22. Luke
CHAPTER 22
Luke
Two weeks have gone by since the God-awful trip. Two weeks since I have tried my best to avoid Gigi. Or Gigi, me. I think she’s putting in more effort to skip parties and mutual hangs than I am. Nobody needs to write that many papers. Not even Miss Busy Bee Bankowski.
Kai and Zoey mocking us the rest of the stay was probably enough for her to steer clear of me. If their reaction is any indication of how the whole world will react to us sleeping together, yeah…fuck that . I’ll take it to my grave. Except I can’t get her out of my head.
I used to look at Gigi in another light, I swear. How did this happen? We had a one-night stand and suddenly, she’s all I think about.
It’s probably just the guilt, Luke, I say to myself while I towel dry my hair. Grabbing my duffel bag out of the locker, I pass through the equipment and students finishing up their workout sessions before the place closes down at midnight.
I still can’t believe that sometimes this is my life. My scholarship allows me to have so much free time sometimes I don’t even know what to do with my day. The small stipend they transfer to my bank account each month frees me from having to search for a part-time job. Going to the gym, going to parties, and getting eight hours’ worth of sleep are things that I was never able to do back home. Gigi was right, I am a late bloomer.
Banging the car door shut, I curse to myself when I catch where my mind is off to. You’re fucking thinking about Gigi. Again.
The drive to my off-campus apartment that I share with Malakai does nothing to calm the conflicting thoughts. Especially not when I see none other than the person of interest herself in a white button-down shirt that hides her perfect, tiny tits and a black pencil skirt paired with see-through tights that do nothing to cover the curve of her ass. Gigi is clutching her jacket with her thighs as she puts her headphones over her head. Before I can think twice, I pull over next to her and roll down my windows.
“What are you doing here?”
It’s a stupid question. We both know that I know she works at the restaurant she’s standing in front of. After recovering from her startle, she humors me and answers anyway. “Got the dinner shift.”
“You heading home, Gi?”
She nods. You can feel the air thickening around us in the silence that comes after. Our eyes lock, trying to speak the words we can’t. I don’t know how she feels about me, and I wish she would just fucking tell me. I wish we were closer so I could read her facial expression. Very hypocritical of me considering the fact I’ve done nothing to start the conversation. I didn’t even do as much as send her a text after that trip. The only interaction we’ve had is through the group chat that we all share within our merged friend group and that one time we saw each other at the library. Christ, I’ve done nothing but prove the rumors about me right.
“Get in. I’ll take you home.”
“Oh, it’s fine,” she says with a nervous laugh. “I don’t mind walking.”
“It’s eleven at night. Please, just get in. It’s a fucking car ride, not a marriage proposal.”
She cocks an eyebrow, and I cock one right back at her. Opening the door from the inside, I make my intention clear that I’m not going to drive away until she’s inside. Gigi throws her purse on the seat before looping her headphones around her neck and jumping in, closing the door next to her.
Even with all the awkwardness, you can always count on Giuliana Bankowski to always put in an effort to break the ice. “So, how have you been?” she asks. When she sees the corner of my lip quirk upward as I steal a glance to look at her, she smiles back. “What? I can’t ask how you’re doing?”
“Are you just asking for the sake of it or do you really want to know?”
“You’re making this weird, Luke.”
“What?” I ask in a playful tone not matching my stammering heartbeat caused by having this girl in my car. Right now, it doesn’t feel like we’re in a tangled web of chaos, it just feels like we’re two college kids who had sex over spring break and we’re doing the post-hookup, awkward dance. “Since you’ve been doing everything in your power to avoid me, it’s a fair question don’t you think?”
“What?” She pretends to be offended, pointing a finger to her chest. “If anybody is avoiding anyone, it’s you. You didn’t even come to Zach’s birthday party two days ago.”
I will myself to hold my tongue. I take a deep breath to calm myself down. I try talking myself out of it. I lost. “I can’t stop thinking about what happened, Gi.”
I can’t see her because I’m focused on the road, but I think she’s gawking at me. “In a good way or a bad way?” she asks in a soft voice, like she’s afraid of what my answer will be.
“Is it bad if I think about what we did in a good way?” I ask, surprising even myself.
“Is it because I was a virgin?” Gigi blurts out, sounding more confident than she was five seconds ago. “Like a fetish thing?”
I can’t help the snort that comes through my nose and mouth, accompanied by my silent chuckles. “Maybe. I don’t know.”
“Well I’m not one anymore, thanks to you. Sorry, Luke, you can’t devirginize me twice.”
“Have you…did you sleep with anyone else after?—”
“No,” she cuts me right off.
“Huh.”
“What?”
“Nothing,” I answer, pulling the car to a stop once we reach her building. “A part of me thought you slept with me just so that you can finally get it over with. I thought for sure you hooked up with Pierre at Zach’s party. You guys looked all cozy in the pictures.”
“Is Lucas Palmer jealous?” When I turn to face her, rolling my eyes, I see the taunting written all over her face. She’s enjoying this . “I didn’t know you were the jealous type. From all the stories I’ve heard, you seemed like the hit it and quit it type of guy.”
“Fuck the stories,” I groan. “I thought I cleared the air when I told you about Serena. If you want to know something, ask it from the source.”
“Okay. Have you slept with anyone else since we did it?”
I shake my head. It seems like what I confessed to her didn’t get through her skull, so I reiterate. “Like I said, I couldn’t stop thinking about you.” Still can’t.
“On a scale of one to ten, how hard was it for you to admit that to me, Luke?” Gigi asks with a satisfied grin.
“Hard enough.” Fair is fair. “But it’s true. And for the record, it’s not just because you were a virgin. You’re pretty cool, Gi. Sorry I never gave you a chance before.”
“Now that must have been excruciatingly painful for you to say.”
“You’re a pain in the ass, you know that?” I laugh.
After a beat of silence, Gigi says what we’re all fucking thinking. “You know this is wrong, right?”
“I know.”
“For the record, I also can’t stop thinking about what happened.” I feel the sudden rush of relief washing over me. Relief that’s laced with uncertainty and guilt. The kind that keeps you up at night. Gigi plants a kiss on my cheek before climbing out of my car. “Thanks for the ride, Luke. I’ll try not to avoid you next time.”
“Hey, Gi!” I shout from inside the truck. “What are you doing this weekend? And don’t say you have to do some bullshit paper.”
“Absolutely nothing.” We both smile at her answer.
“Go with me somewhere?”
“Like a…date?”
“Yeah,” I answer, already knowing what I have to do. “Something like that.”