Summary: Luke wants drum lessons. Michael and Calum know a guy named Ashton. Luke hates Ashton. But Michael and Calum force him to do it.

Third Person

"Guys! I'm not doing it!" Luke shouts at his friends.

"Luke! You said yourself that you wanted to learn how to play the drums, and he's perfect!" Michael argues, pulling Luke down the hallway.

"There is no way in hell I am letting that cocky, disrespectful, rude, arrogant, douche, teach me to play drums!" Luke pulls away from Michael, Calum holding him still.

"He's not that bad of a guy! I've known him for a while! You just have to be nice." Calum speaks up, trying his hardest to get Luke to agree.

"He put a frog in the lunch lady's pants!" Luke shouts, Michael laughing.

"Oh c'mon. That was hilarious!" Michael says, throwing his hands in the air.

"It was also rude. She's 67!" Luke crosses his arms, pouting.

"You really don't have a choice. We signed you up for lessons already." Calum smirks, making Luke's eyes go wide.

"You did what?!" Luke shouts, looking at his friends.

"Oh yeah. By the way, your first lesson is after school." Michael and Calum smirk, Luke groaning.

"You guys are assholes!" Luke shouts, the bell ringing.

~

Luke runs out of his last class, bolting for the door, trying to avoid his friends. He makes it to the front door, only to be stopped by his friends, sliding infront of him.

"Dammit." Luke curses, groaning.

"Yeah, we thought you might do that." Michael smiles, Luke flipping him off.

"Let's go, pretty boy." Calum grabs Luke's arm, Michael grabbing the other.

"But I don't wanna!" Luke whines, trying to get free.

"Luke, you're fifteen. Stop acting 5." Michael complains, dragging him down the street. Ashton only lives a couple blocks away from the school, so it's not a really long walk. They stop in front of Ashton's house, seeing him in his garage, playing the drums.

"Nope." Luke turns around, walking back down the street.

"Stop being a baby! You should be thanking us! You're finally getting your drum lessons!" Calum exclaims, dragging Luke back.

"Yeah, by some idiotic slut blossum!" Luke pouts, huffing.

"A what?" Michael asks, almost laughing.

"No time. Let's go!" Calum drags Luke into the garage, Ashton noticing them and stopping his playing.

"Oh, hey, Calum." Ashton smiles, standing up. Luke rolls his eyes then notices how tall Ashton is. Ashton's about four inches taller than him.

"Hey, Ashton. Here's Luke. Bye." Calum shoves Luke forward, Luke crashing into Ashton's chest. Michael and Calum run off, laughing.

"Hi, Luke." Ashton smiles, Luke just staring at him.

"Hi." He grumbles, crossing his arms.

"They forced you here, didn't they?" Ashton laughs, making Luke frown.

"Yes, they did. I don't like you." Luke says, bluntly.

"Yeah, I get that a lot. Let's get to work." Ashton claps his hands together, Luke huffing.

~

"You're a natural at drums!" Ashton exclaims, patting Luke on the shoulder.

"You think so?" Luke looks up, smiling.

"Absolutely. Not as good as me of course." Ashton jokes, Luke scoffing.

"You're an ass." Luke rolls his eyes.

"I get that a lot too. But if you come here everyday, you might even be better than me. Might being the key word." Ashton jokes, winking.

"I have to come here tomorrow?" Luke whines, tilting his head back.

"You know you love spending time with me." Ashton wiggles his eyebrows, suggestively.

"HA! That's funny. Well, see you tomorrow, Ashton." Luke stands up, leaving the garage that faintly smells of paint, sweat, and old pizza. Ashton let's out a sigh, leaning against the wall. Something catches his eye and he starts to laugh. Luke left his backpack next to the drums. He knows Luke's long gone by now, so he decides to just wait until tomorrow at school.

~

Luke plops face first onto his bed, letting out a groan. His arms and legs are sore from walking and playing the drums. And this was only the first day. Luke rolls over, laying on his back, staring at his ceiling. He has those little stick on star things that glow in the dark plastered over his entire ceiling. Some people say it's girly, like the pink speakers he has, but he thinks they're cool. He feels his phone vibrate, his hand pulling the device out of his pocket. He notices he's in a group chat with Michael and Calum, so he groans again.

From: Cal

Sooo how was the first day sunshine???

From: Luke

Shut up. I don't like you.

From: Mikey

Why u gotta be so ruuuude?

From: Cal

Don't you know I'm human toooooo?

From: Mikey

Ur gettin' drum lessons anyway

From: Cal

From Ashtoooon

From: Mikey

Yeah no matter whatchu say

From: Cal

From Ashtoooon

From: Mikey

You're gettin' drum lessons anyway

From: Cal

Why u gotta be so rUUUUUUuuuuuude?

From: Luke

.....You guys are idiots with too much time to spare....

From: Cal

Shut up and tell us how it went!

From: Luke

He says I'm good. I'm seeing him again tomorrow.

From: Mikey

Maybe since Ashton's teaching u to bang drums he can teach u to bang something else ;)

From: Luke

Ewwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwwww. Ew.

From: Cal

Don't deny it. We know you want that ass. ;D

Luke stops replying then, cheeks flushed. Ashton's a jerk. Right? Luke doesn't like Ashton. Right? Luke gets up to start his homework, but then realization strikes.

"Oh, you've got to be kidding me." Luke smacks his forehead, groaning, plopping back down on his bed. What's he going to do now? It's really late and Luke doesn't have Ashton's number. He could ask Calum, but then Calum would make jokes all damn night. Luke sighs, looking at the time.

8:45

He takes a deep breath, walking out of his room. He sneaks to the garage, hopping on his bike and making a dangerous trip to Ashton's house. It's dark out and Luke hardly remembers where Ashton's house is, but he makes it there, really scared since a guy came up to him and asked him if he's seen a unicorn, to which he replied 'No, I've only seen a leprechaun, a wild lion, a dancing chicken, and a french speaking horse. Sorry.'

Luke knocks on Ashton's door, heart rapidly beating. He looks behind his shoulder, gulping when he sees a figure down the street. He gasps, knocking frantically on Ashton's door.

"I'm coming! I'm coming!" Ashton shouts, walking to the door. His eyes widen when he opens the door, finding a small, scared looking boy, standing in front of him.

"Hi." Luke awkwardly smiles, waving, noticing Ashton is shirtless. His eyes unintentionally roam the older boys' body.

"Luke? What are you doing here?'' Ashton asks, pulling the boy inside.

"I think some crazy guy is chasing me." Luke ignores Ashton's question, eyes still blown wide.

"Oh, you mean Crazy Carl? He's harmless. He's just an old man who's had too many drinks. Not dangerous." Ashton says, nonchalantly.

"Oh, okay." Luke let's out a sigh of relief.

"So, not that I'm not happy, but why are you here?" Ashton asks, eyebrows furrowed.

"I came to get my backpack. I left it." Luke says, looking around Ashton's house.

"Oh, yeah," Ashton leaves the room, coming back seconds later. "I saw this and was going to give it to you tomorrow, but here ya go." Ashton hands it over, Luke smiling, taking it back.

"Thanks. Bye, Ashton!" Luke turns to leave, Ashton grabbing his hand.

"Yeah, um, no. It's late and they're some serious creepers around here. Who would I be to let you roam the rapist filled streets? I'll drive you home." Ashton smiles, Luke's mouth opening up to protest, but Ashton's already left the room. He comes back, wearing a shirt, a pair of high tops, and his car keys.

"You don't have to do this you know. I can handle myself." Luke tries to sound brave, Ashton not buying it.

"You were petrified of Crazy Carl. I have to do this." Ashton laughs, grabbing Luke's hand. Luke feels warm inside and slightly less scared now. Ashton locks his front door, dragging Luke into his car. Luke starts to shake. It's not that he's cold, it's that he snuck out, ran into a crazy guy, and if he gets caught, he'll be dead meat. Ashton notices Luke's scared state, grabbing his hand. Luke almost instantly relaxes.

"What are you doing?" Luke asks, looking down at their connected hands. Ashton's hand practically swallows Luke's. Luke almost laughs.

"You stopped shaking didn't you?" Ashton asks, smirking. Luke shuts up then, wondering why he actually stopped shaking just because Ashton touched him. Ashton's an asshole right? Ashton just cares about himself. Right? Luke sighs, Ashton intertwining their fingers, Luke letting him. In a scared state, you'll do anything just to feel a little safe.

Luke gives Ashton directions to his house, laughing when Ashton almost hits a trash can.

"Smooth moves, driver of the year." Luke laughs, Ashton blushing.

"Hey! It's dark out here and I don't know where I'm at!" Ashton defends, laughing himself. Ashton finally pulls in front of Luke's house, shutting off the headlights to draw attention away.

"Thanks for driving me home." Luke smiles, looking down at his lap. Ashton tilts his head up with his finger.

"You're welcome." Ashton smiles back, reaching to the back and grabbing Luke's backpack. He kindly hands it to Luke, the younger boy accepting it.

"See you tomorrow, Ashton." Luke quick pecks Ashton's cheek, bolting from the car. He sneaks back into his house, being stopped by a voice when he reaches his bedroom door.

"Lucas Hemmings!" His mum shouts, making Luke's heart race.

Shit I'm dead.

"Yes, mum?" He gulps, turning around to face his mother.

"Goodnight." She smiles, walking to her room. Luke sighs in relief.

"Night." He replies, walking into his room. He plops on his bed, his phone violently beeping with new notifications.

From: Cal

We just saw you get out of a car...

From: Mikey

And run inside...

From: Cal

DID YOU SNEAK OUT?!

From: Mikey

YOU BROKE THE RULES?!

From: Cal

Was that Ashton...?

From: Mikey

DiD yOU SNEAK OUT TO MEET ASHTON?!

From: Cal

.....Did you guys make out?

From: Mikey

Or something worse....?

From: Luke

OH MY GOD SHUT UP. I LEFT MY BACKPACK AT HIS HOUSE SO I WENT AND GOT IT AND HE DROVE ME HOME. WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?!

From: Cal

You still snuck out to meet Ashton ;)

From: Luke

Why do I even talk to you guys?

~

"Luke, someone's here to see you!" Luke's mother shouts, Luke furrowing his eyebrows, grabbing his backpack. He makes his way to the front of the house, freezing when he sees Ashton standing their, talking to his mum.

"Ashton?" Luke asks, walking closer, eyes wide.

"Hey! Uh, I thought I'd give you a ride to school today. Michael and Calum too. They're outside already." Ashton smiles, Luke's mouth hanging open.

"Um, okay. Bye, mum." Luke slowly walks with Ashton to his car, Michael and Calum smirking.

"Yeah, I thought I'd come by because you left your bike at my house last night." Ashton laughs, pulling Luke's bike from his back seat.

"Dammit." Luke huffs, putting the bike back where it goes.

~

"Thanks for the ride, Ashton!" Luke calls out, the boys going in different directions for class. Ashton just smiles, walking away.

"He's so into you." Calum says, Michael laughing.

"What is wrong with you?" Luke asks, annoyed by his friends.

"Nothing! You're just too blind to see it!" Michael retorts, making Luke roll his eyes. Unfortunately, Luke doesn't see where he's going and bumps into somebody.

"Sorry, I-" He gulps, looking up to see his bully, Josh.

"Watch where you're going, runt." Josh spits, Luke wincing. Calum and Michael watch, scared, eyes blown wide.

"To be fair, you weren't looking where you were going either." Michael speaks up, Josh whipping his head in Michael's direction.

"What'd you just say, rocker wannabe?" Josh grabs Michael's shirt, slamming him against the lockers.

"Leave him the hell alone, asshole." Luke braves up, pushing Josh away from Michael.

"Oh, so the bitch speaks?" Josh grabs Luke's arm, harshly, fist raising.

"Put him down before I break your fist off and make you eat it." A voice sounds behind them, everyone turning around.

"Ashton, why the hell are you standing up for this piece of trash?" Josh asks, tightening his grip on Luke's arm, making Luke call out in pain.

"I said let him go. Now." Ashton says through gritted teeth.

"Whatever. He's worthless anyhow." Josh let's Luke go, pushing him on the ground. Luke grunts, holding his arm. Ashton runs over to him, helping him up.

"Are you okay?" Ashton asks, looking at the large, red, handprint on Luke's arm.

"Yeah, I'm alright. Thanks." Luke smiles, lying. His arm hurts like hell, but he smiles through the pain.

"You guys okay too?" Ashton asks, looking at Michael and Calum. They nod, Ashton smiling. "See you after school then?" Ashton looks at Luke, who smiles and nods. Ashton walks off to get to his class.

"Now do you believe he likes you?" Calum asks, smirking.

"He's still an asshole." Luke says, smiling nonetheless.

"Ashton's a good guy. He just likes to have dangerous fun. He's not an asshole." Michael says, trying to get Luke to stop being so stubborn.

"We'll see."

~

"Luke!" Luke turns around to see Ashton running up to him.

"Yes?" Luke asks, having to look up, being that Ashton's pretty tall.

"I'll give you a ride back to my house. C'mon." Ashton doesn't even wait for a response. He grabs Luke's hand, walking him to his car.

"Michael, look!" Calum slaps his friend's arm.

"Ow!" Michael complains, rubbing his arm. Calum points to Ashton opening Luke's door for him.

"Give it a week. They'll be together." Calum says, smirking.

"Duh." Michael laughs, shaking his head. Ashton starts to drive down the street. Luke sits, looking at Ashton's hands. He gets an overwhelming feeling of wanting to feel Ashton's hand on his. He tries to push it away, but it demands to be felt. Luke just puts his arm of the middle piece in between their seats, looking out of the window. He almost jumps when he feels Ashton slip his fingers between his. He turns his head to see Ashton already looking at him. They both exchange smiles, more like goofy grins, riding peacefully to Ashton's house.

~

"That's it! Keep going!" Ashton shouts at Luke.

Luke continues to play the drum sequence Ashton prepared for him. Luke lifts his bruised arm, pain filling up the entire length. Luke drops the drum stick, groaning in pain. Ashton looks over in concern, eyeing the boy.

"Sorry." Luke says, grabbing his arm.

"What are you apologizing for?" Ashton asks, grabbing Luke's arm, lightly. He looks over the bruise, frowning.

"I messed up." Luke looks down, blushing. Ashton tilts Luke's head up.

"You're hurt. It's okay." He smiles, grabbing Luke's hand, guiding him to his kitchen. He picks Luke up by the waist, placing him on the kitchen counter.

"How'd you do that?" Luke asks, eyes wide.

"You're tiny." Ashton laughs, opening the freezer and pulling out an icepack.

"Am not." Luke pouts, Ashton laughing.

"This might be a little cold." Ashton warns, pushing the ice on Luke's arm, Luke whining.

"Ashton?" Luke asks, looking up.

"Yes?" Ashton replies, standing between Luke's legs.

"Why'd you save me from Josh?" Luke asks, curiously.

"Because it was a nice thing to do." Ashton shrugs, placing his arms on either side of Luke on the counter.

"But you're an asshole." Luke says without thinking, eyes blowing wide as he realizes what he just said.

"I try not to be." Ashton looks down, Luke feeling bad.

"You're doing a good job." Luke tilts Ashton's head, giving a small smile.

~

After that day, the boys spend more time talking about random topics than drums. They waste time, sitting in the garage, eating junk food, and sometimes holding hands when Luke get's a little tired. Ashton always drives Luke to school, to his house, then back to Luke's. And maybe he shouldn't, but he likes spending more time with Luke, even if it is for five extra minutes. Luke finally stopped calling Ashton an asshole. Luke learns a little more about drums, but loses interest, finding Ashton more interesting. It's just the way Ashton loves drums more than life. It's the way he looks when he's playing. It's the way he twirls the stick that just captivates Luke more and more. It's an infatuation and Luke know's it. And he doesn't care.

It's Saturday and Luke canceled lessons to hang out with his friends. They're at a park, dangling off the play structure. Calum and Michael know that Luke likes Ashton just by the way he talks about him. Luke speaks of him as if he's his world. His eyes light up and his smile grows and he's so happy it's disgusting. Calum and Michael deal with it though. They find it very funny. Luke's never been like this before. He sounds like a girl.

"Hey, Luke, I'm heading home now. It's getting late and I'm tired." Michael says, flipping off the bar.

"Yeah, me too. I'm hungry." Calum copies Michael, Luke following.

"Alright. I'm gonna stick around for just a bit." Luke smiles at his friends, dusting some dirt off his jeans.

"Be careful. It's almost dark." Michael warns, Luke waving him off. The two boys shrug, walking off. Luke sits on the swing set for a little while, thinking of Ashton. He's been doing that a lot lately. Before he even realizes it, it's dark out. He curses, jumping off the swing set. He starts to make his way back home, getting the strange feeling that someone's following him. He quickens his pace, starting to hear footsteps. He panics, starting to run. That's when he feels someone grab him. He screams, a hand quickly covering his mouth. He sees Josh standing in front of him.

"Not so tough without your boyfriend here to protect you are you?" Josh punches Luke in the stomach, Luke groaning. Josh continues to abuse him, Luke not being able to move. Luke wakes up later, his body in imense pain. He starts to cry, trying to figure out where he is. He realizes he's only a block away from Ashton's house, so he get's up from the ground. He groans in pain again, clutching his stomach. Everything hurts and it's hard to breathe. He limps down the street, tears rolling down his red cheeks. And he doesn't know why he's going to Ashton's house, but his name is the first that popped into his head.

He finally makes it to Ashton's house. He smiles, knocking on his door. Ashton answers with smile on his face, but it soon fades as he sees Luke standing there. He's got bruises on his face and arms, his hair is a mess, he's in tears, and he looks broken. Ashton's sad look makes Luke break into sobs. Ashton pulls the boy inside, closing the door. Luke latches onto Ashton, his tears soaking the older's shirt. Ashton wraps his arms around the sobbing boy, rubbing his back. Luke finally pulls back, Ashton guiding him to his couch. Luke sits down, Ashton pulling out a First-Aid kit.

"Luke, who did this to you?" Ashton asks, checking out Luke's face, frowning.

"Josh. He jumped me on my way home." Luke sobs again, sniffling.

"I'm going to kill him." Ashton growls, Luke rubbing over his stomach.

"He got me pretty bad. I blacked out. I woke up on the ground and I didn't know what to do, so I came here." Luke rambles, starting to shake.

"Hey, hey, hey. It's okay. You're okay now." Ashton grabs Luke's hand, locking their fingers together. Ashton always manages to make Luke feel safe. Ashton smiles, Luke copying.

"Something's wrong." Luke groans, clutching his stomach. Ashton frowns, pulling Luke's shirt off. He gasps, seeing a horrible bruise on his stomach. It's red and purple and looks very painful. Ashton pushes Luke down so his back is touching the couch cusions.

"This is going to hurt, so just hold my hand okay?" Ashton says, grabbing onto Luke's hand. Luke nods, bracing himself for the pain. It's all over soon enough and it only costed a few whimpers and tears. Luke's all bandaged up and is sniffling. Ashton carefully sits him up, pulling him into his chest. Luke wraps his arms around Ashton, feeling warm and safe.

"Thank you." Luke looks up, Ashton looking down. Their faces are centimeters apart, Ashton looking from Luke's eyes to his lips.

"You're welcome." Ashton whispers, leaning closer. He bites his lip, Luke not being able to handle him anymore. Luke dives in, kissing Ashton with all of his might. Ashton kisses back, cupping his cheek. Luke feels on fire, being overwhelmed. Ashton moans when he feels Luke's tongue. Luke chuckles, Ashton nipping his lip to get him to shut up. Their tongues glide together, exploring the others mouth. To their dismay, they have to pull apart to breathe. Ashton smiles, grabbing Luke's shirt and putting it back over him. Luke smiles, cuddling into Ashton.

"Want some ice cream? It'll make you feel better." Ashton offers, Luke nodding. Ashton gets up, grabbing two spoons and a giant tub of ice cream. He walks back to the couch, Luke seeing the huge ice cream bucket.

"Oh my god I love you." Luke breathes, Ashton laughing. So the boys sit, eat ice cream, talk about random crap, and cuddle. After dusting off about half of the ice cream, Ashton leads Luke to his bedroom. He's glad he finally decided to clean today. Ashton climbs in his bed, pulling Luke into him. Luke curls into him, his hand finding Ashton's. Their fingers curl together perfectly, Luke smiling at that.

"Does this mean we're dating now?" Ashton asks, his hand rubbing Luke's back.

"Only if you want it to." Luke replies, smiling at the feeling of Ashton.

"I guess we're dating now."

"Perfect." And maybe they're just dumb teenagers, caught up in romance, but life's short. Live it to the fullest. So they cuddle and make out and giggle and enjoy each other. They found love all because Luke's friends are persistent asses. But after all this, Luke still doesn't know shit about drums.

________________________

A/N: Crappy ending I know. It took me a while to actually write another one shot, but it's here darlings! I loved this one because it was fluffy. And I love fluffy. So thank you for reading! You're beautiful! I love you! (Also go check out that Larry fic The Curl Next Door #shamelesspromoting)

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Peace out Girl Scouts! ;D