Tell Me I'm Pretty [Lashton AU]

Chapter 4

It's really hard for Luke to be the good guy when he's done a lot of bad things. Luke is a complex person and anyone with eyes can see that. He literally just tries his best not to cause problems and ends up making things worse by ignoring them or arguing with others about them.

You see, Luke started off as a good kid and he was always a mama's boy. He loved to please his mum best he can and when he was little, he would try to make her presents and draw her cute pictures and make ash trays out of clay. However, it never ended the way it should have and Luke hated that.

Now, he's nearly eighteen and all he does is fail her. He can never make her happy anymore. Luke's mum is religious and Luke is as well. Just, a different kind. His church was decent enough. They don't discriminate like a lot. They don't agree with 'gay people' but they don't insist that they can't attend Sunday church or say they're going to hell.

It was peaceful to Luke as he listened to the service and he felt somewhat at place. He wasn't a huge christian. He never read the whole bible, only certain parts for the service and listened as the priest and the only part Luke really enjoyed and listened to was when they all sang and that just made him happy since he loves singing.

The thing is, sometimes Luke hates going to church simply because even if their church was welcoming, not everyone who attends is. Luke has been having a rough time and people at his church are rather close since they've been going for years. So, his mum likes to air Luke's dirty laundry to everyone and he hated that.

He knew she was just trying to talk to her friends about her problems, but why is Luke a problem? Despite getting bad grades and having an attitude, he was a decent son and he didn't see why she insisted on talking shit about her own son. It made him sub-conscious and he felt awkward with everyone giving him the evil eye whenever he walked around.

Sometimes people would walk up to him and say they're praying for him. And yeah, he's christian and he believes in a lot of things, but what are they praying for? Him to get an A? It's not like he's dying or has cancer, he's just bad at school. He got in a few fights, hasn't every teenage boy?

It was okay, though. He liked a few people who went to his church and had a decent from named Aaliyah. She was nice and beautiful and had this sweet sense to her. But, obviously he's gay and has nothing romantic towards her. However, she knew that and despite being the priest's daughter, she was very accepting.

The thing about the church they go to is, even if the people aren't angered or rude against homosexuals, they don't agree with it. They just ignore it and choose not to be 'yay for gay' or 'go to hell fags'. They just nod or fake a smile and even though some people find that rude, Luke likes it.

He thinks that not everyone needs to accept anything. He believes there's a difference between being homophobic and just not agreeing with things. Homophobia to him is when you say fags and insult gay people. But, if you just say 'i don't agree with being gay' then he won't get angry. He won't be happy, but he'll just sigh and nod without forcing it upon someone.

That's how Aaliyah was. She didn't hate that Luke was gay. She smiled when he told her and she just say 'It's not something I ever agreed with, but I can learn to accept it' and he never felt happier. It wasn't bad like he thought it would have ended and he wished people were more like that.

However, as he rambled about Ashton and how annoying he is, she just chuckled in amusement. Luke liked to rant to her since she usually agreed with him on things unlike Michael and Calum who always seemed to disagree with whatever he said. He hated his friends sometimes, they never understand him.

"-- And I swear, he thinks he's some fucking Britney Spears gymnasts. He always flips around and does the splits as if he's the coolest shit ever. Like, honey, chill. You're not Latynina." He saw Aaliyah's confused expression and explained carelessly,"She's some gymnasts. One of the world's best or whatever."