Luke and I rode the cab in silence. He'd given me a sweet smile when I had greeted him at the front door of the apartment building, but he said little to nothing else afterwards.
I waited for him to hail a cab; to ask him what this sudden rendezvous was all about. When the taxi pulled up onto the curb, he told the driver our location, which he made sure I wouldn't be able to hear.
"You're always in your own world," Luke finally says as I watch the city buildings pass by in a beautiful neutral-colored blur outside the car window. I didn't turn to look at the boy, but I knew his gaze was following mine.
"What's so bad about that?" I feel his body scoot closer to mine. His warmth and closeness sends shivers up my spine. I wanted to move away, but that would cause me to fall out of the taxi and onto the pavement.
I turned to see his beautiful dimpled smile.
Maybe I'd better take my chances on the pavement.
"Nothing," He murmurs. We're only a few breaths apart and I panic. My heart pounds in my chest; the blood rushes to my cheeks.
"Um, so. Lindy—" I stammer, attempting to gather my jumbled thoughts. At this point, I couldn't even tell my left from my right. The rest of the world blurred away and what was left was only Luke.
"Hm?" His gaze slowly followed the hollows of my cheeks and the line of my jaw. It was then that it hit me. My stomach dropped.
"I'm not a distraction, Luke." I say, roughly. I cross my arms over my chest and turn my body to face the window again. From the corner of my eye, I could see his eyes widen and his mouth part in surprise.
"Rhea—I—I'm sorry," He fumbles with his words, running his slender fingers through his hair.
"It's okay."
"Shut up, no it isn't." Luke says, "You're not my distraction— from Lindy, I mean. God, I'm such an idiot."
I turn to him in a half-smile and nod, "You are,"
"How can you smile at me when I'm being such a dipstick?"
"Um, dipstick? Translation, please?" I ask, leaning back. From the corner of my eye, I see the cabbie give us a strangle look from the rear view mirror.
"Aussie slang, Means fool. Idiot." Luke bites his lip, laughing nervously.
"Wow, accurate. Mind if I steal?" I say and he shake his head so I smile, "Brilliant,"
We burst out in laughter, though we don't exactly know what for. The cabbie lets out an annoyed sigh, "Have long have 'ya been together?"
"We're just friends," We both blurt simultaneously.
Ugh, what rom-com am I in?
__________________________
Luke wouldn't tell me where he was taking me, no matter how many times I've begged and pleaded.
He didn't talk about Lindy, either.
The cabbie dropped us off at a curb I didn't recognize. The street was filled with people and the thrift shops that lined the walkways were bright with color and music. Luke held onto my hand as he maneuvered us through the crowded strip, holding excruciatingly tight so I wouldn't run away from him this time.
"Luke!" I yelled out after minutes and minutes of walking.
He turned around swiftly, his eyes filled with worry, "Are you okay? Do you need to sit down?"
"No, I'm hungry." I grumbled, rubbing my stomach.
To my surprise, the boy rolled his eyes, "Patience, grasshopper."
I suffered for a few more blocks before Luke pulled me across the street and stopped in front of what seemed to be a centuries-old building.
The sun had already set and the moon's light was shaded with clouds. The streets were faintly lit with lanterns that lined the shops and buildings. The crowds had scattered, leaving a few people here and there coming up from the subway dressed in suits and dresses.
I couldn't help but gasp at the sign at the front of the building, twinkling in bright Hollywood lights:
"WELCOME TO CINAPLEX"
"A movie theater?" I say, "You kidnapped me and took me to a movie theater."
"Not just any movie theater," Luke smiles, dimples and all. He grabs my hand and pulls me through the revolving doors into the building, "The greatest theater in the history of mankind."
My jaw nearly dropped as I emerged from the doors into a gigantic foyer. It was an opera-style hall; the walls were painted a bright yellow with hints of oranges and light pinks. Grapevines lined up the walls and wrapped around the chandeliers above the two of us.
The floor was carpeted with red velvet, illuminated with circular lights, making a pathway to the entrances of the sing movie theater. "Holy shit," I sniffed the air. The lingering smell of flowers and popcorn filled my lungs.
"It used to be an opera house back in the '50s." Luke said simply. He still held onto my hand, never making a move to let go. My heart pounded in the chest as I stared down at our intertwined hands. His fingers fit perfectly in between mine, almost as if it was meant for me.
"How did you find it?" I asked as we made our way over to a large make shift concession stand with a red and black striped awning. A lanky man, who I barely noticed when we arrived, stood at its center, flipping through a tabloid.
"The boys and I were exploring the city when we first came and viola." Luke says just as the man looked up at us.
"Hemmo! Haven't seen you in a while!" The man chirped. He seemed to be in his late 20s, with dark hair and eyes. He wore a worn out polo and a unreadable name tag. "Ooh, who is this?"
"Rhea, this is Paul. He owns this fabulous place." Luke makes a grand gesture with his hands, looking up at the beautiful artwork on the walls.
I put out my hand, but Paul ignores it and immediately pulls me in for a hug. "You won't believe how happy I am to finally see Luke with a girlfriend!" Paul says as he squeezes tighter, suffocating me.
"Oh—" I stammer, regaining my breath after he lets go. "We're just—we're friends, is all."
I turn to Luke, a hint of red had risen to his cheeks. "Sure, you are." Paul smirks, pointing at our joined hands. I slip my fingers out of his before Paul can say anything else. "Now, what can I do for ya'll?"
"Well, I brought Rhea here to show her the magnificence of this theater," Luke gushed, batting his eyelashes.
"Flattery will get you everywhere." Paul says, smiling. He reaches from behind the counter and pulls out two full-size packets of Smarties. "Lucky for you, these are free."
Luke and I grab them simultaneously, muttering our thank you's and ripping open the candy. "I love these," I say, shoveling a few into my mouth, letting the sweetness savor on my tongue for a while before chewing.
Luke's dimples deepen, the way I adored. "I do, too."
"Awww," Paul says, tilting his head. "Enough with the love fest, I have work to attend to." He opens up the tabloid again and begins reading, brushing us off.
I blush as Luke leads me to the front entrance of the one and only movie theater. "What movie are we watching?"
"Paul always surprises me." Luke says, opening the grand doors.
The opera house-turned-movie-theater was gorgeous. The balconies were embroidered with gold and the sides of the auditorium were lined with beautiful Italian artwork. A big white screen covered the entire front of the hall, where the stage was meant to be. A few couples were scattered here and there, but otherwise, we were alone.
Without another word, Luke grabs my hand again and pulls me to the exact center of the theater. We sit down together in the folding chairs, putting handfuls of the sweet candy into our mouths.
"You never told me what happened with Lindy," I said, finally.
He stiffened a bit, "I took her apology," He played with the empty Smarties box in his hands, "We're friends."
"She doesn't seem like the heartbreaker type." I say, smiling.
"She's not, I'm just an idiot."
"See, you and I can agree on something," I laugh and the guitarist tilts his head at me.
"How can you do that so easily? Make difficult things so easy to talk about?"
"I use humor as my defense mechanism," I concede, "Plus, it's not always a good thing. Sometimes I ignore the real problem. Exactly like what you're doing now."
He gave me a curious look, so I explained, "Why did you bring me here tonight? A distraction. From Lindy."
"I'm not—"
"Shut up; yes you are. I mean, it's not that I didn't expect it, or that I'm hurt. That's what friends are for, right? But, just don't do dumb shit, don't be an idiot. I might be able to help you deal with her, but I can't help what you cause on your own."
"You sound like Ash," My favorite smile spreads across Luke's face.
I smile, "I'll take that as a compliment,"
"But I'll have you know," Luke leans forward, towards me, "I've never taken anyone besides the boys here."
Heat rises to my cheeks, "Well, let's see if it lives up to the hype."
Luke nods just as the theater goes dark, almost as if on cue.
After a few adverts, the title of the movie rolls across the screen and I punch the beautiful blonde in the arm, causing him to yelp.
It was A Cinderella Story.
What a dipstick.