Chipped Nail Polish (Lashton)

Where Luke is Surprised

Ashton showed up at Luke's door again a few days later. After spending time with Luke, once he was calm, Ashton said that he would give Luke a few days to breathe. He didn't want to overwhelm his friend and thought he should give Luke a chance to rest.  

Luke didn't want Ashton to leave him alone, even though Ashton was so kind to offer that to him. He wanted to keeping seeing Ashton and maybe have the courage to ask him if they could practice kissing like Ashton said. Luke came up with wanting to tell Ashton he needed another set of lips to practice with, otherwise the results wouldn't be as perfected as they should be. 

On the day Luke opened the door to see Ashton there, one of Luke's biggest smiles appeared over his face. He was so happy to see his friend again that he greeted him with a tight hug. He could feel Ashton's arms go around him to hug him, his hand gently rubbing up and down between his shoulder blades. 

He truly did miss Ashton, even though it was only three days since his panic attack and confession about why he wore nail polish and frequently ran away from him. His anxiety over things didn't just go away after telling someone about it. There was no magic cure for it either. He just needed to try and control it better and not let it get as bad as it had. 

"I thought we would walk to the park together, if that's all right with you? We enjoy it there and we haven't sat under the tree in quite some time." Ashton said after they shared a hug. Then he began chewing at his lower lip. 

Luke nodded. "Yeah, I don't mind doing that." He said, walking out from his house and closed the door behind him. 

Ashton instantly grinned. "Great!" 

Without asking Luke, Ashton slipped his fingers through his to hold his hand as they began walking to the park. At the contact Luke couldn't help but look down at their joined hand, praying that his palm wouldn't become too sweaty. Then something else about their hands caught his attention. Ashton's fingernails were painted a dark and sparkling blue.

"My mum didn't have any blue nail polish so I had to borrow some from another friend of mine. I hope you like this shade." Ashton told him, his own cheeks turning a soft pink when Luke slowly looked up to him, his eyes shifting as they looked into Ashton's. This was the most unbelievable thing anyone has ever done for him. 

He could just kiss Ashton but he hadn't practiced yet. 

"Whenever you're ready she wants to meet you but it's all up to you and what you're comfortable with." He told him with a chuckle. "She kept asking me why I wanted her to paint my nails so badly." Then he gently leaned in to nudge Luke. "I did it for you." 

He wished that he painted his nails red but he didn't think he'd be seeing Ashton yet. He'd be sure to paint them Ashton's favorite color the next time they made plans to spend a day together. 

"Tha-thank you. It really means a lot to me." Truth be told, Luke could cry happy tears if he felt comfortable enough crying in front of Ashton. He already had to witness a panic attack that week so he'd save the crying for some other day. 

"You like them? You haven't said." He playfully pouted and it made Luke laugh.

Luke swung their arms lightly until he had the confidence to lift Ashton's hand up, having a better chance to look at the nails in the sunlight, sparkling on his short nails. Then he kissed the back of his hand. 

"They look great. Your friend did a nice job."

Ashton shrugged his shoulders. "I think you do a cleaner job. She was too busy trying to get answers out of me instead of focusing on making my nails look perfect." 

Once they've made it to the park together, still holding hands as they walked down the path and Ashton squeezing Luke's reassuringly every time that Luke began to feel self-conscious about people stares at them, they laid down under the tree, side-by-side and hands still joined in between them, Ashton's drumsticks not making their appearance.

They talked for a bit, Ashton telling him more about his friend and making a joke that she'll probably be jealous of Luke because he's spent most of his time with him. That was only because Ashton really liked Luke and he wanted to make the best impression on Luke. It wasn't that difficult for Ashton to get Luke's attention.

"Close your eyes and don't move, okay?" Ashton told him as he got himself up on his side, looking down at Luke with a smile on his face. 

"Um, okay?" Luke said, wondering what else Ashton was going to surprise him with. Painting his nails was more than enough but he wasn't about to argue with the boy who had a piece of his heart now. 

He closed his eyes and began licking at his lips, wanting to try and peel the skin from his lips while Ashton did whatever he was planning on doing. 

"Just relax." He heard Ashton say in that same calming way when he was helping Luke through his anxiety attack. He could easily trust the other boy. 

He took in one breath and then exhaled it, the air leaving from his lips. That was before his breath was taken away when he felt the ends of Ashton's curls tickling his skin. Then Ashton's lips gently nudged Luke's lips apart, gently kissing them before Luke hesitantly kissed Ashton back.

"Surprise." Ashton smiled as he whispered against Luke's lips, lightly brushing the side of Luke's nose with his own before placing his lips back onto his, kissing him again and bringing his hand to hold Luke's cheek, his thumb lightly stroking over it. 

Luke's never been happier and he didn't pick at his nails that entire day. Being with Ashton was the reason for his small victory and he'd have many more of those victories.

THE END

We made it to the end of this short and sweet story! I had fun writing it and enjoyed doing the short chapters. I'm glad you all thought that this story was cute! I was afraid I would make it too cute but maybe it was just the right amount, even with Luke's anxiety?

Thank you to all who read this! :)