Runaway. || Luke Hemmings

Chapter 25

"Take me back to the time when we friends." I smiled, dipping a cracker into the flame of the newly-lit campfire. The sky was black, doming around us with sparkling stars providing crackles of light, and Luke sat across from me smiling into the distance.

"What are you smiling about." I grinned after a few silent moments, taking a bit of the toasted cracker. (We found them in a bag Natalia had tied onto her waist when we found her.)

He looked up at me and smiled. "You."

I blushed, looking down. The fire crackled, spitting red-hot dust out onto us, surprisingly giving pleasure. "You do like things that make you smile, don't you."

He grinned silently and crawled over beside me, laying himself down with his hands behind his head. "Yes I do, you got a problem with that?"

I laughed and shook my head, finishing off my cracker and laying down beside him. I placed my palm onto his chest, feeling muscle contract beneath my skin. My eyes traveled up to his. He looked at me.

"How are you coping with... You know."

I sighed and looked down. I knew what he meant. "Alright, I guess. I mean, I still miss her like crazy, but what can I do, you know?"

He nodded, his chin against my head. "Yeah. We're always gonna remember her, I'm just kinda sad I didn't get a chance to... Get to know her. I mean, she sounded like a really great friend."

I nodded slowly. "Yeah. Yeah, she was. She was amazing, Luke."

"Yeah." He whispered.

"Hey." I said, sitting up and facing him. "We never finished our tattoes."

He lifted a finger to me as I positioned myself on top of him, my legs either side of him so I sat on his stomach.

"One minute." He smiled. "You never actually showed me what you meant by 'needing' me. I wanna know what that means."

"Luke-" I began. He cut me off.

"Tell me."

My eyes wandered around for a minute. "Well... I need you like a plant needs water."

"Is that it?"

"You know what I mean by 'needing' you, Luke."

"Yeah." He grinned. "I just wanted to hear you say it again."

I laughed with him, and then it went silent again. I sat looking down at him, my palm lightly resting on his chest to balance myself. I wobbled, but he linked his hand into mine allowing me to disload some of my weight onto him.

"Thanks." I said softly.

"Come here."

I lowered myself onto him and fitted my head into the crook of his neck, adjusting to his shape. My lips pressed against his neck, my now short breaths warming his golden skin. His hand cupped my chin and tilted my head towards his, his blue orbs seeping into my eyes, my brain, my bloodstream. I opened my mouth to say something, but he pressed a finger against my lips, making a million fireworks set off in my chest.

"Shh." He whispered, his thumb carelessly pushing back a strand of my hair behind my ear, his eyes watching every move. "Don't say anything."

His thumb tripped down my face and over my cracked, dried lips, causing them to drift apart. A short moan escaped my lips, and Luke breathed heavily in return.

"So.. Beautiful." He whispered, tracing over my cheekbones to my jawline, causing me to lift my head a bit. My heart raced at 1000 miles a minute, the butterflies this boy made me feel were out of this world.

"Bella." He breathed, turning my face towards his with a finger. He leaned his forehead against mine. His thumb fell down over my bottom lip, pulling it with it. "Bella." He repeated, his eyes flicking to my lips and back up again. "I can't wait any longer."

My breaths trembled as they left my mouth, and I waited a moment to answer him.

"Then don't. Don't wait. Kiss me. Kiss me and don't stop."

His minted breath hit me as he smashed his wet lips to mine, causing butterflies to launch themselves around my body, like they were trapped in some sort of glass cage. His cool, metal lip ring sent shivers down my spine as it came into contact with my lips. I ran my tongue along his bottom lip, my hands running down his body as he crawled his around my lower waist. I couldn't control my actions; everything he did made me want to come back stronger. I felt a tug at my lower lip, causing a small moan to escape my mouth. My hands moved to his face and I stayed kissing him as I positioned myself on top of him, my legs either side of his broad frame. He grabbed my waist and squeezed repeatedly at them, fighting back strongly until he won the battle. As the moon faded into the black sky, I pulled away from him only once, just to whisper a secret into his ear.

"I want to take it slow." I breathed, my swollen lips brushing against his ear. And without waiting for an answer, I pressed my lips back onto his as the stars put themselves out.