The Reason/ 5SOS & 1D

Part Sixteen Cassie P.O.V

"Come with me." 

That was all Luke said before he pulled me out the door. 

I knew things with his mom didnt go well. His cheeks were flushed and his eyes were puffy from crying. I could hear the pain in his throat when he talked, so I knew they had been yelling at each other. I had never seen Luke and his mom get into a fight. They were always so loving around each other, it was hard to picture them not getting along. 

"Luke, where are we going?"

He just kept driving, not paying any attention to anything other than the flashing street lights around him.

We pulled into a gas station parking lot and he got out not giving me any notion to follow him or not. I decided to just stay in the car. 

I waited for him to come back out as I listened to green day playing on the radio. He soon emerged with a twenty four back of beer and a bag of chips. Typical Luke. He seems to think alcohol will solve his problems. I, myself, was not a fan of alcohol but tonight I wanted to be here for him so I would just have to go with it. 

He put the beer and chips in the back and drove off, still without speaking a word. 

After driving for a while I finally realized where he was taking me. I should have known. Of course he would want to go there. It was his favorite spot. 

The treehouse. 

We pulled up to the trails within minutes due to Luke's lead foot. In his mind speed limit signs were only there for decoration. 

I reached into the back to get the chips and that was when I saw Luke's duffel bag. 

"Was it really that bad?" But when I looked at Luke I knew it was. He looked back at me with sad eyes and nodded. 

We grabbed the beer and chips and silently made our way to the place we knew so well. We had been here so many times we could probably find our way blindfolded. 

There was something so peaceful about the woods. The sound of the fall leaves crunching under your feet, and more leaves falling all around you. Everywhere you looked there was a different color. Fall has always been my favorite season. The clothes, the scenery, it just couldnt get any better. 

After walking for a while I could finally see the treehouse in the distance. I thought back to the night I came here after Luke had left. I was the one in pain that time, and now it was Luke. There was just something about this place that made the pain seem so little and unimportant. This was our happy place. 

Luke climbed up the latter first so I could hand him the beer and chips before I made my way up. He helped me up and we sat in the little room looking at each other without saying a word, but the silence was comfortable. 

Luke opened the pack of beer and handed me one before grabbing one for himself. 

I popped my open and took a drink. The cool liquid running down my throat felt good so I took another drink not paying attention to the bitter taste. 

Luke looked suprised, but didnt question me and he opened his and took a huge gulp.

"So are you gonna tell me what happened?" There was no point in waiting any longer to ask.

Luke facial expression turned into something that I could read, and for the first time ever I had no idea what Luke was feeling or thinking. 

"It was really bad." That was all he said. 

After a few more minutes of silence he finally started to open his mouth to say something but quickly shut it again after thinking about it. 

"Its okay, you can tell me what happened." 

He just shook his head and looked down at the floor.

"Hey, look at me." I put my hand under his chin and tilted his head up. 

"Please dont shut me out Luke. I just want to be here for you."

"I've never seen her so mad. As soon as I brought him up she completely flipped. It was like I had flipped a switch in her. We both ended up screaming at each other and she told me that if I didnt like how she was treating me then I should just leave. So thats what I did. I decided to come out here but I wanted you to come with me." 

The sadness in his voice made my heart ache. I made my way to his side and leaned my head on his shoulder. I felt his body shake and I knew he was crying now. 

"Im so proud of you. You had every right to be mad at her and you needed to stand up to her. You guys can work things out but you cant shut her out either. She's your mom and you guys need to get through this together. You already left her once Luke, dont leave her again. You might not think so, but she needs you." 

I felt bad for Luke but I knew it wasnt right for him to walk out on his mom like that. 

"I just dont know what to do anymore. My dad doesnt want anything to do with me, my mom doesnt care whether I'm around or not, my band mates probably hate me for leaving them right as we were starting to get serious about the band. Its like I take everything that makes me happy and I just push it away, and I hate myself for that." 

He had stopped crying and his voice didnt sound sad anymore. It didnt have any emotion to it. It was like he was numb.

"Thats okay. You dont have to love yourself because I love you enough for the both of us. Im right here Luke. And I can promise you that no matter what you are going through and no matter how hard things get that I wont leave your side. I will never give up on you. Dont give up on them. I know that Calum doesnt hate you. That boy misses you like crazy. You need to talk to them, and you need to talk to your mom again. Everything will be fine but you have to make the effort if you want it to work out." 

Luke finally looked at me and for the first time today, he smiled. 

"What? Why are you smiling at me?" 

"You just said that you loved me." 

I hadnt even realized it had came out of my mouth. But it was true. I did love Luke and I had wanted to tell him ever since that night at the park when I lied and said I didnt. I felt my cheeks heat up and I couldnt stop the smile growing on my face. 

"Of course I love you. I've always loved you." 

My voice was so quiet that I wasnt even sure if he had heard me or not. After a few seconds of silence I opened my mouth to repeat myself. But before I could say it again I was cut off by the four words that I had been craving to hear for so long. 

"I love you too."