DERANGED

Thirty Eight: Keeping Secrets

Lexi's POV

Today I was out and about in the city with Sam, helping her look for a wedding dress. I was really happy for her and Noah, I had a feeling for awhile that he was gonna be the one for her. Now I was in my room packing, since Luke and I are leaving to Sydney tomorrow for a week to visit his family. I remember how nervous I was the first time we went together, and now Australia felt like my second home. My phone rang and I picked it up just after the second ring.

"Hello?" I answered. 

"Hey sweetie," My mom said. "I haven't talked to you in awhile so I thought I'd call. How are you?"

"I'm good, just a little stressed. Luke and I leave tomorrow for Sydney, so I'm packing both our bags. He's still at work." I sighed. 

"Oh that's right! Well, I hope you guys enjoy the trip!" My mom exclaimed. The tone in her voice sounded off, but I couldn't figure it out.

"Thanks... why'd you say it like that though?" I asked. 

"Like what?" She asked. 

"Never mind. I should go, but I'll talk to you soon." I told her, struggling to shove my clothes into the small suitcase with one hand. 

"Alright, I love you! Bye hun." She said before hanging up. I finished packing my suitcase and Luke's bag about an hour later, and it was already nine o'clock. I sat in bed and scrolled through my phone until I heard the front door open. Luke came up the stairs a few minutes later. 

"I'm so sorry, I had to work later than I thought love." He apologized when he walked into our room.

"It's okay. I got us all packed and ready for tomorrow." I smiled. 

"Thank you, you are the best." He said, kissing me on the forehead. He plugged his phone into the charger and tossed it on the bed. "I'm gonna take a shower." He told me, walking into our bathroom and closing the door. I was just looking through Instagram when Luke's phone made a 'ding' sound next to me. I looked over at it curiously, and was shocked at the text message I saw.

Messages                                Now
Aubrey
Don't worry, I promise I won't tell Luke... ;)

My stomach dropped as I stared at the screen. I heard the shower turn off and I put his phone back down on the bed. I tried to be calm but it was hard not to assume the worst. Luke walked out of the bathroom, as I kept my eyes glued to my phone. 

"You okay baby?" He asked, sitting on our bed in just his boxers. 

"Are you cheating on me?" I simply asked, having to bite my tongue to keep from going off on him. 

"What?? Where do you get that idea from?" He asked. His tone was defensive.

"Who the hell is Aubrey? And what secret is she keeping??" I questioned, feeling my eyes start to water. Luke looked at me and sighed.

"Aubrey was my childhood best friend, back home. This was supposed to be a secret until this weekend..." He said, before standing up and walking into our closet, leaving me baffled. 

He returned to our bed, and pulled out a small velvet box from behind his back. It took me a second to realize what he was talking about. He opened it and revealed a gorgeous ring.

"Oh Luke... I'm so sorry, I assumed-" I quietly said, wrapping my arms around him.

"I know what you assumed, I guess it did look like that. I told Aubrey that I was gonna propose to you this weekend, that's what she was talking about. I told her not to ruin the surprise and tell anyone." He explained to me.

"So Lexi... will you marry me?" He asked, letting go of me. 

"Of course. I love you." I smiled, watching as he slid the ring onto my finger. It was simple yet so pretty, more than I could've ever imagined. 

"Now we should get some sleep since we have to be at the airport by five in the morning." Luke yawned, crawling under the sheets. 

"You expect me to just go to sleep after this excitement?" I sighed, admiring the ring.

"Hey it's not my fault you ruined your own surprise, love." He smirked. 

"My bad." I playfully hit him in response to his comment.

THE NEXT DAY

Luke and I walked through the Sydney airport, on our way down to Ground Transportation where his family would be waiting to pick us up. 

"Does your family know already?" I asked Luke, referencing the ring on my left hand. 

"Nope, I didn't tell them. The only others that know are Noah, Grayson, and Jc." He told me.

"Really? I'm honestly surprised those three were able to keep the secret." I laughed. I had told my mom the news this morning, and she didn't know about it even though I was suspicious of her last night, the way she was talking about the trip.

"Luke! Lexi!" I heard, and scanned the crowd of people until my eyes landed on Luke's younger sister. I waved, and once we reached the bottom of the escalator, ran over and greeted her.

"Hey, I missed you!" She hugged me. Olivia is two years younger than Luke, and the same age as me, now twenty-two. When we let go of each other, she noticed the ring.

"Oh my god. Mum, Dad, look!" She excitedly said. "We're gonna be sisters!?" She looked at me wide-eyed.

"Yes." I giggled, as she hugged me again. I greeted Luke's parents after and the five of us headed outside to the parking garage. It was nice to be back. The last time Luke and I were here was for his dad's birthday a few months ago. As we walked, I found myself behind the group with Luke's mom, Liz.

"Welcome to the family honey, I'm so excited for you two." She told me, wrapping an arm around me as we all made our way towards the car. It all felt surreal still, but I knew once we started wedding planning it would sink in. I couldn't wait to tell Sam the news, and to be able to shop for our wedding dresses together...