As soon as the fresh, night air hit my face, I felt a little more relieved. I checked the time on my phone. It was only eleven. Luke and Piper were probably still at the bar, so I walked the two blocks down the highway back towards The Manhattan.
Once I walked in, I saw that the movie crew was gone. They must have had to get up early the next morning for work. I glanced around the room searching for Luke and Piper and felt a wave of relief when I saw they were still there.
“Hey,” I said as I walked up to the table.
Luke turned around and looked me up and down, as if I’d done something despicable. He was pissed. Jealous. Something. I’d never seen that look on his face before. I was secretly pleased and a little scared at the same time.
“Oh, my God,” Piper said as she ran to my side and clutched my arm. “Tell me everything.”
I looked over at Luke who glanced away.
“Nothing happened,” I said. “For the record.”
Luke turned back towards me, his face softening a bit.
“You weren’t gone very long,” Piper said.
“He just wanted to talk,” I said. “He said it was too loud here.”
Luke rolled his eyes. “He was totally trying to get into your pants, Brynn.”
“I didn’t let him,” I disclaimed. “He said he had to get up early tomorrow for his call time or something, so I didn’t stay long.”
I didn’t like lying to them, but I wanted to give Luke a little bit of peace of mind about the whole thing. I felt like I’d done the right thing by stopping, and I didn’t deserve to get punished for it. Luke didn’t need to know the details.
“I have to get up early tomorrow too,” Luke said. “Should probably head out.”
“You’re still taking me home, right?” I asked Luke. He was still in a mood, and sometimes his behavior was a little erratic, but this was a side of him I’d never seen before.
“Yep,” he replied. He was definitely pissed.
“Are you okay to drive?” I asked him.
“Yep,” he replied.
I looked over at Piper. “Is he okay to drive?”
She nodded.
I followed Luke out to his beat up, red, rusty pickup truck as he kicked the gravel under his boots. Sometimes being around him was like walking on eggshells, but I was used to it. I was sure there were quirks of mine that drove him up the wall, but we spent a lot of time together. It came with the territory, and we were used to it.
I climbed in and buckled up, observing his every move from the corner of my eye as he started up the truck. It rumbled loudly and he peeled out of the parking lot without any sort of warning.
“Hey,” I said as I reached over and braced myself on his arm. “Slow down.”
He said nothing.
“Luke, what is your problem?” I said. “You’re acting weird.”
“I’m fine,” he said. His jaw was clenched tight. I didn’t believe him.
“Nothing happened,” I said as I folded my arms across my chest.
“Okay, Brynn,” he said. He didn’t believe me.
“I don’t know why you care all of a sudden,” I said. I knew I was opening up a can of worms, but that’s exactly what I wanted to do.
“I care,” he said. “I care because you’re better than that.”
He pulled up to my apartment building where he slammed his truck in park and then turned towards me, waiting for me to exit.
“I’ll call you tomorrow,” I said. I thought about leaning over to hug him goodnight and to remind him that I was still me, but I suddenly remembered that I’d just been kissing Hudson Smith. If he smelled a hint of Hudson on me it would send him over the edge and he’d never believe me that nothing happened.
I stood outside of his truck, watching as he pulled out and drove down the street, his red taillights growing smaller in the distance until they were eventually out of sight. I pulled my keys from my bag and headed inside my building, climbing the two flights of stairs to my apartment on the third floor.
My apartment was quiet and still and peaceful, just the way I liked it. I kicked off my heels and shuffled my feet across the soft carpet and towards my room. I peeled off my jeans and top and slipped into some silky pajama shorts and a plain, white tank top. In the bathroom, I washed all the makeup off my face. Under the garish fluorescent lighting, I looked hideous. I’d kept meaning to get those lights switched out to something a little more flattering, but trying to get my landlord to do anything was like pulling teeth. The lights weren’t broken, so he didn’t have any reason to spend a single dime to change them. It was a lost cause.
I shuffled back to my room where I climbed under the covers and replayed the nights’ events in my head. I squeezed my eyes tight and remembered what it felt like to lock eyes with Hudson Smith. I parted my lips and tried to remember what it was like to kiss him. I wondered what it would’ve felt like to go all the way with him, but I knew I’d never know.
The images flashing before me of the beautiful Hudson Smith were soon replaced with images of Luke’s angry face. Was he really just disappointed in me? In what he thought I did? Or was it something else? I knew Luke better than anyone else, but when it came to our friendship and the way he felt about me, he was always a closed book. It drove me wild.
Soon my eyes grew heavy, and my fluffy feather pillow and downy duvet swallowed me whole as I felt into a deep slumber.