The Art Of Love / l.h ✔️

13

~Luke's POV~

I sighed to myself as I grabbed my bags off of my bed on Friday afternoon, knowing my dad needed to bring me to whoever's house it was I was supposed to be staying at. He'd said it was Mr. García, his coworker, but I'd never met any Mr. García so I didn't know what to expect. This wouldn't have been the first time that I stayed with a random person while my mom and dad went on a vacation together, but that still didn't mean I was happy about it. I didn't like staying with strangers.

After I had grabbed all of my bags and packed them into the back of my dads car, he came walking out while mom stayed in the house. She wasn't going to be coming with us to Mr. García's house, wherever it was at.

"Do I have to stay with this guy, dad? It's not like I haven't stayed at home by myself before. I can take care of myself." I said as he unlocked the car for the both of us, letting me get into the passenger's side while he got in the driver's seat. "You're staying, Luke. We're not going to leave you at home by yourself for a month." Dad said, peeling out of the driveway and starting down the road. Feeling a bit frustrated, I sighed deeply and turned away, looking out the window while we drove. I was so lost in my own thoughts as I looked out the window that I didn't even notice we were heading in the direction of Fae's neighborhood, not until I saw her street sign as my dad's car pulled into the neighborhood. Confused, I furrowed my brows and wondered what the hell we were doing on her street. Was it possible that she lived on the same street as Mr. García? Maybe I'd be able to figure out which house was hers, if that was the case.

"Um, does Mr. García live on this street?" I stupidly asked my dad, as if he'd just waste time driving down a street that there was no point driving down. Dad glanced over at me, the car slowly rolling to a stop outside of a big house with light grayish colored bricks and a dark roof. "Yup. This is the place." He answered, nodding his head. I frowned, looking over at him as he unbuckled his seatbelt and then got out of the car. Realizing that this actually was the house I was staying at, I hesitantly got out of the car as well while my dad popped open the trunk so I could get my bags. I grabbed my bags and followed my dad up the short driveway and to the front door, standing silently to the side while he rang the doorbell. We waited for a moment before the door was swung open to reveal a short woman with black hair and brown eyes, a kind smile on her lips as she glanced between my dad and I. I didn't pay any attention to them when the woman began to animatedly talk with my dad, instead taking the time to look up at the light that hung over me on the porch.

"Aleesia!" The woman suddenly yelled out over her shoulder, her loud tone of voice causing me to look over at her with a slight frown. I hadn't expected that from her. She was short and petite, so I hadn't expected her to be so...loud.

At first, I planned on ignoring them again because I assumed that she was just calling her daughter, for whatever the reason may be. However, then I saw that familiar figure enter the room just a moment later and all my attention was immediately on her. My heart picked up the pace as I stared at her, incredibly taken aback. She just acted like this was no big deal, though, and spared me barely any glance whatsoever. The sight of her alone made me suddenly feel much, much better about staying here.

Fae came and stood next to her mom, her black hair still up in the messy bun that she'd had it in since she got on the bus this morning. She was also wearing the same clothes she'd worn to school, too. Well, except for shoes. Her short, curvy figure was clad in a little white skirt that had small blue flowers on it and there was a navy blue cropped tank top that clung to her chest. I noticed, though, that she was no longer wearing the cropped black cardigan that she'd been wearing earlier. Still, she looked beautiful.

"Ally, I want you to show Luke to the room he'll be staying in while he's here." Fae's mom said, my dad's hand pushing me into the house encouragingly. I slipped past the two small girls, my arm brushing Fae's as I did. "And make sure to help him unpack his bags, too." Her mom added when she noticed how many bags I had, looking down at them as I passed. Fae just lightly nodded her head and glanced up at me, sending me a tiny smile before she grabbed my forearm and began to lead me down the hall. Tingles shot through my body at the feel of her fingers on my skin, but I blamed it on the slightly cool air in her house.