once ; luke hemmings

Three

"My roommate has a drinking problem, I guess you could say, so I decided to take my own break and come out here for some relaxation. What about you?"

"Just here to clear out some thoughts." Luke looked up from his lap and looked up to the sky, where the stars were still somewhat noticeable. "Don't you just love nights like these?"

"Yeah, I guess." I mumbled, looking up at the same direction Luke was looking at.

"ONCE, back home in Australia, me and my mum-" Luke came up with a horrible cough, which made his eyes watery.

"Hey, are you okay?" I put my hand on his shoulder with gentleness, hoping he wouldn't get mad by this gesture.

"Yeah, yeah," Luke sniffled, "just allergies. Anyways, my mum and I would always sit out at night and watch the stars. She would teach me all the constellations and help me tell time just by the arrangement of the moon and stars."

"You're mom seems really cool." I commented with a nod.

"It's mum, not mom. Get it right, you American girl!" Luke joked around, nudging me with his elbow.

"Hey, hey, I didn't know mispronouncing a word was a crime." I laughed along with Luke, still looking up at the stars.

"Well it is in my book!" Our laughter quieted down as we sat silently, still looking at the sky. I created weird figures with the stars; just playing connect the dots with them.

"You should teach me some of the constellations, you know?" I turned my face to Luke, admiring his profile. He didn't have clear skin, after all no one does, but his acne fit him. His eyes sparkled in the dim light, and blonde specks of somewhat curly hair peeked through his black hoodie.

"Maybe next time," He took in his bottom lip - which had a designated lip ring - between his teeth, still looking at the stars. How could one stare at them for such a long time?

"What if there's never a next time?" I retorted. Luke finally turned his face towards me. He was good looking for someone like him.

"There will be, Liv, trust me." He put his cold hand over my hand. His gesture made me jump a little, since it was so unexpected, but it definitely made me smile.

"So what're you here for? In New York?" I questioned. Luke's hand was still over mine, which I found really cute and warming, but right when I had finished my question, he immediately removed his hand from mine.

"Is this 20 questions or something? Why are you prying into my personal life?" With that, Luke left the bench and started walking towards the exit.

And with that, I followed him.