THE LAST LETTER

Cʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ 38 // 𝑁𝑜 𝑚𝑜𝑟𝑒 𝑠𝑒𝑐𝑟𝑒𝑡𝑠

《 So lock the door
And throw out the key
Can't fight this no more
It's just you and me
And there's nothing I, nothing I, I can do
I'm stuck with you, stuck with you, stuck with you

Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber》

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Rachel and I were cuddling on her bed, and It felt so good to be finally with her. In the darkness of the room, cuddles with her were so warm and cozy, like a touch of heaven. I wish I could extend the night just to stay close to her and keep her safe in my embrace or it's myself that I want to keep safe. Her arms wrapped around me are the only thing that brings me peace. I'm happy after a long while and I finally feel alive again.

"Lucas?" She whispers.

"Hmm.."

"How have you been doing in the past two years?" She lifts her head from my chest and tilts slightly to look at me.

"I've been doing just fine." I was a mess.

"Tell me more." She says, getting up a little more.

"Well, there's not much. After you left, I got a scholarship at UCLA, so I moved to LA. Then I found out that Chloe applied for the same college." Rachel tenses beside me, hearing her name.

"Hey, she was just an acquaintance." I pull her closer to me.

"I know." She whispers. "What about the others?"

"Sam and Matt went to Columbia University together, just like they wanted to."

"They did?" She asks excitedly, and I nod. "I'm glad. How are Liza and Anna?"

"They're fine as well. How have you been, Grace?" I ask her, staring straight into her eyes and she falls silent. After a while, she gives me a small smile and says, "I've been good too."

"No more lies and secrets, Grace. Not anymore. I mean it."

"When I came here, the first few months were worst. I couldn't stop thinking about you and the pain that I saw in your eyes. It was like, every day, my heart was breaking a little, and all I kept on doing is counting the days till my death, but it never came. I went for regular medical checkups, and they'd say that I was doing okay and that I didn't need to worry." She says, sobbing softly.

"Why didn't you just call me when you knew that you were okay?" I ask her.

"I was fine then, but I didn't know what my future held for me. I thought that I was going to die sooner or later, so I just decided to stay happy by thinking about you and that you were happy without me." She explains. Little did she know

"I wasn't happy without you?" I deadpan.

"I know now, and I'm sorry, so, so sorry for every pain I put you through." She starts crying in my chest and I just pull her closer into my chest, smoothing out her hair. "Hey, it's okay. We're fine, and most importantly, we're together. That's all that matters, right?" I ask her, and she just nods into my chest, making me smile.

We stay like that for a while and I didn't even notice that she has been staring at me. "I missed drowning in those beautiful ocean eyes of yours." She says, and I chuckle at her statement. "And you didn't miss me?"