good girl • (lrh)

35

A•V•A

I'm going out with Luke tonight, which isn't out of the ordinary. This time his friends will be there though, and I'm a bit nervous if I'm being honest.

I suppose it could be nice, after all, I'll be with Luke if anything goes wrong.

I glance at myself in the mirror, twirling my curled hair around my finger before letting out a sigh. I wish I looked prettier than I do, but I suppose I'm stuck with myself. I tug down my black sweater, stuffing my hand into the pocket of my black skinny jeans before skipping down the stairs into the living room.

"Hey," I announce my presence, "I think I'm ready to go."

Luke's blue eyes catch my own for a moment before scanning down my body, "Wow, you look.." he trails off and I find myself swallowing nervously, "beautiful." He finished and I let out a breath I didn't realize I was holding in.

"You..you really think so?" I give a soft smile, brushing my hair out of my face.

"Of course I do." Luke offers a smile in return, standing to his feet. "Let's get going, shall we?"

"Mhm." I breathe out.

Luke and I get into his vehicle and I stare out the window as we roll down the street. I watch each street light as we pass, subconsciously counting them. After what seems like 100 street lights, the car comes to a halt in front of what appears to be a busy night club.

I swallow down my anxiety, my eyes widening slightly at the crowd of people outside.

"We're here sweetheart." Luke's sultry voice pulls me from my thoughts and I flash him a toothy smile.

"Right, let's go inside then?" I say boldly, attempting to muster up some confidence.

The pair of us get out of the car, Luke leading the way as we walk toward the entrance of the club. I trail behind him as he walks past the line of people, nearing the door.

"Don't we need to.. wait in line?" I give him a puzzled look.

A chuckle escapes Luke's chest, and I raise an eyebrow at him, waiting for a response. "God no, we're not waiting in that line. I know the owner."

"Ooo, Mr. popular." I tease, poking at his chest.

Luke let's out another chuckle, approaching the bouncers.

"ID please." The buff man says, not moving his eyes from the clipboard in his hands. Luke clears his throat, grabbing the man's attention. "Hey Marco!" Luke greets the man, shaking his hand.

"Oh hey Hemmings! Nice to see you buddy." The bouncer, Marco, greets Luke, moving the velvet rope, allowing Luke and I to pass through.

"Thank you!" I flash the man a smile before trailing behind Luke again. "You just know everyone, huh?" I speak loudly, hoping Luke can hear me over the music blasting through the speakers of the club.

"Seems like it, doesn't it?" He teases, holding onto my hand. "Let's find the lads, I want a drink."

Luke and I make our way through the crowds of people, finally finding his 'lads' as he called them.

I smile when I see Ashton, and another familiar face I can't seem to remember where I've seen before. "Hey Ashton!" I greet the honey haired man first.

"Hey bird, glad you could make it!" Ashton pulls me into a hug. I cough, pulling away after a few seconds.
"Nice to see you too."

"Mikey, Calum!" I hear Luke say and my gaze meets his others friends, "This is Ava. Ava, this is Micheal and Calum." He motions to his friends, introducing us.

"Nice to meet you." I say softly, flashing the pair a grin.

Micheal does look quite familiar, I just cannot place where I've seen him before. I mentally groan, annoyed by my shitty memory.

"Oh hey, I remember you!" Micheal speaks up, "I subbed for your class at school." He chuckles and I mentally face palm myself. How could I forget. "Oh, nice to see you I suppose!"

"Hope she wasn't too much of a pain!" Luke teases, referring to Micheal teaching my class. "Hey, I'm a pretty good student!" I defend myself.

"Little trouble maker she was, couldn't get her to stop checking her phone." Mikey laughs, taking a sip from his beer. "Well, blame your friend here." I motion towards Luke.

I enjoy the banter we've got going, Luke's friends are all quite nice, though they seem a bit immature for their age.

The conversation trails off and I find myself observing the group of men rather than chatting along with them. I cling to Luke throughout most of the night, not wanting to leave his side in fear I may lose myself in this place.

"Care for a sip?" Luke's voice grabs my attention and I glance over at him, he's holding a glass in his hand, motioning towards it with his other.

"Oh, hm?" My eye brows knit together and I give him an odd look.

"Would you like to try it? It's whiskey." He says in a low, hushed tone, his voice sounding sweet like honey.

I think for a moment. The last time I had a drink, I had too much and things took a wrong turn, I don't know if I can handle something like that again.

"Don't worry," Luke interrupts my train of thought, "m' here and nothings going to happen." It's almost as if he read my mind in that moment.

"I suppose a sip couldn't hurt, right?" I smile softly and he nods. I lean over Luke's lap, grabbing his cup and quickly taking a sip, coughing as alcohol burns my throat. "That doesn't even taste good." I hiss, glaring at him.

"S' not meant to taste good babe," Luke teases and I feel his hand pinch my butt.

"Hey," I playfully push his hand away, "Hands to yourself, Mister!" A giggle falls from my lips as he pulls his hand away. I gasp as I'm pulled over into Luke's lap, my body pressed right up against his.

"Behave." Luke whispers in my ear, holding me against his body with one hand, his glass gripped in his other. My cheeks flush red at this simple action.

We sit like this for a while, myself resting on his lap as he chats with his friends. I manage to insert myself in the conversation when I can, attempting to get out of my comfort zone, even if just for a small while.

As the boys converse, my eyes drift around the bar and I spot a woman tall woman approaching the group of us. I take notice of her long hair, the color resembling that of a raven's feathers.

"Oi, Holly! You made it." I hear Ashton shout, my eyes darting over to him now. I see a smile appear on the woman's face as she sits herself next to Michael. "Good to see you, babe." Micheal leans in, kissing the raven haired girl on the cheek.

"Who's that?" I whisper to Luke, not wanting to seem uninformed. He smiles at me before briefly explaining. "Oh, that's Holly! She's Mikey's girlfriend." He cheers, and I nod my head.

"Oh neat! She seems.. intimidating?" I trail off towards the end of my sentence, unsure what else to say.

"M' sure you said the same thing about me before you got to know me." A chuckle falls from Luke's lips and I roll my eyes.

***

The night went on and I ended up facing many of my fears. I met Luke's friends, who I was quite nervous to meet. I felt the need to impress them, mainly for Luke. I went to a place that was very much out of my comfort zone, and finally, I spoke to a girl who seemed very intimidating but was very sweet.

Holly had this look to her, it reminded me of my own friend, Elsa. She wore clothing and make up that made her seem tough, but once I spoke to her, she was quite sweet. I ended up chatting with her for quite a while, while the boys talked amongst themselves. I even got her phone number, which was nice. I don't have many friends and I could use another one.

Overall, tonight was a good, different night.