From Lukov with Love

by Mariana Zapata

You are who you are in life, and you either live that time trying to bend yourself to make other people happy, or… you don’t.

I wanted to say Jeffrey Dahmer, but Amanda was looking at me, so instead, I went with “Jesus.” There was a pause and a “Correct.” I kept my smirk to myself. He was so full of shit. “What about Jasmine?” I glanced at him, watching as he made a thoughtful expression before answering. “Stephen King.” I didn’t wait for the woman to ask me if it was true, and instead frowned as I asked, “Why?” “He wrote your favorite book.” I blinked. “Misery.”

Absolutely Crying at their bickering

“Want some candy, little girl?” the idiot asked as he placed a forearm on the door and shoved his black-framed, black-lensed glasses up onto the top of his equally dark hair.

Yes I do Ivan 🤭

“Take a picture, it lasts longer,” Ivan drawled all of a sudden. I blinked and thought about glancing away but decided that would look even worse. “I will. I think the encyclopedia needs an entry on Assholes and could use your picture as an example.”

Can they stop theyre making my expectatons too high

“I don’t hate you,” I repeated, looking at him even though he’d glanced away by then. “Why the hell would you think that?” “Because you’ve said, ‘I hate you.’” I blinked. “That doesn’t mean I really hate you. I didn’t know you were that sensitive. I don’t like you, but I don’t hate you-hate you.”

“The only reason I give you so much shit is because you were a pain in the ass, and then you were the only one who dished it back to me. You know you’re beautiful.”

Ivan Lukov, the greatest frenemy in my life after my siblings, had made me hot cocoa.

No one will ever compare to ivan

The girl I know, the Jasmine I know, isn’t scared of shit. She doesn’t give up, and that’s the girl people will always remember. The one who is there time after time. You’d win and keep trying to win afterward. That’s the girl I know. The one I partnered up with. The one I think is the best—and you better not ever ask me to repeat that because I won’t.

“Jasmine, you’re not a loser.” What had to be his chin touched my ear because it prickled. “Not years ago, not last week, not today, not tomorrow. Not ever.

I blinked. “I hope you get abducted by aliens.” Ivan laughed, and the sound of it made me smile. “You would miss me.” All I said, while shrugging was, “Meh. I know I’d get to see you again someday—” He smiled. “—in hell.”

“I wanted you to be my partner for years, dumbass. When Karina had told me you were thinking about switching to pairs, I had thought you would say something to me, even in passing as a joke. I thought you would say you were going to kick my ass, and I had planned on talking to you over it. But you never did. The next thing I knew, you had a partner. Some dipshit that wasn’t half as good as you.”

And as I glanced down and squinted, I knew the shade of skin color resting against my belly. Lighter than mine. Dusted with dark hair. The forearm lined with ropey, lean muscles. If that wasn’t enough, I would be able to recognize the fingers on my belly if I were blindfolded.

Jas is downnn bad