LUKES WARNING IS BRUSHED OF with a roll of his eyes and the trilling of his lips . pft โ please , truly , how hard could it be ?? one thing thomas had learned about luke during what felt like a six month long ' friendship test ' was that he was a man who favored melodramatics . he reminded tom so much of eliza , it was a miracle he hadn't ever caught the blonde getting involved with the theatre department ( where he'd find a way to get his name to the top of every cast list , and tom and camille would both have to get an earful about it from eliza every . single . time . ) . the card started going around , and something in thomas's stomach coiled tight . a few close calls were enough to have his palms sweating , and when the ace card finally fell from between two participants โ seeming almost purposeful on the male's end โ thomas's jaw went slack in silent horror . the card being halved only worsened his distress , an iron rod speared down the length of his spine as he watched the smaller piece of laminated cardboard begin its second rotation .
oh shit .
he notably stiffened , leaning back into one of his hands to play it off , though it was something his companion must have taken note of as luke leaned in to whisper , breath hot and stained with booze as it fanned over thomas's suddenly clammy throat . " fuck off , man . " thomas attempted to jest , hitting the back of his hand into the man's chest as if he were a pesky fly . his gaze , however , drifted to the woman beside him , who was now much closer than she had been when she first sat down and looking at him with a wildly feral gleam in her eyes .
the card eventually reached her , and she leaned with both palms on her neighbor's knee as she received the spit-slicked card from their puckered lips . thomas swallowed as he watched . anticipated . her head seemed to be on an effortless , eager swivel as she spun around towards him . leaning in , she sank acrylic talons into his upper thighs and surged her weight forward . the nameless girl had practically hurled herself into his lap , smacking the card against his mouth ( more so his bottom lip ) . thomas screwed his eyes shut and sucked in as hard as he could to pull its halved body from her lips . distracted by the force of her frame atop him , he had entirely failed to notice her efforts to try and purposefully get the card to drop between them .
desperately eager to turn away from her , to twist his body so his shoulder would knock her off of him ; thomas never realized the card had been lost by the time he had fully turned his head . it was too late by the time he had noticed , mouth stamping against luke's with a such a force it was a miracle their noses didn't crunch together . he tasted peppermint and remnants of liquor . felt lips and teeth . tom's eyes snapped open , the man tearing himself back , an expression that could only be labeled as humiliation painting his face as heat crawled up his neck . the laughter swelled instantaneously , thunderous in his ears where blood was rushing , one giggle to his left particularly shrill as the handsy girl cackled and clapped her hands .
" FUCK - " thomas panted , gaze still zeroed in on luke before he ripped it away , looking around frantically . " where'd the - where'd the , " he licked his lips , brows creasing , breaths suddenly erratic . " where'd the fuckin' card go ?? i had the card !! i - i sucked on it , man !! no fuckin' way it fell . " maybe if he distracted himself with the searching for what to him was now public enemy number one , he'd be able to tune out the song of his own misfortune . to ignore the icy blue stare no doubt sewn to him .
laughter danced in the air , the distinct rumble of luke's dry chuckle intermingling with it . his poor puppy was wrought with anxiety , whimpering and whining with his tail tucked between his legs . no , not a puppy . a mouse , led straight into a cheese trap . thomas's face was as red as the halved-heart printed across the spit slickened card , quivering lips barely clutching to its sticky surface whilst his neighbor's claws wound into the folds of exposed skin and faded denim . and , though the man was swift , his grace was gravely lacking . no sooner had thomas spun was the card leaping from his lips and fluttering to the dirty floor , weightless as a feather.
luke did not dive into the kiss . he did not inch forward , press harder , bite hungry fangs into the soft plush of the other's wet lips . he simply sat , expectantly , the kiss ending as unremarkably as it had begun . however , it was not the short embrace that sparked visible pleasure in luke . it was the rippling after effects . a palpable energy that pulsed beyond the confines of their game . a few pointing fingers , stray laughter , whispers , and a hundred leering eyes .
bottom lip rolling between his teeth , luke made little effort in biting back the smile writing itself into every inch of his face . " aw , you're gonna hurt my feelings , ortesky . am i that bad a kisser ? " still , humor permeated within the heightened pitch of his tone .
luke leaned back onto the balls of his hands , tilting his head onto his shoulder whilst the other unraveled . thomas went through the five stages of grief before he finally lifted the card between them , sat like a smoke within the slit of pointer and middle . its bent corner was tapped against the tip of thomas's cherry-red nose . then , luke carelessly flicked it away , grimacing at the tacky remnants that clung to the skin of his fingers .
" better luck next time . and , hey , word of advice : little more suck , little less blow . "
