His Sweet Lies

Chapter 6: Beautiful Eyes

It was the end of school and Liam couldn't stop thinking of his earlier interaction with Emma. She'd never know how much it shattered his heart to see her cry. He leaned against the brick wall of the school and saw Emma standing near the front, checking her phone, like she was waiting for someone to show up any minute. Liam frowned, thinking of the last time she was waiting for someone and how they never showed up.

He decided to approach her. "Emma" he said softly, trying not to startle her.

Emma craned her neck to catch a glimpse of him before she fully turned around. "Liam? What are you doing here?"

I came to see you.

"I came to--" he paused, almost blurting out his thoughts. "To... my car!" he said suddenly, making Emma jump a bit. "It's right over there."

Emma's eyes drifted to where he was pointing. Yep, his car was indeed 'right over there' where it always was. She raised her brow, giving him a look. "You're acting suspicious."

"No, I'm not."

Fuck, I am.

Liam bit down on his lip. Why was he suddenly feeling so nervous and awkward around her? Ever since they started talking to each other on a regular basis, he's been having this weird feeling in his stomach. He didn't like feeling this vulnerable. Once this project was over, he didn't have to talk to her regularly. There'd be no reason to.

"Liam" Emma said, snapping him back to reality. "Are you okay?"

No.

"Yes."

Emma glanced at him sidelong before looking back towards the parking lot.

Moving on its own, Liam's body made its way next to Emma and he shifted his gaze to her. Emma's short dark hair danced in the wind, her bangs brushing against her forehead and revealing her eyes that seemed to sparkle in the sunlight.

"You're staring."

Her sharp voice cut through his thoughts. Liam's brows furrowed, surprised at her sudden harsh tone. He immediately turned his head to the side, trying to focus on something else.

As soon as he turned away, he heard Emma sigh. "I'm sorry" she murmured. "It's just... typically not a good feeling whenever someone's looking at my eyes. It never seems to end well."

Liam's chest tightened, but he forced himself to speak. "What do you mean?"

Emma sat down on the concrete steps and held her knees to her chest before letting out a weak chuckle. "Come on, Liam. Not one single person at this school can look me in the eyes without either making a face and walking away or making fun of me."

Liam sat down next to her, inching his hand towards hers but still keeping it at a safe distance. "I can" he whispered.

She let out a sigh. "I'll admit, you're nicer than I thought you'd be, but you don't have to lie to--"

She was cut off by Liam gently grabbing her chin to make her look at him. He lifted his stare from where his hand was then up to her eyes. The eyes that he couldn't stop staring into. The eyes that he felt like he's always loved staring into. His breathe caught at the sight of her staring right back at him.

Emma could feel her face rapidly start to heat up from just Liam looking at her let alone touching her. "Y-you've made your point" she stammered as Liam lowered his hand back into his lap. She quickly looked away back down at her feet. "Thank you" she breathed.

"Your eyes are beautiful."

She jerked her head back up. "What?"

Liam loudly cleared his throat and turned the other way looking like he was mentally face palming himself. If Emma looked closely, she could see the shade of red on the tip of his ears. She decided that this reaction meant she must've heard him correctly. She gave a sly grin and didn't question him further.

"So, my mom isn't showing up-- what a surprise" Emma said sarcastically, changing the subject.

Thankful for the topic change, Liam played along. "I can relate" he said with a sheepish smile.

"Hey, Liam."

"Hm?"

"Would you mind if... Well, if I just--"

"Spend the night at my place?"

Emma swallowed before nodding, surprised when she heard Liam's laughter. "What?"

"You get all shy at the most random times and it'll just come out of nowhere."

She tilted her head and rested her cheek on the palm of her hand. "Says you."

Now he was the one who struggled to form a sentence. "Well-- That's not... I--"

Emma snorted. "See?"

"Anyways" Liam said, straightening his posture. "I'd love to give you a ride. We can work on our project when we get there."

She smiled. "Sure."

Emma didn't know what it was about Liam that made her let almost all her walls come down. Maybe because he wasn't your typical popular guy. He was never a player, he never did anything extreme to get attention, he was just a normal friendly guy with good looks. Although he definitely had his secrets...

When they got to Liam's house, they decided to try on their costumes together. After changing in their separate rooms, Emma walked into his room. She couldn't stop the blush from appearing as she stared at Liam in his fitted costume that showed his muscles every time he moved. She cleared her throat. "Looks like it fits" she said, giving an awkward thumbs up.

Liam's eyes seemed to trace her body before he looked up at her face and returned the awkward thumbs up. "Likewise."

"So, I say we practice our lines, yeah?" she said, pulling out sheets of paper and walking towards him.

Liam nodded. "Yeah."