Lonely Hearts Club // Book One

Chapter Eight

January 28th, 2014

I wasn't sure how excited I was to get my senior year started, but I definitely knew that I would get to see Luke again. Over Christmas in Adelaide, I had constant questions from family members on if I had a boyfriend or not, or if I liked anybody. So I had come to the conclusion that I, Paige Millar, who had known Luke since October, had found some sort of non-friendship feelings for the boy. It's been practically three months, which isn't a lot but isn't a little. I wasn't prepared for how hot and tanned Luke could possibly look tomorrow, either.

Surely, the summer's done me some justice too, actually. My skin wasn't patchy or dry, and it was a little tanner, too. My hair wasn't frizzy or annoying. I had grown accustomed to my smile and nose, but other than that, I didn't feel completely ugly anymore. Calum looked like he got fried over the summer, only because I saw him yesterday and he was covered head to toe in Aloe Vera. He looked like a ripe tomato.

Gregory had been at a camp for three weeks and just got back today. He had grown two inches and was now five inches taller than me. Surprisingly, being 5'7", I was the shortest in my family. So obviously extreme height runs the genes. They said Greg could reach 6'7" by the time he's 18. He'd be a total foot taller than me. The kid had turned 15 not too long ago and he was already 6 feet tall.

Over the break, my mum had gotten us a puppy named, Rascal, Cal for short... *wink*. He was a corgi, and an annoying one. Hence the name, Rascal. And also why I call him Cal instead.

I also got contacts, fuck yeah. Even though this was the same way I felt when I got my braces off, I felt like a new me. Yet, I was still nerdy Paige.

Calum's mum invited my family to have dinner with his family and Luke for tonight. Immediately I agreed and got shot down with a bunch of questions on if I liked him or not. Which makes me somewhat pissed because I was still unsure of that myself. I was subconscious of the fact that Luke is never with his family, and I never rack up questions of why. I'm also sure, one day I'll find out everything or we'll forget about each other and I'll always be curious of why Luke never told me one damn thing about himself.

I couldn't live with that. So at some point, I'll have to get it out of him.

I was going to be wearing a summer dress since the weather was scalding hot. Greg was only in khaki shorts and a football tee, with my mum in a dress, too. It wasn't like we were suddenly being fancy for the Hood's, we were just an unpredictable family. We were waiting until two minutes before six to head down to Calum's house. Cal also wanted to see Rascal, so we were told to bring him over. Apparently, Luke liked dogs, too.

The corgi was well-tamed, but his behaviour sometimes rocketed when someone played with him. Rascal's age didn't matter with how mature his nature was.

"Paige!" Joy Hood greeted me at the door with a welcoming grin on her face. Mali was behind her, instantly grabbing the puppy from my arms.

"Is this Rascal? He's so cute!" she exclaimed.

"Uh, he can be, I guess. I nicknamed him Cal because he's stupid," I shrugged and Joy chuckled, letting me inside. It wasn't that funny, but it was pretty good when I thought of it. I couldn't see Calum or Luke when I walked in, but instead of really caring, I just turned back to his sister and watched her play with Rascal in awe. Greg was still standing near the door, not wanting to be here one bit. I mean, if Cal had a younger brother, maybe Greg would be happy. But Mali was his only sibling.

"I hear a rabid Paige Millar!" Calum's higher pitched voice echoed throughout the house that you could probably never be able to guess where it came from. Scoffing, I sat on his couch and waited to see two tall boys approach me. "Luke stop being a slow poke, you were bound to see her at some point!" whispered Cal, which it was more of his regular voice.