Luke's POV
It had been months of being with Noah again and it was amazing. It was even better than the year we dated before Noah left because now our love ran deeper. It was stronger than it was before.
One day, after school, Noah and I were at the school library, working on homework. Finals were coming up and we were both fairly stressed out. Noah spun his pen thoughtfully around his fingers.
I looked up from my homework, sensing that he was done concentrating. Noah grinned at me and leaned over the table to peck me on the lips.
"What are you grinning about?" I asked when he pulled away.
"Well, I was thinking, it's our senior year--"
I raised my eyebrow. "What are you getting at?" I asked, because with Noah, you never really know.
"I'm getting there," he giggled. "So it's our senior year--"
"Yeah I got that."
"Oh shut it!" He said, laughing. "Anyway, it's our senior year and neither of us have ever been to Prom."
I was about to say something else to interrupt him, but my breath caught in my throat instead. "Oh," was all I said. It was true, I'd missed out on Junior Prom last year. Who was I supposed to go with? Why would I even want to go?
Noah gave me a pleading look. "Luke, would you go to Prom with me?"
I thought about it, anxiety creeping in. Then I nodded and tried to smile. "Yeah. Yes, I would love to."
Noah's face lit up. "Awesome! Love you," he said, planting another kiss on my lips.
^*^*^*^
Later that day, I practically ran into my house.
"Dad, I've got a problem!" I yelled.
Dad walked into the living room, wiping his hands on his jeans.
"What is it?" He asked. Ariana packed up her homework and fled the scene as we sat on the couch.
"Noah asked me to prom," I said, biting my lip.
Dad beamed at me. "Luke that's awesome!"
"But..." I didn't really want to voice my concerns. They seemed stupid now.
"What is it?" Dad asked.
"Well it's just...isn't two guys going to prom together...weird?"
Dad's face lit up in surprise. "Oh. No I don't think it is at all. The world's come a long way since when I was a teenager, Luke. And besides, it's who you are, that's nothing to be ashamed about. If you love Noah and you want to go to Prom with him, then fuck everybody else."
"Oh my gods, Dad," I laughed.
"I'm just saying, Luke, I never got to go to Prom. Take advantage of the opportunity."
I smiled. "Thanks, Dad."
"No problem, bud."
^*^*^*^
Prom came sooner than I was ready for. The entire day I was stressing out and pacing. Dad had gone to pick up my tux and I was pacing the living room, pulling at my hair.
"Would you stop it already? You're blocking the TV!" Bianca shouted from the couch.
I sighed and plopped down next to her on the couch. She glanced over at me, pursing her lips. "You're nervous," she said.
I nodded. "Well it's like Dad said," she told me. "Fuck everybody else."
"Bianca! What the Hades? You were listening that day?"
She shrugged. "Of course I was," she said this like she generally did not see the problem.
I sighed. "Just...whatever. Thanks I guess."
When Dad came home, after eating(I didn't want to risk getting food on my outfit) I got dressed and Dad helped me with my tie. It was roughly the same color as my eyes.
"You're going to have lots of fun, Luke, I promise. No need to be nervous." He reached up and tried flattening my curls, but my hair didn't want to cooperate so he left it.
We went downstairs where Ariana was sitting at the counter on her laptop, writing a paper for her English class. She looked up when she heard us enter the kitchen and she smiled at me. She had just turned fifteen the week prior and she was really starting to look like Mom.
She slip off the stool and padded over to me, her fluffy socks over her sweatpants. She gave me a hug.
"You look really nice, Luke. I'm really happy for you," I felt myself blush and I returned the hug. Ariana was only an inch or two shorter than me and I was 5' 8". Noah used to be the same height as me, but he got a growth spurt when he was away so now he's 6 foot.
"Noah's here!" Ethan shrieked, sliding into the kitchen as the doorbell rang. "Ahhh," he screamed, dashing to the door and flinging it open. "HELLO!" he shouted.
"Alright, who let him have caffeine?" Dad questioned. Ariana shrugged her shoulders, pointing at her mug on the counter. I decided not to ask why she was drinking coffee after supper.
"He stole some of mine when I wasn't looking. Don't blame me."
Noah came around the corner, dressed in his own tux, though his tie was a deep purple, making his eyes pop. He snaked his arm around me waist and pulled me forward, greeting me with a kiss.
"You're gorgeous," he said with a smile and I blushed. "Not too bad yourself, Williams," I said.
"You guys are too cute," Ariana said from behind and I simply flashed her my middle finger, leaning in to kiss Noah again. I forgot Dad was still standing there.
"I'll take that as my cue, then. Have fun, you too." With that, Dad quickly retreated from the kitchen. Ariana shooed us out the front door, phone in hand. "Let me take a picture," she said. We posed awkwardly, but Ariana got some cute pictures.
Noah and I started walking to the High School. On the way, we passed the Valdez house and Milo ran outside to catch up with us. He was wearing a white tux with a golden shirt, which seemed a bit much to me, but I mean, Milo can be pretty extra some times.
"Who's your date again?" Noah asked him.
Milo grinned. "Ajax," he said, turning around to whistle for his metal dog. I shook my head and sighed.
We were walking away when Sammy ran out of the house, holding out Milo's phone. He'd be turning fifteen tomorrow.
"You forgot this. You're supposed to take pictures of Luke and Noah, Ariana said."
I raised my eyebrow and Sammy blushed, realizing he maybe should've been a bit quieter about that.
"Thanks, bro. See you later."
And with that, we were off.
The entire night was full of dancing. I was really happy I'd gone. It was a lot of fun, just like Dad said it would be. At one point during the night, I saw Milo chatting up a girl on the dance floor, Ajax at his feet. Turns out the dog was more of a chic magnet than a date.
There was all sorts of music, the latest pop songs, some old dancing ones where everyone got in a line, and plenty of slow dances.
It was after one such slow dance that Noah suggested we go outside and get some air. He grabbed my hand, lacing together our fingers, and we headed outside. We wouldn't be let back in, but we didn't mind. It was getting pretty late anyway.
We walked for awhile in the dark and even though I couldn't really see where we were, I knew exactly where we were going.
We came to a stop at our old spot, the Garden of Bacchus. We used to come here often to laugh at the statue of Noah's dad. Now though, we just sat to enjoy each other's company.
I yawned, leaning my head against Noah's shoulder, gazing up at the stars. They always seemed brighter in New Rome then they did in the mortal world. I sought out Zoe Nightshade and smiled when I saw her.
Noah wrapped his arm around my shoulder, holding me close to him and I felt safe. Protected.
I looked up at him, my head resting in the crook of his neck. I pecked his jaw and he looked down at me smiling and kissing the tip of my nose.
"I love you," I said.
Noah kissed me softly.
"I love you, too," he said.