Lost boy | Luke Hemmings

Chapter 7

We sit there, staring at each other for a long time. Then he finally breaks the silence.

"I think I really like you, Chiarra."

"I think I really like you too, Luke." I don't want to rush this but I can't help myself; Luke is amazing and I know he cares about me. I don't want to rush anything like last time but I can't imagine seeing Luke do anything near as drastic as what my last boyfriend did; I think I can trust Luke.

-

After that we play a couple more songs and then we just talk. I lean up against Luke with my head on his chest, listening to his heart beating. His arms encircle my waist.

"Hey, can we go on your trampoline."

"Sure." He nods, stretching his long legs as he stands.

As we walk, Luke goes back into the room to get something and comes out carrying the guitar. He catches up with me in a couple of long strides and clasps my hand. It isn't hard for him to catch up to me because of his long legs. He's a, giraffe.

We hold hands as we walk to the trampoline and I feel like one of those generic couples that are always affectionate in public. I hate those couples because I mean, honestly, I don't want to see that stuff! I can see what all the hype is about though; touching his hand and catching him staring at you. I didn't get these feelings with my last boyfriend; it was nothing like this. Too bad Luke and I aren't dating...

When we reach the trampoline, I try to get up by jumping but it's too tall. Luke starts laughing and hoists me up, putting his hands on my waist. Luke jumps up himself and sits next to me. I cross my legs and face him so we are both sitting in the middle of the trampoline, eyeing each other.

"You're so pretty. You know that?" Luke says, brushing hair away from my face. He pinches a couple of strands between his fingers and rubs them together. He sits back a little and starts playing with his lip ring which I realise is in fact a sign of nervousness. It's so cute though and I love it when he does it.

"Yeah, right." I quietly whisper. I say it so soft I wasn't sure if Luke heard it because I barely heard it myself.

"I'm serious." He looks me dead in the eye and I can't help but look away. It doesn't help though because I'm pinned under his gaze, unable to escape. I've never seen myself as pretty as I'm not the skinniest of girls. People think that having blue eyes and blonde hair is what makes you pretty but everyone has their insecurities. I check my phone for the time. 11 o'clock.

"Do you need to go?" Luke asks, noticing me checking the time. I can see the desperation in his eyes; he doesn't want me to leave.

"Not until 12:30." I say, shaking my head and slowly turning around. I lay my head against Luke's chest and he moves his legs so I can sit between them. He stretches them out on the trampoline and his arms rest against my arms, the familiar sparks returning once again. He starts playing with my fingers while resting his head against the side of mine. I feel a lot closer to Luke now and it's a comfortable shift. I enjoy sitting closer to him and I can tell he does too. We both stare into the distance in our own thoughts.

"What is that?" I ask Luke, lifting my arm to point at the plastic dog sitting by the pool.

"Ketchup."

"Ketchup? Why would you name a plastic, white dog Ketchup?"

"Long story short, when we were on tour and we were staying in LA, we had a pool and there was a plastic dog. We would keek so many videos with this dog and his original name was Chip and then Smiths. We then came up with Ketchup." Luke says smiling, thinking about their old memories back on tour. They must have had so much fun.

"You must love going on tour. When are you going next?" I ask, feeling perturbed that Luke could be leaving soon and I have only started getting to discover him.

"Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere." Luke says to me, kissing my head and squeezing me tight. I believe him. I wanted him to stay with me, forever. "Yet." I hear him quietly whisper but choose to ignore it which possibly could be a bad decision.

-

Luke and I are still sitting on the trampoline as he grabs my hand and holds it tight knowing I have to go soon.

"Please don't leave." He begs me. I can see the despair in his eyes and I don't want to disappoint him.

"Not yet. But Luke, you know I have to go sometime." I wish I could stay here forever, in Luke's arms.

"I know." He says quietly. I can tell he wants me to stay in his arms too, as he squeezes my hands and looks away. We sit in a comfortable silence and I look back in through the window of the music room to see the boys and Eureka intently watching us.

"Hey Luke." I say, looking up at him and laughing. They're all staring at us with a bag of popcorn as if they're watching a movie.

"Yeah beautiful. What is it?" He gives me a sweet smile and strokes my hair. He looks fascinated by the blonde strands.

"Look in through the music room window."

He slowly looks trying not to make it obvious, one thing I can never do, as his head slightly turns. Then he gazes back at me and starts laughing.

"They want to know if we're kissing or going out or whatever." He mumbles quietly, looking embarrassed about his friends. His cheeks flush a light red but I find what our friends are doing is funny, not embarrassing. But I have a thought that makes me think Luke is not embarrassed about his friends... he's embarrassed about something else. I turn around to face Luke, pulling my head away from his chest but still sitting close to him. I want to be near him. I stare deep into his eyes and I know we're going to kiss.

"I really like you, Luke." I whisper just before our lips meet. The rest of the world melts away and it's only us. Luke. I wind my arms around his neck and kiss him passionately. I just want to be with him. I tangle my fingers into his blonde hair and gently tug at it. His lip ring feels cool pressed against my lips and we keep kissing. We move our heads to different angles and move our lips in perfect time.

As we pull apart we hear a series of cheers and look to our right to see Eureka and the boys all high fiving each other with big smirks. All the popcorn has flown around the room as it has been thrown from the bag.

"They're funny." I say, smiling at Luke but shyly looking away. It feels so good to be sitting next to him and I just want to kiss him again.

"Ha! You just wait. When I get inside they will be asking me a billion questions."

"What will you tell them?" I ask as he places his fingers under my chin and makes me look at him.

Luke ignores my question replacing it with one of his own. "Chiarra..." he starts, wiping his hands on his jeans again and playing with his lip ring. He runs his hands up through his blonde hair and then rubs the back of his neck before he finally asks, "Will you be my girlfriend?"

I am astonished; I can't believe it.

Luke just asked me out. Luke Hemmings. But I don't have to think about it, I already know the answer.