I woke up to the sun beaming through my thin curtains. My arms immediately went over my eyes, shielding the bright light from hurting my eyes too much. I groaned and rolled over, seeing that there was a big empty space next to me. It looked like someone had slept there then I began remembering what when on last night.

The first thing that popped into my mind was going to Cianna's, obviously. Then I started thinking about how I actually didn't have a headache and then that's when I looked down to see that I was in just a t-shirt, Ellis' to be exact. From there I guessed that Ellis had shown up at Cianna's, since he had known her as well, and came back home with me. I remembered him showing up to my front door and giving me a bag of my things right before we left, so it was the only plausible explanation to me. Everything after leaving the closet with Luke was just a complete blur. I remembered things like having a conversation with a random, but i don't remember coming home. 

I sat up and looked around, squinting my eyes as they still hadn't adjusted to the bright light. I ran a hand through my knotted bangs which had motivated me to get up and clean myself up. My legs felt extremely heavy as I walked to my bathroom, which I had expected. With a flip of the switch I was exposed to my reflection and immediately decided to take a shower from one look at the smudged eyeliner I failed to remove from last night.

I searched around for a towel and was unable to find one. My hands rubbed over my face, feeling more awake by now. I blinked a few times before deciding to put on a pair of pants and grab a few towels from the laundry room. 

I picked up my phone from my bedside table and walked towards Luke's room to say good morning, only to find him gone. I shrugged it off, guess that he'd parted ways with me at the party. I walked in the living room in hope to see Ellis, but was surprised that he wasn't since he usually stays around after he spends the night. I frowned, walking into the kitchen and still not spotting him. Just as I turned into the laundry room I heard the front door slam, followed by a few profanities.

I popped my head out of the door frame, grinning as I was expecting to meet the face of my boyfriend, but rather found Luke with his nose shoved into his phone. He was dressed in just a t-shirt and jeans, not even long sleeves in the 45 degree weather.

"Warm?" I asked, watching him flinch as I suggested he didn't know I was home. He looked up in my direction and let his eyes land on me. He looked pissed off, but sometimes that was actually just how his natural expression was. I raised an eyebrow at him as I took in his rosy cheeks and how this tip of his nose and ears matched.

He mumbled a few words that I couldn't make out, tossing his phone onto the couch and rubbed his arms as he stepped into the kitchen. I heard him fiddling around with a few things as I pulled out the fresh new towels from the dryer, tossing them over my shoulder.

"Hey Luke?" I called out. He didn't answer me, but I knew he was literally right behind me so it was obvious he was ignoring me. I stood up straight and turned into the kitchen to find him with his head buried in his hands as he sat at the table. "Luke." I plainly states, wanting to get his attention.

"What?" He harshly said, picking up his head and not even looking at me. I was taken back by his reply, we had never been legitimately mad at each other so this was new to me and also kind of scary.

"Are you okay?" I sheepishly asked, not wanting to make him more upset. He rubbed his temples, still not looking back at me. I started picking at my nails from the anxiousness of waiting to see how he'd react.

"I'm fine." He bluntly told me as he finally turned around in his chair to face me. I let out my breath that I didn't realize I was holding in. I changed the subject, seeing that he was obviously irritated.

"Do you happen to know where Ellis went this morning? He usually stays the day after he comes over." I lowered my voice as I began to feel guilty as I believed I was the one to set him off. I took notice in how he clenched his jaw just the smallest amount.

"Ellis wasn't here this morning." He grumbled. My expression dropped, my thoughts were practically everywhere from the confusion.

"Oh." Was all I could get out. I watched Luke as he fixed that stupid beanie on his head, when my eyes were caught on two purple marks that were popping out from under the jacket he tossed on. I raised an eyebrow, not expecting that Luke had actually gotten with a girl since he isn't into one night stands.

"Who are those from?" I cheekily said, wiggling my eyebrows at him. He looked over to me, becoming confused just as I was a few moments ago.

"What are you talking about?" He asked. I stayed silent, running my fingers over my neck in place of where his were. He brought his hands up to touch the purple bruises, flinching slightly. His eyes widened, as if he made a sudden realization.

"So?" I urged him on, I was always nosy about these kinds of things. As for Luke, he wan't ever interested in what Ellis and I were up to.

"Uh, Cianna. They're from Cianna." He stumbled over his words a little, breaking our eye contact. I rolled my eyes, knowing that Cianna was going to make another move on him someday, I just never expected him to go along with it.

"Did you at least use protection?" The words fell from my mouth since I didn't exactly have a filter in my head. His cheeks became a familiar shade of pink as I bit the inside of my cheek to hide my laughter.

"We didn't have sex, you sicko." His mood lightened up, making me release my smile.

"I don't think I've ever heard a teenage boy use the words 'sex' and 'sicko' in the same sentence." I admitted, watching him get up from the chair in the living room to walk to his room.

"Ellis is at home, by the way." He told me before escaping into his room. I pulled the towels off my shoulder and put them into my hands as my eyebrows furrowed. I felt confused as to why he was just now telling me this information, so I followed him to get some answers.

"How did you know that?" I asked, now standing in his doorway. He looked over his shoulder from where he was putting away a few shirts he had laying on his bed. He walked in front of me and glanced at me once, opening his closet to retrieve a few hangers.

"I was over there this morning." He plainly said as he kept me out of his view. I knew him and Ellis were friends, but I wasn't expecting them to actually hangout without me around. It was all a little odd to me.

"Why were you over there?" I spoke.

"Why are you asking me so many questions?" He answered back, stopping what he was doing to turn and stare at me. "Look, why don't you head down to his house since I know you're dying to see him." He stood in his spot for a few moments, expecting some type of reaction out of me, but got none. I rolled my eyes, and left his room, just wanting to drop the topic.

All I could think about was that somehow Luke was mad with me, and I hated the idea of that. Throughout our whole 12 years of friendship not once have we never gotten into a single fight. To be honest, it had taken a toll on me. I wanted to just run up and give him a hug and fluff his stupid hair and tell him that I loved him and make everything okay, but maybe I'd save that for when he wasn't in this mood.

-

I took Luke's advice and was actually walking to Ellis' house. I've had this empty feeling in my stomach, like there was a reason Luke told me to come here. It made me feel nervous, but I'd done this a million times and had no reason to be. 

It had been lightly raining all day, but it hadn't taken effect on me since it was always drizzly here. I had walked the numerous blocks to get to Ellis' house since I had only ever taken a taxi when Luke was with me since he was the one who could actually call one.

I stepped up the stairs to Ellis' apartment and rang the doorbell. I stuck my hands in my pockets as I had forgotten gloves today and the rain wasn't making anything easier. My head popped up once I heard the locks on his door jingle. The door opened just slightly, giving enough room for Ellis to stick his head out of. 

His hair was extremely messy, as if he'd just woken up. I wasn't used to it since he'd always be up kept. I watched him mouth turn into an odd smile, almost an awkward one.

"Hi Autumn." He said, blinking a few times at me. I gave him a worried look, seeing that he hadn't even bothered to let me in. 

"Did I come at a wrong time or something?" I asked. He turned over his shoulder to look at whatever was occupying his focus, then he turned back to me.

"I'm just a little busy." He gave me another polite smile, giving off the vibe that he didn't to talk, which was extremely unusual for him. My suspicion grew more as the raindrops on my coat did.

"Busy with what?" I glared at him, not liking what he was keeping from me. Before I gave him even a second to answer, I tapped my foot against the edge of the door, letting it open wide only to see a tall, blonde girl standing in just her underwear and a t-shirt.

My heart stopped, but I somehow continued to get words out. My mind was blank and I wasn't able to control anything I was doing since I had a kick of adrenaline go through my body. 

The girl looked towards the door and locked eyes with me then darted up the stairs. Just as I got a last glimpse of her I recognized the shirt as my own. I gave my attention back to Ellis who was doing nothing but staring down at his feet.

"A little busy you were, yeah?" I cocked my head at him, hoping for him to man up about his repulsive actions.

"Autumn, it's not what-"

"It's not what you think," I mocked. I shook a finger in his guilty face while I stepped towards him. "You know damn well what you did. She's in my shirt for Christ's sake!" I said now raising my voice.

"We-we can fix this." He quietly said, grabbing one of my hands. I jerked back from him, seeing no emotion in his eyes which led me to believe that this was just a fake act of sorrow.

"You can't fix this, Ellis." I told him. He didn't reply back, which gave me the queue to leave. "You disgust me. To actually think those 2 years meant something." I shook my head as I began to step back from him and back down the steps.

"Wait," he called out, just as I turned my back on him. I froze in my spot, indicating that I was going to listen to him. "I know about you and Luke. I suggested you gave up on me." I spun slowly to him, not understanding why Luke was now involved.

"First of all, there's nothing going on between Luke and I." I said through gritted teeth. "Don't you dare drag him into this. Second of all, you thought that I was the one to give up on you? Look at the situation you're in Ellis." He nodded his head, as if he was making some type of agreement to himself. I jumped off the final step and onto the street, not caring that there were on lookers.

"Fuck you." I growled at him with the same polite smile he had given me. Before I caused any bigger of a scene, I started my way back to my own home.

I was fuming. Raging. I was everything you were when you were mad. I knew that soon enough there was going to be a wave of sadness rushing over me soon, but all I could feel right now were my gritted teeth and heated blood. I had never experienced being cheated on, so this was a new feeling. It definitely hurt, especially since I had never expected this to come from Ellis. He was such a proper and well-mannered boy, but I guess things can change.

Before I actually knew what was going on, I was running. Sprinting, actually. I wove my way through the massive clots of people, not caring who I bumped into. I wanted out of the rain and I wanted to be back in my own house. After what seemed like hours I finally reached my apartment building, running up the stairs not caring that I was barely able to keep myself together.

My hand reached to open the door, but it was locked. I mentally shamed myself for forgetting my key and began pounding on the door until I was greeted by Luke.

"I was wondering where-Jesus Christ are you okay?" He asked, pulling me into the house as quick as he could. I didn't answer as I didn't know if I was okay, so I decided not to open my mouth at all. "You're soaked, Autumn." He stated the obvious as he helped me get my heavy jacket off and exchange it for a warm hoodie from the drier he rushed to get.

I was beginning to put the pieces together, Luke being angry this morning and going to Ellis', Ellis cancelling dates, the weird behavior from both of them and it finally clicked in my head. I shot my head up and stepped towards Luke who was walking towards me with a blanket in hand.

"You knew." I said harshly to Luke. He dropped the blanket right on the floor, putting his hands up in defense. "You knew Ellis was cheating on me, didn't you?" My fists balled up, feeling a wave of emotions run through me.

"Autumn, let me explain." He said calmly, slowly walking to me.

"Why didn't you tell me?!" I yelled, feeling tears well up in my eyes. After years of knowing Luke, he'd only seen me cry two times and this was about make it the third. His eyes became wide as he noticed the water brimming at my eyes.

"I couldn't." He answered, rubbing the back of his neck.

"What do you mean you couldn't?!" I shouted. "You knew that my boyfriend of 2 years was cheating on me and you couldn't bother to tell me?!"

"I didn't want to be the one to hurt you." He was know only standing a few feet in front of me and hadn't taken his eyes off of mine for a single moment. I stared just as intently back at him, not knowing to do with the mass amount of confusion and anger and sadness. 

I felt his touch around my wrist and I looked down, letting my fingers uncurl and my knuckles turn back to their original color. Without a single word Luke sat me down on the couch and gave me time to wipe away my fallen tears. He leaned his back against the cushions, crossing an ankle over his knee. When he got the feeling that it was okay to speak, he did exactly that.

"I've known for about 2 weeks." He softly said, not knowing how I'd respond. "I found out when you had passed out after a movie night." His eyes reconnected with mine and the apologetic look in his was genuine, unlike Ellis had shown. "He accidentally called you and I picked up and heard a girl's voice on the other end so I confronted him about it. He spilled everything to me the next morning." He explained, fumbling with his hands.

"Why didn't you tell me?" I whispered, still mad about too many parts of this situation.

"It was hard not to."

"And why did he think there was something going on between us?" I looked over at Luke who was biting at his bottom lip in search for an answer. He took a deep breath then shifted all of his weight towards me. "What the hell is going on?" I demanded. 

"When I went to Ellis' house this morning he pointed out the...marks on my neck." He told me somewhat awkwardly. He leaned his head back then tilted it back to me. He put a hand up to his neck, right where the hickies were. "These aren't from Cianna, these are from you. And that's what I told him."

"I didn't do that," I shot back. "I was with Ellis last night." I crossed my arms, not accepting Luke's story. He rolled his eyes at me, letting his hand drop.

"Ellis wasn't here last night. He wasn't at the party either," Luke told me. My idea of what happened last night was changing, but I couldn't exactly put a finger on what really happened.

"Then who was in my bed with me last night?" I asked. I leaned away from Luke and widened my eyes, realizing that since Luke was the only one home and that he wasn't actually out hooking up with Cianna, he was the one I had cuddled up to last night. "Seriously Luke?!" I yelled standing up. "I can't believe you took advantage of me like that!" I furiously ran a finger through my hair that was still wet, probably creating more tangles then getting rid of them.

"You had a leg slung on either side of me and were only in a bra and thong. I had enough respect for you to stop things before you took it any further." He defended, standing up and following me into the kitchen.

"Before I  took it any further?" I put a finger to my chest, emphasizing that I was sure it wasn't me who was all to blame for this.

"Yes, you." He fought back. "You were too drunk to unzip your own dress so you asked me to help. Shit, I even closed my eyes just to make sure I wouldn't see anything, but then you just crawled into my lap and straddle me and-"

"Stop!" I shouted, throwing my hands in the air. I walked up to him, putting a single finger to the middle of his chest. "We are friends." I swallowed the lump in my throat and flicked between his pale eyes. "And we will be nothing more."