Chapter 4.

When Luka finally got home, she was in a particularly good mood. Three movies, friends, and being wrapped in a blankets will do that to you. As soon as she entered her home, the young woman yawned. She greeted her parents, and they noted her mood.

She then jogged up the stairs and sat on her bed, logging on to her laptop and taking out some work she had to finish. She wanted to change into her pyjamas, but decided against it, knowing that she'd want to curl up in bed.

'Actually,' she thought to herself, beginning to browse the internet, 'I had quite a nice day today.' She had! She hadn't known what to expect on her day out with Len, but it had been nice. Usually when boys took her out - which hadn't been for ages since Gakupo - it was rushed and awkward and not really very pleasant. Not because they were 'bad people' or anything.

Luka just wasn't very good with boys in a romantic sense.

For one, she rarely got crushes. When she said things like, 'He's attractive,' no feelings went with the phrase. It was just a nice compliment. And of course, like all other girls, she'd had awful first crushes, and first kisses and just general embarrassment.

In fact, she remembered her and her group of young friends discussing first kisses. She wasn't friends with the girls anymore, they'd grown up and gone. She wasn't in contact with her first kiss, either.

It seemed very strange. That very first person who had stolen her heart and her lips, was now gone, with very few memories. It didn't bother her at all - it was only a crush, after all, - but it did seem very strange. To her, anyway.

Despite being sixteen and intelligent, Luka had had no idea how to kiss. She had held his hand frigidly, smiling at him sheepishly after their lips brushed. They had kissed again afterwards, though, he was finding it easier - he was gaining skills much quicker than she did.

But Gakupo, had changed all that. He'd taught her how to kiss in many different ways. He'd taught her hose to slide down stairs in a duvet, and how not to get scared after watching horror films. He'd taught her how to make different alcoholic concoctions, and hangover remedies for the morning after.

Luka shook her head, looking intently at the laptop screen. She wasn't supposed to b thinking about him so much. She thought about her day with Len instead, about chips with ketchup and mayo, and that dopey film. A snapshot popped into her head, of Len grinning at her in the rain as they ran. His hand lingered near hers; an open invitation.

Just as Luka began to work, her mobile phone buzzed. She had thrown it on the bed upon entry of her room, and it took her half a minute to find it buried underneath pillows and covers. She picked it up, and shoved it near her ear.

"Hello?"

"Oh, hey, Luka!" Meiko's voice was loud, but not nearly as in-your-face and cheerful as usual.

"Oh, hi, Meiko. Did you need help with work, or something?"

"Hey! I'm not that bad," Meiko protested. "But, no. I have something to tell you, because I thought you should know. Immediately."

The brunette's voice had gone deadly serious, which was always worrying. Meiko was one of those people - one of those, spirited, passion people who would make a great instructor for a gym. However, when she was serious, there was always bad news.

"There isn't some strange rumour about us, is there?" Luka wondered, ignorant to what was really going on.

"No, no," Meiko replied, sounding uneasy. "You see, it's Gakupo."

"Yep."

"He's found a girlfriend."

Luka paused. Surely that couldn't be true? Maybe Gakupo and Kaito were just trying to fool Meiko. Probably. He couldn't have moved on that quick.

"And it's Lily," Meiko finished, waiting for an outburst at the other end of the phone. She was actually quite worried about Luka. Her best friend was so sweet and smart and independent, but her and Gakupo had been dating since, well, a long time. Two years?

"That explains her mild attitude on Friday," Luka murmured. Why must good days always be ruined?

"Are you alright?"

"Yes, yes," Luka insisted, although her voice sounded flustered and hurt. She had the right to be hurt. Her newly ex-boyfriend with one of her best friends? What a disaster.

"Well, do you want to talk, or…?"

"No thanks, I've got work to catch up on," Luka said, her voice zoning into a gentle, cold, calm. "Thank you, Meiko. I'll speak to you tomorrow."

"Seeya Luka," Meiko said weakly. The phone call ended, and Luka was left all alone.

"How could he?" She asked nobody in particular. "How could he just, just do that to me?" She ran her hands across the top of her head, looking at different sections of the floor. What about Lily? Had she always felt like that towards him?

What if they'd been together all along?

She didn't know who to call, or talk to. She didn't want to burden Meiko or Kaito, and obviously, Lily was out of the question. Usually, she would've called Gakupo.

But now, instead of fighting with her, he was on the opposite team.

She couldn't talk to her parents. They probably assumed she'd gotten over him by now. But hearts don't heal quickly, and Luka felt particularly damaged.

She went through her mobile phone, and paused on Gakupo's name and number. Before she knew what she was doing, the phone was ringing and her heart was racing.

"Gakupo?" She was whispering, not sure about why she'd rung him at all.

"Luka? You okay?" He sounded so calm and nice, as if he was a knight in shining armour. Evidently not hers, but how could he act like he wasn't already dating somebody else? He was killing her with kindness.

She forced herself to smile, even though he couldn't see her. "Yes, fine, thank you. Will you meet me tomorrow morning? We could get coffee." She sounded so friendly and tempting, especially with the offer of coffee thrown into the mix. "As friends."

"Oh," Gakupo sounded relieved. Maybe he thought he was going to get a bashing. Luka didn't really know what she wanted to do with him. She supposed she would have liked to clip him round the ear, ask him questions and annoy him.

But, a sad Gakupo is a sorry sight to see.

"Sure," Gakupo agreed. "Is there anything else you wanted? I've just got some work to do, but, it can wait, I suppose."

Did he feel guilty?

"No, that's all I needed." She ended the phone call hastily. Why had she done that? She felt awful for no reason, plus there was all that sadness and betrayal surging through her body. Not only Gakupo, but Lily? Couldn't they have waited a week or so, just to spare her feelings?

"Or am I being selfish?" This question, was directed at herself. When Luka was in sad moods, she often asked herself questions, worried about the type of person she was, and the type of person she was becoming. People and their opinions change all the time, and sometimes it felt like Luka lost track of herself in the world, despite living in the same house she was born in, attending the local college, and still looking after the same set of twins.

But, the world was like that. Overwhelming and vast, making it hard to place yourself into it. Hard to not feel lost in the sea's of people; hard to develop a personality and thrive; hard to learn lessons quickly enough so you didn't get hurt. It was hard not to feel lost, especially when every couple of years, social groups change. New faces, new feelings, and sometimes new places.

"Why was I not good enough?" That was certainly not the last question that Luka would ask herself that night. She would wonder until she was wide awake, waiting for something to happen to make things okay.

But, the world does not work like that. Sometimes, to make the best of your situation, you have to look in the most obvious places. You may be surprised by what you find.

AN: A slightly shorter chapter, so my apologies for that. A bit serious here, ehehe... Anybody surprised? Reviews are appreciated so much!:)