S T E L L A
"Hello?"
"Stel, it's me."
I rubbed the sleep from my eyes to see an unfamiliar number on the screen of my phone, yet the voice was undeniably the one that makes me quiver in place.
This better not be another dream.
"Luke?" I yawned, my glassy eyes exploring my dark room as I sat up in my bed to see the time. "Jesus Christ, it's two AM. Are you okay?"
"Well that's a loaded question."
It was if I could see Luke chuckling on the other side of the line, the static of the phone muffling the normally melodic sound. His voice sounded deeper through the device, accompanied by the tone of exhaustion.
"I know you do me a lot of favors but I–"
"What type of favor do you need from me at two in the damn morning, Hemmings? Can this wait–"
"I need you to bail me out."
The line was silent after Luke spoke as I took a moment to look down at my phone in disbelief before putting it up to my ear once again.
I could vaguely recall Luke having a race tonight and I could only assume that their spot got busted. I knew that the racer was bound to get in trouble at some point, but never would I have thought that I would be his bail call.
"Like out of jail? You're fucking kidding me, right?" I sighed, sliding my legs over to the side of my bed to stretch them outward. "Please tell me you're joking."
"I really wish I was, sweetheart. But you're the only person I could call."
The way he easily called me 'sweetheart' was something that could never get old. Although, I ignored the fluttering feeling in the depth of my abdomen to continue my unexpected conversation with Luke.
"Alright I'll be there in twenty. Hang in there, you delinquent." I pressed my phone between my shoulder and my cheek as I sleepily pulled on a pair of socks.
"You're the best, Stel-la-la." Luke managed to shift his groggy voice into a rather sing-song tone, making me grin.
That was cute.
"Wait." I paused, gathering my tired thoughts as I mentally prepared to drive over to the police station. "How do you even know my number?"
"Well, it's a rather long story but I think you'll put it together real soon."
*
If it was not for my blaring music shaking my car, I probably would have fallen asleep at the wheel. I pulled down the bottom of my hoodie to cover over my sleeping shorts as I shoved my car door shut before dragging my feet to the overly-lit police station. Taking a deep breath I pushed open the heavy, glass door to take in the lingering smell of cigarettes and floor cleaner.
The bleak place was all too familiar and brought back memories I never wanted to resurface.
I swallowed down all of my haunting thoughts and made my way down the short hallway, walking up to a desk set in front of the cell entrance. An older, tired officer was seated in the small office chair, looking startled as I came into his line of sight.
"Hello there." The officer greeted me before looking down at his watch with a narrowing glance. "What can I do for ya?"
I smiled small, tapping my foot on the floor. The longer I spent in the unit, the more anxious I grew.
"I'm here for Luke Hemmings?" My statement stretched into a questionable pitch while I attempted to keep my composure.
"Oh, you're here to bail him out?" The man rolled back in his chair before standing up from his seat.
"Unfortunately."
My response seemed to humor him as he shook his head with a tight grin. The older man guided me to the door, promptly unlocking it before swinging it open to reveal two large jail cells. One was completely empty and the other confined the familiar blonde leaning his back against the cement wall behind him.
"I'll be right back with the paper work." The officer announced, queuing his exit back to the main office.
Luke's devilish grin grew wider as I walked toward the cell, pushing himself off the wall to lean his arms on the caged door.
"Stel-la-la! You made it!" Luke's voice chimed, pressing his cheek against one of the metal bars between us.
"Are you drunk?" I laugh quietly, already knowing the answer to my question as Luke sways back and forth in place.
"A little. Can you tell?" Luke opened his eyes wider than normal as he swiped away wet curls the were sticking to his forehead.
I simply nodded, taking note of the red pair of glasses propped on top of his head. Before I could question it Luke brought up an arm to scratch the back of his neck, revealing his exposed torso under his decorated leather jacket.
My breath hitched for a mere second before I peeled my eyes away from the new sight, meeting Luke's intoxicated eyes.
I have a feeling I will never forget that sight.
"S-so what happened?" I clear my throat, motioning my hand to Luke standing in the prison cell as I still had no idea why he was arrested in the first place.
"It's actually not for what you think it's for." The corners of Luke's mouth seemed as if they were pinned from ear to ear as he spoke. "I got in a bar fight."
"A bar fight?" My mouth gaped open, watching Luke nod with an unusual amount of excitement.
"It was kind of cool. After the– well you know," Luke paused, trying not to mention the fact that he races in a police station, "I won so we went out to celebrate but some dick was hitting on one of the flag girls and she was really uncomfortable. I went over to just have a word with him but then he started mouthing off and pushing me so I just swung."
I blinked in bewilderment, hearing Luke speak so casually about getting arrested for starting a bar fight. Fortunately, he did not seem to have any visible injuries and was grinning like a toddler. It was startling to know what he was capable of, yet heart warming that he had the urge to protect the girl.
"So why were you the only one here? Why didn't the other guy get arrested?" I asked, leaning my own body onto the metal bars as I grew tired of standing for so long.
"Well everyone ran once the police showed up but I was pretty blasted so I tripped and one of the officers tackled me." Luke shrugged, chuckling softly.
"The officer tackled you?" I repeated Luke's words in disbelief, watching him nod as I shook my head. "Unbelievable. I'd love to have a word with that guy–"
"Have at it." A voice came from behind me, causing to to turn around and face an extremely familiar officer.
"Of course." I sighed, pinching the bridge of my nose between my fingers. "Hi Ashton."
"Hey Stella. Fancy seeing you here." Ashton grinned sweetly, tilting his head in an apologetic manner.
I felt as if my two worlds, which quite frankly I was not aware even existed, were suddenly colliding right in front of my eyes. There was a shirtless, drunk Luke stuck in a jail cell and a uniform-clad Ashton standing in front of me with the keys to release Luke.
Being at a loss for words was an understatement.
"Officer Irwin said he remembered me for somewhere and when I couldn't remember any numbers to call for bail, I mentioned you and it all clicked from there." Luke hiccuped, bracing the metal bars in front of him and Ashton began unlocking the cell door.
"The only reason you called me was because you couldn't remember anyone else's number?" I questioned with knitted brows.
"I haven't had to memorize a phone number in ages 'cause we have smart phones now. It's not 1996, Stel." Luke slowly slid his red sunglasses over his eyes, puckering his mouth to jokingly make duck lips.
"He's got a point." Ashton added, finally pulling the silver door open as Luke stumbled out. "But luckily I had your number in my phone."
I could see Ashton's grin grow in the slightest, as he held a sense of confidence knowing he has my phone number. I shot him a soft smile before swiftly darting out my arms out to brace Luke as he leaned onto me, awkwardly resting his head near the crook of my neck.
"Is this the guy you wore your date shoes for?" Luke whispered into my ear, sending a chill down my back.
"Yes." I replied in a hush tone, trying to help him stand up straight but he continued to lean on me.
"So I was thinking," Ashton began, shuffling through the stack of papers that the other officer probably handed off to him. "There's a concert this weekend and I think it'd be nice if you joined me?"
I tried to give Ashton a decent reply as his suggestion was really sweet, but all I could focus on was the way Luke was breathing down my neck and mumbling about my shoes.
"I-I'd love to, Ashton." I nodded, slipping off the red sunglasses from Luke's head to prevent it from jabbing my face. For a tall man to be slouched over a girl of my size should be illegal, yet Luke continued to do so.
"Great." Ashton beamed, firmly folding the papers in his hands as he waved them at Luke's lopsided posture. "I'll send you the details later and you can take this guy home."
"What about the bail? I–"
"I got it, don't worry about it." Ashton cut me off, shooting me an infamous smile as he held the papers behind his back. "Like it didn't even happen."
"Well thank you, Officer Irwin. You're too kind." I replied, beginning to lead Luke out of the facility.
"My pleasure, Miss Stella." Ashton walked beside me until we reached the main desk. "Get home safely."
"We will." Luke chimed, poking his head up to shoot Ashton a cheeky grin before leaning his head on top of my own. "I owe you one, Irwin."
"Don't sweat it." Ashton chuckled, his eyes shifting into a less inviting look as he replied to Luke.
I bid Ashton a final goodbye before heading towards the exit with Luke slumped over me. Relief washed over me, knowing that I was finally able to leave the station.
"Stel, can I ask you another favor?" Luke murmured, slinging his arm comfortably over my shoulder.
"Depends what it is." I tilt my head up in the slightest to see an upward angle of the blonde's face.
"Can I sleep on your couch tonight?" Luke whispered, dragging his feet alongside mine as we neared the exit of the station.
"Sure." I comply, managing to open the glass door wide enough for the both of us to squeeze through.
After a few failed attempts to buckle Luke into my passenger seat, I finally secured him as well as myself before driving home.
I turned down the radio so my music was quiet enough for Luke to sleep if he wanted to but instead, he was softly humming to the tune of each song. At one point, he rolled down his window to move his hand through the breeze.
Luke's smile was priceless.
Once we reached my house, Luke had sobered up enough to walk by himself. It was a crooked walk but he was doing a decent enough job to get himself up the porch steps. I managed to dig up a few blankets and a pillow from the hallway closet for Luke to use, setting the folded material on the couch while he was in my kitchen chugging down water.
"I hope these are warm enough for you." I whisper, careful not to wake Calum upstairs.
"It's perfect, thank you, Stel." Luke grinned sleepily, sitting down on the couch as he began opening up the blankets.
Just as I was about to walk upstairs, I could feel Luke's hand softly envelope mine. I turned around expectedly, knowing he had something more to say as my heart rate began to quicken.
"I'm sorry but this has been bothering me," Luke paused, chuckling mostly to himself as he looked up to me from the couch. "But Ashton isn't your boyfriend, right?"
"My boyfriend?" I asked with a small smirk on my lips.
"Yeah." Luke muttered in response, looking as if he felt foolish for asking.
"No, he's not my boyfriend." I giggled, tilting my head as I peered down at him. "Does that help you sleep better at night?"
"Yeah it does, actually." Luke mumbled, beginning to lay into the couch under the covers. "He's kind of an ass."
"Sure he is, Lu." I brush off, taking in the most vulnerable look I have seen on Luke.
I felt naive to read it as jealousy because in all honesty, he had nothing to be jealous of. My status with Luke was practically nonexistent and the fact that Ashton tackled Luke into an arrest made me believe that was what caused his defensive demeanor. What ever it was, I had to admit that it was pretty adorable and I wanted to see more of that Luke.
"Wait, did you just call me Lu?" Luke mumbled, trying to keep his eyes open as he spoke to me.
"Y-yeah, I guess I did." I stifle a laugh of embarrassment, not noticing how easy it rolled off my tongue.
"I like it." Luke replied with a small voice, pulling the blankets up to his chin as I watched him slowly falling asleep. "Thank you for tonight, Stella."
"Of course." I replied, seeing his hooded eyes coming to a close and his lips perked up slightly.
"Good night, Stel-la-la."
"Good night, Lu."
_
*one month later* heyyyy look an update woOOooOoOw
i've never hit writers block so hard until i tried to write this chap but know i have some good stuffs for the next few chaps and im so eXCITED YAYYY
Q: if you could be one of the boy's gfs, who would you be?
i'd probably be sierra bc she's a damn queen and i love her
i hope you are all doing good good and lovin this luke and ash chap (; tensions are rising ??? we'll have to see ...
I LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH YOU DONT EVEN KNOW AHHH <3
xo