Pretty Girls ⇼ Luke Hemmings

5:25.

(Picture is Jeremy)

It was 5:25 on Monday afternoon and I was standing outside of a pizza restaurant, where my date Jeremy sat at a booth. Mandy just texted me and told me that she and Rob were stuck in traffic and they'd be late. I debated not going in, but then I thought of how horrible I'd feel if I was in his position, so I fixed my hair in the reflection of the mirror. I wore a light gray pleated skirt with white stripes that fell to just above my knee and a white top with a pink floral pattern. I kept my shoes casual, tan ankle sandals, and let my hair fall down with a light curl. I only wore mascara and lip gloss. I wanted to give off a natural appearance rather than making myself up and putting on a full face of makeup.

Holding in a breath, I entered the restaurant and the cool air from the ventilation ducts sent goosebumps over my skin.

"Val," a voice called from a table in the middle of the small space. With a small smile, I walked over to him. "I'm Jeremy. It's very nice to meet you," he pulled out my chair and helped me in before sitting across from me. It was single kindest thing a boy had ever done for me.

"It's nice to meet you too," we shook hands and he turned my palm to the table, peering at my purity ring.

"My sister has a purity ring," he noted, running his thumb along the small indent of a cross.

"You come from a religious family?"

"More like religious to the extreme," he laughed quietly.

"Me too," I blushed, glancing down at the menu.

"We go to church twice a week," he admitted.

"No way!" I laughed. "We go three times," we shared a quick laugh.

"What religion are you?" He inquired.

"Catholic," his face lit up.

"That's crazy! So am I!" It's unbelievable to find someone with parents as crazy religious as mine.

"What kind of pizza do you like?" He asked, picking up the laminated sheet.

"Oh, um, it doesn't matter. We can get whatever you want," a waitress came over and brought two glasses of water, setting them down in front of us.

"But what do you want?" He pressed, shooting me a wide smile. He had dark brown hair that was gelled into a quiff out of his face and a sickening white smile. His teeth were so perfect, I swear he could be a model for a toothpaste ad.

"I like Hawaiian," I spoke shyly and he grabbed the menu from my hands.

"One Hawaiian it is, then," he told the waitress, handing her the menu before turning his attention back to me. I had a feeling that if I was here with Luke, he wouldn't have let me choose.

"So what's your major?" I asked, trying to change the topic to get Luke out of my head.

"Accounting," he smiled, running a hand across his clean shaven chin. "And a girl like you must be an English major?" He assumed and I smiled back at him.

"English minor," I laughed. "Creative writing major," he seemed a little embarrassed of his prediction. "But I guess my appearance kind of gives it away," I joked and he laughed. His laugh was a light hum that emitted from his chest. I don't think I've ever made Luke laugh unless he was making fun of me. Well, so much for pushing him out of my thoughts.

"I like your appearance," Jeremy's smile reached his mocha brown eyes. "In fact, I think you're a very beautiful girl." I blushed.

"Well, you're not so bad yourself," he let out another quiet laugh.