The Silent ~ l.h

6//Beautiful

'I was born with this condition. I have never heard anything in my whole life. I've never spoken anything in my whole life. So obviously, I led a completely different life. For a while, I...'

His actions slowed, as he tried to compose himself.

"Hey, it's okay. You don't have to tell me," I signed, gently stroking his cheek.

The version of how I interpreted his story, with the all the right adjectives, was the fine-tuned version of Luke's raw and disjointed story.

"No, it's okay. So I felt insecure about it. I...did things. One of them was... Well, stealing. I stole from all kinds of people, we all did. It used to distract me, and it was a good way to earn money. Those group of people you saw there? We used to split the money amongst ourselves. We were all thieves. Some were pickpockets. Some could pick locks beautifully. Some were muggers.

I was one. I used to cover my face and cornered people in dark alleys after following them for days, then knocking them out cold and stealing their stuff.

Once, I was caught in the act. A watchman on patrol reported me, and I was arrested. But at the station, I was given an option- either stand for trial in court, or get off scotch-free, with nobody getting to know about this, if I ratted out the leader.

I didn't want to be sent away, or locked up. Worse, I didn't want to imagine Calum's face when he heard I betrayed him. So I agreed. I told him all about the leader, who called herself 'Crimson'. And now 'Crimson' in jail, for god knows how long. And all those people are after me, and everyone around me."

Oh my god. He was hiding all this. That boy, crying over his guitar, never being able to hear his own music, hiding so much more than just the disappointment of not being able to hear or speak.

He was hiding his loneliness, his depression, his feeling of being rejected...
For someone to have the willpower and the fire to escape that, it was inhuman.

'When did this happen?'

'A month ago.'

If I had met Luke a few weeks back, what would I have found? I shuddered, closing my eyes and trying digest all this.'

'Luke, I...'

'Since then, it's been kind of difficult. You're the only one who knows. I couldn't get myself to tell my family.'

His family. I wondered how they would feel if they found out what he had been through, and how he had struggled to pull out through all these problems, this huge mess.

'Luke, hey,' I said, just overwhelmed. I was scared my knees were going to give out any second, but the spotlight was on him here, the spotlights are always on the heroes, the saviours.

'It's okay. I'm not going to judge you. It's a good thing that you got that off your shoulders. That's a big secret to be keeping, and secrets come at a price. Here, the price was all this sadness. Now I know. And I'll help you. We're here to help you. Don't be afraid.'

'Thank you.'

'Anytime, Luke. I'm here for you, okay?'

Luke nodded, before asking me another question.

'Do you believe in epiphanies?'

'Yes, I think I do. But what does that have to do with this?'

He took a minute before he answered, rubbing his arms, as he was sore from all that communicating.

'I had an epiphany. It felt like a mountain being thrown at my face out of nowhere. And I didn't want to forget my problems anymore. I realised that I had to fight them to truly achieve something or be happy. Since then, it feels like the earth has been flipped around.'

'Luke, promise me one thing.' I signed.

Luke was so much more than this world deserved. Have you ever read those stories where they speak about angels sent down to earth, to show everyone the model of a perfect human being? Well, for me, that was Luke. A beautiful person. And no, not beautiful as in hot, but beautiful as in...just, an amazing, perfect person.

If you ever thought the word beautiful was used only for feminine qualities, you'd look at Luke, and you'd change your mind. Meet Luke and get know him for what his character actually was... And calling him beautiful became cold modesty.

'Don't ever lose yourself, you're too beautiful for that.' I signed, looking down at my feet. Luke tilted my chin up, replying.

'Funny you should say that. If you lost yourself, I'd hunt down the universe to find your soul.'

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A/N- I use beautiful as a gender neutral adjective. I don't know why, but I like it. I also like writing and reading fast-paced stories.

And I'm aware that I originally made Luke's backstory one of a druggie, but then I realised that, well, withdrawal symptoms were a MAJOR plot hole. Stealing,on the other hand, is more believable.

What did you thin about this chapter? Also, what's your favorite ice-cream flavour? Mine's Belgium chocolate with warm chocolate syrup on top.

Until next time :-)

I love you xx
Sunny 💙