4.2

                                    

                                          
August 7th, 2016 - Day 3.
                          
He took me to a very specific coffee shop the following morning, one that was nearly an hour outside of the city.
                          
The place was a tiny hole-in-the-wall cafe, complete with a miniature book store on the second floor that was only accessible by a rickety and narrow flight of stairs winding up the back. Irrelevant trinkets and decor lay scattered throughout the building, adding to the unorganized theme and overall messy aura. The smell of coffee beans was absolutely overwhelming and I could practically taste the sugar in the air, not that I minded. It brought me a sense of comfort to be somewhere so peaceful and homely. Luke rested his head on my shoulder and wrapped his arms around my waist as I carefully read the chalkboard menu dangling from twine behind the counter. Each letter was scrawled in loopy cursive as if they were dancing across the board. I inhaled deeply and told the barista my order.
                          
After retrieving our coffee, Luke cheerfully suggested that we go upstairs to check out the books. I grinned, leading him with one hand as we climbed the wooden staircase and rounded the corner. Books bound with brown paper and cheap string lined the wall facing the street, stacked all the way up to the sill of the dusty yellowed windows. The remaining three walls were full length shelves overflowing with actual hardback copies of various genres. Two forest green armchairs with worn fabric sat in the middle, angled slightly away from the windows. A low glass table rested between them, an unfinished game of chess occupying half of it. 
                          
Luke immediately planted himself on the closest seat as I wandered from shelf to shelf, dragging my fingers along the tops of the books and feeling the pages flicker under my skin. It sent a shiver down my spine.
                          
"My mother used to take me here when I was a kid," Luke explained, focusing most of his attention on rearranging the chess pieces before him. "It was a lot closer when we lived at my dad's place. She would work on her computer downstairs and I'd come up here while she was busy. I was never a huge fan of reading, but I'd bring my little acoustic guitar and imagine the characters were my crowd. It was kind of lame, I know, but I really wanted to share this spot with you. It means a lot to me and so do you."
                          
I turned around and admired his work as he gently set the last piece into its designated place. "That's not lame," I argued, taking two easy strides to fall in the chair across from him. "It's cute."
                          
Luke smiled at the ground. "Do you know how to play?" he asked, nodding slightly at the chess board separating us. 
                          
I set my coffee down and cracked my knuckles. "I live in the middle of nowhere with just my dad. I've played a lot of chess in my eighteen years."
                          
This, of course, initiated an hour-long tournament full of playful bickering and Luke sneaking candid pictures of me. We became so absorbed in our game that our coffees turned cold and my legs went numb from sitting cross-legged. He eventually grew tired, blatantly allowing me to win even though he pinkie swore it was unintentional. 
                          
"You're just that good," he insisted, leaning back to fish his ringing phone out of the pocket of his skinny jeans. "Hey Calum, what's up mate?"
                          
I grunted as I stood up, stretching with a low groan. Luke continued his conversation while I skipped down the creaky staircase and spun around the corner to wave politely at the barista. She wished me a good day, then I slid through the glass door and headed to the locked car outside.
                          
Crisp, cool wind swept through the tiny parking lot, dispersing piles of fallen leaves that coated the pavement. The crackling sound that they made as they flew apart from one another reminded me of autumn at home, something I was utterly in love with. I leaned against the car and stared out at the deserted street. Not a single soul had passed in at least thirty minutes, not that it mattered that much anyway. Luke and I agreed that there was beauty in empty towns free of bustling crowds and hectic lifestyles. Granted, peaceful alone time was a luxury to him while going out was a rarity for me.
                          
"Teni!" he shouted, emerging from the coffee shop. "Calum wants to know if you'd like to come to this club tonight. Drinks are on me."
                          
The tall boy shot me a cheesy grin as he slowly closed the distance between us. He intertwined our fingers, practically pinning me to the side of the vehicle. I shook my head. "I don't know, Luke. I've never been to a club before."
                          
He shrugged. "It's like a party but larger and the alcohol tastes better."
                          
"And the drinks are on you?"
                          
"Anything you want, all night long, m'lady."
                          
I chuckled under my breath, eyeing Luke as he dipped closer to me. "You make a good offer, but there's one little issue here: I don't have anything to wear."
                          
He pressed a soft kiss to my lips, finally stepping back with a wide smile dancing on his face. "Don't worry about it. I can figure something out." His hand guided me into the passenger seat and he winked as I sat down. "Alright, let's blow this pop stand."
                          
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@luke_is_a_penguin tweeted: reuniting with the smelliest band member tonight.

                          
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shout out to everyone who reminded me what day of the week it was and told me to update. where would i be without u.
                          
i know this is late but i was studying and catching up on sleep and then partying (i do fun things sometimes) and so this was only half finished until today. my sincerest apologies but i also have a life and this is not always my #1 priority u feel
                          
tell me about ur weekend and halloween plans!!! i don't have a costume and i already went to a halloween party so i think im gonna lay low on actual halloween day tbh
                          
have a super spoopy day/night