Starry Eyed / l.h ✔️

22*

~Elysia's POV~

Luke and I began to eat the food that he'd brought for us, starting out with the turkey sandwiches that he'd made. Although I usually didn't care much about sandwiches, these ones tasted pretty good for a sandwich. "So..." He hummed as he finished off his sandwich, having eaten his much faster than I did. "You ready to share what had you so upset earlier?" He asked, curious. I sighed. "I told mom that you're an atheist and she...forbid me from seeing you anymore." I explained, frowning. He froze. "What? Why?" He asked, appalled. "Mom's very religious." I said simply, because that really was what it came down to.

A small silence passed, laced with surprise. "You're serious? Just because I don't believe in god?" He asked, his voice showing just how upset he was. I sent him an apologetic look. "I'm sorry, Luke. I wish she wasn't like that, but I can't do anything. Besides, it's not like I'm actually going to abide by that rule." I said, snorting as I shook my head.

"No?" He asked, raising a brow at me as he ate one of the cheese and crackers he'd brought. I giggled and shook my head, causing a smile to grace his face. "I'm just stuck with you, huh?" He teased, a happy gleam in his eye. "Looks like it." I smiled, continuing to eat my sandwich. However, my mind kept wandering back to one thing because of our previous conversation: him being an atheist. I didn't mind it, obviously, but I was a little curious about it.

"Can I ask why you don't believe?" I asked him, finishing off the last of my sandwich as I eyed him.

He glanced up at me and raised a brow. "Why would I? I feel like everyone paints him as some grand, amazing figure for everyone to look up to. But if he's so amazing, why does he let innocent men, women and children be raped and sexually assaulted? Why does he let little kids be murdered? Why let these things happen, if he's so great and powerful?" He asked, not sounding mad but rather genuinely curious. It was as if he wanted to know why I could find it in me to believe when things like that happen, and worse, in the world. Truthfully, I understood the argument. We wonder how great god can be if he created us and then also can destroy us like that. For a while, I had admittedly wondered the same thing.

"That isn't God's fault." I said. "It's ours."

He went silent and just stared at me. "Ours?" He repeated after a moment, confused. I smiled a little. "Ours. Just because God creates us doesn't mean he is the one who determines what we do. We are our own people. What we do, as humans, is not on him or on anyone else. The only ones who "let" these things happen are the ones doing it themselves." I stated, watching as a smile grew on his lips, just the slightest bit. "I've never met someone so confident in themselves and their beliefs and feelings." He said after a moment, eyeing me with a somewhat starstruck look in his eyes. "I lo-" He began, but then he suddenly froze, his eyes widening just a little as his cheeks blushed. My brows furrowed in confusion. "Are you okay?" I asked, worried about his sudden mood change.

"Yes. Sorry, I just...thought I saw something." He said hesitantly, but I knew that wasn't possible. It was so dark he couldn't even see past me. I knew because I couldn't see past him, either. The lantern only lit up so much, after all. Still, I didn't press on it.

"Oh." I said, looking down at my fingers. "Okay." I responded simply. There was a brief silence that passed between the two of us, but he broke it first. "You should try the chocolate strawberries." He suggested casually, causing me to smile. Per his request, I grabbed one of the strawberries and took a bite, the sweet taste of the chocolate and the strawberry hitting my tongue. I hummed in appreciation at the taste, feeling a bit of the strawberry juice dripping down my hand. "These are good." I said, eating the rest of it in one go. He gave me a little grin, like those simple words had made his day a thousand times better. "You've got a little something there." He mentioned in amusement, gesturing to my mouth. I dumbly just wiped wherever, unsure where it was. "Did I get it?" I asked, curious. He glanced down and smiled a little wider. "No." He said, chuckling softly.