The Bet || l.h.

- 5 -

Luke drives a small black car that reeks of cigarette smoke. Empty cigarette packs are thrown in the back along with a beat-up guitar case and piles of sheet music. I raise an eyebrow at the mess behind us.

He has the decency to be embarrassed and tries to push the empty cigarette cartons onto the floor. "Sorry, I don't clean my car."

"I can tell," I mutter as I strap in. The longer I'm alone with him, the more sure I get that this is a terrible decision. I don't trust him and I feel a little uncomfortable with the fact that he has to know where my house is to drive me there.

Luke pulls his keys out of the pocket of his leather jacket and slides them into the ignition. He backs out of the driveway, turning onto the main road. "So where do you live?" he asks after a second, switching lanes to go around a particularly slow car.

"In Meadowbrook," I say slowly, fiddling with my shirt nervously.

He nods as he adjusts his grip on the steering wheel. "I know where that is." After a beat, he clears his throat and says, "You can pick a radio station if you want."

I don't say anything, reaching over to flip through the stations until I find my favorite one. A familiar song is playing and start to hum the words under my breath, tapping my foot to the beat.

"You like All Time Low?" Luke asks incredulously, recognizing the song as well.

I scowl as I cross my arms over my chest. "You have a problem with that?"

"No, not at all," he says quickly, focusing back on the road in front of him. He clears his throat awkwardly and asks, "So why haven't I see you around before?"

"Probably because you're off hooking up with every girl you can find," I shoot back automatically.

He doesn't seem affected by my harsh words in the slightest. "I can add you to the list if you'd like," he says with a slow grin, winking in my direction.

I roll my eyes. "Never gonna happen. I told you that I'm not interested."

"Right, because I'm 'not you type'," he scoffs, making air quotes with his hand. "Come on, Emmy, you can't be serious about that. I'm everyone's type."

"You're awfully cocky for someone with such a small dick."

"Excuse me?" he chokes out, his blue eyes wide. "What makes you say that it's small? Honey, if I had a small dick, do you think I would fuck nearly as many girls as I do?"

I shrug. "You probably pay them to keep quiet once they know the truth. It's the only logical solution."

"The only logical solution?!" he repeats. He looks like he's about to have a heart attack, opening and closing his mouth like a fish out of water. I try to hide my smile, but he catches me laughing. "Oh, so you think this is funny?"

"Just a little," I say between giggles.

He rolls his eyes before turning his attention back on the road. "Whatever, Emmy."

Luke flips on his turn signal and we pull into my subdivision. I hadn't even noticed that we'd gotten so close.

"Which one is yours?" he mutters as he turns on the brights, trying to see in the dark.

"The next one on the right," I mumble.

He presses the brakes as he pulls into the driveway, unlocking the car. I open the door and slide out, not sure whether I should say goodbye or thanks. What do you even say to the fuckboy senior you met at a party? I watched Calum lick this guy's abs for crying out loud.

"See you around, Emmy," Luke says as I get out of the car. Just before I close the door behind me he adds, "And I do not have a small dick!"

I chuckle to myself as I walk up the stairs to my house.

My mom throws open the door before I can even knock, her eyes zeroing in on the car pulling out of our driveway with a frown. "Is that a new friend of yours?" she asks as she ushers me inside.

I cast one last glance at the headlights disappearing around the corner. "Something like that."

A/N: Sorry about this chapter, it's so short and kinda terrible. Things will get better when they speed up!

- A