"Luke?"

"Hi, Gyps."

Gypsy is actually stunned.

"Can I uh," he laughs, "Can I come in?"

_________

"I uh," Gypsy shakes her head. "Yeah, oh my god. Of course."

"Ha," Luke grins. He cannot believe that so far, this is working. "Thanks."

"Yeah, um. Totally. Yeah."

Gypsy's head is swimming. She's got nine billion thoughts flying around inside her head as Luke trails behind her into her bedroom. What is he doing here? That's probably what she's thinking most. She's drunk. Too drunk, possibly, because she swore that Luke Hemmings was just in Australia and now he's not only in Las Vegas, but he is also following behind her in her grandparent's suite in Charming into the bedroom that she's calling her own until her mother comes back from China.

Luke strolls around her room.

Bubba is at his feet, his collar jingling noisily as he hobbles around the familiar smells of Luke, Luke, Luke.

Luke is looking.

This 'Charming' room is different from Gypsy's real one, he notices. It's dark, but he can tell immediately that her bed is on the opposite wall, and this room is missing the pictures of her family and friends that she keeps tacked everywhere. The lights she's got strung around her bedposts and the postcards she's got from each of her cousins in Hawaii are missing. There's no All Time Low or Weezer or Green Day posters. There's no gigantic map of the world that she keeps track of all the cities she's ever been...all the places she's lived.

What Luke does notice, are the bags of clothes she's still got on the floor and that her laptop is open beside the college brochures scattered on a desk cluttered with makeup and hair products and things he's never known her to care about before.

Gypsy falls heavily onto her bed.

"Luke," she says, rubbing her eyes.

"Gypsy," he grins.

"What are you doing, Luke?"

He looks around the room. "Standing here?"

Bubba curls up at the foot of the bed.

"Oh my god-Where's Ashton? Or Michael, or-."

"Here," Luke replies quickly. "They're here, too...in Vegas"

"So, you're the only one who wanted to see me?"

"Well," Luke rubs the back of his neck. She's teasing, but also not really.

How does he answer that? Ashton was gonna go, but then Luke pretty much made this decision on his own. He wanted to see her, and it's always hard to do anything with Gypsy alone when they boys are all around.

Honestly, Luke's tired of being the best friend.

"I mean, they were gonna come too, just..."

"They think I hate them, don't they?"

And, well, there's that, too.

"Well..." Luke bites his lip. "Hate's a pretty strong word, you know..."

Gypsy sighs. "Then, what are you doing here, Luke?"

"What are you doing here, Gypsy?" He grins, kicking off his shoes and sliding into her bed and pulling her covers over his head.

She stands, pouting. "That's my spot, you d-bag."

He raises his eyebrows. "D-bag?" He pouts. "Since when do you use this awful language?"

"Since you're in my spot."

"Wow," he slides over a tiny bit. "Don't think I like this potty mouth on you, honestly."

"Luke!"

He laughs, sliding over a bit more.

Gypsy sighs, because despite herself she's laughing, too.

"You little shit," she mutters, sliding into bed beside him. They've probably done this about a thousand times, the two of them, so this isn't new-this banter.

"You love me," he chuckles.

"I do," is her response, as she pulls up the covers and sighs again.

"Did you miss me?"

"I did."

Luke smiles to himself beneath the sheets. Gypsy, with her eyes closed does not notice him scooting closer to her beneath her blankets. Her hair is different tonight, he realizes. It's straight and slick and so long instead of its usual curly unruliness.

"How was the wedding?" He whispers.

"Nuh-uh," she replies. She's sobering up, and fast. "You go first," she turns on her side, propping her head in her hand. "What are you doing here, Luke?"

He grins. "What happened to you missing me?"

She laughs. "I can't be surprised that you're here? School hasn't started and uh, newsflash. You don't exactly live down the block, buddy-"

"We're in a competition," Luke blurts.

"A competition?"

"It's why we came back early," he nods. "It's at MGM: the casino."

"Yeah, Luke, I know that's a casino, thanks for the reminder."

"Whoa-are you extra sassy when you're drunk?"

"God dammit," she mutters. "Sorry, just...Jesus...How the fuck-?"

Luke sits up. "What's wrong?"

Gypsy almost laughs. "This is so typical," she says. "God dammit-"

"Gyps, what's going on-"

"I'm in that fucking competition, too," is what she says. "Shit-Justin signed me up to perform, too."

Now, Luke almost laughs, despite the fact that he has no recollection of who this 'Justin' is.

"What?"

She nods, hands over her face. "Shit-Yeah."

"Gypsy, you? How the-You did that? You..." He shakes his head because he actually can't believe that of all people on the planet, Gypsy Kaeka has decided to enter a competition to sing in front of thousands of people to possibly get a music contract.

But, then again, Gypsy is different, now.

Gypsy is different, and Luke is searching for bits and pieces of the old Gypsy who, quite possibly, still needed him. He's looking for the Gypsy who he was friends with before she became Calum's and he's looking for the Gypsy who he didn't have to be 'just friends' with before she became Calum's. And honestly, Luke wishes he could rewind time before everything went to hell because he didn't know how to tell Calum that he had feelings for Gypsy and that he had feelings for her first. He didn't know how to tell his best mate that it would kill him a little inside every time he had to be the middle man between them-Could you text Cal? Could you do it for me?

It would kill him a little each time he had to help Cal be a better boyfriend to the girl he'd loved practically since the moment he laid eyes on her.

Honestly, to both of them, Luke is tired of being the best friend.

"You're competing in the-You know the prize is a record deal, right?"

"Apparently," she mutters. "Found that out today, actually."

Luke lays back down. "Shit..."

And a silence surrounds them, both of them swimming in their own thoughts.

But then, Luke shakes his head. "You're gonna win," he says.

She turns to him. "Why would you say that?"

"C'mon, Gyps. It's no secret. You've got a voice that makes me cry a little."

"Ha ha."

"I'm serious," he nods emphatically. "You're like, an angel, you know that, right?"

"With devil horns."

Luke grins, teeth on his bottom lip. "The angel from my nightmares."

"The shadow in the background of the morgue-Yep, that's me."

He laughs. "You sound like Raven."

Gypsy giggles beside him, beneath the covers.

"Ironically, I sang that today."

"That's So Raven?"

"No, Luke!" She giggles harder-he grins. "Blink 182."

"Of course you did."

"Why do you say that?"

He shrugs. "No reason."

Gypsy eyes him beneath the covers. She sticks out her tongue like Gene Simmons. "Rock on."

"Eew," Luke says. "You're so weird."

"Yeah," she chokes on a laugh. "I don't know where that came from, honestly-"

"I missed you."

"You said that already, Luke," Gypsy laughs again, although she cuddles up beside him because she missed him, too.

Luke stares at the ring on his hand. "I know," he says.

"I missed you, too."

"You said that already, Gypsy."

"I miss you, miss you..." She sings. "I miss you, miss you-"

"I'm sorry."

Gypsy frowns. "For what?"

"For the things I said," he says. "For everything I said before you left," he laughs humorlessly. "I'm also sorry Cal had to be a dick-"

"Luke, that's not at all your fault-"

"I know, but...I'm sorry we didn't get to hang out more in Sydney when you were there. I'm just...I really am glad you made friends, Gyps," he says. "I mean it. I want you to be happy. Promise. I never want you to be sad and I didn't wanna leave you in the first place, I just-"

"You just what, Luke?"

Luke's eyes are open wide and they're so very blue and bright and familiar to Gypsy, but behind those wide open eyes are the thoughts consuming him since he left Gypsy in Vegas for Sydney. The way she talks about those other guys...the way she smiles when she thinks of her 'new' friends...

"I dunno," he shakes his head. "It's like, it's weird y'know? Knowing that someone else is like, replacing you or something."

"No, Luke. No. Never."

"I dunno, Gyps. You don't have to-"

"I'm not mad, Luke," she says. "Honest-God, I swear. I'm not even mad at Calum, anymore."

"You're not?"

She shakes her head.

He clears his throat. "You're getting back together with him, aren't you?"

"I-" She shakes her head. "No-Well, we haven't even talked, y'know, but probably not. But, he's one of my best friends and I love him, but that doesn't mean we should be together."

Luke nods. That makes him feel exponentially better to hear her say these words, but he's still conflicted.

Just because she doesn't want to be with Calum doesn't mean she's over him.

Luke isn't an idiot.

Just because she isn't with Cal doesn't mean she's going to drop everything to be with him.

Gypsy smirks, peering up at him with wide eyes. "And I mean it. You can't ever be replaced, Luke. Just 'cause I'm actually capable of making friends doesn't mean I forget my best friends. You're like, my favorite human. Please don't forget that. You've always been there for me, and honestly, I've learned over the past few months that just 'cause people are far away doesn't mean that they love you any less. You've been telling me that for years and, well, I guess I fully understand now, so, it's me that should be thanking you."

He smiles. Hearing her say those words genuinely makes him feel better.

"It's like, it's like a growing period for us, right?" She teases. "'Gypsy making friends.' I know, it's new for you just like it's new for me. We're all gonna have to figure out how to deal."

"Shut up," he grins, bumping her as she laughs in the darkness.

Gypsy beams at him. "I just want you all to be friends, honestly."

"Maybe...For you."

"You'd really like them. I know you'd all be really close."

"I dunno," Luke says. "Am I cool enough for your new friends?"

She taps her chin. "Maybe."

"Figured."

"You know I'm only kidding," she smiles. "It's impossible not to love you, Luke."

"Well, my mom thinks I'm pretty cool."

"The coolest," Gypsy cuddles closer to his body. "And you know I love me some Liz."

"Eh. She's alright."

Gypsy snorts. "Yeah, I can't wait for you guys to meet. You'll be friends for sure if you guys don't find reasons to hate each other."

"I guess. It'll be hard though since I'm naturally a pretty hateful person."

Gypsy laughs aloud. She hears Bubba's chain jingle.

"Thank you. That's all I ask."

He smiles. "No promises."

"It's you, Lucas. For me, I know you'll at least try."

Silence.

"I missed you, a lot actually," she continues. She grins at him again, singing softly. "I miss you, miss you..."

Luke joins in this time.

"Don't waste your time on me. You're already the voice inside my head," Luke sings. "Don't waste your time, on me. You're already the voice inside my head..."

Luke catches his breath as Gypsy sings, "I miss you, miss you," at the same time that she, slowly, traces her finger along his jawline.

His teeth clench on impulse.

She stops singing.

"You need to shave," she grins.

He takes her hand and removes it from his jaw-Does she have any idea what she's doing to him right now?

"Y-you know how long the flight is," he manages, because he's trying not to give in to the urges egging him on to kiss her until she can't breath and get their clothes off and onto the floor.

"Lucas?"

"Giovanna?"

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah," he says quickly, attempting not to look at Gypsy's visible confusion. "Why?"

Her hand is on her chest and he catches his breath. "Your heart's beating like, really fast."

Now, it's not a secret that Gypsy likes to cuddle. And it's not new that she's cuddled up to him, now. But, in Luke's defense, he's trying to hide the way the blood is rushing to his face and various other parts of his body because never has he actually cuddled with Gypsy in bed at night while she's wearing only tiny shorts and a hoodie and her hair is straightened and she's pressed up against him after he hasn't seen her in ages.

This slightly drunk, more self-assured Gypsy must have some idea of the things she's doing to him, he thinks.

Right?

He clears his throat; this is Gypsy, still.

So, probably not.

"So," he says, because he's got to change the subject, "you really have been having a good time out here, huh?"

She hums softly. "Thanks to you."

"Me?"

"Yeah," she nods. "I mean, you and Ash specifically, right? That list has pretty much transformed my whole summer."

Luke traces the hummingbird on the inside of her wrist.

He lifts his eyes to hers. "Yeah?"

She nods. "I want another tattoo, y'know."

"Of me?"

She laughs. "Of course, because I want, no need your fourteen-year-old face tattooed somewhere on my body."

He wrinkles his nose. "I was ugly then," he whines. "Why fourteen?"

"You weren't ugly; you were so cute, and obviously that's a sentimental age 'cause that's when we met."

He snorts. "That's creepy."

"Is not!"

"Why're you so obsessed with me?"

She laughs. "Can't help it."

"I like your hair."

"Really?" She laughs as he runs his fingers through the ómbre'd ends. "I didn't think you'd like it, actually."

"What?" He frowns. "Why? I've never said-"

"Chill, Luke," she chuckles. She's getting sleepy now and he can tell. "I don't mean it like that. You're always talking about how much you like my hair when it's curly, so..."

"I like your hair however you wear it."

"Aww. Stop it, I'll cry."

Luke sticks out his bottom lip. "Don't cry 'cause then I'll cry."

"But," Gypsy sniffs. She forces a whine, "I just can't help it-"

She closes her eyes and fakes a cry.

"Damn it, Gyps-Now I'm fucking crying, too!"

And they are both actually pretending to cry at like, some ungodly hour at night and they're still pretending to cry. They keep moaning louder and louder until Gypsy accidentally hiccups and chokes on her spit and she starts coughing and Luke stops fake crying and laughs out loud and can't quite catch his breath.

Bubba gets up, shakes and trots from the bedroom.

He's pretty much had enough.

"Holy shit," Gypsy sputters, as Luke continues to laugh. Her coughs sputter out into laughter and Luke laughs harder as she starts coughing again.

"Damn...I'm...dying..."

She flips over onto her stomach and coughs into the pillows and Luke has to stop laughing so he can rub her back and get her to finally stop choking.

When she does she turns over and sighs and rubs her eyes which are watering.

"Shit."

They erupt back into a fit of giggles.

"Fuck-You're so weird, Gypsy."

"No, you are."

"I'm not. I'm normal and cool and hot."

"Eh," she shrugs, coughing a little. He snorts, choking. "Two out of three isn't bad."

"Wait," he turns to her. He stops laughing, "Which two?"

"Two? What?" She smirks. "Huh? Not telling, you douchebag. Thanks for laughing through my pain."

He laughs again-That catches him off guard.

"See! You haven't stopped!"

"I have!" He exclaims, but he's trying not to laugh again so his teeth are clamped on his bottom lip. "See, I'm done!"

"Yeah, yeah..." She hiccups. "Liar."

Luke chokes on his laughter. "Aww, c'mon. Tell me!"

"Nope."

"Gypsy."

"Lucifer," she smirks, settling against him.

"You're mean," Luke says, but he wraps his arms around her.

"But you love it."

"Be careful; you might choke on your lies, Gyps."

That makes Gypsy laugh out loud.

She stops abruptly. "Not funny."

"Too late," he chuckles. His stomach hurts from laughter, now. "You already laughed. I heard it."

"You're delusional."

"You're gonna start choking again."

"Shut up, Luke."

Luke plays with her hair, still. A comfortable silence settles over the two of them and Luke adjusts the covers over her shoulders.

Gypsy closes her eyes.

And Luke thinks he's dreaming.

This is like, a fairy-tale moment or something that he really doesn't want to end.

After Calum and Gypsy became a 'thing,' he, never in his lifetime thought he'd get to hold her like this-in his arms...in her bed, and as she drifts off to sleep, he can't resist placing a small kiss on her temple.

But, Gypsy is not asleep.

"Luke?"

He jumps a bit, startled. "Sorry," he whispers. "Oh shit, Gyps. I thought you were-"

"It's okay. Let's do it together, Luke."

"What?" He asks in the darkness.

"MGM," she says. "The competition, you know. Want to? I mean, obviously you've got to run it through the boys and...well, yeah, but like, I don't want to compete against you," she whispers drowsily. "I wanna do it with you and singing with you guys was so much fun and you want to be famous and get a deal, right? And, and if I won and took that away from you I'd never forgive myself and-"

"Gypsy."

"Luke?"

"Yes. Holy shit, Gyps-Yes. Let's do it. Oh my god, let's write a song together, okay?"

"Competition's in like, a week, Luke."

"We can do it, Gyps. C'mon, we can totally do it."

"Okay..."

"Okay," he practically laughs. "Shit, Gyps, this'll be so fuckin' great-"

"On one condition."

He pauses. "What?"

"Talk to me. Keep me awake."

Luke almost laughs. "What? Why?"

"So I don't fall asleep, duh," she teases. "I thought you were the smart one. Or, is that Michael?"

"Um, it's not Michael."

"Just, talk to me. Please? Talk to me all night and don't let me fall asleep."

"But, you're drunk," he explains. "How do you think you're gonna-"

"I'm trying to see the sunrise," she explains. She chuckles, "Figured you could help me check that one off, tonight."

Gypsy catches a glimpse of Luke's grin.

Now, he gets it.

Now, he knows she's talking about her list.

"So? You'll help me?"

"You know that was mine, right?" He nods proudly. "You know I came up with that one?"

She grins, laughing.

"I'll take that as a 'yes,' then."

"Of course, Gyps."

"Thanks, Lukey."

"Honestly, you don't have to thank me, Gyps. You really don't."

"I know, Luke, but," she shrugs against him. "Y'know, still."

-~*~-

Hehehe...Sorry ya'll. Purposefully didn't give you a lot of Gypsy's POV in this chapter because of reasons. ^-^

**Also took out the part when Gypsy tells Luke about her wedding crashing bc I hated it after I wrote it but if you want to actually get details about that leave a comment and I'll work it back in. ^-^

Attached is 5sos' cover of Blink 182's 'I Miss You' 'cause since Luke is singing to Gypsy in this chapter I felt like it was right.

GYPSY IS ABOUT TO HAVE TO MAKE SOME SERIOUS DECISIONS UP IN HURR.

Also, I promise this is the last love interest I'm adding into her life. Lol. I don't have enough chapters left for me to keep giving Gypsy more men heheh.

Love how so many of you jumped on the #Lypsy ship. Been waiting a looong time to introduce this one. Also, when this story is done, the [hood|styles|hemmings] tag is gonna change to whoever mah girl chooses at the end so heads up.

Are you excited for the boys to meet? I AM. Are you excited for this song #Lypsy is gonna write? I AMMMM. How is Harold gonna take that? tHEYRE SUPPOSED TO BE WRITING A SONG TOGETHER YO DON'T FORget.