Revival (Johanna's story with Luke Hemmings)

Chapter 13

13.
The rest of the week is busy at work with several new patients and some nursing students needing close supervision. Luke calls on Thursday night to see if I might want to go down south at the weekend with him and his brother for a triathlon on Lake Coleman. I really didn't have any particular plans, and to be honest when I thought about either spending most of the weekend with him or most of the weekend without seeing him, it wasn't a hard choice. I seem to have decided to completely ignore the small but annoying part of me that wants to keep telling the rest, that I shouldn't get too involved; too close, too soon. The risk of getting hurt is something that I am losing any fear of. I am just enjoying feeling excited and ...alive again, even if that is largely to the credit of someone else.

I chuck some things quickly into a bag on Friday night. I really have no idea what I might need. Luke didn't give me many details, but it feels good to do something spontaneous, and I realise how quickly I have grown to trust him. (I just hope he won't go and shock the hell out of me, as people sometimes do).

A Subaru legacy pulls into my driveway with two kayaks on the roof and a bike on the back, and I grab my bag and lock the door behind me. Luke steps out of the passenger side and gives me a slightly awkward hug.

"Hi. Can you fit your bag in the backseat okay? - it's a bloody pain to open the back hatch with his bike on and all the rest of the crap."

"Hi - yeah it's fine" and I throw my bag in and sit behind Luke.

"Gidday Johanna, I'm Sam," Luke's brother turns to me from the driver's seat and smiles.

"Hi - nice to meet you" I respond as he backs out the drive onto the road again.

Sam doesn't look as tall as Luke, though it's not that easy to tell with him sitting down. His hair is darker and cropped short, but he has a similar warm smile.

"How was your day?" Luke questions over his shoulder, and I slide across as far as I can in the seatbelt so he doesn't have to twist so much to make eye contact.

"Yeah okay - it's been a busy week. How about you?"

"Hmm good. Greg finally buggered off again to play golf or whatever, so I could actually just play some music and get on with it" Luke responds. "What did you do with Jess?"

"Oh my Dad's looking after her," I look to Sam "- my dog" I explain.

He nods, "So, what do you do for a job Johanna?"

"I'm an ICU nurse."

"Okay" he nods. We get out to the main road quickly. "Do you guys want to go inland or down the coast?"

"Down the coast" Luke responds quickly. "The sea's much better to look at."

"I wasn't really asking you" Sam turns to him with a frown. "I know you, you'll be asleep within about five minutes anyway. You are like the worst company on a long drive" he teases.

"Yeah well I get bored if I'm not driving" Luke defends himself.

"So what are the distances for this triathlon?" I put to Sam, breaking up the squabble.

"It's 11 k for the run, 7 for the kayak and then 20 on the bike. It shouldn't take me too long really. I've been training for much more" he replies, before indicating and turning off. "I've just got to get some gas."

Luke eyes the petrol station. "Do you want anything?" he asks, while fetching his wallet out of the glove compartment.

"No, I'm right thanks" I respond, and he jumps out and walks off inside. He's wearing black jeans again. I remember the only time I have seen him in anything different was when he wore black shorts to play squash. He returns moments later and I see his black T-shirt has 'Greenday' across the front, and he is carrying a pie. He opens the passenger door again, but it is only to slide the seat forward, before he comes to the back and asks if I mind sliding across.

"I just need some leg room if I'm going to snooze" he grins, as Sam has just returned to the car to hear it.

"Great, so I get to be the chauffeur" Sam complains.

"Yeah, and we get to be the pack horses tomorrow" Luke retorts. He turns to me quietly, "It's not actually that bad. The transitions are all fairly close around the lake. He can manage to look after himself for most of it." He opens the pie and starts blowing on it.

"Man are you eating again already?" Sam laughs.

"He does eat a lot doesn't he? I agree. "If I ate like that I'd be the size of a horse."

"Hey I'm hungry - don't start ganging up on me" he says before taking large mouthfuls of pie.

Another half hour on the road and sure enough he has nodded off, with his legs stretched out in front of him and his head down resting on my shoulder. Sam looks in the rearview mirror and snorts quietly. "Now what did I tell ya."

I smile back. "What do you do Sam?"

"I'm an accountant - probably one of the world's most boring jobs" he shrugs. "But I like numbers and maths. It's nice sometimes to just add up figures and not have to deal with people and their moods and problems." He eyes me in the rearview mirror, "I guess that's completely different from your job."

"Well to be honest, I kind of like it that most of my patients are too sick or unconscious to have much in the way of moods" I reveal. "Sometimes I feel like I am just adding up what goes in and comes out."

The conversation continues easily with Sam, and the silences aren't uncomfortable. Luke stirs after half an hour, but just puts his hand over my knee and goes back to sleep.

I see Sam smile in the rearview mirror. "How long have you two been seeing each other?" he enquires.

"About two weeks" I tell him quietly.

Luke eventually wakes and lifts his head from my shoulder to stretch and rub his eyes. "Man is this Clifton already."

"Yep" Sam answers.

He turns to look at me. "Sorry I didn't mean to sleep so long. Are you okay? He rubs my thigh a little.

"Yeah I'm fine" I assure him with a smile. "Your brother's not too scary" I say a bit louder.

"It's nice to have some awake company for once" Sam returns. "Now, do you guys want to grab some fish and chips or something for tea before we get too far out?

We eat the fish and chips with the packet spread out on the centre console, and then continue the last bit of the drive down into the lake. The sun has long set now and the sky is darkening rapidly. The bush gets thicker as we get closer and some of the taller trees almost touch overhead, reaching in from each side of the road and creating some darker tunnels. We turn, and it's not until the clouds part and the moon appears that I realise we are right on the lake edge following it around. The moon glistens briefly on the still, dark water before more cloud blows in.

"I think this is it" Sam mutters to himself, turning off onto a narrow shingle path parting the trees. Tucked in the bush is a small timber batch, raised on stilts to look out over the lake, and with a covered deck wrapping right around it. He parks the car underneath and we all get out and start to stretch. Sam quickly has his bike off the back of the car, and throws Luke a key as he grabs some bags from the back hatch. Luke leaps up the steps two at a time, while I check with Sam what else needs to be taken in and which of his gear is best left in the car for tomorrow.

Luke returns down the steps and approaches Sam, talking quietly so I can't quite make it out.

"I said it sleeps three, not ..." and I don't catch the rest of Sam's response.

Luke says something back, but I only catch "...don't want her to think I'm a sleaze" at the end.

"Is everything alright?" I ask Luke. He looks uncomfortable.

Sam looks to Luke then sighs tiredly, "Oh for god's sake, apparently there's a double bed and a single." He continues, "I'm gonna want to get to bed early and have a decent sleep so do you think you could share with Luke? - I'm sure he'll be a perfect gentleman."

Luke's discomfort is rather sweet, while Sam clearly isn't someone to beat around the bush. It's obviously not a set-up and I'm glad this is all it is about.

"Sure" I respond easily. "I'm sure I can han... manage him."