20. first kiss.

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"Jesus, Hemmings." Michael Clifford says, looking at my neck with an expression of distaste on his face. I blush, bowing my head down. "I thought you said you had a date for the night, not fucking dinner."

I want to ask him what he means, but that would require me opening my mouth. And after the events that ensued only thirty seconds before he came in through the front door and almost walked in on Luke with his hand down my shorts, I don't really think I can handle speaking to him right now.

Hey. At least you got to come.

"It's not that bad," Luke rolls his eyes, trailing off into the kitchen. He holds me by the waist on the way there, and Michael walks behind us.

"The fuck you mean, it's not that bad? The girl's got so many marks on her neck, you might as well call her Bella from Twilight." he says.

I'd laugh, but I'm much too scarred from earlier on's close call to do so.

"Cut it out, will you? What are you even doing here?" Luke grumbles. He leans against the counter, hands on the marble much like mine were earlier on. "Don't you have a place of your own?"

"Just because we don't live together doesn't mean I don't like pissing you off from time to time. It's fun," Michael says. He looks at me. "Sorry, I don't think I got to properly introduce myself," yeah. You were too busy shaming the hickeys on my neck. "I'm Mi-"

"Michael Clifford," I finish for him, my inner fangirl slipping out as I take his hand and shake it. "I, uh- we met before. At the diner."

"Oh! Oh, right," he nods quickly, the grin on his face. "Yeah, no, I remember now. You were that girl who told us her name was Ellie,"

"Ellie?" Luke repeats.

"Long story," I mouthe.

"But anyway," Michael says, clapping his hands together. "I should probably get going, if you guys have some date stuff you want to get back to. I'm sorry for intruding,"

"Yeah, why did you?" Luke sighs. He seems much more annoyed about it than I do.

"I wanted to drop by and see why the hell you weren't answering your phone. I was worried. You're always on that thing," Michael says.

"Wonder why." I pipe up. Luke's smirk makes a small appearance.

Michael just exchanges an unsure look between the both of us, eyebrow raised in a skeptical way. He looks a lot like Ashley does when she doesn't believe whatever bullshit I've decided to tell her- but maybe that's just me being a good best friend and internally shipping her with the one person she wants to be loved by the most.

"Alright, then I'm leaving," Michael says. "It was nice meeting you again, Sophie. And Luke, for Unpredictable's sake, pay attention to your damn phone."

"Yeah, yeah." Luke grumbles, following him back down the stairs and to the front door.

It's safe to say that whatever 'mood' we created is gone now, but I don't worry too much, for it'll definitely be back. I pray. I hope.

Later on in the day, Luke gives me a lift back to my house, and I'm genuinely not surprised to see that the lights are still on inside. Meaning, Chase and Dylan are home. Or in my home, which is practically the same thing to them.

"Thank you. For last night," I say, just before I get out of the car. Then I blush slightly. "And for this morning."

"It's alright. Thank you for coming along," Luke says, before pausing and biting his bottom lip. "Literally."

I look down at my fingers as I hear him chuckle, causing me to do the same. It isn't awkward in the air around us, which I'm thankful for.

"I should get going," I say, opening the car door. "Again, thank you." I swivel the rose he'd given me the day prior in my hand, shoulders relaxing at the faint scent.

"Wait!" Luke says, shooting a hand out to hold my own. I look back at him. "When can I see you again?"

"You've got my number," I say with a smile. "And my Instagram."

"Does that give me permission to throw rocks at your window at night to get you to come out?"

"Did you just reference your own song?"

"So what if I did?"

"Then well done, and no. You'd break it," I say truthfully, and he laughs. "But I'll call you,"

"Is that a promise?"

"Yes,"

"What if you break it?"

"What, my own window?"

"No. Your promise,"

Then you bend me over your lap and spank me until I can't walk anymore. "I won't," I state strongly.

"Well, alright then," Luke says, but he hasn't loosened his grip on me in the slightest. I look back at him, raising an eyebrow.

He smirks. "What? You're just going to leave without giving me a goodbye kiss?"

Rolling my eyes, I lean forward, lips pouted ever so slightly as I reach for Luke's cheek. He doesn't quite let me, however, for he turns his face to the side last minute and I end up pecking his lips.

Eyes wide, I pull away, and he just chuckles. Then he loosens his grip on me, the burning sensation of his mouth still on mine.

This would be a much bigger deal if he hadn't fingerfucked you just this morning, you know.

"I'll see you later, baby." Luke says, sending a wink my way.

I just nod, slightly speechless as I unlock his car door and step out. When I look back, I'm flashed with one last smile, before his car starts down the neighbourhood and turns the corner.

As it disappears, the feelings start to come; every one stronger than the last. I contemplate just standing there and squealing my head off.

Luke Hemmings just kissed me. The first thing that goes through my head is how Ashley would probably disown me for not telling her as it was happening.

I lay a finger on my lips, unable to lift the giddy feeling from my shoulders.

I'm shaking in the best way possible, and I still end up a shaking mess the second I walk through the front door.

"Chase?" I call up the stairs. "Dyl-"

"Where. Have. You. Been?" I'm stopped by them both as they lean against the doorway to the kitchen, faces stern.

Chase has his eyebrows raised, lips pouted in a 'tut', and Dylan's arms are crossed; his own eyebrows furrowed. I raise mine.

"You guys okay?" I ask them, slowly taking my shoes off.

"Where the hell have you been?" Chase questions, looking more authorititive than when I left.

I roll my eyes as they flicker their gazes between me and the front door, as if expecting Luke to walk in any minute now.

"You can relax, okay? He drove off," I say, shrugging my coat off. When they don't move, I sigh. "He's gone."

The second I do so, both guys drop their firm front entirely, and they let out a loud squeal before walking towards me.

"Baby!" Dylan yells, practically running up and tackling me in a bear hug. "How was it?!"

"Babygirl, you better not start until I get back," Chase warns me, and we watch as he disappears into the kitchen.

I hear the distinct sound of the kettle being turned on, and my cheeks flare at the usage of the petname I'd heard from Luke just a few hours ago. "Chocolate or coffee?" Chase yells.

"Chocolate," both Dylan and I shout.

Once he gets back, he places the three mugs on the coffee table, and Dylan fluffs the pillows- undeniably more excited than I am.

We end up having a three-way cuddling session on the couch, and I have flashbacks to my first day of Middle School when we did this exact same thing.

"Okay, so Sophie," Chase says, as giddy as I was earlier on. "Everything. We want to hear it,"

"We do. We've been waiting for you to come back since six this morning," Dylan notes. "Chase wouldn't go back to sleep, the idiot."

"Well excuse me for wanting to make sure our daughter gets home safe, and at the right time," Chase raises an eyebrow. "See, this is why I'm getting full custody of the kids when your ass gets sent to court."

"The kids? We have one," Dylan points out, pointing in my direction as a result.

I'm half tempted to remind him that even so, I'm not their child, but I fear that they've already gotten so far into this that trying to pull them back would be of zero use.

So I keep my lips shut, waiting patiently for them to stop bickering to tell my story.

And although it's slightly annoying, I kind of like it; they may not be my parents, but at the end of the day, they act like it. Or whatever's close to it. I'll take what I can get.

"Okay, okay, back to the important situation at hand," Chase says, sitting up straighter and sipping his hot chocolate. He faces me. "How was it, Soph?"

I tell them everything. Okay, not everything, because there's still a weird sense of authority lingering in the air and I'm not about to discuss how Luke used his fingers on me in the middle of his living room, but I tell them everything else.

And they listen; eyes widening, the occasional squeal falling from their lips because this is the first time I've ever shown any interest in a guy that they know, much less a guy that I know.

I'd ask them if they're proud of me, but that's parental territory, and I'm not really sure when we have yet to cross that line.

When I get upstairs, I place the new rose into the glass vase. They look good, and they make my room smell wonderful. They also remind me of Luke everytime I turn to the windowsill, so that's a bonus.

I log onto my laptop, as well as scrolling through whatever social media I have on my phone before quickly locking it again. People are starting to pay more attention to me, and although most of the comments are more positive than negative, it's still putting me in a spotlight that I do not want.

I sigh, allowing the FaceTime call to ring a few several times. Luke doesn't pick up. I end it, trying again with bigger hopes.

It takes four missed calls for him to answer, and even then, the entirety of his screen is black. I furrow my eyebrows, tilting my head to the side.

"Luke?" I say, adjusting my laptop's volume settings just in case I can't hear him. "Are you o-"

"S-Sophie," he stammers, and I hear a shift, though the screen's still black. "You- uh- y-you kinda caught me at a bad time,"

"I did?"

"Y-Yeah," he stutters, and his chuckle sounds pained. "I mean- you didn't really, I mean- like, it's not your fault, because you wouldn't have known-"

"What's going on?" I ask him, oblivious as he moves his hand away from the camera.

When I see his messy hair, shirtless torso and glazed eyes, I'm convinced I just woke him up from a power nap.

But then I look past Luke, at the bottle of lotion that he probably didn't mean for me to see on his nightstand, at the way he's got the camera positioned at an oddly unrevealing angle, at how he's got only one hand on his phone, and realization starts to sink in much later than I would have liked.

"O-Oh," I stutter, looking down at the keys on my laptop. My face is a bright red as he swallows, chuckling nervously yet again.

"Yeah," Luke says, voice still a little raspy from what I just interrupted him from doing.

"I-I'm sorry," is all I'm able to tell him, about to end the video chat. "I'll- uh- wow, I'm really sorry. I'll leave you. You know, to it." I say, each uncertain word covered in awkward.

Luke looks like he's about to say something, for his lips part and he begins to sit up, but I end the FaceTime call before he can.

Groaning loudly, I shut my laptop, setting it on the floor before collapsing back onto the bed. I then proceed to stare blankly up at the ceiling, my mind a complete haze.

I think I just caught Luke Hemmings in the middle of jacking off. And I don't know whether I should be embarrassed, or whether I should find the situation funny- but a small, unplanned smile stretches across my lips nevertheless.

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