Oblivion // Luke Hemmings

Chapter Nine

Early update just because I'm in the writing mood! This chapter involves some triggering situations, so beware.

Chapter Nine

Taylor Tuom

It was when I got home to find Luke waiting at my apartment door that things took a turn for the worse.

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"Here you go," I say, handing Luke the glass of ice water he asked for.

I sat down across from him in an arm chair, needing to keep my distance from the blonde haired boy. I knew why he was here. He didn't have to say anything.

"So, um, what did you want to talk about?" I ask anyway, crossing my legs.

"Carey told me some pretty groveling information," Luke says, and I was surprised he even knew the word groveling.

"And?" I urge on, although I had a very good (well, bad, technically) feeling about what this so-called information was.

Luke shakes his head. "It doesn't matter, though, because I don't believe her."

I quirk an eyebrow, surprised that my assumptions were wrong. "You don't?"

"I've known her for a week," he replies. "I've known you for years."

"Well, not personally," I input.

"We had sex," Luke deadpans, "that's pretty fucking personal."

I nod, agreeing. "What did she tell you?" I wanted to hear him say it because now was as good a time as ever to come clean, whether he believed Carey or not.

"It's bullshit, Taylor," he says. "Basically it was more in depth of what she had to say last night."

"Oh."

"It doesn't matter, seriously. I was only being nice because she asked me to come 'round hers. I couldn't say no, so I invited her to the club instead. Besides that, I was drunk. You invited me and it was wrong of me to... Never mind." He shakes his head in annoyance at himself.

"To?" I egg him on.

"Look, you and I are just now getting to know one another and I don't want some slutty co-worker to ruin that for us," Luke states.

"That being?" I question.

"A relationship," he confirms. "Like, me and you, boyfriend and girlfriend. I want to get to know you more and go on dates. I shouldn't have invited Carey, I'm sorry."

"Luke, why do you keep bringing up Carey?" I ask, a feeling in my gut telling me I already knew.

"Please promise me you won't be angry," he begs.

My lips form a straight line. "Go on."

"Promise me," he pleads.

"Luke, I promise," I lie. I was already angry because I knew the next words that were going to come out of his mouth.

"We slept together."

I close my eyes tightly, clenching my fists at my sides. I had to hold in my anger, though, because what I am going to tell him is nowhere as petty as this; it is worse. He needed to know the truth if this relationship went any further (keyword being if, since he slept with Carey and I had something bad to say as well).

"I do not care," I finally say. "We are not a couple. We've merely only kissed."

"Are you su-"

I cut him off, "What Carey said is true."

"Wha... What?" Luke asks.

"I am a mother," I tell him. "I will always be a mother."

"Taylor, what are you-"

"The night we had sex was the night that Axl was conceived," I tell him. "Unfortunately, you left and I never had the chance tell you."

"Taylor, are you telling me I'm..."

"A dad," I finish for him. "Yes, Luke."

"But where is he?" He asks. "I want to see-"

"He's in a better place," I state, appalled that Luke wasn't angry or lashing out at me. "He was born with Anencephaly."

"What's that?" Luke slowly asks, and I could see the sadness marked on his face. But, hell, he didn't have to live through it like I did.

"Basically he was born without part of his brain or skull. I found out he had the disease halfway through my pregnancy. At the seven month mark, the doctors told me I'd be giving birth to a deceased baby," I explain.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Luke booms, standing up, and now angry.

"Oh, I'm sorry," I speak venemously. "I didn't have your number or any of your contact information, so I couldn't exactly tell you!"

"You could've told my mom or something!" he retorted.

"Oh, yes, let me just walk up to Mrs. Hemming's and tell her I am pregnant with her famous son's baby," I emphasize. "The entire town shunned me practically! That's why I left!"

"Oh my God, I'm a dad," Luke speaks to himself, pacing back and forth with his head in hands.

"He's buried at the town cemetery back home," I tell Luke. "Beside your grandfather."

"Beside my..." I nod as Luke speaks, encouraging him to go on. "Taylor, do you realize how fucked up this is? I came here thinking I was the one at fault."

"And I am?" I screech.

He shakes his head again, lowering his voice, "No, I'm sorry. Just..."

I sit back down, not realizing I stood up during my rant. "I think you should go."

"No," Luke speaks adamantly. "I want to see him. Do you have photos?"

I nod. "A few," I reply, standing back up. "Come on."

I walk down the hall towards my room. Luke follows close behind as we enter the pastel colored bedroom. He sits on my bed while I search through my closest for the box of photos.

"Is this him?" Luke whispers.

I turn around to see him holding the only photo I had on display beside my bed. It was when I was in the hospital and had just had Axl. I was holding his fragile, lifeless body with tears streaming down my sixteen year old cheeks.

"Yes," I reply, turning back around to find the box I was searching for.

I knew the waterworks were coming as soon as we started rifling through the photos. I was sat beside Luke on the bed, a box at our feet filled with photos and other memories from my past.

Luke toys with the hospital bracelet I kept in there. It was my own, announcing the date as September 7th, 2012. That was the day I gave birth to a lifeless baby that I still loved none the less.

"This is all so crazy," Luke says. "I should've been there."

"It would've happened either way," I reply, pulling out a manila folder.

I open the folder to reveal Axl's birth and death certificate, along with my own birth certificate. I passed Axl's birth certificate over to Luke.

"Axl James Hemmings," he whispers, running his fingers over the paper. "You gave him my last name?"

I nodded. "You're his father."

"Wow."

We continued going through the box of memories. I shared everything with Luke in the cardboard cube, even telling him more details of Axl's disease. We cried a few times, hugged many. It turned out to be a lot less angry than I thought.

And that was okay because, now, my secret was out to the one person who had as much to do with it as I did.