The Bet || l.h.

- 4 -

"Where have you been?" Natalie says when I walk back into the kitchen, glancing over my shoulder anxiously like I'm expecting one of them to follow me. Nat's sitting on the counter, shooting sharp looks at the couple that's still getting it on in the corner.

My head is still spinning. I need something to drink so I can figure out what just happened. "Well, I met this boy named Calum and he introduced me to his fuck boy friends and they tried to hook up with me," I say slowly, moving over to the stack of cups.

Natalie nearly chokes on her water. "Girl, shut up. No way. Calum Hood?"

I shrug. "I don't know, he never told me his last name."

"Tall, dark hair, tattoos?"

I nod. "Yeah, that's him."

She spits out her water for real this time. "Calum Hood just tried to hook up with you?!"

I nod again. Was I supposed to know who he was?

Natalie opens her mouth to add something else, but someone comes up behind us, cutting her off.

"Hey, bitches!" Lindsay slurs as she throws her arms around our shoulders, stumbling slightly in her six inch heels. "You just missed a killer game of beer pong."

I sigh, setting my cup of water down on the counter. "Fuck, Linds, we need a ride home and you're absolutely hammered," I say, steadying her as she starts to slip.

"It was only a few shots," she complains, pouting at me.

I sigh again. It's already kind of late and, after that weird encounter in the study, I just want to go home and call it a night. That's enough social interaction for one night.

I pass Lindsay over to Natalie, making sure that she has her before letting go. "Look, I'm kinda tired. I'm going to go see if Kayla can drive me home. Keep an eye on Lindsay?"

Nat nods as she leads Lindsay over to a chair. I leave them in the kitchen, turning the corner to see Kayla up against the pool table, posed to take a shot, a boy standing behind her with his arms wrapped around her waist. She hits her target into one of the holes and smiles as she turns around to face the boy.

"Kayla!" I shout over the music, tearing her attention away from the boy.

"Oh, hey, Emmy!" she says, swaying slightly. "Come play with us! Ethan here is really good - he can teach you too!"

I feel like chucking something at the wall. She's drunk too. Natalie is too scared to get behind the wheel after the accident she had a month ago and I never had the time to get around to getting my driver's license. Now I have no way home and two drunk friends to take care of.

Kayla stumbles as she tries to walk towards me and Ethan steadies her with an arm, shooting me sympathetic look. He doesn't look that drunk as he steers Kayla back over towards the pool table and gives her a sip of water. I'm glad she found one clear-headed person to take care of her, but that still doesn't fix my problem.

How the hell am I supposed to get home now?

Frustrated, I push through the crowd to get to the front door. The cool night air washes over me and I sink down onto the front steps, pulling my legs up to my chest as I bury my face in them. This was not shaping up to be a good night. I just wanted to hang out with my friends, not go to some crazy party and be stuck here until I can find someone who's sober enough to drive me home.

"You do know the party's inside, don't you?" a voice says from behind me.

I pick my head up to see none other than motherfucking Luke Hemmings, of all people, stooping to sit down beside me. The cigarette between his teeth is gone, but he still smells like smoke.

"What do you want?" I blurt sharply, too surprised to tell him to go to hell the way I want to.

He chuckles quietly, cutting those crystal blue eyes over to me. "Have you thought about my offer? It still stands, if you want it."

I roll my eyes at him. "Can you go five seconds without hitting on a girl?"

He flashes me a crooked grin. "Nope. That's what I do, babe." He slides even closer to me and I can see how long his blond eyelashes really are. They curve upward delicately, brushing the tops of his cheekbones. If I moved even a fraction of an inch, we'd be touching. "So what do you say? I promise I'll make it worthwhile."

I slowly lean in and he reflexively leans in too. This close, I can smell his cologne, which is way more intoxicating than I expected.

Just before our lips brush, I pull back, smirking at his surprised expression. "Nice try. But it's still a no. You're not really my type." I get to my feet, shaking my head at him. I have bigger things to worry about than some boy who's not used to be turned down.

"Not your type?" Luke repeats in a shocked voice, almost choking on the words as he shoots to his feet. I hadn't realized just how tall he was until now. My head doesn't even come up to his shoulder.

I start backing up towards the front door. "I'm sure there are lots of girls that would love to make out with you, I'm just not one of them. Now, if you excuse me, I have to go find a ride home since my friends aren't sober enough-"

"I can drive you."

I look back at him in surprise. "Are you sure you're sober enough to drive?"

Luke gives me another lopsided smile. "Darling, I haven't had a drink all night. I'm as sober as they come. Now do you want a ride or not?"

I hesitate. On one hand, I do need a ride and Luke's probably the only person I'm going to find. On the other, it's Luke Hemmings. He only wants to make out with as many girls as he can, and after I said that he wasn't my type, he's even more determined to prove me wrong.

"Look, do you wanna stand here all night or do you want to go home?" Luke says, getting a little impatient now.

I look back over my shoulder. My friends are still in there, two of them too drunk to drive themselves home. "Hang on one second," I mutter as I run back inside.

Kayla's leaning up against her cue stick, giggling as Ethan lines up for his shot. His hands are steady.

"Ethan!" I call and he glances up at me. "Can you take Kayla and Lindsay and Natalie home? Lindsay is wasted in the kitchen and Natalie's sober so she can help you with them."

He nods and I sigh in relief as I jog back to the porch.

Luke pushes off from the side of the house, flipping his car keys around on one of his long fingers. It's not hard to see why so many girls have hooked up with him. "You ready?" he asks.

I nod, following him through the dark to his car.  

A/N: Sorry, updates may be a little slow for a little bit while I finish new chapters for you, but I'm doing my best. 

Vote and comment and all that good stuff, thanks for reading! <3

- A