Retrospection (Luke H.- Sequel to Amnesia)

Prologue

Ashton's POV

It's been about a week since Luke went missing and was announced dead when a funeral was held. Vivian and I sat front row along with Michael, Calum, Carleigh, and a few security guards. I smoothed out a wrinkle from my black button up as a distraction from what was actually happening. We were all sitting outside in the blazing heat as the burial began. Luke's grave was right next to Eli's and I paid little attention to the funeral coordinator who was trying to give us instructions.

"Alright, before we lower Luke, it's time for family and friends to say some words."

No one raised a hand. We all knew what would be said.

He was a great friend and Eli was lucky to have him.

Luke accomplished so much, but he didn't live long enough to see what would become of his achievements.

I miss him.

No one said anything, because I guess everything's already kind of been said.

The casket began to lower, and I could hear Vivian sniffling. I gave her hand a reassuring squeeze, but I wasn't even sure if I was genuinely okay with all of this. I wiped a tear that fell from my eye and frustratedly ran my hand through my hair. One of my best friends was gone. He's never gonna be around anymore, and I'm never gonna be able to listen to any of our songs without bursting into tears.

But I at least hope him and Eli found each other.

"Now that he is lowered, each row of guests will have the opportunity to drop a rose into the casket and pay their respects before we conclude the service," the funeral coordinator spoke in monotone.

I stood up and Vivian took my hand in hers. We were each given a rose and I could barely look at what has become of my best mate. As I dropped the rose in, one of my tears fell with it. Vivian pulled me into a hug and I broke.

Every tear that I'd been holding in raced down my face and stained my cheeks. Vivian tried to calm me down, but I just continued sobbing into her shirt. They say you don't realize what you had until it's gone, and they were damn right.

Michael's POV

It felt like a sucker punch in the gut when I saw how low in the ground my best friend was. I sat down and put my head in my hands before letting a few tears loose. Someone began rubbing circles on my back, and I looked up to see a worried Carleigh.

"I'm fine, I swear," I sighed before turning towards her.

"Michael I know you're not. You don't have to lie to me. You don't have to pretend like you're okay," she stated with a hint of desperation in her voice.

After Carleigh kind of just disappeared on us, she never came back because she didn't think we wanted her back. When she heard about Eli and Luke, she rushed over as soon as she could and spent the next few days apologizing and blaming herself for not helping us out when we needed it. No one really blamed her. She didn't do anything to kill them.

"Mikey I know it hurts to loose your best mate, but there isn't much you can do to change it. So you keep the wonderful memories, but you find yourself moving on."

I smiled.

"That last line was a Nicholas Sparks quote, wasn't it?" I asked with a knowing smirk.

She nodded and smiled sheepishly before gathering her things. The service was now over and we were all being ushered out of the cemetery. As we walked away, I watched dump trucks pour tons of dirt over the casket and roses. Every deposit of soil would add more weight on my shoulders, and it got to the point where my posture was visibly getting worse. I looked away and followed the small crowd out and I found my car not too far from Calum's. After giving him a sad smile and a wave, I got in my car and broke into hysterical sobs onto the wheel. I was on the brink of hyperventilating, and I could literally feel the full weight of the situation on me.

It felt like Eli's funeral all over again.

Calum's POV

After the service, I stayed back a bit and stood at Eli's grave. I shoved my hands into my black jeans and let out a loud, angry sigh. My eyes stared at the sky to keep tears from freely flowing.

I couldn't help but think this was all Eli's fault. If she never came into our lives, maybe both of them would still be here.

I literally tried to shake those horrible thoughts out of my head by frantically shaking my head. Even I knew I was just thinking that because my best friend is gone. There'll be no more Cake, or 5SOS, or keeks with Luke, and I wanted to scream at the top of my lungs.

Eventually, I made it to my car and waved at a sad Michael. I saw him break down as soon as he got in his car, and I wanted to help him so bad and tell him everything would be okay, but I was frozen in my spot knowing that everything might not actually end up being okay. I kicked a front tire before getting in my car and speeding off.

That night, I laid in bed with a beer in my hand and two more laying on the floor leaving stains I'd be too tired to clean. The clock on my nightstand read "3:59 a.m." and my eyes sealed shut and the half drunken beer bottle shattered on the floor, but I was too broken to care.

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IMPORTANT A/N: I CAN'T BELIEVE RETROSPECTION IS FINALY HERE! Anyway, I hope you liked the prologue, and don't get too comfortable with what you're reading right now, because the rest of the story will be mostly in..............Eli's POV. What? How? Well my plan is to kind of create sort of a reincarnated Eli and Luke where fate will determine whether or not they should have a second chance. This time, Luke is a teenager struggling with dyslexia and depression and Eli is an All A Honor student who already has universities begging for her. I'll explain how the whole reincarnation thing works in the next chapter. BTW the next chapter will basically continue the epilogue from Amnesia. I hope you guys enjoy this story!

-J