A Father's Love

Chapter 17

   To Luke's surprise, he came upstairs the next day to find Shelby coloring several pictures for all of her guests that had come to her party, including her grandparents and aunt. He hadn't even hinted to Shelby to make thank-you cards, and neither did Rachel when he asked. At the next town meeting, Shelby shyly gave them out to each person. She waited to be acknowledged, not wanting to interrupt while some of them were in the middle of a conversation. Luke couldn't help feel so proud. A hopeful relief kicked in when she gave one to Lorelai. Shelby said nothing when she handed it to her.

"For me?" Lorelai asked, looking over the colorful drawing. "Thanks, Shelby."

The kid stood there for half a minute before bolting back over to her dad, hiding her face in the side of his leg.

Ever since Luke had given Shelby the bike, that was the one gift she want to play with the most, pestering him to go ride it. Unfortunately, Shelby had never ridden a bike before and the one Luke got for her didn't have training wheels. Plus, she was still too young to go off on her own without supervision. He promised the next free time they had together, Luke would take her.

Thankfully, they didn't have that long to wait. Mid Tuesday morning, the diner had hit a dry spell. Luke closed the diner for a couple hours and headed for the park, pushing the bike there. The kid had put her helmet on before they even left the apartment.

At the park, Shelby swung her leg over and mounted the bike.

Luke stood beside the bike, holding onto one of the handlebars. When Shelby was ready, he pushed forward, making sure both of her feet were on each pedal, starting out slow.

"You're doing good, Shell."

Shelby kept watching her feet.

"Look up, kiddo. You have to watch where you're going."

She lifted her gaze, looking forward.

"Atta girl," he praised. "I'm gonna let go, now. Just keep pedaling, okay?"

Shelby nodded her head.

Luke held on for a few minutes. A few more than he initially planned, actually. Even though there had already been times where he had to let go, it never got any easier for the guy. When he let go, Luke kept up alongside Shelby as she continued to pedal on her own.

"That's it, Shell. Keep it going. You're doing great."

Shelby wobbled a little, but remained upright as she pedaled on her own. That is until she got to a turn and she immediately tried to put both feet on the ground. Only the balls of her feet could reach, so Shelby ended up losing balance and fell over before Luke could remind her to use the brakes.

Luke moved the bike from on top of her and helped Shelby to her feet, kneeling to her level. "You okay?" he asked, worried.

Shelby nodded.

Luke checked her over anyway, making sure she didn't get scratched up. When it was apparent she was fine, he asked if she wanted to try again. His question was answered when Shelby picked up her bike and was already getting back on. He smiled and stood up, moving over to her.

"Remember what I told ya before, if you want to stop, lightly squeeze the brakes. Like this," Luke gave the hand brakes a light squeeze to show Shelby, having her do the same to make sure she understood. He also showed her how to turn. "Okay. Ready?" he asked, afterwards.

She nodded up at him.

Luke couldn't help smile which Shelby returned and gave her a gentle tap on top of her helmet. They walked the bike along the curved part of the sidewalk before Shelby started pedaling. As they did the first time, Luke held on, letting her know when he would let go again. It took a moment like it did before, but not as long. Luke let go and even let Shelby get ahead. He still stayed a little behind, in case she fell again. In fact, she lasted longer before freaking out and jumped off the seat this time. The bike was the only thing that fell this time.