serendipity

texting

"May I have a caramel iced coffee please?" I ask the lady in the Jack's drive-thru.

"Yes, ma'am. $3.77," the woman responds through the speaker.

I pay and get my coffee before driving to the local bookstore. I wonder if they have that one romance book I've been looking for. What if they have Fifty Shades of Grey? I should get that for Luke's birthday! He would actually kill me, but it would be so funny.

Speaking of my favorite little guy, Mr. Luke Thomas White, texts me. Stopping at a red light, I pick up my phone and see what it says.

Lukey: Come over later.

Me: I might, but I'm thinking about doing hardcore drugs in a back alley with the neighborhood drug dealer.

Lukey: Bring me some

Me: Sir, yes, sir

I put my phone down and continue the drive to the bookstore.

---

I sit down at one of the assorted tables in the shop and read the beginning of the book I picked. I don't get very far into it before David, the guy from the beach, comes up to me.

"Hey, it's Mia right?" He says. I nod in response. "What are you reading?" I show him the cover.

"Cool. I came here looking for the Harry Potter series for my little sister, but you're definitely an added bonus," he says. He seems nice. Maybe a slight bit off putting at first, but David seems like a sweet guy.

"How's your day going, David?" I ask.

"It's going pretty well, even better now that I saw you," he laughs. Oh my goodness, that was nerdy. He didn't ask how mine was. That's one of those cute little red flags

"Thanks! Well, I hope your day continues to go well," I say, getting up and moving over to the cash register.

"Hey! Wait, can you give me your number?" He asks eagerly, "You never had a chance to give it to me with your boyfriend stealing the spotlight yesterday."

"Oh, he's not my boyfriend," saying that didn't feel good.

"Oh, so can I have your number?"

"Sure, can you give me your phone?" I ask before he hands it to me.

I put my number into his contacts and hand his phone back to him before walking away. I go to the register and buy my book.

---

Walking to Luke's room, I hear him laughing. Is he talking to someone? Who is he talking to? Is it a girl? Am I jealous? What the Kentucky fried chicken is going on?

I knock on his door and before I know it, he comes and opens it. Squeezing me in a bear hug, he says, "Hey, sweet girl, I missed you today."

"Luke, you saw me a few hours ago. By the way, I heard you laughing. Who were you talking to?"

"I didn't know you were the jealous type, gorgeous," he grins, pulling away from the hug. "Don't worry, I was only watching that video of you dancing in the street where you fell in that massive puddle."

I slap him super hard on the chest while he continues to laugh. What a jerk.

"Well, if that's the case, I'll just have you know I saw David from the beach today."

"Beach David?"

"Beach David," I confirm, "and this time, I was able to give him my number."

"Has he texted you?"

"No, but he could," I say with my arms crossed around my chest and an angry look on my face.

"Okay, I'm sorry, sweet girl. Can we cuddle now?" He apologizes, pulling me in by the waist. I nod against his chest. Why is he so darn comfy? I'm trying to be mad at him right now. He picks me up and I wrap my legs around his waist.

He lays me down on the bed before laying down right next to me. I roll over and put my head on his chest.

"Hey, I have an idea," he starts. "What if we watched Game of Thrones?"

"Isn't that show like really dirty?" I reply, trying not to laugh.

"Oh yeah, I really just wanted to watch it because it had like a crazy plot, but yeah, I've heard it's dirty."

"We should find a show to watch, though." He nods, looking at me with a slight grin on his face. I don't want to lose this when we go to college. That's so soon. I don't want to think about it, so I nuzzle closer to him.

"Like what, beautiful?"

"I don't know. What about Dance Moms?"

"Okay, pretty girl. We can do that," he smiles. What am I going to do without him? He's my best friend in the whole world. Who am I kidding? He is my whole world.

I turn on the show and we pretend like we could do this forever for a little longer. Like this won't be over in a month. Like I can't go to his house and cuddle when I have a bad day. I haven't slept alone in so long. I should probably stop thinking about this. I'm gonna cry.

My thoughts are interrupted when I feel my phone vibrate. I pick it up, seeing that it's a text from David.

Unknown Number: Hey! It's David from the beach. I was too nervous to ask earlier, but will you go out with me next Saturday.

Oh my goodness, I have to tell Luke, but before I can, I notice him looking at my phone with a frown on his face.

"Are you going to go out with him?" He asks.

"Do you think I should?"

"No, I don't. I got a weird vibe from that guy, and if y'all dated,"

"If we dated, what?"

"You and I might change. You don't even know him, and he could be jealous of me or something."

"You make a good point. Let me text him back," I respond.

Me: Can I think about it?

Beach David: Yeah, don't sweat it, babe

"Luke, look," I show him what David said. "Isn't that like nasty?"

"Babe? Who does he think he is?"

"That's what I'm saying."

---

Luke and I fade into our usual night time routines. I take a shower, brush my teeth, do my skincare, and braid my hair into two pigtails. Luke thinks they're silly, but I think they help my hair or something. I'm honestly not sure. I just saw a girl do it on TikTok.

When I get back to his room, he's already there. The moment Luke sees me, he opens the blanket for me to get in bed next to him. I happily oblige, crawling in. He wraps his arms around me in a warm embrace and right before I fall asleep, I hear him say, "goodnight, babe."

"Shut up, you big oaf," I reply, lightly hitting him on the chest. He chuckles before we both fall into a heavy sleep.