Tongue Tied *UNDERGOING EDITING*

13. All Eyes on Us

 Luke's POV

My alarm goes off the next morning, causing my eyes to shoot open. The alarm jars me out of my sleepy state, which makes me sad because I was having a dream. And I'm not sure if I liked it or not.

I pull back the covers and throw my legs over the side of the bed. I put my head in my hands and push my hair off my forehead. Its covered in a thin layer of sweat from the dream, so I wipe it off with the back of my hand and stand up. I trudge to the bathroom, and lock the door behind me.

I need to be alone for a minute. To clear my head and forget about anything and everything. I lean my hands against the rim of the sink and look into the mirror. I stare at my reflection: my brown hair is messy and I have dark circles under my eyes. Shit.

I couldn't sleep well last night. In fact I haven't slept well for the past two nights. I don't know what's wrong with me. Ariel and I haven't really talked much, only to work on our project, which were almost done with. So I don't get why I can't sleep.

But the dream was about her.

I take a hot shower to clear my head, but it barely works. I step out and wrap the towel tightly around my waist as I walk back to my bedroom.

The dream, still fresh in my mind, runs over and over again as I pull on a pair of jeans. I throw on a t-shirt and comb through my hair before going downstairs to eat breakfast. The morning goes by quickly. And not once does the dream leave my mind.

Did I want it to be real?

"Dude. Luke? Luke!" someone calls. My head snaps up and I come face to face with Tyler. "Are you OK?" he asks. "Yeah, man, I'm fine." I reply bluntly and I try to walk past him, but he steps in front of me. "You look like crap." Tyler says with a laugh. "Thanks. Your a nice friend." I retort sharply, squinting my eyes at him.

"Hey, I'm sorry. But you have circles under your eyes and you're walking around like a zombie. "Are you even fully awake?" he asks, waving a hand in front of my face. "Of course I'm awake." I say grumpily and walk around him. He doesn't stop me this time. Probably because I'm being a real dick.

I stop dead in my tracks, though, when I see Ariel standing at her locker. Her hair is pulled up into a high ponytail and it swings slightly as she shifts her weight from one foot to the other. I find myself standing there, motionless, watching as she gets and replaces her text books. Dylan appears next to her after a few minutes, and he laces his fingers with hers as they walk off to their first class.

The first class that I also have with Ariel. 

The first class that starts in two minutes. I rush to my locker, change out my books, and practically sprint down the hall to the classroom, getting yelled at by a teacher in the process. I slide into my seat next to Dylan just as the second bell rings. Ms. Brooks closes the door and then begins on her lesson.

"As you all should know, the project is due next week, so you should be wrapping up your final preparations. I will give you 20 minutes of Monday's class time to talk with your partner." she starts off with. Then she continues teaching. I take notes, write down the homework, and find myself sneaking a few glances at Ariel.

I am so intrigued with her and I don't know why.

The end bell rings, and I get out of my seat quickly, books tucked under my arm. My eyes are focused on Ariel the whole time as I begin to walk towards her. I need to talk to her. I need to say something to her.

Suddenly, once I'm about two feet away from her, Dylan appears magically at her side. She looks up and smiles at him. He takes her hand and they leave for second period together. I don't have that class with them. So the words that I wanted to say to Ariel are left unsaid.

But it won't stay that way.

I'll make sure of it.

Ariel's POV

Dylan grasps my hand lightly and squeezes gently, making me blush. I walk with him out of first period, feeling eyes on us the whole time.

But I don't mind.

I'm being noticed now. People are seeing me for someone different. I'm not really sure if its the way I want to be noticed, but at least its not for anything bad.

"Are you excited?"

I turn my head to look at Dylan, my ponytail swinging onto my shoulder.

"Excited for what?"

"Our date. Why do you keep forgetting?" he asks, a small laugh escaping his lips.

"Oh, sorry. Yeah, I guess." I reply, swinging our arms back and forth. Speaking of the date...Zoey's not in school again. "Have you seen Zoey this morning?" I ask. He looks a little confused. Why would our date remind me of Zoey?

"No, I haven't. Is something wrong?" he asks. "I'm not sure. She should be back by now, unless she's gotten sicker. I'm gonna go give her a call. Wait here." I say, breaking away from Dylan's grasp and going into a corner. I look over my shoulder to make sure no teacher is around before pulling out my phone and dialing Zoey's number.

"Hello?" someone asks, their voice barely audible. "Zoey?" I ask. "Yeah." she responds in a whispered tone. "Are you ok?" I ask. "I've had a horrible headache since yesterday. I can't shake it. I can't focus or see well or even stand to be in bright light. I'm literally curled up in my bed with the curtains pulled. Its practically pitch black." she says. I hear a small laugh. At least she still has her sense of humor.

"Do you still have a cold?" I ask. "I'm getting over it. I would have been back in school if it weren't for this stupid headache." she says. "Oh, well I hope you feel better. I guess you won't be able to help me get ready for my date." I say. "Don't worry, I'll call you. We can talk over the phone." she whispers. "OK, I'll talk to later then. Let you rest." I say. "Bye." she says quietly, and the line goes dead. I shove my phone back into my bag and join Dylan again. He doesn't question anything.

After school, I call Zoey and she sounds a lot better. "Yeah, I still have a headache, but it was definitely worse this morning." she says. "But enough about me, lets talk about what your going to wear!" she squeals. "Where is he taking you?" she asks. "Out to dinner and then to a movie." I tell her.

Zoey helps me with everything.

Once she's done, I'm wearing a floral tank top that skirts out at the waits line, white jeans, and light brown ankle boots. I left my hair down and straightened it. My makeup I did simple: concealer, mascara, light pink eye shadow, and a little bit of light pink lipstick. Zoey told me to wear a few of my gold bangles and the gold heart necklace she gave me for my birthday last year.

I take my brown purse in hand and stand in front of my floor length mirror. I'm going on a date. My first date. This is really happening. I swallow hard and leave my bedroom, a new kind of bravery taking over. I smile as the front doorbell rings. I stand up and walk to the door. I wrap my hand around the cool metal of the doorknob, twist, and pull it open.