Maps || l.h. au

13 // July 16, 2012

   He must have the most damn rotten luck in the world if he got hit again by a car — minus the manic homeless guy part — and then end up in the hospital, fall into coma and wake up by the date of his birthday.

   Reality check: Yep. That just happened.

   And no matter how much Luke wanted to cuss, he just couldn’t with his mindful and eyeing mother who was now overly worried. He apparently will not be finishing this little road trip anymore and would be shipped safely back home, pack his bags and go on an early summer move to Harvard already.

   Harvard. He didn’t even like to think about it anymore. In the recent events that has happened in his life — excluding the parts where he ended up falling into coma twice — Luke couldn’t just place a box or organized idea to put the thought of Harvard into anymore. In all honestly, he doesn’t think he’d want to pursue the idea of college any longer. He just wanted to be in the road and discover the world and do things he’s never considered before.

   Of course, he didn’t tell Liz that just yet. But he’d have to. Somehow. Someday.

  ‘Yeah, when you’re in a bus going to Harvard and starting once again on the horrible habit of biting your fingernails out of nervousness,’ a little voice inside his head snorted at him and Luke ignored it.

   And then there’s Leah.

   How was she? Was she OK? Was she still mad at Luke? Is she even madder now that he hasn’t suddenly written back to her for more than a month?

   He looked around the ward. There was the IV in his arm, and there was the constant beeping of the heart monitor. And there was something else at his side — a machine that adjusted the amount of morphine needed. Wow. He’d never tried that one until now. The accident must’ve been so bad.

   However, the room was empty. Someone had pulled the curtains down so the bright sunshine doesn’t come flooding like divine light and the room’s fluorescent lights won’t have to be turned on. Luke was all alone in the room, only accompanied by the constant and rhythmic beeping of the heart monitor. Outside, he could hear distant voices arguing over something.

   Raising his hand to his head, he felt bandage there and then a mass of messy hair in between. Looking near to the bedpost a bit, he reached for the red button that would call the nurse and pressed it briefly.

    Almost after he finished setting himself properly on his bed to sit up and lean against the pillow (ignoring the stabbing pain near his rib as he also adjusted the amount of morphine), the nurse came in followed by his mother and a couple of people Luke didn’t think would come.

   Liz immediately made the gesture to hug her son but caught the eye of the nurse, who was glaring at her and decided against it. The nurse checked his heart monitor and the machine that supplied his morphine, writing something in her clipboard once in a while.

   But what caught Luke’s attention were the people beside his mom. Michael, Ashton and Calum.

   “I’m so glad you’re awake,” Liz said to her son softly.

   “How are you holding up, man?” Ashton asked.

   “I’m fine,” Luke said, and winced at his hoarse voice and dry throat. “Feeling like my mouth’s saliva just evaporated but hasn’t condensed into saliva vapor, but otherwise fine. What are the three of you doing here?”

   “Your mom called me,” Calum said. “Thought I was your friend.”

   “Awh, don’t flatter yourself with making us say you’re our very best friend!” Michael said in a fake enthusiastic voice and then added flatly, “Seriously, Calum. I don’t think anyone like Luke would save your phone number just for the heck of it. Last time I checked, he isn’t gay either.”