Faded Away

|FIVE|

"Dad, are you sure she'll like these?" I heard as walked down the stairs quietly. I stopped and poked my head around the corner to see Luke and his boys making something.

"I'm sure of it bud. Banana pancakes are her favorite and she likes to eat them with a little bit of peanut butter on top instead of syrup." He smiled. I stood back against the wall, remaining hidden.

Banana pancakes. They were making my favorite breakfast. A smile spread across my face. I poked my head out when I heard laughter coming from Tate. He had batter on his face and cracked that cute smile of his. Bo grabbed a spoon and flung batter which wound up on Luke's face. I tried to cover my mouth to avoid laughing. That didn't go so well. I laughed and tried to run back up the stairs but was grabbed by Luke in an instant. He carried me into the kitchen where the boys were laughing at the batter still on Luke's face. I chuckled a bit as well and he gave me a funny look.

"What? Is there something on my face?" He teased.

"A little bit, yeah." I smirked.

"Well you should help me get it off then." He said, giving me a sly smile before leaning in to give me a kiss.

"See Bo! Daddy told me! I wasn't lying." Tate exclaimed. Luke shushed him and covered Tate's mouth with his hand.

"What'd he tell you Tate?" I asked as I pulled Luke towards me.

"I can't tell you. It's a secret." He giggled. Luke gave him a thumbs up and I sighed before sitting down at the island. I watched as the finished making pancakes with a few giggles here and there. Luke served me two pancakes and handed me a jar of peanut butter along with a butter knife. I took a bite and I felt like I was in heaven. I thanked Luke and the boys as I gobbled away at the pancakes. I washed off my dishes and carefully placed them in the drying rack. As they cleaned up the kitchen, I retreated back upstairs and began to gather my belongings. I left Luke's hoodie on the edge of his bed then made my way back downstairs.

"Are you leaving already?" Luke asked when he saw me slipping on my sandals.

"Yes. I gotta go home and shower and do some cleaning. But thank you for breakfast, it was amazing." I replied. He nodded and put on his slides to walk me out. I said goodbye to Bo and Tate then followed Luke out to my jeep. I hugged him tightly and he kissed my forehead before I got in and drove off.

I pulled into my driveway and shut off the engine. I grabbed my phone and jumped out of the vehicle. Blake's Land Rover wasn't in the drive which was a little odd. I was expecting the house to be completely trashed but instead it was spotless. The floors were mopped, every surface was dusted, and it smelled fresh. So cleaning was off the list. I went to my room then pulled out a fresh set of clothes and a towel before heading to the bathroom.

I came back and checked my phone. A few text messages from my mother asking where I was, a few from Blake saying the same. I clicked off the screen and tossed it on to my pillow. The moment I finished getting ready another text message came through. I opened it and it was from Luke. It was a picture of him and the boys making pouty faces with the caption "the boys miss you already..." I texted back saying I missed them too and I was free later on in the day.

I realized it was Wednesday so I had to go pick up my check from the restaurant. I grabbed my phone and drove to my work. I walked through the front door with the usual ringing of the bell announcing someone's arrival. Blake stood at the front counter doing something. I walked up and rested my elbows on the counter top.

"Hey stranger." I smiled. She looked up at me, rolled her eyes and walked away. I still didn't understand why she was so angry with me. I didn't let it bug me so I stood there patiently waiting for someone to come back to the front. I opened up my twitter to see a bunch of notifications, mostly from people I didn't know. They were all about the same thing, Luke was seen around PCB with me and they all wanted to know what the deal was. I closed the app and stuck my phone back in my pocket. I looked around the restaurant and made eye contact with my mother. I groaned as she walked towards me with that fake smile of hers slapped across her face.