𝙏𝙀𝙈𝙋𝙏𝘼𝙏𝙄𝙊𝙉 • 𝙇𝙍𝙃

20. better start stripping

luke was a fucking mess last night. his eyes were red and puffy when he woke up the following morning — alone on the bathroom floor of his girlfriend's apartment. he tried not to dwell on the fact that this was the second morning he had fallen asleep with emma and had woken up to find that she wasn't there.

after going home to take a quick shower and change into something more comfortable— making sure to throw a few necessities into the back of his car — he was back on the road. luke was determined to make today a good day, he so badly needed a good day for once.

he dialed the familiar number that he had grown so accustomed to, waiting impatiently for her to pick up. he drummed his fingers against the side of his car, it was hot at hell outside and luke had his windows down and his music up—a pair of sunglasses lazily resting on the top of his slightly damp hair.

"hey luke — what's up?" her voice chimed through his car, and he felt his dimples showing as he heard her voice. "hey, are you doing anything today?"

he hoped she wasn't busy, especially since he was already driving to her apartment. "hanging out with you, i'm assuming?"

"well, if you're offering," luke joked, letting a small laugh slip out " i'll be there in ten minutes" luke hung up before she could respond, already knowing she was going to yell at him for giving her no time to get ready.

he pulled into the apartment complex and was just about to walk up to the girl's apartment when he noticed she was already walking down the steps. she was running her fingers through her hair — clearly rushing to greet luke so he wouldn't feel obligated to meet her half way.

he climbed out of his car and pulled the girl into a short hug. "hi, what are we doing today?" her voice was quiet and slightly groggy, and luke hoped he hadn't woken her up with his phone call.

"it's a surprise" he smiled, opening the door for her and slamming it shut once she was safely inside. luke had been wanting to do this for a while, and she was just the girl he wanted to do it with. it matched their dynamic perfectly, and he hoped she wouldn't be too nervous.

"are you feeling any better, you know, after last night?" she nervously chewed on her bottom lip. she wanted to make sure he was okay while not pushing any boundaries – just because he had wanted to talk to her during his drunken mental break down didn't mean he wanted to talk about it now.

"yeah—thank you for being there for me last night, emma. I really appreciate it" he flashed her a genuine smile, figuring he owed her that much after leaving tear stains all over her shirt the night before.

emma just nodded, letting the wind tangle the hair she had been so desperately trying to fix.

"oh my gosh, I love this song" emma gushed and leaned forward in her seat to turn the radio up. luke was the type of boy who didn't like people touching his radio — but he didn't mind when she did it.

"what song is it?" luke asked, sneaking side glances at emma who was singing off beat to the song—he couldn't help but laugh at how bad of a singer she was. "falling, my favorite song" she shouted over the music, attempting to dance around in her seat.

luke waited until the song was over to turn the radio back down. "why is that your favorite song? it's so sad"

"it doesn't have to be. associate it with something good and it will take on a whole new meaning" emma rested her hands on the window, aimlessly looking at the blur of the green and brown trees as they passed by. she had never been to this side of town before, and she had no idea where luke was taking her.

"I guess i'll associate it with you, then"

"careful, hemmings. you associate it with me and i'll be the only thing you think about whenever you hear it" she warned, a small smile breaking onto her face.