accidental | l.r.h

iii

When I meet Alexis back on the sidewalk, we were both in complete shock. We covered our mouth in our hands and stood there for a minute, not quite sure how to move our legs.

I decide to break the silence.

"Welp, you have to ask Calum now." I say, trying to brush off what had just happened.

Her face blushes into a shade of red as she remembers. She groans as she looks around as if he's here.

"I don't know if I-"

"Lex, really? If I can ask a criminal to the dance, then you can ask your life long crush. I did this for you! You'll thank me later when you are living your happily ever after." I confront her.

By look on her face, I can tell that she knows that I'm right but she doesn't want to admit it. She nods knowingly.

"I know were he is." She declares.

"Do you really?" I laugh, honestly not surprised.

"Yeeeeeah..." She laughs slightly.

"You are a little creep. Where is he?"

"On Mondays he goes to weight lifting. I've maybe... possibly.. probably have stopped by to take a peek." She admits with a blush.

I mentally face palm at that remark. "Quite frankly, I'm not surprised. What time does he leave?"

"5:30... Will you come with me?"

I look at the time to see that it's 4:00.

"We have one hour and a half. You go home and you can change and eat if you want to and we'll meet back here at 5:20."

"Okay."

After I walk her to her house, I go ahead home. I decide to take the long way home, a different route, since I have nothing to rush for. I've only gone this way once. It's through the woods.

I've always loved the woods. The smell of the nature and the sound of the birds. The wind rustling the trees. It's relaxing, and it calms me. I'm still terrified for the girls choice dance. I don't want to seem weak. And I don't want to back down because I'm doing this for Alexis. It'll all be over with soon anyway.

As I quietly step through the woods, I feel someone else's presence. I'm not in the woods alone right now.

I begin to walk a little faster when suddenly I trip over a log and land on my face. I look up to see, the one and only, Luke.

At first I couldn't breath, I was too shocked. I sat up and wiped the dirt off the palm of my hands.

He reaches out his hand and I stare at it, too scared to take it. But as I begin to realize I may look like a complete idiot, I grab it. He firmly grips my hand and swiftly helps me up as if I weigh nothing.

"What's a kitten doing out here with all the lions?" He asks in a deep voice as soon as I am steady. I try to find my voice to reply, but I can't. I look up to see those blue eyes again. They seem hard and emotionless and hard to read.

"I- I am walking h-home." I say quietly.

"I'll walk with you. It's not safe here." He demands. I'm confused to why he says it's dangerous, but I'm too nervous to question him. I don't have the guts to object, and I shouldn't anyway. After all, he is my date now.

I stand stationary for a moment, wondering when he is going to kill me. Finally, I nod and turn to where I was going.

He follows silently beside me, his hands in his hoodie pockets. I feel awkward, wishing I could get away. How will I deal with dancing with him? I begin to wonder why he's out here.

His knuckles are bloody when I see him take his hands from his pockets, causing me to pick up my pace. At times he would get close to me, making me tremble as I walk, but I felt safe at the same time. I knew I shouldn't feel safe around him, anyone but him.

"May I ask why?" He says when we are almost to my house, breaking the silence.

I look up at him, confused as we walk.

"Why what?" I ask quietly.

He stops dead in his tracks, causing me to stop and look back at him. A hard look on his face. "Why did you ask me to the dance?"

I don't know how to respond. I feel like he's luring me into some kind of trap. I've made a mistake. Maybe I shouldn't have made that bet with Alexis..

"I- I don't know," I think of a good response, "I guess I wanted to give you a chance." I say smoothly.

His eyes start to soften from the hard piercing look he wears all of the time. I feel a flutter in my heart when I see a less hateful look on his structured face.

He doesn't respond. He was taken aback.

"I just wasn't expecting anyone to talk to me, let alone ask me to the dance." He admits and steps closer to me.

I immediately feel horrible. He doesn't seem at all like he's going to harm me. Unless, he's using his charm and remarkable looks to make me gullible for his trap. Or maybe not. I don't know anything about him for sure, maybe I can be a bit more optimistic about it.

I smile a weak smile, unable to do anything. I hope he can't hear my heart pounding like a drum in my chest.

"Let's get you home, lovely." He declares and starts walking.

When I reach home, I'm dazed to the core. He walks me to my door and opens it for me. He says, "see you soon." and then leaves, leaving me breathless one again. At my doorstep.

I stumble to my room and close the door behind me, sliding down to the floor. He called me lovely. Luke Hemmings... Called me lovely. Of all the vain names I've called him behind his back in the past... he calls me lovely.

The memory of his eyes softening when I spoke to him replays in my mind. A smile starts to form on my face and I begin to believe that he is much more than the stories that have been told about him.

His eyes have stories behind them, his voice has secrets beneath it, and his mind has thoughts hidden inside him. And maybe, just maybe, I can be the one who unravels them all.