The Loving Silence

Chapter 22

Skyler watched Luca as he spoke to his acquaintance on the phone. He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel to distract himself. He couldn 't be sure of their relationship as Luca never spoke to him about his old life. But he did hear Luca tell the other person that he missed them. That meant they couldn't just be mere acquaintances. Whatever their relationship, they must have liked each other. At least a little bit.

He couldn't help but feel a slight twinge as he realised there was so much about his best friend that he didn't know. He wouldn't ask, but that did not mean that he wasn't curious. Some part of him just hoped that there would come a day when Luca felt ready to come to him, all on his own, and want to tell him everything. Skyler would never judge, no matter what his friend had to tell him. They were true friends, friends for life. They were family and they had every intention of being in each other's life for the rest of their lives. Or at least that was how Skyler felt. He wanted them to go grey and old together, having lived through it all, seen it all, and remained close. He couldn't imagine a future without his best friend in it. It was like imagining a future without the sun.

"Thank you. I mean it. I don't know what I would do without you, Jules. It hardly seems fair for me to say that, considering... But please, never doubt how grateful I am to you... I know. You too. Okay, we'll see you there."

Skyler swallowed noisily, fighting the urge to ask his friend who this person was to him. "Well?" He asked in a small voice.

Luca raised his eyebrow but didn't question it. "I know where they are. We're going there right now. My friend will meet us there."

"Your friend?"

"Yes." Luca's tone made it clear that he wasn't interested in answering any more questions about their relationship.

Skyler started the car and glanced at his friend. "So where are we going?"

Luca showed him the map on his phone and off they went. They sat there in silence as Skyler zigzagged between the many other cars full of people trying to get home sooner than everyone else. Since everyone reasoned like that, none of them would end up getting home early.

It was not a comfortable silence. Skyler was worried about his father and Luca was worried about his friend. At the same time, Luca also hoped his friend wouldn't ask any questions and he felt worried over meeting Jules after spending so much time apart. It was a bit too much going on all at once. Every time he tried to relax, he saw Rue's smile in front of him, and his worry increased once more. Why would fate arrange for him to meet someone who was so much like him, who understood him so well without he, himself having to explain anything, and then steal the person away from him like this? No. The Universe couldn't be so cruel. Their story just couldn't end like that. Rue had to be okay. His mild concern over Skyler and Jules meeting each other for the first time and Skyler finding out more about his past was nothing compared to the fear he felt from just imagining not being able to talk to Rue again.

Skyler smiled. "Look at this place. What does it remind you off?" He asked as he drove into a smaller neighborhood with picturesque homes with blooming gardens, tree houses and swingsets.

Luca couldn't help but glance at his friend and smile. "When we ran away together but didn't go further than the tree house. You really believed no one would find us there, but your father knew all along. Then he sent us up a basket with dinner and a few extra blankets in case we got cold. You were stubborn though, and we ended up staying there for two nights."

Skyler snorted. "I don't know how I thought Mica and James wouldn't be aware that we had left or that we had suddenly taken up residence in the tree house. I mean, it didn't even have all four walls."