𝖯𝖱𝖮𝖬𝖨𝖲𝖤-𝙻𝚄𝙺𝙴 𝙿𝙰𝚃𝚃𝙾𝙽

09

"May I help you?"

Skyler stood in front of, who she assumed to be, Luke's dad. She came over because he called her saying he wanted to go over a few songs.

"Um, yes. I'm here to see Luke." Skyler smiled. "We're friends and in a band together."

"Oh, you're part of his band as well?" Mitch asks, smiling.

"Yes, sir," Skyler said.

"Please, come in." Skyler walked in and looked around. "I love your house. It's so cozy." Skyler complemented.

"Thank you." Mitch smiled. "I'll get Luke for you." Mitch walked down the hall and came back a minute later with Luke in tow, pen behind his ear and songbook in his hand.

"Hey, Sky." Luke smiled.

"Hey, Luke." Skyler greeted.

"Let's head to the backyard," Luke said, walking to the sliding door. Skyler followed behind him.

"Hold it, mister." Luke froze which caused Skyler to stop walking. "Aren't you going to introduce me to your friend?" The two turned to, who Skyler guessed as, Luke's mom.

Luke chuckled. "Skyler, this is my mom. Mom, this is Skyler. She's in my band."

"It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Patterson." Skyler smiled.

"Ooh, so you're Skyler." Emily walked over to the girl, taking in her appearance. "You know, Luke talks about you all the time."

"Mom," Luke mumbles in embarrassment.

"He was right, you're very beautiful," Emily smirked. That made Skyler's eyes widen and cheeks feel hot.

"Mom!" Luke laughed nervously, pink tinting his cheeks. He lightly grabbed her shoulders, slightly pulling her back. "Skyler and I are going to the backyard to write some songs."

"Okay." Emily smiled, going back into the kitchen.

The two went outside and sat on the grass. "Sorry about my mom. She gets like that sometimes." Luke chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck.

"It's fine. She seems sweet." Skyler smiles. She then smirked at him. "So, you told her you think I'm beautiful?"

Luke looked down at the ground and chuckled. "Um... yeah. Is-is that weird?"

"No, no." Skyler chuckled, cheeks feeling hot. "It's not weird." The two stayed silent just staring at each other.

She never took the time to do so, but Skyler decided to take in Luke's features. The way his shaggy, brown hair was just messy enough to look cute, how his eyes looked hazel in the sun but ocean blue in the shade, and his all too familiar muscle tee's that put his nice muscles on display.

Before the girl could get any more distracted by the boy, Skyler cleared her throat. "Um, so what songs did you want to show me."

"Right!" Luke said, snapping out of his own daze. "Right." He grabbed his book, flipping to a marked page. "I call this one 'Long Road'" He handed the book to her.

Skyler squinted her eyes. "Man, what is this? Chicken scratch?" She joked.

"Hardy har-har." Luke rolled his eyes. "My handwriting isn't that bad."

"Keep telling yourself that, bub," Skyler smirked, the two of them breaking out into laughs.

_ _ _ _

"Come on, you two! I made lunch!"

Luke and Skyler had been sitting outside working on songs for about an hour now. The two headed inside, sitting down at the table.

Emily handed both of them a plate. "Thanks, Mom." Luke smiled. She smiled and nodded.

Emily sat across from the two as they ate. "So, Skyler." The girl looked up to Emily. "Have you given any thought to where you want to go to college?"

Skyler noticed Luke's slight flinch. "Um, kind of. Not a lot though."

"Oh. Well, how's school going for you? I hope you're keeping track of it, even with this band of yours."

"Mom," Luke said, looking to his mom slightly glaring. "Can we not do this?"

"What, Luke?" His mom shrugged. "I'm just asking her a question."

Skyler looked between the son and mother. "I-i'm doing fine in school. My mom already makes sure I do well in my classes if she plans to let me be in a band."

"That's good." Emily smiled. "Maybe you can help Luke keep his grades in check."

"My grades are fine, Mom," Luke said.

"I know. I'm just giving a suggestion." Emily said, looking at his son. "I just want to make sure you two have some backbone to this. Music isn't everything, you know. You have to have a backup plan."

"What if I don't need a backup plan?" Luke asks, glaring down at his plate.

"That's ridiculous," Emily says. "Everyone needs a backup plan."

"What if they know they don't need one." Luke glared up at his mom.

"It's still good to have one, even if they're "sure" they don't need one." His mother huffed.

Skyler felt like she was in the middle of something she wasn't supposed to. "Um, you know what, it's about time I head home," Skyler said, standing up from the table. "My mom wanted me to help her make dinner."

"Oh, well it was nice meeting you, dear." Emily smiled.

"And it was nice meeting you, too, Mrs. Patterson." Skyler smiled. "Luke, can you walk me home?"

Luke looked up at her and nodded. "Sure."

_ _ _ _

"I'm sorry you had to sit through that."

Skyler sighed. "It's fine. Do you mind me asking what that was, exactly?"

Luke shook his head. "Um... my parents and I don't really see eye-to-eye on my music plans. They think it's just a hobby and I'm gonna grow out of this. They're wrong. I wanna play for large crowds, get a record deal, make a living out of my passion."

Skyler nodded, feeling the same way as Luke.

"My parents want me to think about things from a more "realistic" standpoint. They want me to focus on colleges and my future." Luke jumped up on the curb. "But I know that music is my future. I can feel it in my gut. You know what I'm saying?"

Skyler smiled, loving how much Luke was so passionate about his music. "I know exactly what you're saying. We are going to play at The Orpheum one day and we are going to be stars." Skyler held out her pinky for the boy.

Luke chuckled and smiled at the girl, holding out his pinky. "Promise?"

Skyler smiled, wrapping her pinky around his.

"Promise."