On My Own (disc.)

Pack What You Want, Shop For The Rest (5)

MICHAEL

When I walked down after the door closed and saw Luke on our couch, I froze for a second.

He was wearing the same clothes as he last time I saw him, but he looked so different. He had messy hair, puffy, bloodshot eyes that looked even more drained than they had already been, and I noticed that there were dried tear streaks on his cheeks. He was on the end of our couch, taking up as little space as possible and hugging himself. It was sad, really.

When dad explained to me what happened, I gaped, almost not believing him for a second. Luke's dad was dead? Why? How?

I didn't dare ask him as I looked at him again, though, and instead thought that Ashton should know. So I gave him my phone, letting him type it in, and I told Ashton to come over now. He showed up within five minutes, and barely waited for me to finish explaining before he asked to see Luke.

By then, Calum had come down to see what was happening, and he was just as confused. I sighed, not wanting to explain to him if Luke didn't want him to know, so I shrugged and watched as Luke threw a watch and started to cry silently. He went back upstairs, not wanting to be rude. Ashton was mumbling in Luke's ear, but he didn't appear to be listening. He was staring at the ground, mostly.

Ashton eventually had to leave, saying that his siblings were sick with the cold and that his mum was at work. He made sure Luke knew that he'd be back, and then he was off. Dad didn't feel comfortable sitting next to him, so I gingerly picked up the watch and set it on the far side of the table, away from Luke and sat down next to him. He glanced up at me for a minute, before continuing to stare at the floor.

"I know you don't want to even speak about what happened, possibly not at all, but I really don't care about the not speaking at all part. I'm talking to you wether you like it or not, bitch." I stated sassily, and he looked up at me, and I swear his eyes crinkled in the ghost of a smile.

"So, you've met my dad for like, two minutes, but his name is Daryl and he's a social worker. He kinda knows how to deal with kids' bullshit and sass, thus why I try to outdo all of them and annoy the fucking living daylights out of him with it all." Luke kept looking at me with those slightly-crinkled eyes.

"It works, let me tell you," my dad shouted from the other room, "and I'm surprised I don't get paid for this." He shouted from the other room. Luke seemed to smile a little bit, but it was shallow, and didn't really reach his eyes. I understood, though. How can you expect someone to smile in his position?

"Oh, whatever. You're paid plenty by those other social people." I say, sticking my tongue out in his direction. He laughs.

Stella starts barking from upstairs, and I hear Calum groaning.

She comes down the stairs, and I can see Luke's face light up a little more. She sniffs at him, and rests her head on his foot, something she's come to learn to do when someone is sad. It makes me smile.

I pat the cushion between us, and she hops up, looking at Luke.

"This is Stella, she's a husky." I say, and Stella turns to look at me when I say her name. "Yes, I'm talking about you. Say hi to Luke, Stella," I coo, turning her head back to Luke gently. She wags her tail in greetings, and he grins a little, loosening up.

He reaches out the pet her gently, and she takes to him instantly, trying to nudge his legs down. He eventually gets the idea and crosses his legs Indian-style, letting her lay on him and sniff at him even more before licking his face out of nowhere.

He smiles, showing off his teeth and leans away a little bit, and I can already see where this is going - Stella on top of him and licking his face for a long time.