good girl • (lrh)

18

A•V•A

I let out a yawn as I open my eyes, scanning the room to find Luke, only to realize he's gone. I reach over to the nightstand the grab my phone and see a note Luke left. After reading the note, I grab my phone and click his contact, listening to it ring while I await his answer.

After quite a few rings, Luke picks up and I hear his voice in my ear. Our conversation was quite short, which I found a bit odd, seeming as he's usually happy to hear from me. I could hear the stress in his voice, but I'm sure he's just dealing with things at work. He informs me that he'll be home when he can, and quickly ends the call. I let out a sigh once the line goes blank. This was quite odd, but I try to brush off the feeling that something more is bothering him other than work stress.

I decide to get up, still dressed in my school clothes that I fell asleep in earlier, and go down to the kitchen. Once in the kitchen I open the fridge and pour myself a glass of orange juice from a cup I found in the cabinet. After a few minutes, the door opens and Luke walks in, a look I can't quite read covering his face.

"Everything okay?" I question, once Luke nears me. "Oh, yeah," he nods, his hand reaching back to scratch his neck, "just an issue at the bar, but it's taken care of." He assures me and I nod. "That's good." I say briefly, taking a sip of the orange liquid. Something seems off, but I don't question it.

Luke steps closer, eliminating the space between us. One of his hands reach up to touch one of my braids. "You know, your hair looks lovely." He seems to want to change the subject, but I'm still about worried about his attitude from earlier.

"What happened at work?" I attempt to divert the conversation back to our previous one. Luke frowns for a moment, taking his time to answer my question. "Nothing important," he shakes his head, "just a shipment issue." His answer is quick, and quite short. I wondered if he was lying, but he didn't seem like the type to.

"You could've woken me up, you know?" I nudge his shoulder and a chuckle escapes his lips. I don't know if I'm overreacting to his behaviors, but he seems nervous. I'm not sure why that would be the case, but my heart is telling me something else is going on. Before I can speak my mind, Luke cuts in.

"Did you have any plans today? I thought maybe we could do something." I shake my head no. I didn't even tell Elsa I wasn't going to school today. I'm sure she's hanging out with Rose anyway.

"Let's have a movie night then, yeah? We could go to the cinema and see whatever you'd like." His tone is sincere and his lips hold a smile.  "Yeah, that sounds fun actually!" I nod in agreement.

After this, Luke and I discuss movies we might like to watch and take our time to agree on one, though he said I could pick if I wanted to. We finally agree on seeing the new live-action Mulan movie, that recently came out. I'm quite excited to be honest. I've always loved Disney movies and I was quite excited when the movie dropped.

Around 8:30 we begin our drive to the cinema and arrive just before 9:00pm. Once inside, we purchase our tickets and head over to the concession stand. "What would you like?" The attended asks and I look over at Luke, waiting for him to answer.

"A large popcorn, two cokes and..." Luke glances down at me. "Sour patch kids." I whisper to him and he chuckles a bit before answering.

The attendant gives us our snacks just after Luke pays and we make our way to the appropriate theater. I glance up at the sigh and it reads 'viewing room #3'.

Once inside, we find our seats and the previews for other films flash on the screen. "Are you excited?" Luke smiles over at me.

"Of course!" I whisper my reply, not wanting to disturb anyone, though the cinema isn't very full tonight. We chat for a few minutes, just until the movie starts. I divert my attention to the screen and become immersed in the movie, unable to take my eyes from the screen.

About 45 minutes into the film, I feel Luke's hand resting on my own. I feel bold and comfortable, so I grasp his hand, a blush creeping it's way to my cheeks. I take a moment to glance over at Luke and see a goofy smile covering his lips. I shake my head and smile, turning back to the film on the big screen.

The movie finally comes to an end and people shuffle out of the theater, Luke and I being the last to leave. "That was really fun!" I say ecstatically, once inside the lobby.

"Yeah? I'm glad you liked it." Luke pulls me into his chest. I mainly liked spending time with him, but seeing the movie was a plus.  "Thank you." I smile up at him.

I glance around the lobby once we part and something catches my eye. "They've got an arcade!" I squeal, rushing over to the games. I know it may be childish, but I've always loved playing these silly games, they remind me of my childhood.

Once in front of the games, I can hear some of them making sounds. The one that catches my eye the most is the crane game with the plushies inside, I've always loved these, even if I'm not very good at them. "Do you have any coins?" I pout up at Luke once he nears me. I felt silly asking, but I wanted to play and I didn't have my wallet.

"Let's see," Luke digs through his pants pocket, pulling out a handful of change, "I've got a bit." He smiles. "Let's see if you can win something." Luke chuckles, inserting the coins into the machine.

"I've got this." I say confidently, using the joy stick on the machine to control the crane game. I spot a really cute rabbit plush that I'd like to have, and attempt to grab it with the crane. The crane picks up the prize, much to my surprise but soon drops it. "Awe no!" I pout.

"Here, try again, doll." Luke inserts a few more coins and I try again. After a few attempts, I manage to win the rabbit plush, cuddling it to my chest once out of the machine. It's so cute!" I muse.

"Just like you, princess." Luke smiles, patting my shoulder.

Soon enough, Luke and I leave the cinema and head back to his house. The ride filled with chatter between the pair of us. My plushie held firmly in my hands as Luke drives.