Pure of Heart / l.h ✔️

31

~Seraphina's POV~

I woke up in Luke's bed a little after I had fallen asleep to the feeling of his bed dipping down beside me, causing my eyes to tiredly flutter open. My eyes peered up at Luke as he crawled into bed and smiled down at me, slipping one arm around my waist as he grabbed his blankets and pulled them up over us both.

"Did you go shower?" I mumbled, noticing that his hair was now damp. He hummed softly and nodded his head, pulling me into his chest. He smelled like that red apple and cinnamon scent that was always attached to him, making me sigh happily as I cuddled into him more. "Mhm. You left me with a problem that I had to take care of." He teased, causing me to giggle as a blush stained my cheeks. He smiled and played gently with my hair, combing through it with his fingers. I peered up at him and slipped one leg between his, trying to cuddle as close to his warm body as I could. "Sorry." I said shyly, blushing. A soft chuckle left his lips and he grabbed my chin, ducking down to kiss my lips. "You're so beautiful." He hummed, the compliment making my face warm as he brushed his nose against mine.

Seeming to spot my blush, which I was sure wasn't that hard to do, his lips twitched up and he pulled away a little. "You blush so easily." He teased, a chuckle leaving his lips as he examined my facial features. I blushed brighter and he grinned, amusement in his eyes. "Why is that, hm?" He asked, cocking a brow up at me as his fingertips brushed over my cheek.

Biting my bottom lip gently, I shrugged my shoulders and leaned my chin against his chest. "Well..I dunno." I answered shyly, causing him to raise a brow at me doubtfully. "Are you sure about that, sunshine?" He chuckled, amused.

With a soft huff, I wrapped my arm around his waist and brushed my fingertips against the soft fabric of his shirt. "I'm just still not used to compliments." I admitted, feeling the strong muscles in his back through the fabric. He raised a brow. "But I compliment you all the time, Nina." He protested with a pout, peering down at me. It was almost as if he was actually upset about the fact that I said that.

I couldn't help but to smile slightly, a soft giggle slipping past my lips. "I know." I agreed easily, smiling up at him as I gently traced my fingertips up and down the length of his spine. "It's...still unusual for me, though. Nobody has complimented me like you have. I'm not used to so much...praise and such from someone. From anyone." I explained, causing him to frown slightly. I knew he understood what I was saying, that he'd heard me, but he certainly looked less than happy about it.

"Really?" He frowned, furrowing his brows at me. I paused and softly nodded my head, sighing deeply. "Yes." I affirmed, biting my lip. "But I like when you compliment me. It makes me feel good." I admitted, a smile rising on the edges of my lips.

Luke grinned softly and tightened his grip around my waist, tugging me into his body more as he buried his head into my hair. "You really expect me to believe that you haven't had any compliments from another person, sunshine?" He muttered, softly stroking his fingers down my cheek and along the side of my neck. I pouted up at him. "I have, but-" I went to explain but he cut me off. "What's the best compliment you've received? Not from me, either." He asked, the pads of his fingers brushing against my collarbone.

Knowing that he wanted me to give him an answer, I paused and bit my lip, trying to think about what the best compliment that I had received before was. I hadn't received very many compliments in my time, but many of the ones that I had received were from Luke, or even Enzo sometimes.

"Not from you?" I repeated gently, thoughtfully trying to locate what the best compliment would be. Enzo was really the only other person who had complimented me. My mom sometimes would, but it was generally just things that many mothers said. After I finally picked one compliment that I had held close to my heart for years, I looked up at him and smiled softly. "My favorite compliment was that I'm the embodiment of kindness." I said, still tracing my fingers up and down his spine.

"Oh, yeah?" He smiled gently and ran his own fingertips over my collarbone. "Who gave you that compliment?" He asked, curiosity in his voice. I felt goosebumps rise on my skin at the tickling sensation of his fingers on my skin, my lips twitching up. "Enzo." I answered.

Instead of smiling, Luke tensed and seemed to withdraw into himself, his eyes leaving mine as he gently pulled his hand away from me. "Enzo, huh?" He mumbled, rolling on his back so that my hand no longer touched him. Sensing the complete change in mood, I frowned and sat up, furrowing my brows as I peered down at him. "What's wrong?" I asked, cocking my head to the side cluelessly.

Luke had a strong frown on his handsome features, brows furrowed in frustration as he glanced over at me. "Why was that compliment so important to you?" He asked back, not answering my question. A wave of confusion washed over me and I frowned, placing my hands in my lap as I softly played with the lace fabric on my nightgown. "B-Because it...it was--" I went to answer him when he cut me off again, his lip curling up with distaste as he spoke. "Because it was from Enzo?" He snarled, surprising me.

Taken aback, I blinked down at him. "What?" I frowned, shaking my head in denial. The fact that the compliment had come from Enzo had nothing to do with why it meant so much to me. "I just thought it was a sweet thing to say." I shrugged, eyeing him closely. I hoped that maybe he would believe me, that he would see that I was being honest, but he looked doubtful enough for a split second that I knew he wasn't sure of my answer.

A pang of hurt hit me straight in the chest and I looked away, upset that he didn't believe me. There was a silence that hung in the air between us for a while, neither of us saying anything until he decided to speak up. "Do you still have feelings for him?" He asked, causing me to look up at him.

His blue eyes flamed with jealousy as he stared up at the ceiling, refusing to look my way and meet my gaze. I reached out and gently grabbed his chin, forcing him to look over at me as I shook my head. "I have no feelings left for him." I answered firmly, looking him in the eyes while I spoke. He frowned and the jealousy in his eyes faded, peering up at me as I gently brushed my fingers along his sharp jaw, the stubble there rough beneath my fingertips. "You promise?" He whispered.

I couldn't help but to smile slightly, finding it sweet how worried he was about that. It meant he didn't want me to have feelings for anyone but him, all because I was his and he was mine. "I promise." I affirmed, causing him to sigh in relief. "Good." He breathed, looping his arm around my waist and pulling me down onto his chest.

He let me cuddle up to his chest and kissed me on the top of my head. "I want to be the only man your heart belongs to, sunshine." He muttered, causing me to blush and glance up at him. "Only as long as yours belongs to me, too." I whispered.