let me go || l.h.

t w e n t y o n e

luke handed me some plates, and together we began to set the table. with the absence of luke's older brothers, the table felt empty. surprisingly, dinner with luke's family was really fun- not scary as i thought it would be! andrew was really funny, and liz did a great job of making me feel welcome. and, regardless of what she said, not all 5 pizzas were eaten!

when dinner was finished, i helped liz clean up as luke and andrew were talking. she asked me a lot of questions- what my family was like, what i wanted to do when i was older- and found myself answering them with ease. liz was really easy to talk to.

after everything had been cleaned up, we all sat in the living room, where luke had brought down a guitar. he sat there, tuning it, while we all sat and waited. luke looked at me, as if for inspiration, before shaking his head. "i'm sorry, but i can't," he said.

we were all shocked. "well, why not?" liz asked. again, luke shook his head. "i just doesn't feel right to sing this song without the girl who wrote it up here with me." luke said, looking at me. i shook my head. what? he knew how shy i was. why did he want me to do this?

"please?" luke asked me, staring at me with those blue eyes. i shook my head again. liz squeezed my hand reassuringly. "come on, love," she said tenderly. i got up reluctantly, and sat next to luke on the other couch. "thank you," he whispered. i gave luke what i hope was a menacing look. he opened his song book to 'if you don't know,' and pointed out the verses i was to sing.

luke squeezed my hand before he began playing. he wanted me to sing the opening verse, but i couldn't. i opened my mouth, but nothing came out. i looked at luke, who smiled reassuringly. he started the song again. again, i froze. "i'll sing with you," luke whispered. once more, he began to play. luke began to sing, and i soon found myself singing with him.

together, our voices were amazing. i had never heard anything like it before. my voice was soft and clear, and his was strong. together, we made a sound like nothing else. i saw liz and andrew smiling, and gained yet more confidence. by the end of the song, i was smiling so much my cheeks were hurting. andrew and liz started clapping, and luke wrapped his arms around me. "you did it" he whispered in my ear. i squeezed luke's hand excitedly. liz wiped away tears, "that was beautiful," she said. luke smiled proudly at her. "it was all tiahn!" he said. i shook my head at him, still smiling.

***

too soon, at was time for me to leave. luke and i headed upstairs to grab my things. "so, did you like my parents?" luke asked, somewhat nervously. "yes!" i said, "of course i did!" he looked relieved. "good," luke said, leading me downstairs. i gave liz a hug and andrew wrapped his arm around my shoulders, giving me a squeeze. "you're welcome here anytime," he said. "thank you so much," i said, looking up at him.

luke and i walked out to his car, hand in hand. "did you have fun?" he asked, giving me a sideways glance. "i had a lot of fun," i replied. we drove in silence, listening to his demo cd.

when we reached my house, luke walked me to the door. i wrapped my arms around his neck, not wanting to let go. "i love you," he whispered in my ear. "i love you too," i whispered. i pulled out of our hug and kissed luke softly, the stars twinkling above us.