ten years. [lrh]

twenty-one.

It had been almost four days since Luke had arrived in Australia, and things were beginning to feel better. On the second night, before he went upstairs to sleep, his mother spoke to him. It wasn't much, but it was improvement, and it meant so much to Luke.

"How was dinner?" She had asked.

Luke, astounded by the new attention, had jumped to his feet immediately to help her with the dishes. "Excellent, Ma, like always."

He regretted that instantly, as there wasn't any always between Luke and his family, but Liz didn't seem to notice. Either that or she didn't care. Luke hoped it wasn't the latter.

Two days later, on his fourth morning, Luke decided that he needed a plan for himself. As comfy as his old bed was, Amanda was still out there, and Clara was still on his case, giving Luke calls a million times a day, none of which he would pick up.

He stared into his glass of water that morning, watching the ripples that erupted every time he tapped the rim and wondering what he should do. How long he should stay.

"She lives so close," His father entered the kitchen,  breaking Luke from his line of thought. "You could just surprise her."

"I doubt Amanda lives with her parents at our age, Dad," Luke said, looking back into the glass. The magnified version of the kitchen through the water was replaced by a magnified version of beige pants, and Luke averted his eyes, groaning. "You ruined my view."

"What are you doing now? You're living with us." Andy refused to move from his place, causing Luke to lift his head and completely remove his concentration from the cup of water.

"I'm visiting," Luke elaborated. "And no, I know Amanda, she hated being trapped there. In her home, I mean."

"Couldn't you ask a friend? I recently discovered Facebook."

Luke rolled his eyes. "Anyone that knows the two of us hate me. They all hate me. Presumably."

"When was the last time you spoke to them?" Andy asked. Luke thought for a second, and gulped.

"The last time I spoke to you."

It was quiet, and the boiling regret Luke had so successfully managed to keep down before began to burst free. At that time, ten years ago, it seemed like a good idea to ghost his past. It was easier than confrontation, because who knew what they'd believe?

"Well, it's time you got bitten in the ass." Andy wiped his hands on a piece of flannel, and patted Luke's shoulder. "And however it goes, I'm glad you came back. Rather now than never. She's glad, too. It'll only take her more time, that's all."

Luke nodded, trying to find something interesting in the glass of water, like before. There was nothing different about it. Just a tasteless glass of water.

"Thanks, Dad," Luke said, getting from his seat and facing his father. "Give Mum my thanks, too."

———————

Since the Hemmings' household was in the same local area as it was years ago, Luke was easily recognisable in his neighbourhood.

First it was Mrs Flint. Luke was surprised she was still alive and soaring with memory. At ninety, she seemed to remember him just fine.

"Oh, Lucas!" She shrieked, as he walked past her house. "What a tall, tall man. Very tall indeed."

He wasn't in the mood to really talk, so he threw her a nod and a smile and kept going. Where? He had no clue. His legs knew the place better than his head did.

At the end of the street, a house stood amongst the others, brighter than the rest. Luke remembered it well. Boy, did he remember it.

When he was ten, Luke met a girl. Lacey Stewart. She was tall and she was blonde and she had breasts before the other girls. She wasn't stupid and she sure as hell wasn't smart, but she was really funny. They had become friends fairly quick, and when Luke heard the girl fart for the first time, he knew they were too far in the friend-zone to really be together.

Luke knew she still lived in that house. According to her Instagram account, which he would still stalk every now and then with his inactive high school profile, her parents gifted her the house when they went into retirement. She had a child too, and a husband. She was vegan.

Boy, did Lacey have her life sorted.

He didn't really know what got into him, as he found himself knocking on her front door. Luke found himself knocking on doors quite often these days.

It opened, almost straight away, to a familiar, but very changed face.

"Hey, Lace." Luke raised his hand in a meek wave, testing the waters.

It took Lacey Stewart a few seconds, but soon enough, her eyes widened in disbelief and a hand was slapped over her mouth.

"Luke!" She gasped, her words only just audible from behind her hand. "No fu- freaking way. Luke. Lucas. Luke. Luke!"

Luke tried to smile, shaking his head slightly. "Yeah, that's me, Lace. Been a while."

"You're goddamn right it's been a while! Come in, for fuc- flip's sake!"

Before he could remove his shoes, Luke denied her offer. Despite her surprising welcome, he had somewhere to be. Someone to find.

"I wish I could, Lace. Not here for too long, gotta be places, y'know? I just- just wanted to see how you've been." Luke took a step back, looking up at her with the nicest eyes he could put on.

A wave of disappointment washed over Lacey's faded freckles, but she shrugged it off and nodded. "God, I've been good. Charlie, my boy, is at Kindy. Needed some alone time, right? But shit, Luke, you're looking good."

Luke cocked his head. Surely not...

"You haven't seen me?" Luke asked, taking the step back up to where she was standing. Lacey thought it over, before shaking her head.

"No, don't think so. You moved years ago, right? Unless you came back and didn't tell me."

She doesn't fucking know. Luke dug his hands into the pockets of his jeans and rocked on his ankles. The world around him looked brighter.

"Oh!" He began. "Right, yeah. Yeah, I moved to Los Angeles not too long after London. First time back."

Lacey smiled. "Good for you, Luke. Good for you."

Before he got going, Luke decided to ask one more question. "Hey, Lace, you in touch with anyone from school?"

Lacey smirked. Luke had changed so much but she knew him so well. "Yeah, I am, Luke. And before you ask: yes, Amanda moved. A couple years ago. Went to her housewarming, actually."

Luke turned his head from one side of the street to the other, before running down the stairs to her house. There were multiple springs in his step. He was himself, and he wasn't proving anything.

"Surely you'd wanna give me some address," Luke called, giving Lacey a wink. He bit his tongue. "Haven't seen her in a while."

Lacey shook her head in amusement. "Yeah, okay. You know the waterfront? I can't remember the street but it's opposite Stevenson's. Franklin Street? Frankie? I don't know. Anyways, turn down there, and first lane on the right. She's the one at the back. And hey, Luke? Visit sometime, okay? Promise."

Luke promised, and just about sprinted back home to get to his car. His back pocket started to vibrate, but he ignored her yet again, because Amanda was one grasp away.

———————

y'all this was so boring im so sorry HAHAHAH

but heyo we're gonna get some amanda x luke action in the next chapter i'm so sorry for being so slow these past couple ones

thank u all for 7k dudes wtf that's so cool

VOTE and COMMENT! Thank u for reading x

- epihphany