the bucket list | lrh

27 - the morning after

"Do you wanna go on that Cali trip?" Luke asked, keeping his eyes glued on the road ahead of him. The boy had sobered up and offered to drive Valentine home shortly after the rude interruption from Michael. He couldn't help but be a little thankful though, because he knew that the path they were going down wasn't a necessarily a pretty one.

"What?" Valentine asked, having almost forgotten all about the bucket list and it's contents. She had been so focused on her situation with Luke, she had nearly lost sight of the bigger picture. She shook the thoughts off, turning towards him and leaning her head against the window.

"Do you?"

"I asked first."

"You're also inferior to me, so it doesn't matter that I asked last," the girl shrugged, playing with the boy effortlessly now. She couldn't even shake the happiness she felt when he cracked a stubborn smile in response, allowing a low chuckle to escape from his throat.

"Mmhm, that's how it works, sure," he played along, pulling up into the driveway of the girls house and putting his red truck in park behind Scout's two seater. Valentine noted that he was home, despite being under the impression he was going to Kellianne's or one of his other typical outings. The woman was nice and all, but she talked a lot, and Valentine hadn't expected Scout to make it home before three if she got started on one of her infamous rants.

"I do. I think it would be nice," he admitted, despite putting up an argument about having to answer first.

"Well, then I do too," she smiled back at him, gathering her belongings and making moves to exit the vehicle. Before she could, Luke reached out and grabbed her wrist to put a halt to her sudden leave. On any other occasion, it'd be perfectly normal for her to leave without a proper goodbye. After the strange night they'd had though, Luke wanted to change that tradition. He pulled her by her arm, opening his arms to give her a lopsided hug over the center console of his truck. She leaned into him, giggling slightly and moving away quicker than Luke would've wished for.

"I'll see you soon then, Hemmings," she grinned, climbing out of the passenger seat. She didn't even bother looking back until she reached her front door. When she assumed the boy would've already been pulling out, she glanced back to wave goodbye. He hadn't moved an inch though, and he was just sloppily smiling back at her as she stared.

After a few seconds of the two childishly smiling at each other, Scout had finally gotten to the door to let his daughter inside. He knew she didn't take her key, he assumed she was too occupied with Luke to remember, though he didn't want to feel too angry about it. He had been listening for her arrival for nearly an hour, because he surely wouldn't have gone to sleep having not known if she'd be able to get in or not.

"Hey baby," he greeted her, opening the door and grabbing her attention. It was only when she made her way inside that Luke pulled out of the driveway, politely waving at Scout as he backed up.

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The following morning had been gloomy for the man whom lost his daughter a short while ago. For Scout, it felt like the cloudy mornings would never stop. The misery was ongoing and consistent with him. There were a handful of things that would make him feel better eventually. Maybe a good cup of coffee, or a new cartoon in his daily newspaper.

This particular morning, it just so happened to be Valentine practically skipping into the kitchen before noon even rolled around.

"Sleep well?" He smiled up at her from the couch, lowering his reading glasses to see her better. She was already fully dressed, and there was something about her attitude that had Scout scanning his brain for possible explanations.