redamancy // l.h au

twenty-seven

spring break

"Come on," Luke whined, turning his bottom lip downward into a pout, "Just pose." He held his cellphone out in front of him while he was lying down on my bed.

The camera was pointed to me while I was at my desk, trying to finish my biology lab write-up. I smiled down at my paper, scribbling down notes I'd remembered from class for later. "Hemmings, I'm trying to work, which is something you should be doing, too."

I heard the click of the camera before he set his phone down beside him. I stuck my tongue out at the boy, but he wasn't affected. Instead, he smirked, "I need more photos for instagram. Calum says that I post too much food."

"Cal's instagram feed is filled with inappropriate jokes and selfies." I scoffed, setting my things down on the desk in front of me and scooting my chair closer to my bed. At this, Luke reached for my arm, pulling me onto the mattress. I crawled back to the headboard and he followed, setting his head on my lap.

This Sunday afternoon was especially gloomy; the air was cool and the fog settled deep into the streets outside, creating a level of humidity that my hair could not handle. Luke, having wanted to take me out to lunch, settled for a day indoors because of the horrendous remains of my bird's nest. Or, hair, as some would call it.

Luke reached up to pull a strand from behind my ear, "Your hair has calmed down, I see." I nodded then, running my fingers through his golden waves. He used his leg to get his phone within reaching distance and once he got a hold of it, he stared at the photo of me for a few minutes before sharing it.

Within minutes, notifications lit up his screen from the likes and comments, but Luke tossed his phone onto the floor next to us, craning his head to look up at me. "What did you caption it?" I asked, poking his cheek.

"Mm, nothing. Just that devil emoji." Luke flashed a dimpled grin right before I lightly pinched his nose closed.

"I can't breathe." He exhaled, flailing his long, gangly arms in all different directions.

I sighed, "Open your mouth, Luke." With that, he breathed in through his mouth deeply and smiled. I shook my head, releasing my grip on his pixie nose. His cheeks were tinted pink, which I noticed happened every single time him and I had a who-can-hold-their-breath-the-longest contest. Which, I always won, by the way.

"Anyway," Luke sat up, stretching his legs out in front of him. His toes touched the headboard on either side of me, which gave me no choice but to scoot forward and half-straddle him. His hands went straight to my hips to keep me balanced. After all this time, his touch still set my skin on fire.

"I've been meaning to tell you about--" Luke looked down at my hands pressed up against his chest. "Okay, no. That's distracting." I slid my hands up to around his neck and he gave me a smug grin.

"You were saying?" I pushed, scooting myself off of him to lay beside him. Our shoulders leaned against each other as we watched the ceiling above.

"I'm--well, the band-- is going on tour. Worldwide, this time." He said, almost too quiet for me to hear.

I jumped up off the bed, a smile plastered across my face. "Luke! No way!" I leaned over, wrapping ny arms around him and squeezing him tight. His hands gripped my arms, slowly pulling them away. His eyebrow creased in worry and disdain; the shadow of his dimples still appeared on his face. "Luke?"

"I'm going to be gone 'till December, Rhea. Maybe even more than that if they ask us to extend the dates."

I sat on the bed in front of him, my fingers twisting themselves up between each other. I tried to think of what I could say, but the only thing that came out was with a small smile. "I couldn't be happier for you."

He looked up at me from underneath the blonde strands of hair that fell above his eyes. His eyebrows released the tension and his shoulders sunk.

"I'll be here waiting for you, Luke." I continued, finally finding the words. "This is an incredible thing and I want you to share it with me."

He took a deep breath and didn't say anything.

"Is this your version of a goodbye? Because I'm totally not buying it. You better up your game, lucifer."

His lips turn up into a small smile, but his eyes stay locked on the bed spread between us. "We leave next month."

"Next month is far away," I whisper.

"Time flies when you're having fun, though."

"Well, then, I guess you're going to have to be bored out of your mind for the next few weeks, Luke." I laughed way too hard at myself and Luke joined in, giggling at how I toppled over my knees and snorted.

A few minutes passed by as we sat in comfortable silence before I heard him clear his throaf. He stepped off the mattress, walked over to my spot, and knelt down in front of me. He took my hands in his and rested his head against them.

"I love you, Rhea." He said, with the most confidence I'd ever heard from him. "But you knew that already, though."

Like Hell, I did, Luke Hemmings.