The Game || lashton

o n e

all current 5sos looks except Mikey has red hair in this story bc we all love red headed Michael.

3385 words

today was quite possibly the worst day of Luke Hemmings' life.

it started off normal, waking up at the crack of dawn to fetch eggs from the family hen, Greta, so his mother could begin preparing breakfast. everyone in the Hemmings household woke with nervous jitters and a weird feeling in their stomach. today was the undertaking and Luke's name was entered in the most out of both of his siblings.

to say he was nervous would be an understatement. Luke was terrified. he just knew his name was going to be called and his family didn't help the matter.

"Don't worry bud, I'll volunteer for you if your name gets called,"  his eldest brother, Ben, chuckled teasingly as he patted Luke's back. It didn't reassure him like it was supposed to. It seemed like there was nothing he could do to get rid of the queasy feeling he had in his stomach. But Luke finished setting the table without voicing his concerns and instead keeping the thoughts to himself.

they weren't important anyway.

"I laid each of you an outfit on your beds for today, go get dressed when you're finished," That's all Luke could hear before he zoned out as his mother continued talking. He really tried to pay attention to her words, he really did, but Luke's thoughts were jumbled and all over the place. When he grew tired of pushing the food around his plate he trotted into his shared room with a solemn look on his face.

laying on his bed, just as his mother had said, was a baby blue button up and a pair of khakis that had once belonged to Jack and probably Ben before then. although they were hand-me-downs, Luke was pleased with the shirt selection, he thought the color would make his ocean blue eyes pop.

although countless people praised the Hemmings' family for their good looks it was hard for Luke to look in the mirror and be okay with what he saw, his long, curly blonde hair was sticking up in various places and he had dark bags under his eyes. Even the skin on his lips were starting to become raw due to all of the lip biting he does whenever he gets nervous. He was constantly pointing out the things on his body that he would change, he was never confident in himself, despite what everyone else thought of him.

But his mother really saw Luke and all of his beauty. "Oh my precious Luke, you look so handsome!" Liz cooed when she saw Luke all dressed up and ready to go. It goes without saying that Luke was her favorite son, he was the most like her. Ben and Jack just reminded Liz of her late husband and the boys' father, Andrew. She pressed her palm to his cheek and he watched as the tears prickled in the corner of her eyes. "Everything is going to be okay, Lukey. They're not going to choose you," Although it sounded like she was trying to assure herself more so than him, it still meant a lot.

Getting teenage boys dressed, fed, and out of the house without being late was one of Liz's many chores that she had to get done every day. Today of all days being the hardest one because even she wanted to procrastinate long enough so that they didn't have to attend the ceremony. They were scared, all of them nervous for Luke because they knew he had his name put in several times. The odds definitely weren't in his favor.

As Luke and his family made their way through the town he took in all of his surroundings. he noticed how most people were laughing and giggling with their friends and he wondered how all of them managed to be so calm. he also noticed how almost all of the other young boys looked much more fit and prepared than he did. Luke's hand grasped his own flimsy bicep and he sighed, knowing that he didn't stand a chance up against any of them.