The Player Next Door ✓

51 | Suspenders

50 Chapters! FIFTY chapters gone by... We are over that quarter-of-a-century chapter bump. 

A big thank you to every single one of you who is on this journey with me!  I feel like I owe it to you and the characters to see this through to a good and true end.

Which is not now by the way.  Still more to happen mwahahaha.

Chapter 51: Suspenders

My lips were numb when Luke stopped kissing me. His kiss sent sensations coursing through me that I never knew existed. His lips made mine tingle until he stopped.

When he stepped back, I felt a rush of air fill the space that used to be his body.

You see me.  His voice was in my head, repeating the words he'd spoken moments before our kiss. 

I opened my eyes and looked into his. He smiled softly at me.

I was breathless.

Did he regret it? Luke was an unbelievably handsome boy and I... I couldn't believe what he had done. He kissed me.

Luke raised a hand and ran it through his messy hair. This entire time, his blue eyes were fixed on me. 

If the ocean was fire, he could burn me with his gaze.

His kissable lips exhaled and he said: "Now you know."

I wasn't sure. My heartbeat was still recovering from a marathon. "What?"

"I like you."

**

We didn't say much while Luke grabbed his gym bag and slung the strap over his right shoulder. He held the door open for me as I walked out of the basketball court.

I think we were both processing what happened and what it meant. I technically had a date with Jake and yet here I was...

Of all people, with Luke. Luke Dawson. The infamous player and heart-breaker. What was I doing?!

The sound of people talking in the distance made me freeze. I recognized the noise emitting from the math classroom. The one where the Mathletes trained every Wednesday night.

This was so not the time. I did not need to be bumping into my cheating ex-boyfriend right now.

I grabbed Luke.

He glanced down at my hand on his arm. And then he smirked.

"Luke," I whispered, shaking those thoughts out of my mind, "We need to hide."

He looked at me strangely, "And why is that?"

Luke has probably never hidden from anything in his life.

The door to the Mathlete class opened and the team stepped out. I quickly dragged a confused and reluctant Luke behind a set of lockers. He was about to say something when I put a finger gently to his lips. 

I was surprised it worked. He actually stayed silent.

For a second.

"Are you actually trying to hide me from nerds?" he asked in disbelief, "Is that what's happening right now?"

He stood in front of me like it was the most absurd thing he's ever heard. I noticed a door nearby and pushed it open. I tried to pull him through, but this time, he didn't budge.

"Come on! Let's go!" I begged.

He didn't listen. He looked at the team that was crossing the hallway, cracking bad math jokes along the way. One of his hands gripped the strap of his gym bag and the other gripped me.