers and I sit with my cold coffee in front of me.
I am mesmerised by the way he moves around the kitchen, the task seemingly normal for us. Maybe I should go shower, but I don't want to leave him alone. Before I can make up my mind, he takes the seat next to me.
"Food's almost ready. But you should know, I don't do this often, so please don't judge me." He laughs and I can't help but giggle too.
Naturally, my hand goes out to squeeze his in a comforting gesture and this honestly feels all too familiar. I quickly try and pull my hand away, but he squeezes it and I'm trapped.
"Do you wanna watch a movie while we eat?" I ask to distract us from the sudden tension that has formed in the small kitchen.
"Yeah sure." He slowly nods and I slide off the chair and make my way to the lounge.
"Hey, is everything okay?" he asks me as we watch Dr Strange, we sat and ate in silence for the majority of the movie. I nod slowly as I try to avoid his piercing gaze.
The space between us on the couch seems much bigger than it actually is. His silence makes me nervous and I want nothing more than to climb into his lap and have his arms around me. But instead, I gather the dishes and walk over to the kitchen to place the dishes in the sink. When are Steph and Michael coming back? When I get back, Luke is not in the lounge and I take a deep breath. After sending Steph a quick text, my phone vibrates in my hand and my body goes rigid as Luke walks into the room.
"What's wrong?" Luke asks and I feel my face pale, as the blood drains and my hands get clammy. He looks at the screen of my phone. "Are you going to answer that?" before the phone rings off. I shake my head and I feel tears well up. Why would Eric be calling me now? Luke pulls me into his arms and I bury my face in his chest, I can't let him ruin this for me.
After a few tears fall, I take a few deep breathes, "Sorry, it's stupid." I shake my head as I pull out of the comfort of his embrace. His concerned gaze doesn't leave me and when it rings again, both our eyes move to the phone and I'm frozen in place. I bite my lip to hold the tears back, I throw myself into Luke's arms, trying to hide from Eric's name on the screen.
After another twenty minutes of hiding and sobbing with Luke gentle rubbing his hand up and down my back, whispering softly into my hair. I finally pull myself together and look up at him.
"I'm sorry. That's Eric, my ex. I don't know why he's calling, but I can't talk to him right now." I keep my eyes on Luke and I see no judgement, just sadness and a bit of anger towards the man he's never met. He says nothing and that's strangely comforting.
After a while he speaks, "Do you want to talk about it?" I shake my head, but then I nod. I don't know. He is really easy to talk to and he's not judging me. I take a deep breath and pull my hair back. I walk over to the couch and take a seat, he follows waiting patiently.
"His name's Eric, we were together for about three years before we thought we knew what we were doing. After we found out about my mom's illness, we decided to get married. I was 19 and young and stupid. We eloped and thought it was the right thing. Not long after my mom died, I found out he was cheating on me and it was hypocritical of me to forgive him."
I take a deep breath and the words come tumbling out. "But I thought I needed him. We stayed together for another three years and I thought that everything was good between us, until I found him trying to make a move on my sister at a family lunch. We fought constantly and after a few more months, the fights got worse. He kept throwing our vows and my need for him in my face." I bite back the anger and the tears.
Taking another deep breath I continue before I lose my nerve. "We fought, he wouldn't come home and when I found out he was still seeing her, I knew it was over. I confronted him when he was drunk the one night and he hit me so I hit him back, but before I knew it, I ended up in the hospital, this was about two years ago. I moved out the day I got discharged and changed my number." I feel like a weight has been lifted as the words come out, keeping my eyes trained on the cushion, I now clung too.
"I haven't spoken to him in a couple weeks and he called me once before, the day I first spoke with you, but I didn't answer then either." I see him flinch at the memory. "All I know is, I have nothing more to say to him. I filed for an annulment to get out of that marriage, but he..."
I choke back the tears once more as I feel the anger rolling off Luke in waves, but then he wraps his arms around me and I feel the gentleness of his touch and the comfort he provides. I know that at this moment, he knows more than my own sister and that my feelings for him are more than just superficial.
"I don't know what he wants. I haven't spoken to him since." I feel Luke stiffen, but his touch remains gentle.
"Hey Babygirl, it's okay. He won't hurt you anymore. Not while I'm around." I can hear the declaration in his voice, a sense of determination forming around his words, but we both know that tomorrow, he'll be gone.
He wipes the tears from my cheeks with his thumb and when he kisses each cheek in turn and I feel the warmth spread through me. As I'm about to speak, it's like he read my mind.
"I know that I'm leaving for tour, but I'll check in every day and maybe I can get you a bodyguard. I'm not gonna let anything happen to you Victoria, I swear. We'll figure it out. I'll find a way to keep you safe and keep him away from you." His words make me smile and I take a deep breath and nod, hoping he's right allowing myself to believe in this little dream for a moment.
After the emotional breakdown and the promises Luke has made to keep in touch, we relax and find another movie to watch. Just as Transformers comes to an end and it's nearing eleven when Stephanie and Michael walk in.
I'm lying in his arms, my head on his chest, still wearing his t-shirt when Steph eyes the compromising position. I attempt to move out of his grasp, but he only tightens his arms around me and places a quick kiss on the top of my head.
Michael breaks out into a huge grin before they take the couch across from us and tell us about their night out. The mood is calm and relaxed and I wish the night would last longer, knowing that morning would bring loneliness.