Clarity
A/N: Just a short chapter to move things along.
Chapter 4
Studying.
It used to be the only thing Lucas ever did. But he hadn't had much free time since Peyton had so suddenly come into his life. It had been two weeks since she had moved in next door and it had been that long since Lucas had cracked open one of his text books. While he still cared about school, it seemed to be slipping down a few notches on the importance level.
But he had dusted off his books to prepare for his upcoming midterms. Lucas knew the material, but studying was his reassurance. Peyton had called him earlier that night to see if he wanted to catch a movie and Lucas had reluctantly asked for a rain check. Two hours into his science lecture notes his eyes felt strained and the beginnings of a headache throbbed in his temples. After awhile all the words and figures had begun to look hazy.
He didn't realize he had dozed off until a light knock on his bedroom door stirred him awake.
"Come in." he rubbed a hand over his messy hair. He had expected his mom to walk through his door with an arm full of laundry, but was surprised to find Peyton leaning in his doorframe. "Hey."
"I know you said you were studying but I'm really bored next door. My dad had to drive back to South Carolina for the week, get some things for his business cleared up. So I'm home alone and that big empty house is a little overwhelming."
"I'd love to get out of the house and do something Peyton, but I have this science midterm coming up that I have to be ready for." He didn't want to kick her out, but he had all this work. "I won't be much fun but you can stay in here while I study."
"Thanks Lucas. The only thing I need to keep me company is some music."
"I keep the cd's over on my bookshelf." After pointing her in the right direction he turned his attention back to the book in front of him. She crossed the room and looked over his collection, impressed by his taste in music.
"You have quite the selection here. Travis, Dashboard Confessional, Snow Patrol, The Get Up Kids, this is good stuff Lucas."
"I like all the lesser known stuff, the stuff not everyone knows about."
It was then that she noticed the small personal touches along the shelves of his bookcase. They were the things that were out on display but no one was ever really supposed to see. There were framed pictures of him and his mother scattered about, she smiled as her eyes trailed over a picture of him dressed as a clown for what she assumed was Halloween. He must have been four years old at the time. There was an assortment of basketball trophies tucked in between books, she could tell by the dates that he had stopped playing when he was around thirteen.
His collection of books impressed her even more than the cd's. He must have had close to fifty paperback books stacked in every available crevice of the bookshelf. The spine of almost every book was worn with a thick crease down the center. It was obvious that the books had been put to good use. She pulled a tattered copy of Slaughterhouse-Five from the shelf and moved towards his bed where she sprawled out on top of his blue plaid comforter, propped up on her elbows with his discman turned on.
The sight of a beautiful girl making herself comfortable on his bed was enough to distract him from his textbook. He watched her become completely absorbed in the music, her head nodding with the steady beat of the bass. He wanted nothing more at that moment than to know what song she was listening to.
She could feel his eyes on her. It wasn't that he made her feel self-conscious, he just looked at her in a way that no one else ever had.
She turned her head slightly and looked over her shoulder to meet his gaze. He looked like a deer caught in the headlights when he found out he had been caught by her, but as she stared at him with amusement something in his eyes changed. There was a burst of confidence that suddenly lit up his eyes. She pulled the earphones off and waited for him to say something.
"I was just trying to memorize the lines of your face." He bluffed, giving her the same explanation she had given him during their trip to the mall.
Peyton stared at him with a wide smile before tossing her head back and laughing loudly before putting the headphones back on. She had an infectious laugh.
He tried to concentrate on his book for the fifth time but he wasn't going to get anything out of reading now. He went back to watching Peyton, only this time he tried to avoid getting caught by looking out of the corner of his eye. While he should have been paying attention to his work all he really wanted to do was kiss her.
