𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄 𝐒𝐇𝐄 𝐆𝐎𝐄𝐒 • Luke Dunphy

xviii . a girl

Tiana couldn't tell anyone she liked Luke. Sure, she had friends that weren't related to Luke, but she wasn't close enough with any of them to open up like that. She couldn't tell Manny, Haley or Alex in case they told Luke. She was on her own with this one.

Maybe it would blow over. After all, it wasn't like she was in love with him or anything. Not yet, anyway. It was just a small crush. It'd probably go away when a new boy came into her life. But would a new boy come into her life? What if Luke was that new boy?

"You seem pretty deep in thought, for once," Alex insulted, "What's up?"

"Me?" Tiana asked.

"You're the only other person in the kitchen."

"Oh. I'm fine, I just zoned out."

"Tia, I know what you look like when you zone out, you're doing it all the time."

"No, I don't. I really don't appreciate the interrogation. I'm going to- Wait, where's Luke?"

"His bedroom."

"I'm going to Luke's bedroom."

Tiana walked upstairs and knocked on Luke's door. "Come in," he said from inside.

"Hey," Tiana said, stepping into the bedroom.

"Hey," Luke answered, seeming upset.

Tiana lay next to him on his bed. "What's up with you?"

"I'm just thinking."

"Luke. There's more."

"Fine. There's this girl."

Tiana tried her best to mask her disappointment by sounding excited. "Oh my God! Who?"

"I can't say."

"Wait, so why are you upset about it? I thought you loved girls."

"I do. This one's different, though. I don't think she'd ever like me back. There are so many guys out there who'd be great for her, not that she's ever dated a good guy, they all suck. I just don't think I'm her best option."

"Luke, if she doesn't see you as the best option, she's stupid, okay?" Tiana moved over slightly to hug Luke, and he hugged back.

"Do you think we'd still be able to do this when we start dating other people?"

"Depends how much the people we date suck."

Luke laughed as Tiana rested her head on his chest, and eventually drifted off into a sleep. She mustn't have slept well last night. It was her first night back at her own house after a few days with the Dunphy's.

Luke had noticed a small bruise on her cheekbone. Tiana was wearing foundation, meaning the bruise was probably bigger than it appeared. He didn't say anything, but she knew he'd noticed. She'd asked hin to stop bringing up her bruises. He knew who made them, and he knew there was probably never a valid reason for them, and talking about it just upset Tiana, so they'd eventually stopped. He knew they were there, and he was ready for a conversation about them, but he never initiated them anymore.

He rubbed his thumb over the bruise. There was nothing Luke hated more than Tiana's parents, specifically her father. She never did anything to them, but they'd still find excuses to hurt her. He loved that she was always at his house, but when he thought about it too long, thought about the real reason she never wanted to go home, he just got angry.

Maybe one day she'd get out of it. Considering what happened to her, she turned out good, great, even. That's why he liked her so much, because she was strong.

sorry for the short chapter! i was gonna put thanksgiving in this one, but then the chapter would get too long (or i'd have to break thanksgiving into 2 parts), so i'm giving it it's own chapter