strangers to lovers

CHAPTER-FIVE:

During the past twenty minutes, I have been woken up by my phone ringing ten times. I was apprehensive upon taking the phone out of my pocket, and I was ticked off by myself when I saw the name Luke Connor flashing on the screen. What kind of stalker was he? Was he some kind of psychopath? It has never occurred to me that anyone in my experience calls people every two minutes after their initial call becomes unanswered in order to bother them. Ultimately, I decided not to answer my phone, but to just turn it off rather than give him the satisfaction of knowing I had answered it. This would reduce distraction. The back room was filled with the sound of a voice calling out, "Luke again?" Donna lowered her eyes and looked up at Luke. I couldn't help but be flooded with doubt as I voiced the question out loud, "Doesn't he know that I'm at work?" In accordance with his request, I had sent him a weekly schedule for the week at Coffee House that matched his requirements. My guess is that he did get it, because it is unlikely that he would contact me during my shift unless he had gotten it. At work, even though my phone was ringing, I was unable to simply pick up the phone just because it was ringing. There is no doubt in my mind that I would be able to do it, and I would never tell him about it. One of the things that made her so charming was the fact that she had such a beautiful smile. She said that she was a bit relieved that she no longer had a crush on your brother. The grinder stopped working after a moment. I was struck by how strange it seemed that she would crush on someone in jail. There was a moment of laughter, but it quickly faded. I placed my hand back into the grinder and continued to grind the beans. A moment later, I cleared my throat and immediately put my hand back into the grinder. "I know." "How long does he have left?" I asked cautiously. A while later, after having paused for some time, I responded, "Uh, about six months?" I wasn't quite sure what to say. There appeared to be no end to the time that had passed since he had been sentenced. Although it was a brief period, my year felt like forever, and it wasn't even the end of the world. Apart from my grandfather who was a very old man, I didn't have any other family members except Jeremy. There were thousands of dollars that she could get when he was proven to be innocent. This made Donna raise her fist in the air and squeal with excitement. Her positive energy was contagious and I could not help but smile every time I thought of her. There was a lot of difficulty in this case, but if he is found not guilty in court he might win. I was still unsure about my beliefs, even though I knew what I believed. There was no doubt that my brother had consumed alcohol. Among the crimes he committed in the past, stealing a car was one of them. It seemed impossible to me that he would have stolen a car and crashed it whilst under the influence of alcohol, but that is exactly what happened. My entire life was spent with him. Those were not the kinds of things he did. However, according to CCTV footage recorded at the bar, he was the type of person who would do such a thing. I ran my hand through my hair. Considering this, it hurt my head. A sudden ringing of the shop phone caused me to jump, which made Donna laugh as well. As I walked over to it, I picked it up with a dirty look in my eyes. I was trying to figure out why you weren't answering your cell phone when Ella said, "Poughkeepsie Coffee House." I took another moment to realize it wasn't a customer. The person on the other end of the line was Luke. After a brief pause, the phone began ringing again shortly afterwards. In Donna's direction, there was a look of uncertainty in her eyes. I was afraid that if I didn't answer it, it might actually be a customer, which made me think that I shouldn't take the call. However, I was too scared to ignore it. "Coffee House, Ella speaking, how may I help you?" Did you hang up on me?" Ugh. "Yes," I said. In the midst of silence, a second passed. During our conversation, he said, "Don't hang up." You have ten seconds to get the message across. "Your phone isn't working." "I'm at work." "So?" I'm not surprised. Consequently, I should have been able to guess that he wouldn't be bothered by that. He probably answered his phone calls on the very first ring, for the most part, since he was always on the phone. I have to stop speaking for a bit while since the place is pretty crowded." He cut me off as if I had been in the wrong place when he cut me off. Given the fact that Dunkin Donuts is directly across the street, I know the company's profit isn't nearly as high as other coffee shops around. Poor planning on the owner's part." "Wow, that is really interesting information." "You're welcome," he replied. Apparently he missed my sarcasm because he actually sounded pleased in the end even though I was sarcastic. I leaned against the doorframe. There was a brief moment of silence as the caller asked, "Are you planning to tell me the reason you are calling?" A brief silence followed. "I have plans for us tonight." "Plans?" "Yes. We'll be going on our first date." "Date?" I repeated. It isn't necessary for me to put on a dress as we will see your dresses when we meet at your house," she continued. "Dresses? I suppose you're intent on imitating a parrot, aren't you? With a slight scowl on my face, I asked. As I cupped my elbow and stared at the tiles on the floor, I couldn't help but be drawn to them. "BUT..." I stared at them. The prospect of a date was exciting as I hadn't had one for a long time. If you were in your late teens, there is a reasonable chance that you had a boyfriend for a while. As soon as

Jeremy was sent to jail, I found out that I did not really have any time to spend with people or date anyone. My second job was suddenly required of me, and I had to take it on. A chuckle erupted on the other side of the line. Taking care of it properly means not overthinking it, but simply making sure that you all do your share. The responsibility lies with you. That is exactly what needs to be done. As a result, it was my responsibility to do so. There was something wrong with my nerves, and I was tense. My only responsibility was to act. The drama department at my high school was a bit of a hobby of mine. Nothing should turn out wrong. Then I had about an hour to get ready for showering after I finished work at three p.m. Then she asked, "Let's meet at your house at four?" I arrived home at three p.m. after finishing work. It would be nice to meet up then," I asked. "One moment," she replied. "Do you know where I live?" An alarm sounded and a click was heard in the distance. "Hello?" The person did not respond to the question. Hanging up, I scoffed. He's such a d**k. Soon after I returned to the floor, Donna asked, "Who was it?"? As I was shuffled around in an awkward manner, the man said to me, "One guess," as he turned to me and said, "One guess" to me. The widening of her eyes suggested that she was going out on a date. "Really? How exciting!" My heart raced as I replied, "Eh." I was not sure if I should use the word exciting or not. It is more appropriate to describe it as nerve-racking. There was a moment when I could not believe what he said. He said, "Well, at least we'll get a free dinner if anything goes wrong." In this case, there will be no cost associated with the dinner. Not too bad. I grinned. Hello four-course meal. It was time to say goodbye to Donna after the shop was closed and I got into my beat up Buick. After only a few minutes of driving, I arrived at my apartment in record time after making it there in record time. Upon getting out of the car, I found that it was unlocked. Therefore, I jumped out, locked it, and began walking up the staircase to my apartment, which was upstairs. It was imperative for me to keep an eye on what was happening around

me. In my wallet I had twenty-five dollars. As a matter of fact, I didn't want to think about being robbed at all. Poughkeepsie was not a place I liked very much. You were on skid row the next second, just a short walk away from a beautiful, busy area, when all of a sudden you were on skid row. Prior to moving, my home was near the center of Poughkeepsie. However, after he was sentenced, I had to move into a smaller apartment in a less convenient area of town. I did not have a particularly unpleasant experience during the course of the experience, however. There were some places in the world where it was more frightening than others. My neighbors were not easy to get along with, so it wasn't easy for me to get along with them. If you do not count the homeless people who sometimes squat in the apartment next to mine, they are usually vacant. The people I encountered on a regular basis were generally pleasant whenever I came into contact with them. The building I lived in was very decayed, and there were a lot of holes in the walls. The lawn of the house had a lot of weeds growing on it, and there were bars covering the windows. The house was relatively bare, the staircase sounded like it might collapse, and the lawn probably had more weeds than grass. This is probably because there was not much paint in the house. I believe that many people will think that it is uninhabitable when they see it for the first time. As far as I am concerned, the price seems reasonable. I smiled as I smirked at the landlord after I had negotiated with him. I had managed to convince him to settle on three hundred dollars a month rather than four hundred dollars. This was because I promised was because I had promised that I would shovel the driveway myself when it snowed. It must be noted, though, that since the exterior was a bit rougher than the inside, I had to do the majority of the work on the inside. It was a neighborhood in which two apartments were housed in a building. At the moment, the downstairs apartment was unoccupied, while the upstairs apartment was occupied by me. I noticed that the wooden floors in the hallway and stairwell of the apartment looked almost like they

had been polished as soon as I entered the apartment. As soon as I moved into the house, I scrubbed the walls. While I treated my apartment the same way I treated the hallway, I didn't touch the apartment upstairs at all. I treated it the same way I treated the ground floor. In order to clean everything in sight, we mopped, swept, vacuumed, and bleached everything in sight. Even though the apartment looked rundown from the outside, it was accessible and clean on the inside. It was simply a matter of taking off my shoes and stepping into the shower as soon as I entered the bathroom. Although the bathroom was a little smaller than I expected, I didn't find it too bothersome since I was the only person living there. The only thing that mattered was plumbing and hot water. After I had washed my hair, I walked into my bedroom to dry it and to decide what I would wear when I finished showering. Despite knowing I could not compete with what Luke was wearing, I was determined to find something that would come close to what he was wearing. During my search through my closet, I was only able to see my underwear. The next thing I searched for in my closet was my dresser, which was still packed inside my closet. While searching in vain for a solution, my chest pounded with dread. My usual dresses were not here, so I was not able to wear them. There is a reasonable chance that I threw them away during the move. Putting my hands on my head, I grunted under the weight of the situation, grinding my teeth. Since there was not much space in this place and I wanted to keep things as simple as possible, I threw out a lot of my clothes when I moved into this place. As I was looking through my closet, it struck me that I had thrown out my dresses! I did not realize that! Despite the fact that I didn't wear them very often, I saw them as pretty despite the fact that I didn't wear them very often. My closet was the first place I looked when I got back home. Wearing something stylish was one of the most significant things for me. The closet in my house had a lot of old and worn-out clothing that looked like it had never been washed. When my cellphone rang, which I had thrown down on the floor, I walked over to my bed and sat down as I listened to it. Caller ID showed that the caller was Luke Connor. "Hello?" I answered. How did you manage to deceive me by giving me more than just a false address in order to deceive me?" "Uh, no. Why? There was no answer to my question. "I believe I am not where I should be." As I walked over to the window in my bedroom that overlooked the street, I happened to notice a sporty black BMW idling in front of my apartment. This caught my eye. Definitely, he made that happen. My jeans were pulled on, my first shirt was thrown on, my jeans were tucked in and I hung up the phone in the blink of an eye. I began to feel my heartbeat pick up as I walked down the stairs in my socks, causing me to become breathless. Luke had not yet been informed of the condition of my apartment. The fact that he believed that he was in the right place makes it difficult to understand what made him feel he was in the wrong place. This is because he believed he was right where he needed to be. The first floor apartment was being broken into by an unwelcome intruder who was trying to gain entry to the apartment. It had been a long time since I had seen her, so I was unable to do anything more than wave a quick hello. I tapped the tinted window of the BMW as I left the building after leaving the building. Luke appeared through the roll-down window as he was rolling down the window as he rolled it down. My face filled with a strange look as I laughed awkwardly, asking "You live here, don't you?" "Are you playing a prank on me?" he asked As far as the price goes, I think it's reasonable. I'm almost ready. There was a look on his face that suggested he did not want to travel with us. The expression on his face seemed to indicate that he had not wanted to go up. He said, "Yeah, actually, just stay here." I should be back down there in no time, so once I get back there I shouldn't have any difficulty locating my way back. My eyes were wide open, while Ivy and I turned our backs on him from the moment we saw him. The two of us stared at each other, our eyes widening. We turned our backs on each other. Then we turned toward my apartment. I jogged back inside, hoping that jeans and a t-shirt would be enough for whatever we were going to do, because I hadn't packed anything else. Once I had put on some lighter makeup and fixed my hair, I headed into the bathroom for a quick wash. My lips pursed as I stared into the mirror and noticed the reflection. No matter how much I looked at myself, I could never get myself to imagine what it would be like to stand beside Luke at that moment. Almost everything about me had an air of cheapness to it. In addition to my hair, this also applies to my skin. My eyelids drooped and I sighed a bit, trying to spare myself the embarrassment of losing some of my self-confidence. After slipping into my Vans and purse, I made sure to lock the room behind me as I exited, making sure to carry my Vans and purse with me. Despite the fact that I did not know when I would return, did not turn off the hallway light while I was out of the house due to the uncertainty of my return time. On my way to the passenger's side of the BMW, I paused for a moment as I walked over to the side that was facing me. We were going to have a memorable experience when we were totally alone for the first time. Taking a deep breath and turning to face Luke, I slipped through the door and gave him a warm greeting as I turned to face him. I realized right away that I was underdressed. A navy blue button-up shirt, black tie, and gray vest completed his ensemble, which consisted of a navy blue button-up shirt, a black tie, and a gray vest. I noticed a shiny black belt holding his dark-washed jeans in place as my eyes scanned down to the end of his legs. The least you can do is wear a pair of jeans and still feel comfortable. Upon noticing that I was staring at him, he turned my attention to the interior of his car and caught me staring back at him. Despite being a bit dark, this is actually pretty impressive. As with the floor mats, the leather seats, as well as the wood trim that adorned the wood trim, were all black. After putting his purse away, he asked the young lady, "Is there a dress in there?" "He had just put his purse away. There was something about it that made me shudder. When I glanced at my shirt, I found that there was a hole that exposed part of the bra that I was wearing. It wouldn't be a wise idea for me to wear something like that," he replied. As I pulled up my shirt in surprise, I found excess material covering my shirt. After shifting into drive, I pulled onto the road, replying, "You'll see." He had no hesitation in setting up an appointment for you because we needed something to get you. "You will see," he said unfazedly. The smoothness of the drive impressed me greatly. The road wasn't in the happiest shape, but I didn't seem bothered by bumps. The car you have is nice, I told him. He smiled arrogantly. Before I could resist, I asked, "How much was it?" It was almost impossible for me not to pause for my breath when he replied, "I just traded in my old one for this one." As I pondered how he could have said that casually, I wondered if there would have been more than five of them if this car had cost the same as five others. He kept his eyes on the road, saying, "Don't look at me that way." "It is a very modest car for my family." BMWs can be purchased for a lot more money. There's just something about this one that I like." I sank into my seat a little bit, trying to get comfortable. "Must be kind," I grumbled. Luke gave me a sidelong glance. There's something about the apartment that looks like it could lead to asbestosis just by looking at it." "Is that really your apartment?" "Yeah, why? It's not that we are not good enough but we still have to live." "We have to do this." "Affordability." "Sure I can afford something better than that." "Not really, I'm saving for college." "You aren't in college?" He asked in an informal tone that sounded harsher than it actually was. My embarrassment was heightened. As a result, I was irritated. As a senior in high school, I was able to achieve my dream of saving enough money to cover all my tuition expenses for the first time since graduation. In order to pay for our education, some of us actually have to work." And that was excluding my scholarships and loans. Why doesn't your family help you with your education?" My mouth did not want to stay shut for a minute since I wanted to avoid sounding like the typical girl who screams out, "Oh no, my parents are dead!" when they hear this news. He did not feel a need nor a desire to express sympathy or pity on his part because he did not need or want to do so. In the midst of the silence, the voice of the man was heard and he asked, "Did you hear me?" I sighed. It's not really your business. He kept his face quiet for a moment, not wanting to go into any further details. "Fine." Now it was awkward. It was not that I wanted to say anything at all; in fact, I didn't want to say anything at all! My mother passed away a short while ago, and my father left a short while ago, as well as my brother being imprisoned. How are things with your family? '' Just thinking about it makes my stomach hurt. It would have been more appropriate to ask the question sooner rather than later. "To the city," he said. Where? It is true that there was not much that reminded people of a city in Poughkeepsie. Upon hearing that the man had shaken his head, he asked, "Is that something like Arlington?" Suddenly, I became incredulous. There was nothing I could do but repeat uncontrollably, "New York City?" The drive to get there will take almost two hours! It will take you almost two hours to get there!" Don’t worry, we can connect you to the car with Wi-Fi and then you will be able to use it." I stared at him for a moment open-mouthed, not wanting to reveal my emotions. Was I supposed to sit with him for two hours straight? Is it true that he planned to kidnap me? Oh God. As a matter of fact, I shouldn't have been so quick to trust him. There is a high chance that someone was trying to sell me to a human trafficking group. No, no, no. I don't think he would have been willing to kidnap someone because he knew it was too risky. He might hire someone else if he had to really hire someone to do the job for him. There was at least some good news as far as that was concerned. As he cleared his throat, he began speaking more slowly. "Also, you know, you know the other day," he began suddenly, his voice still soft. "Also, you know... about the other day," he continued quietly. The number of times I have taken Dylan's advice -- or, rather, the number of times I have followed my own advice..." His voice grew quieter. "I didn't mean..." "What?" he asked. Taking a firm grip on the steering wheel, he replied, "I'm sorry if I offended you the other day." I remember multiple times how he had offended me unconsciously. It was an impatient look that he gave me as he asked, "About what?" Luke straightened his back, and he muttered in a low tone, "I do not understand what you are saying." The expression on his face changed after he said he was sorry for mentioning the breasts to you just the other day, indicating he felt relieved. I groaned. Wouldn't it have been better if you hadn't brought that up in the first place? Can you imagine sitting in a car for two hours after a long journey? As he was trying to catch up with me, it was my fault that I switched on the stereo when he said that I was correct. It was also my fault that I turned on the stereo. My SiriusXM had been switched to ALT Nation during the conversation. The volume had been cranked up so high that I was unable to hear him speak again for the duration of the conversation. We had a long drive ahead of us.