Chapter Twenty-eight

Luke's P.O.V

"So Luke, what is this Halloween frat party you've sent us a text about?" Hailee smiled as she twirled a frizzy, curly strand of her hair with her finger. "Who told you about it?"

"Jacob did," I replied while taking out my chemistry notes. "He told me to invite everyone I knew to the party."

"A frat party, huh?" Kason smiled to himself. "Sounds really fun. Do we have to dress up or something since it's Halloween?"

"It's recommended that you dress up, but you don't have to," I answered while smiling. I looked over in Chloe's direction to see that she was deep in thought. I couldn't even tell if she heard anything I said.

"I know what I'm going as," Hailee smirked, "but I have to go buy the costume."

I could only imagine what that costume was.

"I'm not sure what I'll dress up as," Kason wondered to himself. "But I guess I better hurry up and get my costume since Halloween isn't that far away. What are you going to dress up as, Chloe?"

Chloe snapped out of her daze, looked at Kason and shrugged. "I'm not sure that I even want to go," she said simply.

"What?!" Hailee exclaims. "But you have to go! I'll make you go!"

Please do.

"I know exactly what's going to happen and I don't want to be there. You know how I handled being at a club, and I'm sure it'll be the same there," Chloe told Hailee while shaking her head.

I remembered her at the club where I had driven to go pick her up. Chloe clearly hated it there and wanted nothing to do with the people around her. Maybe if she couldn't handle being there she couldn't handle being at a frat party. It was pretty much the same thing: booze, dancing, and a horde of people.

"And what exactly happened at the club?" Kason raised his eyebrow, leaning forward in his chair so that he could get a better look at Chloe.

Chloe opened her mouth to respond but was interrupted by the professor.

"Let us begin," Dr. Knapp said in his microphone in a slow, monotone voice.

"Never mind," Chloe muttered and started scribbling in her notebook.

After chemistry was over, I walked with her to theater appreciation wondering how I could address the situation. I really, really wanted her to go to the frat party. It was the perfect time to confess my feelings for her.

"Are you sure that you don't want to go to the Halloween frat party?" I asked as we walked underneath the shade of the trees.

Chloe sighed and nodded. "Yeah, I'm pretty sure."

I bit my lip. I knew she didn't want to go. I knew it wasn't her scene, but I really, really wanted her to go. I would do anything for her to be there. "What makes you not want to go?" I asked, hoping that once I figured out why she didn't want to go I could then somehow convince her to go.

She furrowed her brows and looked up at me as if I was crazy, but that look quickly washed away from her face. "You of all people would know why," she said quietly as she looked away from me.

"I do know, but I just want to know the ultimate reason why you wouldn't go," I said and shifted her backpack on my shoulder.

Color rushed to her cheeks as she laughed uneasily. "I know it sounds stupid–"

"What you have to say is never stupid, Chloe," I interrupted her, not wanting to hear her say that anything she had to say was stupid because it wasn't true. "Someone's true feelings are never stupid."

She smiled slightly. "Well thanks for saying that, but still… I'll probably sound stupid anyway."

"What did I just say?" I grinned, shaking my head. "I thought I just told you that what you have to say is never stupid."

"I know," Chloe smiled. "I guess my main reason for not wanting to go to the party is because I know I'll end up alone."

"What do you mean? What about Hailee? Won't she be with you?" I asked, puzzled.

"As if," Chloe huffed out. "I know Hailee. As soon as we got into the party she would separate from me and go hang out with Marshall or something. I don't blame her for leaving me. I'm just not like other people who enjoy partying like she does."

I wanted to say that she was wrong but thinking back to Hailee, it wasn't out of character for her to do something like that. Hailee enjoyed attention, that much was clear. That was just part of her personality. "You won't be alone," I gulped nervously. "You have me."

"What?" she immediately made eye contact with me and raised her eyebrows, her cheeks turning a slight pink color.

I could feel heat rush to my cheeks as I smiled nervously. "I'll be with you at the party, so you aren't alone."

Chloe then laughed. "It sounds more like you pity me rather than you actually want to hang out with me."

"That's not true…" I trailed off.

"Is that so?" she cocked her eyebrow and folded her arms.

"Just hang out with me at the party," I laughed, feeling a little hopeless. At this rate I could never convince her to go to the frat party.

"Let's be theoretical here and say that what if I did go to the party… would you be hanging out with me the entire time or just a small bit of time?" The corners of her mouth turned downward as she had asked the question, almost as if she already knew the answer.

"However much time you want," I responded without thinking.

"I have to warn you, when I'm stuck in social situations like that I cling to the nearest person I know or else I will go hide in a corner and sulk," she joked but hiding behind her smirk was a look of sadness. Knowing her, she would go in a corner.

My lips curled into a small smile. "Then hang out with me the entire time," I said carefully, watching her face to see any reaction.

She seemed a little surprised by my words. "Really? Are you sure?"

"I'm sure."

"Wouldn't you want to be hanging out with Jacob or something?"

It's funny how she brought him up. "If anyone wanted to hang out with me they could, but they would also be hanging out with you, too."

"Yeah, but isn't that a little weird? Wouldn't they think it's weird?" she asked, her face scrunching in confusion.

"I'm pretty sure you're the only one who thinks it's weird. No one else cares. Who knows, you may make more friends while you're there and end up ditching me," I grinned.

"Unlikely," she snorted, and we laughed.

"So... will you go to the party?" I asked, looking at her with hopeful eyes.

"Ehh..." She paused and glanced up at me. "Will you promise that you'll hang out with me the entire time?"

"I promise," I nodded, holding my hand up.

"Okay... then I'll go," she said softly.

I raised my eyebrows and smiled. "You'll go?" I was a little surprised by her words. Earlier she sounded so sure of herself that she didn't want to go, but now it was a completely different story. She wanted to go, and I somehow convinced her to that she should go–all by just offering to hang out with her the entire time. If I had known that was all it took, I would have said it sooner. For future reference I should probably take a mental note of what happened. Chloe Claire didn't like being alone. Got it.

"Only if I get to bother you the entire time," she said, her downturned lips curling into a rapturous smile.

I laughed and held open the door for her as she walked inside the building. I was extremely happy with myself. Chloe was coming to the Halloween frat party, and I could finally confess my feelings to her.