Meet Me Half Way

Chapter 24 (Luke)

My dad was a hotshot CEO. When he walked into the room, people knew he meant business. People always told me I looked like him, with my black hair and green eyes. Hell, I even style my hair the way he used to when he was younger. The classic flow, that's what he called it. It's funny, my brothers and sister have chocolate hair like my mom, but nope the son he despised the most is the one that ended up looking the most like him. I grew up being rich, a prodigy. The thing about trying to make someone they're not is they always end up resenting you for it.

I have never met another girl that made me feel the way Layla did. Layla knew how to make me laugh and smile. She knew my favorite food and would willingly drive over to spend time with me if she knew that I wasn't in a good mood. I always told myself that once I graduated college, I would find my way back to Layla. I would rekindle our relationship and ask her to marry me. I've thought about how I would win her back every day since I left her. The only problem is those thoughts seemed to disappear whenever I saw Harley.

"Okay, Luke, angle the camera a little more to the left," David yelled.

I cursed under my breath, adjusting my camera. I hated David. He was my supervisor. He ensured I was where I was supposed to be, and everything was done his way. When I first met David, I thought it would be a fun relationship. I mean, this man has the dream job. The last thing I expected was for him always to be so uptight.

I ran my fingers through my hair, trying to keep the sweat from dripping down from my eyes. I was on the baseball field, taking pictures of the empty lot. The sun was hitting it perfectly, making the field sparkle. I've been in this field so many times before. I knew all the perfect angles.

"What did you say, Luke?" David questioned as he moved to stand behind me.

David was like a human rat. He had a tiny frame of a body with beady eyes, but apparently, he was one of the best photographers around. I think he's a pain in the ass.

"Nothing. The sun gives the field a bad glare when I move it to the left. It looked better where I had it," I said bluntly.

"Listen to what I'm telling you. I've done this for years. I'm going to check on the others. Try not to mess up while I'm gone."

I gritted my teeth as I adjusted the camera to where it originally was. But then, I smiled to myself. The shot was perfect.

"Wow, how do you keep such a good balance?"

I bolted straight up, surprised to see Mia.

Her sun-blonde hair was sitting loosely on her head in a bun. Her camera was dangling around her neck, swaying with her every motion. I looked back up at her, surprised to see dark brown eyes. She had such a weird combination of dark eyes with almost white-looking hair, but she looked pretty standing in the light. She was a tiny thing, though, but tall. She looked like a dancer.

"Oh, I'm not sure," I stuttered. I felt my eyes drift down to my camera. Why was I feeling embarrassed? I've worked with her many times before. She was one of the best photographers on the team.

She laughed as she picked up her camera and angled it at me, "Don't move," she said teasingly.

I stood still, continuing to look down at the camera. My skin has gotten darker since the weather has gotten nicer. My dad was half Italian which made me a quarter Italian.

I heard a click followed by a satisfied hum.

She came over, standing shoulder to shoulder with me. She dropped her camera to let me see the photo.

Honestly, I looked kind of cool. Like I was inspecting the photo on my camera. The sun setting behind me also made the picture look fantastic. I liked it.

"Your LuluLemon shorts seem to glow in the picture."

I gave her a light nudge, "I have style. You're just jealous."

She studied me closely, "Is David the reason you're upset?"

"How could you tell that I was upset?"

She drummed her fingers against her camera, "I could tell your jaw was clenched, and your eyes were narrow. But trust me, I think he is a pain in the ass too. I've never met a guy who made you hold your breath while you take a picture."

"Wow, you're a good people watcher. Although I agree, he never lets me do what I want as a photographer."

"I danced throughout my life; we are trained to look for small details."

I smiled to myself, proud that I knew she had danced.

"Thank you, talking with you made me in a better mood," I said with a sigh.

She smirked, "Well, if you are free later tonight, I'll be at that new sushi place on campus. Feel free to come to say hi."

"Okay, maybe I will."

I didn't even realize how bad of a mood I was in until she started walking away.

Spencer and Harley were supposed to be coming home soon. I couldn't keep it to myself any longer. I had to tell Harley how I felt. Maybe I was thinking on impulse. Perhaps I was better off just pretending my feelings didn't exist.

I was standing across the street from Harley's dorm building, holding the sketch I had never shown her. The personal sketch that she was dying to see is of her.

She didn't notice I took a picture of her at the library one day. I turned that picture into a drawing. I've never spent this long on a drawing before, but I wanted to get every detail, every color right. It mattered to me, and if I was going to tell her how I felt, I wanted her to see the beauty I saw in her simplicity. Her natural beauty, where she thinks no one is watching.

My heart was beating fast but primarily out of excitement. I knew she felt the same way. I was finally going to be able to call her mine. To kiss her and hold her.

So when I saw Spencer and Harley walk up to the building, the last thing I expected was for him to kiss her and for her to kiss him back.

Like that, I felt like my heart shriveled up in a little ball, leaving the world around me muted. She found her guy. I was too late. I missed the chance to call her mine. She was beautiful and untouchable. She was like the wildflower you'd see in a field when you were younger—surprised by how something so beautiful could grow within an area of plain grass. Sometimes you'd get lucky and find it before it caught someone else's eye, but that was not the case for me.