Safety Net {l.r.h}

37) A Song

ELLIE ABNER

I raked through my damp hair with my fingers, scrunching up the ends to allow my natural waves to pop once it dries. I slipped into a tan sweater and paired it with white jeans and my knock-off Doc Martins. Walking out of my dorm bathroom, I see Luke going through my overflowing stack of CDs decorating my desk. I spare him a quick glance before plopping down in front of my full-body mirror to do my makeup.

"You have really good music taste, you know that?" I blush at the compliment. For some reason, it felt intimate for someone to be invested in things as little as my music. "Which one is your favorite?"

I think for a moment, trying to imagine all the disks I have. "Um, probably the disk that I burnt music onto. It has like Steve Lacy, Mac Demarco, the Neighborhood- Just some vibey artists."

He nods in understanding, watching me through the mirror as I apply moisturizer to my face. I was only planning on light makeup for the day. "Why don't you do your makeup in the bathroom?"

"You know only the baddest of bitches do their makeup on the floor of their rooms, right?" I say to him, knowing how funny it sounded with the rare cuss word leaving my lips.

His laugh filled my ears, "who taught you that?"

"I may or may not have been just scrolling through too many social media sites, but I had nothing to do for the last four days, mind you." I applied concealer to the dark circles under my eyes and blended it in before moving to my mascara.

"Question," Luke suddenly says after a moment of silence. "And you don't necessarily have to answer it, I'm just kind of throwing it out there."

Squinting my eyes with suspicion, I curled my lashes and hummed. "Go on."

"Where did you learn how to, uh- You know what, never mind."

I noticed the way his face reddened from the reflection in the mirror and felt my heart start racing. I knew exactly what he was referring to. "Just say it, probably nothing I haven't heard before."

He sighs, tugging his ringed lip in between his teeth. "Where'd you learn how to give head? I was not expecting that when I got home."

"Guess I'm just full of surprises, huh?" I quip, brushing my lashes with the black substance to make them appear fuller. In reality, I just felt bad that he had pleasured me to completion and certainly didn't walk away without a problem in his pants. Deciding to confess my secret, I chew on the inside of my cheek, "I asked Dayna."

"You asked her?"

"I told you I wanted to return the favor." He laughs, letting his head fall back on his shoulders. I hold back my shy smile and continue with my makeup. "Don't laugh at me, that's rude."

"You're so fucking cute," he announces, falling back in my pile of blankets. I finish my makeup and put everything away before standing up.

"I'm also ready now, so where to?"

"That's for me to know and you to find out in t-minus thirty minutes."

"Thirty?" I ask, wondering what could be thirty minutes away. Instead of answering me, he snags my keys off the desk and takes my hand, pulling me out the door. I let him do so, just following everything he did, so I didn't ruin the surprise for myself.

He had the courtesy of driving us, making sure he took backroads so that I wouldn't know where it was that he was taking me. "It should be coming up here soon," he mumbles, scanning the surroundings with his blue hues.

"Is this the part when you finally kill me and it's like a huge plot twist to our story?"

"What?" He asks, surprised before shaking his head. "No."