Cigarettes

Chapter 33

They say that sharing your problems with someone takes half of them off your back.

And that's true, even though Layla doesn't see them as her problems, it's nice to know she understands why I am the way that I am today. And what's better, she accepts me for it.

I never thought someone could even tolerate me again ever since I'd become the way I am. I was a pain in the ass. A dickhead with a bad mouth. A nice face with a black soul.

But my soul wasn't black because I was a bad person, or at least I thought I wasn't. It was black because the sadness I had felt was so heavy that there wasn't any light on the face of the earth that could enlighten it.

Until...

Luke's POV

"Whose turn is it?" Ashton asked loudly, making me peek at him from my spot on the floor. I took a sip of my drink and leaned back on the bottom of the couch, not making an effort to answer him. Someone else was going to do it anyway.

"I've got a question for Michael." Calum stuttered on his words drunkly, making Lay chuckle. My eyes snapped towards her as soon as I heard the chiming sound and my concentration went completely to the wrinkles by her eyes.

She looked at Calum and then at Michael who started talking about something, noticing me next to him. She peeked at my face and when she noticed I was looking at her, she blushed and looked away.

I wanted to hold her cheeks. I didn't.

I heard everyone distantly laughing at something and Lay's laugh filled my ears again, a smile instantly spreading across my face.

"Luke!" Calum's voice snapped me back to the game as I raised my eyebrows.

"Yeah! I'm listening. What?" I looked around the room at all the people staring at me with smiles on their faces. "I'm not drunk." I defended myself, thinking they're laughing at my drunken state.

"No, just head over heels." Michael mumbled quietly and I glared at him, not really being able to keep an angry expression.

"I have a question for you." Layla grinned excitedly and I instantly adjusted in my spot, sitting up and propping my elbows on my legs with a cup of alcohol still in my hand.

"Go." I smiled arrogantly and wanted to dump that drink right on top of my own head.

"What is your biggest love?" Lay asked and put her golden blonde hair behind her back.

My smile faded in a matter of a second as the only thing I could see in front of my eyes was a face. A girl with wrinkles by her eyes, smiling, her hazel brown eyes sparkling as she fixed her blonde hair. But it was the wrong face, it was the face I didn't want to see in front of my eyes anymore. It was the face I didn't want to forget either, just let it rest in my memory.

I blinked, wanting to make the picture go away.

Then the familiar face appeared, similar to the first one. I heard her chiming laugh that I had saved in my memory, the laugh that's been making me smile often lately. Her eyes had a sparkle and her nose scrunched when she would be overly excited and happy about something.

I wanted to say something but Lay outran me.

"No, I mean, things that you love to do. What do you love to do?" Lay stuttered quickly, widening her eyes as if she knew what had happened in my mind.

An inappropriate sentence popped in my mind as both of the pictures disappeared.

"I'd like to do you." I said quietly and a smirk appeared on my lips. Lay's eyes widened completely as she stared at me for a couple of seconds, everyone else in the room going 'ooo' and laughing. Lay then leaned towards me so she could slap my arm.