Secrets In The Garden / l.h ✔️

48

~Luke's POV~

Calum sat across from me as he and I sat at a table in the student lounge, him playing on his phone while I watched Ophelia from across the room as she sat with Blade. It looked like they were helping one another with some assignment, but he was way closer to her than necessary.

I narrowed my eyes at the side of his stupid head, wondering what he'd said to her when she smiled and laughed at something he said. She looked so gorgeous when she smiled and I wasn't sure why but I didn't want her showing that smile to anyone but me. Especially not Blade. It wasn't that he was an asshole, but that I didn't want there to be any opportunity for me to have competition. Because at the end of the day, I was selfish, and I wanted Ophelia for me and me only.

Leaning my chin into the palm of my hand, I looked at her face, wondering how I'd managed to get her in bed with me. She was gorgeous and genuinely sweet—way out of my league in every way. Girls like her shouldn't be wasting their time on boys like me, but for some reason, she chose to. For some reason, she still stuck around, even after I completely shut her feelings down. She still hadn't given up on me yet and I couldn't say why. But truthfully, I didn't really care why. I was just glad that she stuck around.

I scanned my eyes over her face, lingering on her full, glossy pink lips that looked so fucking kissable. Her long hair fell down her back in messy waves, nearly reaching her ass. Being that it was cold as fuck outside since it was December, I had no clue how she could stand to be wearing the thin white dress she had on, even with the soft mint colored cardigan she had on. The dress was patterned with tiny red flowers and was made of some thin, not at all warming fabric with tiny spaghetti straps and a low plunging neckline. I liked being to see her nice cleavage and her pretty legs, sure, but she surely must've been freezing.

The white converse high tops on her feet creased a little as she bounced her leg while talking to Blade, pointing at whatever papers were in front of them with goosebumps on her thighs. She was cold. I almost wanted to punch him just for not offering her the jacket he had on, but something told me I'd want to punch him if he did that, too.

"You have gained a staring problem lately, mate." Calum mentioned without even looking up from his phone, making my head snap over to him. I scowled slightly. "I'm not staring!" I snapped, rolling my eyes as I slouched back into my chair. Cal snorted, tapping away on his screen. "Whatever helps you sleep at night, I guess." He muttered.

That'd be Ophelia, curled up in my arms.

My thoughts made my face hot and I shook my head, anxiously bouncing my leg. "Who is she, anyways? You've been staring at her a lot these past few weeks." Cal asked, making me sigh deeply and look up at her again. I looked at her for a long time, chewing on my bottom lip. "We're just friends." I excused, muttering.

Calum laughed and finally looked up from his phone, an amused smile on his face. "Friends?" He repeated, snickering. "Last I checked, I don't remember you ever looking at any of your other friends like you look at her. So be honest here, who is she? No bullshit." He said, raising an expectant brow at me. I hesitated, rubbing the back of my neck as I glanced her way again. "We are friends. We've been fucking, but I mean...she has feelings for me." I explained, making him look at me impatiently, like he was waiting for me to add to that statement. I just stared back at him.

"And?" Calum asked expectantly, brows raised. He was more sassy than usual. "You gonna date her or what?" He asked, making me roll my eyes. I sent him a flat look, crossing my arms over my chest. "Why would I do that? She already knows I don't have feelings for her like she does for me." I scoffed, staring at my friend as he gave me a look that told me he thought I was perhaps the biggest moron on the planet.

"Then why are you staring at her every chance you get, and always driving her to school? If you don't like her, why are you always jealous when she's around him?" Calum retorted, gesturing over to the table where Ophelia and Blade we're sitting.

Surprised, I blinked at him and then laughed, shaking my head. "Jealous? I'm not jealous. I don't get jealous." I smiled, amused at the suggestion. With all the girls I'd been with, I'd never gotten jealous even once before. "You don't? So you'd be fine if they kissed right now?" He asked. The smile on my lips dropped and I glared at him. "She wouldn't kiss him. She loves me. She's mine." I snapped without even a thought, making me freeze. Had I really just said that? Fuck, I sounded jealous even to myself.

Cal smirked. "Told you." He chuckled, but I just rolled my eyes and shook my head, trying to calm my racing heart. "Shut up. I don't have feelings for her. I just..." I scratched the back of my neck, fumbling for an explanation—anything that made sense. "W-Well, I guess I've just grown used to her." I mumbled weakly, making him roll his eyes, not looking the slightest bit convinced. "Stop bullshitting me. You obviously like her, as more than a fuck and more than a friend." He said. I glanced over at her again and frowned deeply, furrowing my brows. "I don't." I denied.

He groaned and shut off his phone, setting it on the table as he glared at me. "You get jealous and possessive when she's with another guy." He said. "And you're always looking at her. Seriously, like...always." He stressed, giving me a look that made my face burn with embarrassment.

"A-And that!" He hissed, pointing at my face. "You never blush when we're talking about girls." He pointed out. I could feel my heart pounding faster and my leg was bouncing like crazy, up and down repeatedly. "That doesn't mean anything." I said weakly, filled with uncertainty.

I'd never been in love before. I didn't know what any of these feelings were that I was having for Ophelia, but I didn't think it was love. I didn't think I was even capable of loving a girl, romantically. Sex was my forte, not feelings. But with her... she made me start to mix the two and now I didn't know what was what. From the beginning, I'd felt like this when she was around. Even in the days when she tried to ignore me or when she'd tell me she wanted nothing to do with me, this feeling was still there, hiding in the corner. But it was out now, and it was noticeable to me. I didn't know what to make of it.

"Fine. You know what, I'm gonna prove you wrong, you stubborn bastard." Calum vowed, scooting his chair close so he could lean over the table more, eyes narrowed on me. "Does she make your heart race when she's around? When she smiles, touches you? How about when she laughs?" He listed off, staring at me expectantly.

I looked away and weakly nodded, unable to believe that he'd somehow known that. "Okay. When you guys spend time together and she has to leave or you have to go, do you wish you could just stay there with her instead? Do you find yourself admiring her when she's not even looking? Thinking about her all the time?" He asked question after question, and the answer to each of them was yes. I told him this and he smirked smugly, leaning back in his chair with his arms crossed over his chest. "Then you love her, you idiot."

My whole body felt like it was just thumping with adrenaline, considering Cal's words. I stared at the surface of the table, my face burning and my heart still pounding. When I looked her way again, I felt that fluttering in my chest that always came when she was around, or when I so much as looked at her. Slowly, these feelings were making more and more sense now.

It made more sense why I thought of her so much, why I felt so jealous of Blade, so possessive of her, and why these feelings weren't going away. I'd thought it was just lust, but it was love.