Chapter 7: Yes I do the losing!

We all sat in a circle in the living room. Jessie suggested playing 'Truth or Dare'.

"This is an outdated game that your parents or even your grandparents tried when they were young. You know the rules. If you can't answer the question or you can't do the dare then you have to drink a glass of beer... bottom's up." Jessie said.

"I got here a deck of cards... so everyone will be given a card, whoever got the lowest card will be asked 'Truth or Dare' by the person who got the highest card..." He added.

"Oh.. What if two or more people got the same number?" Miya asked Jessie.

"Then we will base on the rank of the four suits... Clubs, Spades, Hearts, and Diamonds as the highest, " He explained.

We all agreed on the gameplay and I can see that the girls seem excited to play this game.

"Okay, here we go," Jessie said then shuffled the deck. He distributed one card to each and every one. The girls pick their cards enthusiastically.

We all reveal our cards and Jenna got the lowest and Mike got the highest.

"Why do I have to be first to lose?.." Jenna said then she pouted like a child.

We all just laugh at her and Mike asked her, "'Truth or Dare'?". She picked 'Dare'.

"Hmmm. Post a selfie with your tongue out and tagged a family member," Mike said.

"That's easy!" Jenna said then took her phone out. Took a selfie with her tongue out and posted it in IG tagging her sister. "See? No sweats!" She said bragging.

In the next round, I got the lowest card and Jessie got the highest.

"Truth or Dare?" He asked.

I don't want to do any crazy stuff so I answered, "Truth!".

"What should I ask? Hmmm... Oh! I got one!" He said. I hope it's just an easy one. "What was your most embarrassing moment?" He asked.

"Really? That's what you came up with? That's so cliche!" Jenna blurted.

"I think I know what it was..." Mike said then he gazed at Luke with a silly smile. Luke just sat there with his resting face.

"What's going on?" Pam asked.

"Well, maybe it was when Pam did the lap thing... Yeah... Right?" Niko blurted out then laughed.

"I did that?" Pam asked looking so confused.

I just listened to them not giving any reaction.

"Guys.. Will you please stop it? Let Kris tell us what it is!" Jenna said cutting their exchange of laughter.

"Thanks, Jen," I said then cleared my throat. "Well... What happened last Friday was truly awkward... But I got a different answer.." Everyone started to listen. "..it was on Luke's first day at school... I'm trying to hide from him so I covered my face with a book. And when he was asked where he wants to sit, he said besides the one who reads a book upside down... Everyone was staring at me... I was so embarrassed to realize I'm holding a book upside down," I explained.

"Yeah, that's right! You should have seen his face!" Niko blurted out then laughed. Everyone laughed after him but not Luke, he's just there staring at me.

"Oh, I remember that!" Jenna exclaimed.

"You should! You sold me to a great looking guy," I said.

Everyone stopped laughing and looked at me. Did I say something wrong? I glanced at Luke and his face brighten up.

Jessie and Mike both smiled and teased Luke. Miya and Pam looked at each other confused about what's happening. Niko and Jenna mouthing each other to zip their mouths.

"Uhm. Let's start with the next round, shall we?" I said trying to deter their suspicion. I took the deck off of Jessie's hand and shuffled it. I'm distributing the cards when Pam asked me...

"Why did you hide from him?" She asked still wondering.

"It's a long story, " I answered.

"Okay... You got your cards so let's see who'll lose this time..." I added trying to persuade them to forget what I said and go on with the game.

Niko got the lowest and Miya got the highest.

"So what would it be my love?" Niko said as he swiped at a loose strand of her hair.

"Give me a kiss." She said tapping her pointer finger on her cheek.

"You need to choose first between truth or dare, " Jenna said intruding them.

"Well, obviously my love is picking dare," Niko said.

"Go ahead then... Make lovey-dovey with your girlfriend," Jenna said then moved herself facing them away.

The other boys were cheering for them while Pam looked at them with covetousness. I glanced at Luke and he's still there motionless with his straight face and his eyes pinned on me. What's wrong with him?

Niko kissed Miya on the cheek and she gave him a hug.

"I really want somebody to kiss me like that..." Pam cried out.

"Well, if you're lucky enough... you can ask Kristofer to kiss you," Miya told her. She looked at me then she blushed.

"Or me!" Jessie blurted out raising his hand

"Me too," Mike said raising his hand as well.

I just let out a small laugh. I glimpsed at Luke once again, but this time, he got a serious face.

"Okay... Let's do another round." I said. I gave back the deck to Jessie but then he made a sudden change on the rules.

"Let's give it a twist... If you already did it once, you can't choose the same option, you need to do the other one. So if you already chose 'Truth'... Then you need to do 'Dare' and vice versa.

Everyone agreed to him.

That would mean... I have to do 'Dare' if I lose. I gazed at Pam and she got this weird stare then she bit her lip. Oh-Oh! I just swallowed a lump on the throat.

Jessie distributed the card. I picked up the card and just hold it between my hands. I saw Pam getting excited after she peeked on her card. It seemed like she got the highest card.

I got nervous all of a sudden. If I lose again this time, Pam will definitely ask me to kiss her. I can have my first kiss... Wait... Will it be my first kiss? Well, what happened with me and Luke was not a real kiss. A kiss with Pam will be my very first real kiss. I wanted to get excited but I'm being anxious and I can't explain why. I looked at my hands where my card, no... my destiny lies...

I lift my hand up slowly as my heart pounds... I took a peek on my card...

Shit!

I put down my card revealing 'Two of Clubs', of all the cards in that deck, I got the lowest one.

I heard Pam screamed and revealed her card as well... Ace of Hearts.

Everyone was so shock and started to cheer on Pam.

Kiss! Kiss! Kiss! Kiss!

Then, a card went flying in the middle of their cheers and landed on top of Pam's card... Ace of Diamonds.

"What the!" Pam cried out.

We all looked at the direction where the card came from... And my heart pounded faster... It's from Luke.

"Oh come on! I thought I can get my kiss!" Pam said as she covers her face with her hands and cried on Miya's shoulder.

"So what would it be Mr.Luke Fuentabella?" Mike asked him.

"You can ask for another kiss," Jessie said teasing on him

"No!" Pam exclaimed lifting her head up then went back sulking on Miya's shoulder.

Jenna was looking at me smiling with her glimmering eyes. Fangirl mode on.

I didn't make any remarks on Pam's childishness, or even at Jessie's teasing, I'm just sitting there staring directly at Luke. It's like everything went slower. My heart was battering like crazy! And when Luke said it, my heart skipped a beat.

"Love me."

Miko spurted the beer he has in his mouth while drinking. Pam lifted her head up and stopped crying. Miya, Mike, and Jessie were all in shock! And Jenna broke the silence with a scream!

-----

"You're kidding, right? I can't do that." I said trying to shake what I'm feeling... My ears were getting warm... Is he teasing me again?

"Why can't you?" He asked with a pressing tone.

"Because it's impossible!" I said it loud enough for everyone to hear it.

"Then drink..." He said then let out a smirk.

I felt so defeated. I fell on his trap again.

"Ah! You asked that... to make him take a drink... knowing he can't do it." Niko explained as if he knew it was a plan.

"Aaaah!" Miya and Pam nodded

"Nice man! That's a great idea!" Niko added.

"I'll just take a beer.." I said then I stood up and head to the kitchen area to grab a beer from the cooler. Jessie followed after me.

"My friend Luke is really hard to read. If you don't know him well, you can't tell if he means it or not." He said as he got close to me then leaned on the kitchen bar.

"Sure he is," I said. I grabbed two bottles of beer out of the cooler. I offered the other to Jessie after opening it.

"But when you've been friends with him since high school... I know he meant it." He said then took a gulp.

"I may not have been with him for a long time... but when you have been dealing with his tricks and teasing since the first day you met him... I knew he was playing." I said and took a gulp of my beer as well.

"So.. You mean... You hoped it was true?" He asked with an inquisitive stare.

"Hell No!" I said strongly. He just let out a small laugh and looked over to everyone in the living room.

"I never saw him this happy for a long time now... You see... He lost his mom two years ago and became cold to everybody else after that." He said.

"Oh..." I uttered. I knew the feeling of being left behind when my father left us... But I know it's more painful to lose one of your parents indefinitely. I guess I have to go easy on him from now on... we have something quite the same. I looked at him too and I saw him smiling while chatting with everyone. It's the side of Luke that I want to see more often.

But I don't want Jessie to see me getting soft so I said, "And why are you sharing this with me?"

"Because someone he met recently... changed him back to who he was." He said that while looking at me.

I felt my ears became warm again. Why did I felt this again? Was he referring to me? It can't be. I'm not the only one who he met recently, almost everyone else in the school. It could be somebody else... Yeah. It's not me.

-----

We end our party passed at midnight.

Niko drove Miya and Pam to their home. Mike drove their way with Jessie. And Jenna was picked up by her father. I waved my goodbyes to each one of them when I realized...

"Why are you still here?" I asked Luke.

"I can't leave..." He said with his straight face.

"What? Where's your car?" I asked again.

"I came here along with my friends in Mike's car." He said looking at me.

"But they just left," I said pointing to where Mike drove away.

"Exactly..." He said.

I stepped back a little since I'm being annoyed again.

"Why don't you call them?" I asked with my hands on my sides.

"My phone got drained," he said. He showed me his phone and put it back in his pocket.

I just scoffed at him. I pulled out my phone and tried to search for an available cab to book for him. He grabbed my phone off my hand and said, "Can I stay here for the night?"

"No! You need to go home." I said, a bit irritated.

He then pressed his hand on his temple and swayed a bit. He looked like he's in pain.

"Are you okay?" I asked.

" It's just a headache..." He said as he continued to act in pain.

I took a deep breath and let out a big sigh.

"Okay... Fine..."

I took my phone off of his hand, turned around, and walked back in.

------

"I guess you're fine... sleeping on the couch?" I asked Luke then handed over a pillow and a blanket.

"Yes." He said. He took the pillow and the blanket and set it down on the couch.

He took his phone on the side table and checked on the time. It's about 1:20 AM.

"Hey, I thought you're phone went out of battery...

" I charged it for a bit when we came back in..

Oh. I thought it would be too late to ask him to call his friends to pick him up. I just scoffed and walked my way to my room.

"Hey, Kris..." He called me. I turned around to face him. "Thank you for letting me stay." He added. I just nodded and head back to my room.

What does he want this time? Haist. The thought of him sleeping under the same roof as mine really boggling me. Is it right to let him sleep on the sofa? He said he's fine so I don't need to worry about him.

I walked over to my door and slightly opened it to check on him... He's right there laying on his back and browsing on his phone. He suddenly glanced in my direction and I quickly closed the door hoping he didn't see me.

My heart was racing again then I get spooked out by my ring tone.

"Yes, Jen. Why are you still awake?" I asked.

"My dad prepared a soup for hangover and told me to bring you some... I'll be there early in the morning.." She said quite hastily.

"Oh, thanks... Uhm.. there some-... " I said then she cut me off.

"See you! Bye!" She just dropped the call just like that. I haven't even got the chance to tell her that Luke is sleeping here. Well, I guess it won't be a problem.

I laid down on my bed when I got a message alert. I checked on it and it was Luke.

-->Hey, do you mind to chat?

Well... He thought I'm somebody else. He doesn't have any idea who he's texting to... Could it be, this is what Jessie referred to. The person Luke recently met is someone he hasn't seen in person but talked about things over text messages. If I'm right, then I can get Claire her desired date with Luke in no time.

<--Well, if it's you who's asking, why not?

<--What's keeping you up this late?

-->I just need someone to talk to.

<--You got the right person. I'm here to listen to you anytime.

-->That's great...

<--So what's on your mind?

-->Do you think that love can do anything... even the impossible?

What's with the serious question? I can't imagine Luke can say something like this in person. Well, I watched several series so I know how I can answer this.

<--They say love is a feeling that you can never ignore... When you fell in love... It will grow every day... And if you believe that you already found the right person... Then you need to fight for it... If you will give all of your heart... then love can do anything... Even the impossible.

-->You really amazed me every time.

-->Thank you...

<--I'm glad you like it. If there's nothing else... I need to get back to sleep.

-->Sure...

-->When will I meet you?

<--Soon... Goodnight!

Whew! That went faster than I expected. I guess I can proceed with 'Stage Four', I just need to find the perfect opportunity for them to meet.

I took out my note from my bedside drawer and crossed out 'Stage Three' and underlined 'Stage Four'. I won't need to worry anymore about how can I pay Claire back.

-----

I woke up around 6:30 AM. I got up from my bed and took my towel. I went out of my room and I saw Luke still sleeping... I just moved past him and went ahead to take a shower... After I'm done, I went out of the bathroom wearing only boxers with the towel on my shoulder, and as I expected Luke was still sleeping... I walked over to him and started to stare on his face... He even looks handsome while sleeping... He got this bright skin that really compliments his subtle lips and fine nose... Somehow I miss his eyes... Will you open your eyes for me?

Then suddenly he did.. I got startled and moved back quickly.

"Good... Morning... Sexy..." He said as he got up and scratched his eyes...

"Shut up, Luke," I said. Then I went back to my room.

-----

When I got out of my room I'm already wearing a white shirt. Luke was already sitting on the couch checking his phone. His shirt was crumpled and there were some spilled drink stains.

"You want to take a shower?" I asked.

He stood up and said, "I didn't bring any spare shirt."

I can let you borrow mine. It seems like we both have the same size.

I saw him stare at my crotch area then gazed to his own.

"Hey!" I blurted out snapping my fingers.

He then glanced up at me and just smiled.

"What a pervert..." I mumbled. I went back to my room and prepared for him a shirt, a spare toothbrush, a pair of socks, and even new underwear.

"Here..." I said as I handed over the stuff. "I even put there an underwear.. don't worry... It's never been used." I added then walked over to the kitchen to prepare some breakfast.

"Do you want to join me in the shower?" He called out teasing me as he walked towards the bathroom.

"No!" I exclaimed while heating the pan to fry some eggs.

-----

I heard the doorbell rang. Then I remembered Jen will be here to give some of the soup that his father prepared. I turned off the pan and placed the bacon along with eggs and toasted loaf bread on the plates.

"I'm coming in! Tope!" She yelled then I heard her came in the front door.

"Wait! Jen!" I rushed out of the kitchen and at the same time Luke walked out of the bathroom with only a towel wrapped around his waist.

"Kris! Where can I get changed?" He asked holding on to the towel. Then he took notice of Jen standing in the middle of the living room.

I saw Jen motionless staring at Luke with a dropped jaw. Suddenly, there was blood that came out of her nose. She dropped the bag where she has the soup in storage. I saw her eyes rolled up and she fell back in a faint.

"Jen!" I ran up to her and lift her up. "Are you okay? Jen!" I shook her body and slapped her gently to wake her up. She opened her eyes still quite dizzy.

"What happened? I think... I saw a naked angel" she said as she lifted herself up and scratched her head.

"Is she okay?" Luke asked as he stepped closer to us.

"There he is!" Jenna exclaimed then fainted again.

"What are you doing? Go! get dressed in my room!" I yelled at him then he took the stuff that I gave him to wear and head inside my room to get changed.

I lift Jen up and placed her down the couch. I grabbed a magazine under the center table and started fanning to help her get some air.

I knew she would be surprised to see Luke here with me but I never imagined it would end up like this. You're so silly, Jen.

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