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Julie slid into the back of Eats&Beats right as Luke and his band were taking the stage.
She meant to be there earlier, so she could talk to Luke before his set, but she had ended up spending too much time agonizing over her outfit with Flynn and missed the bus. So she’d had to wait for the next one, and that had made her arrive right as the set was starting. She just hoped Luke would be able to see her over the crush of bodies.
Her friendship (and crush on) with Luke Patterson was kind of a fluke. After some trouble at home with his parents, he had run away for most of his sophomore year. He’d been forced back home after an incident with tainted hot dogs that landed him, Alex, and Reggie in the hospital. But he’d made a compromise with his parents, that he at least graduate high school. And that was how he’d ended up in her Junior English Lit class last fall—he’d had to take some lower grade classes (and summer school) to make up the lost credits from when he’d been a teen runaway.
They had first been paired together for a creative writing assignment. Ironically, it had been a poetry assignment. They were to write a poem together and then turn in an explanation for their thought process—rhyme scheme and word choice, subject, symbolism, the whole nine yards.
Julie had been surprised to find that Luke was actually excited about the project. He’d bounced over to her after class and asked for her number, so they could set up a time to get together to work that weekend. And he’d spent the entire afternoon that Saturday gushing about how music was basically poetry set to a beat and how it was all a way to connect to people.
They hadn’t actually gotten anything done that day. But his overenthusiasm had made Julie forget her own unenthusiastic feelings and she had gone to bed that night thinking about what he had said about connection and feeling people through music and had wondered if that worked with people who were no longer there.
Julie had woken up the next morning, stormed into her mom’s studio, and sang and played the piano for the first time in the almost year since her mom had died.
And Luke had been right. Every time she had played since, Julie had felt that same connection with her mom that she felt the first time. She hadn’t told him that his words had inspired her to play again, but over the course of that project they had built a tentative friendship. She had fully expected it to be a school only friendship, where they paired up for projects in class and shared notes when one of them was out, but Luke had surprised her yet again. The very next day, after they had turned in their poetry project, he had texted her, saying wasn’t she in the music program and would she look over some lyrics he had been toying with because she had been so good at writing poetry she had to have some talent at writing lyrics too .
And the rest, as they say, was history. They started writing songs together, and Julie sat in on some Sunset Curve rehearsals, and Luke had quickly become her very best friend (besides Flynn of course). She told him everything, about her mom and about her struggles with playing again, and he helped her through it all. And she returned the flavor, helping him with his parents and encouraging him to show Unsaid Emily to his mom. Before she knew it, Luke was the first and last person she talked to everyday. Their friend groups meshed, and Julie and Flynn started sitting with the band every day at lunch. They were more than school friends, they were friend friends, and sometimes Julie didn’t really know how it had happened.
And somewhere along the line, she had fallen for him. And she fell hard.
Julie was head over heels for Luke. Something that Flynn would never let her forget, like she even could. He was always on her mind, whether he was around or not. And he seemed to always be around.
So that morning, when he had approached her locker, Julie hadn’t thought much of it. He often sought her out in the mornings before class to talk about a song he was working on or something or other. But he had looked somewhat nervous, and she had paused for a moment.
“Hey, boss,” he said, rubbing the back of his neck. The “boss” nickname was something he’d picked up a few weeks ago, when she had been workshopping a song with him and the band. He’d called her bossy, and just kept using it. It gave her a thrill every time he did.
“Hey,” she said with a bright smile. Seeing Luke always made her happy. “What’s up?”
“I, uh, wanted to ask you…” he paused to swallow hard, “if maybe you’d want to come to the Sunset Curve gig tonight?”
Julie tilted her head. She didn’t really understand why he seemed so nervous. She’d been to see Sunset Curve perform at various open mics several times by now.
Luke rushed to continue. “The owner of Eats&Beats offered us a full set tonight. About ten or eleven songs, actually. I was hoping… you could be there?”
Julie threw her arms around Luke’s neck as she squealed in excitement. He caught her easily, tucking his own smile into her shoulder.
“A whole set?! Luke, that’s amazing!” she exclaimed when she pulled away. He kept his arms around her, his thumbs making circles on her waist. “ Of course I’ll be there!”
Luke smiled softly at her, watching her excitement for him. He pulled her a little bit closer to him as he said, “And then, I thought, I could maybe buy you dinner? You know, after?”
His expression was shy again. Julie searched his face for confirmation that he was asking what she thought he was asking.
Finally, she just broke down and said, “What, like a date?”
Luke’s hands dropped from her waist and he took a step back. He rubbed the back of his neck again and stammered, “I-I mean, yeah, I was hoping— I mean, if you wanted—“
She cut him off by grabbing the hand on his neck to hold between them. Luke studied it, his cheeks and ears pink.
“Yes, I’d love to go on a date with you,” Julie said softly, reclosing the gap between them.
His eyes shot up to hers, an ecstatic grin stretching across his face. “Yeah?”
Julie laughed, giddy. “Yeah!”
Luke whooped and picked her up in a hug, spinning her around. She just laughed and clutched his shoulders. When he put her down, he smacked a kiss to her cheek and muttered something about seeing her later before dashing off to class. She had watched him leave, feeling like her stomach was an entire butterfly farm.
And that was what led to her being at Eats&Beats tonight, slightly late because she couldn’t choose between two different outfits. Julie stood on her tiptoes, trying to see the stage better and catch Luke’s eye. He was retuning his guitar, his brow furrowed. Every so often, he would look up and search the crowd, no doubt looking for her.
Julie huffed and pushed her way through the people in front of her. She got a few grumbles but she didn’t care. She was intent on getting to the front, right by the stage.
She saw the moment Luke clocked her as she sidled right up to the side of the stage. There were no barriers, like at a concert, so she could get as close as she wanted. He beamed at her, and leaned down to speak to her for a minute.
“Hi,” she whispered, a huge grin to match his on her face. “Sorry, I’m late. Couldn’t decide what to wear.” She blushed. Luke’s grin widened at her admission.
“It’s okay,” he said, just as softly. He bit his bottom lip and looked her up and down. “You look amazing.”
Julie giggled. “Thanks. Now, go bring the house down, rockstar.”
He swooped down and kissed her cheek, like he had that morning, before standing back up and going over to his mic.
“Hi, we’re Sunset Curve—“
“Tell your friends!”
“—And this is Now or Never.”
Alex counted them in, and they launched into their opener with enthusiasm. Julie had seen them perform before, so she knew the energy Luke had on stage. But this performance… he seemed to have doubled everything ten fold. He was electric. And every time he looked at her, his grin became that much wider and he seemed to light up from the inside.
When the song finished, Luke was back at his mic to speak to the crowd.
“Alright, Eats&Beats! The illustrious owner of this fine establishment has decided to let us play a full set for you guys tonight. So we’ve decided to do a mix of covers and some original songs. Sing along if you know it!”
And with that, they slid into a cover of She’s a Beauty by The Tubes. Every time they sang the line “she’s a beauty” Luke winked at Julie, making her roll her eyes. After The Tubes, they started a cover of Crash My Car by COIN.
Luke met her eyes again as he leaned into the mic and sang, “I’ll drive you home at the end of the night.”
He raised his eyebrows, making it a question for her. Julie laughed and nodded.
They took a slight break after the COIN cover to get water and converse with the crowd. Luke introduced the band, and they bantered back and forth for a minute before the boys started Lakeside Reflection.
Julie was vibing with their set. They had chosen a good mix of covers to show their range, and they were killing each song they played. She felt a swell of pride in her chest as she watched Luke on stage.
After they finished Lakeside Reflection, Luke leaned into the mic again and said, “We’re gonna slow it down a little with this next song. It’s a little more sultry than anything we’ve played so far, but sing along if you know it. This is Girl on the Moon by Foreigner.”
Bobby kicked the song off with a slow finger picked guitar intro and a steady drum beat. Luke came in soon after with slower, more distorted guitar, Alex backing him up with a steady drum beat. Reggie’s baseline faded more into the background, but it held all the other instruments together seamlessly.
Luke leaned into the mic and met Julie’s eyes. The intensity in his face startled her a little, but then he started to sing and his eyes never left hers. He was singing directly to her.
It's night, again
Time for my mind to go wandering
Off on a journey, through space and time
In search of a face I can never find
So I close my eyes and look inside
He closed his eyes briefly after that line, but when he started the next one he was looking at her again.
I can't forget
The night that I saw her we never met
She felt so close to me as I reached for her hand
She drifted away like the desert sand
It was her and she was gone
I wish she'd come back tonight
Like a star shining bright
On that line, Luke’s mouth quirked up in a small smile, no doubt thinking of all the times he’d said, “You’re a star, Julie.”
I don't know where she's from
She's like a girl on the moon
A girl on the moon
She's like a girl on the moon
A girl on the moon
Luke stepped away from the mic and broke their eye contact as he played a guitar solo. It wasn’t particularly complicated, not like Julie knew he could play, but it was slow and precise. He watched his fingers as he picked out the high notes and shook the neck a little to get some distortion on some of the longer notes. The solo was definitely sultry, like he had said at the beginning, and Julie closed her eyes and got lost in it.
She opened them again when she heard Luke’s voice return. He was already staring at her.
Yeah it's night, once again
And that same old feeling is setting in
It all seems so familiar but I hope this time
That the girl on the moon will soon be mine
All mine, tonight
Julie sucked in a breath. Oh. She was the girl on the moon .
Am I asking too much
Should I leave my dream untouched
Should I even know where she's from
My, girl on the moon
She's my girl on the moon
The song ended with the other boys harmonizing in the background on girl on the moon and was that French that she heard being thrown in there? It didn’t matter. Her heart was pounding, and Julie was staring at Luke with a new appreciation.
No one had ever performed a song for her before. He smiled at her and somehow it was both the brightest smile she’d ever seen and the softest. She didn’t have much time to reflect on the song, though, because they immediately launched into Late Last Night. It wasn’t as sultry as the Foreigner cover, but it also had a slower tempo than the other songs they had been playing.
Julie danced along to the music, her curls bouncing around her face. She felt light, like she could float away from happiness. It was how she always felt around Luke.
“Eats&Beats, you’ve been amazing!” Luke said as they finished Late Last Night. “I’m sure everyone will know this next song, so I want to hear you all singing!”
And, to Julie’s surprise, they started playing a rock cover of Adore You by Harry Styles. She smirked at Alex behind the drums, thinking this was his doing. He was the only one of the boys that she knew actively listened to Harry Styles. But Alex just smirked back at her and pointed one of his drumsticks at Luke.
Julie looked at Luke as he started singing the first verse, and that intensity was back in his eyes as he eyed her.
Walk in your rainbow paradise (paradise)
Strawberry lipstick state of mind (state of mind)
I get so lost inside your eyes
Would you believe it?
The boys harmonized beautifully on certain words, a few notes higher than Luke’s main melody. But Julie hardly noticed. She was caught up in Luke’s gaze.
You don't have to say you love me
You don't have to say nothing
You don't have to say you're mine
Honey (ah)
I'd walk through fire for you
Just let me adore you
Oh, honey (ah)
I'd walk through fire for you
Just let me adore you
Like it's the only thing I'll ever do
Like it's the only thing I'll ever do
She couldn’t believe at first that Luke had picked this song, but now she understood. Luke Girl on the Moon, this song was entirely for her. He was confessing to her on stage, through music.
She felt positively giddy.
After Adore You, Luke sang her another song that confessed that he loved it when she said his name. Julie wasn’t completely familiar with it, but she had heard Luke humming it before.
Then, he did something surprising. While introducing the next song, he actually dedicated it to her.
“This next song is another original. It’s the first time we’re playing it, so be nice,” Luke said to the audience. His joke got a few laughs. He glanced back down at her. “We actually had some help with this one, so I’d like to dedicate it to that special person. She knows who she is. This is Bright.”
And then Julie heard a keyboard intro, just like she had suggested while working on the song with Luke. She found Reggie playing the keys in the corner, and he winked at her. She hadn’t even noticed the keyboard, she’d been so focused on Luke. Her gaze swung back to him, her eyes shining, as he started to sing.
Reggie of course couldn’t play the keys the whole song, since he still had to play his bass, but he played them at strategic points throughout. Julie clasped her hands in front of her chest. The butterfly farm was back.
They had taken her suggestions. They were playing it with her suggestions . She felt like she was about to burst.
After Bright, they played two more covers. One was a push baby cover. Julie loved it, and Luke stared her down during the chorus as if to make sure she knew he was singing them to her.
Should I bide my time?
Should I hold my tongue?
What if I let go and everything goes wrong?
Maybe she's in pain?
Maybe she needs love?
'Cause all the love I feel I've got enough for both of us
Have I said too much?
Does she think I'm lying?
Has she ever seen a man when he's been struck by lightning?
And I'll never ever ever ever ever be the same
Their final song was another Foreigner cover. It was slower, like Girl on the Moon, and Julie couldn’t tear her eyes from Luke’s the entire time. He didn’t seem to mind.
So long, I've been looking too hard
I've been waiting too long
Sometimes I don't know what I will find
I only know it's a matter of time
When you love someone
When you love someone
It feels so right, so warm and true
I need to know if you feel it too
Maybe I'm wrong
Won't you tell me if I'm coming on too strong?
This heart of mine has been hurt before
This time I want to be sure
I've been waiting for a girl like you to come into my life
I've been waiting for a girl like you, a love that will survive
I've been waiting for someone new to make me feel alive
Yeah, waiting for a girl like you to come into my life
You're so good
When we make love it's understood
It's more than a touch or a word can say
Only in dreams could it be this way
When you love someone
Yeah, I really love someone
Now, I know it's right
From the moment I wake up 'til deep in the night
There's nowhere on earth that I'd rather be than holding you tenderly
I've been waiting for a girl like you to come into my life
I've been waiting for a girl like you, a love that will survive
I've been waiting for someone new to make me feel alive
Yeah, waiting for a girl like you to come into my life
He was singing to her again. It was almost a question— Was this too much? Is it okay that I feel this strongly? Should I back off?
But Julie didn’t want to tell him to back off. It wasn’t too much. She felt the exact same way, and she was practically melting into a puddle on the floor in front of the stage.
When they finished their set, she barely waited until the last note rang out before she was on stage, throwing herself into his arms. He hadn’t had time to even set his guitar down, and she was careful not to crush it between them as she hugged him.
Luke laughed softly in her ear. “Whoa, Jules, let me put my guitar down.”
She backed away, blushing furiously. As he went to set the guitar on its stand, she caught Alex’s eye and he winked at her. It only made her blush harder and drop her eyes to the floor. Her face felt like it was on fire.
Then Luke was back, and he was scooping her up into a bone crushing hug and swinging her around. When he set her down he said, “So? What’d you think?”
“It was amazing!” Julie gushed. “You guys were amazing!”
“Yeah?”
“Of course! You know I think you’re wonderfully talented.” Julie beamed up at him. “Now, I think I was promised a dinner date?”
Luke chuckled, still grinning from ear to ear. He leaned forward and kissed her forehead before saying, “Yeah, let me just check in with the guys and then we’re good to go.”
Before he could say anything though, Reggie shouted from where he was helping Alex dismantle the drums, “Get out of here, you crazy kids! We’ve got this!”
Luke’s eyebrows furrowed. “You sure, Reg?”
“Double sure,” Alex said. “We’ve got it, Luke. Go have fun on your date.”
Alex wriggled his eyebrows at Julie, winking again, and she blushed. But Luke just rolled his eyes and thanked them before wrapping his arm around her and steering her off the stage and out the door.
“So, where are you taking me?” Julie asked. She peered up at him from underneath his arm. He was slightly sweaty from the performance, and his cut off shirt clung to his chest a little. Not that Julie minded.
Luke ruffled his hair. “I thought we could get tacos from that food truck? Jalapeños?” He flushed. “I know it’s not, like, fancy or anything, but I didn’t think I would be, uh, presentable for a fancy date after the gig.”
“Luke, that sounds perfect,” Julie beamed at him again.
“Oh, good.” He blew out a steadying breath and began to steer her to the food truck that was just up the road. “We can find somewhere to sit and talk? I really will drive you home afterwards, I drove separately from the guys.”
Julie stared up at him, amazed that he had put this much thought into their date. This all sounded perfect, and she felt like the luckiest girl in the world.
They got their food from the truck—Luke insisted on paying—and found a nice bench to sit at while they ate. They rehashed the gig, and Luke made Julie laugh so hard with a story from sound check that her soda almost came out of her nose.
When their conversation slowed down, Luke got his nervous look on again. His hand swooped up to rub the back of his neck. “I, um… well, what did you think of the set list?”
Julie set the last half of her taco down to grab his hand and pull it down from his neck into her lap. “I loved it, Luke. It was very sweet.” She screwed her face up. “Though I don’t know how I feel about the line about loving cocaine in that push baby song being applied to me.”
Luke laughed and traced his thumb across her hand. “Yeah, it was really the chorus of that song that I wanted to sing for you. And I mean it, every time I see you it’s like getting struck by lightning. Julie, I really will never be the same.”
Her breath caught in her throat as he watched her softly. Her heart was pounding and she couldn’t think, much less form a coherent response.
Luke continued. His nerves were coming back with the silence she had let stretch. “I know telling you with an entire set is a bit unconventional, but I… we communicate best through music, and I wanted it to be special.”
Julie found enough breath to laugh a little. “You had already asked me out, Luke.”
“I know, but I just… wanted you to know just how much I like you,” he said sheepishly.
“I can’t believe the guys let you plan a whole set around wooing me,” she teased.
“Oh, they’ve been insufferable this past week,” he laughed. “But, like Bobby said, I chose songs that showcased our range and abilities as musicians, so they allowed it.”
“Well, I’m glad they did,” Julie said. She tilted her head a little and smiled. “I loved it. And I really like you, too, Luke.”
His bright smile was back, but he didn’t say anything. They sat in the comfortable silence as they finished their food. Luke left her briefly to throw away their trash and then he appeared next to her with his hand stretched out.
“Want to take a walk?” he asked. “Maybe get some ice cream?”
She took his, intertwining their fingers, and let him lead her back up the street to an ice cream shop. This time, they sat inside the shop in a booth, and Luke slid into the same side as her so he could wrap his arm around her shoulders and tug her into his side while they ate.
The entire night was perfect, and Julie felt like she was walking on clouds as they made their way to his car. They sang along to the radio on the way back to her house, and when they arrived, Luke put the car in park.
He got out and walked her to her door, where they both paused. Julie’s heart rate ticked up as she met Luke’s shining eyes.
He raised a hand to softly brush her cheek as he said, “I had a really good time, Julie.”
“Me, too,” she breathed.
His hand cupped her cheek.
“Jules… can I kiss you?”
She could only nod as he leaned in to press his lips to hers. His other hand reach up to cup her other cheek, so that he was holding her face in both hands. Julie clutched at his elbows as the kiss got a little fiercer and Luke pressed closer. Her hands dropped to clutch at the shirt at his waist, and she smiled into the kiss. He mirrored her, and finally they were forced to break apart when their smiles prevented them from continuing.
Luke leaned his forehead against hers, his thumbs stroking her cheeks.
“I’ll call you later,” he breathed. “Goodnight, Jules.”
With one last peck to her lips, he backed away from her and got back in his car. Julie entered her house, and leaned against the door, grinning like a fool.
Her smile was still in place later that night when her phone rang and Luke was on the other end.
“Hey, beautiful,” he said softly. “I can’t stop thinking about you. I had a really good time, tonight, Julie.”
Her cheeks hurt with how hard she was smiling.
“Me, too. We should do it again sometime,” she joked.
“Oh, thank God,” Luke laughed a little breathlessly. “I was hoping you would say that. I was also hoping…”
“Hmm?”
“Would you like to be my girlfriend?”
“Do you even have to ask?” she teased.
“I don’t want to assume!” Luke exclaimed. She could imagine his hand rubbing his neck.
Julie laughed. “Of course I want to be your girlfriend, Luke.”
“Rad,” he said, his voice low like he might not have intended her to hear it. “So, for our next date then…”
Julie leaned back against her pillows and got comfortable as he suggested date ideas. She just grinned and listened, wondering how she even got this lucky.