before the pain | luke (JATP)

IX

When lunchtime came around, Mila walked into the cafeteria. She had never eaten lunch with anyone other than Aera for the last 10 years. So walking into the cafeteria, not only alone but knowing she would be sitting alone as well, made her palms sweaty. She thanked the cafeteria lady as she placed the turkey sandwich on her plate, she grabbed a juice and sat herself down at a table by the window. Mila took a deep breath and looked around the filled cafeteria.

Mila often felt all alone at school, like a small fish in a gigantic sea, she looked at her fellow schoolmates not recognizing any of them, not even the ones she had a class with. Mila bit her lip as she took out her notebook. She began writing a draft for the next chapter, forgetting her lunch as she kept writing.

"What do you want me to do?" Elijah asked her, his heart is filled with sorrow. He could simply not love her, it was impossible. "I just... want you back" Madelyn whispered back in a sorrowful voice, she put her hand to his cheek yet could not feel his touch.

"What are you writing?" Mila's sorrowful scene was interrupted by four boys placing themselves beside her. Luke smiled brightly as he had asked her the question, Mila closed her notebook and looked at all of them. Before placing themselves at her table Reggie had noticed Mila sitting all alone.

"Come on guys... can't we sit beside her today?" Reggie had asked, looking at Mila writing in her notebook, her hair falling gently in her face. Bobby sighed: "Fine.. but if she's weird and we get a bad reputation.. I put it on you" and so they went and sat beside her.

"Nothing," Mila answered Luke's question, this of course made him narrow his eyebrows before letting it go. "Anyway... what class do you have after lunch?" Alex asked, beginning to eat his homemade spaghetti. Mila still confused to why the four boys had chosen to place themselves beside her, answered quietly: "Religion"

"You know I never got religion in school, it's too ... informative" Reggie said, which made the rest of the table laugh gently. "Well, why did you choose Religion as your elective course?" Alex asked, looking at Mila with a soft smile. Mila shrugged, not wanting to answer. Luke sighed before taking a sip of his water. "Aren't you going to eat?" He asked, looking at the untouched sandwich on Mila's plate. Mila had forgotten she still had it and took it, taking a bite from the sandwich.

"So I hear you two are cleaning the basement together?" Bobby suddenly spoke. Luke and Mila looked at each other and then at Bobby. "Yea... why?" Luke asked, lifting one eyebrow confused as to why this information mattered.

"How much do you guys bet those two will fall in love?" Mila choked on her sandwich coughing loudly as she opened her juice taking a sip. Her face turned red as a tomato. Reggie and Alex looked at each other awkwardly, not knowing how to react or what to say while Luke simply laughed it off and shook his head. "I don't think that's going to happen"

"Yeah, don't say stupid stuff like that" Reggie said, biting his lip looking at his lunch, feeling his heartbeat fasten. Reggie was the planet's worst liar and Bobby instantly felt something was wrong with the whole table.

"Is there something I don't know?" He asked, lifting an eyebrow looking at the red-faced girl, who was still trying to calm herself after the first comment.

"No?" She answered quietly, not knowing what he was referring to. Mila looked directly into Alex's eyes, whose heart was beating as fast as a horse. Alex knew no one could know Mila was in love with Oliver. He had felt awkward sitting behind the two love birds, knowing one of them was Mila's last thoughts at night.

"Well, why are you then all being strange?" Bobby looked almost mad, feeling like he hadn't been told a secret, Luke laughed and leaned back in his seat finishing his sandwich. "Because you're asking strange questions" The table went silent before laughing, yet went quiet when Alex.

"Hi Mila" The boys looked at Aera with a confused look, they of course always thought Mila was a lonely quiet girl, so this sudden girl knowing her name was something they did not expect. Mila began feeling bad, she had never had lunch with anyone other than Aera, and seeing her with her plate, made Mila's stomach turn. "Excuse me" Mila whispered, taking her juice and throwing away her plate before leaving the cafeteria.

Mila walked to her locker taking out her book, trying to forget Aera's almost broken eyes, seeing her best friend break tradition since kindergarten. She closed her locker, before getting a shock seeing Oliver having an awkward smile looking at her. "Gosh, you scared me" Mila sighed out, holding her book close to her chest.

"You haven't told Aera what happened Saturday right?" Oliver asked, his eyes almost begging which made Mila uncomfortable, the flash of him jumping Bobby was a sight she wouldn't forget soon. She slowly shook her head.

"Well... could you not tell her? I don't think she should" Oliver asked her, which made Mila feel weird, normally when Oliver spoke to her, her knees would go weak and her heart would skip an extra beat.

"Sure... can I ask why?" She asked quietly, Oliver bit his lip looking around sighing, before leaning close to her ear, there it came, the heartbeat, the weak knees, and the memory of his lips against hers. He smelled like honey, which didn't help Mila's being frozen.

"I just... think it should be our little secret, no need to make her worried" He whispered into her ear, which gave her shivers down her spine, he moved back smiling gently to her, a small blush formed on her cheeks. "Okay" She answered him, before hurrying to Religion before he could do or say anything else.

Mila placed herself in her seat taking a deep breath as she opened her book, she tried calming her heart down reading about catholicism, not that it helped, her knees were like butter and her head kept spinning, thinking about the smell of honey and his smile.

"Miss Garcia, you're here early?" Mr. Abello said, noticing his student as he walked into his classroom. Mila looked up from the book and calmed down seeing Mr. Abello, she smiled gently. "Are you finding the subject interesting?" Mr. Abello asked, looking at the book she was reading, being the religion book. He placed his bag at the floor beside the desk before placing himself in his chair.

"Have you thought about what we talked about last class?" Mr. Abello asked, Mila bit her lip nodding slowly, yet liking the answer she was going to give him. "Well... you said you trusted him, but have a hard time believing in him, why is that?" Mr. Abello asked, looking into her brown eyes.

"I.. do believe in him sir, but... how can you believe there is someone who is supposedly good but does horrible things to his sons and daughters?" Mila asked, closing her book slowly as she spoke. "I want to trust him and I do. I want to think that everything he does, he does for a reason, yet horrible things happen every single day to mankind and he does nothing... he leaves us to our own sad life" Mr. Abello nodded slowly as he listened, he leaned forward upon his desk.

"Do you think mankind did this to themselves, Miss Garcia?" Mr. Abello asked Mila looked down on her desk, not knowing what to answer as she began thinking. " That your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God." Mr. Abello quoteth with a gentle smile. Mila looked at him before taking a deep breath, she looked down on the floor which made her notice a piece of paper in her school bag, she slowly leaned down taking the paper and reading it. She smiled to herself slowly before writing an answer to the note which Reggie would never read.

Do you think there is a reason for everything?

Why do you ask?

I just find it kinda odd. You and I have never talked before, then we are writing notes in the middle of English class, you then befriend Alex, who is one of my best friends. You then go to a party, which I have never seen you do before. At the party you yell at the boy you are in love with, continue to even help me, and Sunday you meet Luke. It's like destiny wanting you to become our friend, don't you think? I think there is a reason for you to be in my life and I can't wait to find out why.

God always has a reason