Chapter Twenty-nine

Chloe's P.O.V

I went back to my dorm that night feeling a weird sensation in the pit of my stomach. How did I let Luke Armstrong convince me to go to the stupid frat party with him? I took my laptop out of my backpack, set it down on my desk, and put my backpack in the floor next to my bed.

My heart started to pound wildly thinking about what had happened during the past couple of weeks. I've felt things that I haven't felt in a long time, and I owed it all to Luke. There was no going around it. I liked Luke Armstrong. That much was clear to me, but there was something else that bothered me. The way Luke had been acting around me lately…well…it wasn't exactly normal…or was it? I must have been crazy to think that I lived in a world where Luke Armstrong could ever like a girl like me… but was it? I wasn't so sure.

Luke was just acting differently lately, or had he been acting like this the entire time? He was such a good guy, offering to hang out with me the whole time at the Halloween frat party. He could only have offered it out of pity or that he genuinely liked me enough to hang out with me for that long. It was one or the other. I just couldn't quite decipher which one it was. My heart was telling me one thing while my brain was telling me another.

I stared at his contact in my phone and smiled at the silly picture of Luke I had taken in class. Maybe I should start listening to my heart for once.

"I'm here!" Hailee called out into our dorm as I heard the door open.

I opened my door to my bedroom and peered around the corner to see Hailee throwing her keys on the kitchen counter, carrying a coffee in her other hand. "Hey Hailee," I smiled uneasily and walked out of my bedroom.

Hailee scrunched up her eyebrows and analyzed me with her bright blue eyes. "What's wrong, Chloe?"

"Nothing," I said and rubbed my left arm as I leaned against the wall.

"Come on," Hailee rolled her eyes. "You can't just expect me to think that you're okay when you're acting like that."

"Acting like what?" I bit my lip.

"Like that, jeez Louise," she shook her head, her tight, bouncy curls shaking from side to side.

I wanted to tell Hailee what I was thinking, but I was worried about the outcome. She liked Luke, but so did I. I wondered if I should stop liking him because of her. It didn't seem fair. Someone's heart was bound to get broken, and it might as well be mine.

"What is it that you want to tell me?" she asked as she plopped on the couch, her arm resting on one of the sailor pillows.

I sat down in the arm chair and cleared my throat. Should I even tell Hailee? Nope. "I decided that I'm going to the Halloween frat party," I said, my eyes looking down at the coffee table as I rubbed my hands against the tops of my thighs nervously.

Hailee's eyes lit up. "Really?" she asked excitedly.

I nodded. "Really."

Hailee set her drink on the coffee table and squealed, jumping up and down.

I hope we aren't bothering our neighbors.

"That's great news!" she said and grabbed my hands. "So, what made you decide to come?"

"Uh…" I trailed off, feeling my cheeks turn a bright pink.

Hailee studied my face for a moment and pushed up her glasses, her blue eyes widening. "Oh. My. God."

"What?" I asked nervously, bouncing my right leg up and down.

Hailee sighed and folded her arms. "I thought we went over this a million times already, but oh well, guess I'll have to say it again," she said, sipped her coffee and sat down.

I sighed, and my stomach twisted in knots. I really didn't want to hear what she had to say because I knew it would upset me.

"Luke Armstrong does not like you, Chloe Claire," she raised her eyebrows, resting her arms on her legs.

I felt a pang in my chest as soon as I heard the words. I wanted to completely believe her, but I couldn't. There had to be something between us or why else would my heart be reacting the way it did? It couldn't just be me who thought there was something–well, it could be just me. "I'm sorry that it had to be this way, Hailee–I really am–but I like Luke." The moment the words came out of my mouth I couldn't believe myself. I told Hailee that I liked him–I told Hailee that I liked him.

"But of course you do, isn't it obvious?" she cried out, pulling on her frizzy hair. "You've always liked him."

"And is that a problem?" I argued, folding my arms. I didn't know what had gotten into me. Where did this Chloe come from? "Hailee, you don't realize how hard it is for me to admit that I like the guy that you like. I never wanted it to be this way, but I just had to come clean. I didn't like him this entire time, Hailee, I swear. It's just that lately…well…things have been different between us."

"If it was so hard for you to admit that you liked him why didn't you keep your mouth shut?" she snapped.

"You practically forced it out of me!" I gritted my teeth. My blood was boiling, and I couldn't control myself. Normal Chloe wouldn't act like this to Hailee.

She rolled her eyes. "I can't force anything out of you and you know it! I just don't understand how you could believe that he liked you too!"

My throat started to close, and my eyes began to water. "I have been nothing but supportive of you, Hailee, and this is how you treat me?" I muttered. "You can't even be supportive of me?"

"It's hard to be supportive of the person who likes the guy I like!" she said while raising her voice. She looked me in my eyes and her expression softened. "Chloe, don't cry," Hailee frowned, her fists clenching until they were a pale white. "You know I'm not trying to be mean."

"Well I don't know," I sniffed, refusing to shed one, single tear. I didn't cry easily, and I refused to cry over something as petty as this. "Why are you so against it, Hailee?" I asked, looking up at her.

"It's not that I'm so against it, Chloe. If I knew Luke liked you I would've told you," she smiled slightly. "Besides, why would I still like a guy who liked my best friend? It's a little weird isn't it?"

"No," I said plainly. "It also wouldn't be weird for you to like the same guy as me." I laughed a little. "I mean, we do right now."

"I just want what's best for you, Chloe," Hailee stood up and placed her hands on my shoulders, staring me right in my eyes. "Remember in sixth grade what I told you about Luke?"

My mouth twitched at the thought. "I remember…"

"He called you Miss Piggy and that he could never like a girl as fat and ugly as you," Hailee said carefully, watching my expression shift.

My heart felt another pang. "You don't have to remind me, Hailee," I said through gritted teeth. Everything she said made me feel even worse. It made it seem impossible that Luke could like me.

"I just had to remind you for your own good. I don't want your heart being broken," Hailee said and pulled me into a hug.

I remembered the day Hailee told me that Luke didn't like me, and the thought of that horrible day still haunted me. It was the reason I couldn't face Luke for years, but Luke was different now–or was he? NO. Stop it, Chloe. Listen to your heart for once. Don't let Hailee try and tell you differently.

"I'm going to tell him that I like him," I said, surprisingly myself even further that I would say such a thing.

"W-what?" Hailee trembled, her eyes widening even more. "You're going to tell Luke Armstrong that you like him?"

I bit my lip and nodded, realizing what I needed to do. I needed to tell Luke my feelings for him once and for all. I couldn't push my feelings for him aside just because Hailee liked him. I needed to know if he liked me back, and something deep in my heart told me that it was a possibility. Why else would he constantly offer to carry my bookbag, text me almost every day, walk with me to class, and ask me to a frat party saying that we could hang out the entire time? I felt so stupid that I didn't realize these things until now. He liked me!

"B-but you can't tell him that you like him," Hailee shook her head.

"And why not?" I cocked my eyebrow.

"Well…isn't that a little bold of you? Shouldn't the guy be the one who confesses his feelings first?" Hailee scrunched her eyebrows, her face looking a little annoyed.

"You do know that girls can confess their feelings to guys right? It's not just a guy thing."

"I know but…I already told you that he doesn't like you. What makes you think that you should tell him? It's not a good idea."

"I know you told me that he doesn't like me but I just have to give it a chance, okay? Why don't you try and tell him your feelings, too?"

Hailee's cheeks turned a light pink, which was a little unusual. I never saw her flustered–never. "I'm just waiting, that's all."

"Waiting doesn't get you anywhere," I said, standing up from the armchair and walking to my bedroom.