veracity • lashton

twelve.

She kept on talking, but I couldn't hear a thing.

Actually, I couldn't even think anymore.

My mind was completely frozen, blank.

The woman in front of me...

That's my sister.

And she knew it.

She knew it and chose not to keep it from me.

"Ash..." She murmured in a trembling voice. "Please say something, anything."

I lifted my head up only to see Luke, Sierra, Michael and Calum staring at me in silence.

My breathing suddenly started to become heavy, until I felt a hand on my thigh.

I glanced under the table we were sitting at, soon realizing that it was Luke's.

I sighed deeply, placing my hand on his as he started rubbing my index finger, which immediately calmed me down.

"I- did- did you change your name?" I looked at her, still trying to process all of this.

"Yes, my adoptive parents did. Um- I- I have my birth certificate if you want to see, my name was Lauren-"

"You should've told me." I stared at Calum and Sierra. "You both should have."

"We just wanted-"

"To protect me." I cut him off, starting to get a bit irritated. "That's the thing, you always want to do that, and it is kind of pissing me off."

"You know what? I'm actually really tired of being in the middle of everything!" He angrily interrupted me, standing up. "Last year, Michael got mad at me for keeping your and Luke's secret, and now it is happening again with Sierra. All I ever did was be a good friend to all of you, and I'm always the one getting blamed because no one here can be fucking honest! I am sorry for keeping this from you, but it wasn't my place, and it apparently never is!"

We all stayed quiet as he looked back at Michael. "You want to call off our engagement? Fine." He continued, jabbing the ring on the table. "But just know that I have always been faithful to you. I hope you will someday understand that I had no choice but to keep all of this from you, because I know that you would have done the same thing if you were in my shoes."

I groaned, turning around as he rushed to the front door. "Calum, wait-"

However, the door quickly slammed shut.

"Mike..." Luke started.

Michael silently got up, his back turned to all of us. "Excuse me, I need a minute." He said very calmly, grabbing a bottle of rum on his way upstairs.

The other man was about to follow him, but Sierra grabbed him by the wrist. "No, this is my mess to fix." She argued. "You have someone else to take care of." She insisted, taking a quick look at me.

He bit his lower lip, immediately nodding.

She climbed up the stairs as Luke sighed, slowly making his way back to me. "Let's get you home, love."

I looked up to him, unable to get my head in one place. "What? No, I- I need to talk to Calum, and Sierra, and Michael, and I- I- I need more details and-" I exhaled densely. "Luke... I- I- my sister, she- she is alive-"

"I know, I know, shh..." He calmed me down, getting on his knees.

He held me tight, which allowed me to bust into tears. "You will figure all of this out tomorrow, but for now you need to rest. Alright?"

We stayed like that for awhile, or at least until my body stopped shivering. "Y-yes." I finally answered, making him weakly smile.

He proceeded helping me to get out of my seat, just so we could make our way back to his engine.

"But, what about my car-"

"We will come pick it up tomorrow, don't worry." He answered in a reassuring voice, opening the door for me. "Now, get in."

I nodded, doing as I was told while he jumped into the driver's seat. I laid my head back, giving my full focus to the window. I could feel Luke glancing at me from time to time just to make sure I was okay, which was pretty sweet to be honest.

He took care of me the whole night, actually.

He made sure I got inside my house safe, made me some tea, some food...

He was here all along...

Up until I began to feel very sleepy in my bed.

"Have a good night." He whispered, getting out of the chair he was sitting in.

"No, where are you going?" I murmured, his words waking me up instantly. "Stay with me."

I gave him the sad puppy look as he was about to open the door.

"Oh, are you sure?" He asked for reinsurance. "I don't want to disturb you-"

"Stay with me." I repeated. "Please, I need it. I don't want to be alone."

He smiled at me, nodding before jumping on the bed with me. I come closer to him, wrapping my arms around his stomach as I laid my head on his chest. He gave me a peck on the head while fondling my shoulder with the tip of his fingers, caressing my forearm with his other hand.

"I'm sorry for not telling you about the pictures." He said. "I was scared that Calum would come between us if you decided to give me another chance, and-"

"I understand. He told me about him threatening you at the airport... He deserved it."

We both giggled a tiny bit. "So... you forgive me?" He asked shyly, making me look at him.

"Yes. Because I realized that I am punishing myself more than I am punishing you... I need you in my life, Luke. However, I really want you to know that you hurt me, a lot."

"I know that, and I really want you to know that I am truly sorry, for everything."

"I know that." I smiled weakly. "Thank you for being mature enough to come back and showing me that you care."

"And thank you for being so understanding and forgiving." He answered. "I am so lucky to have you, and so is Calum. He will soon realize that and will no longer be mad at you."

"I hope so."

"I know so. Everything will be back to normal in no time." He paused. "But anyway, how are you? After all of this? Are you mad, upset...?"

"Not really, actually..." I confessed, just now realizing that I am not angry at all. "I'm just sad and confused, I guess. I really need to talk to Sierra and Calum. Also, I feel so sorry for Mike-"

"You don't have to worry about Michael, I will take care of everything. Him and Calum will be back together in no time, you have my word. They both just need some time to cool off, and so do you."

"You are right." I grinned at his words, fixing my posture so I could face him. "You are truly amazing, you know that?"

"Just when I'm with you." He smiled. "I love you."

Despite everything that was going on, my heart couldn't help but feel happy.

He loves me, he truly does.

"I love you too, Luke."

We smiled at each other as I closed my eyes, allowing him to come closer to me.

Butterflies began running laps in my stomach when our lips touched, which felt even more than magical.

He cupped the side of my neck with his hand, tilting his head to the left to deepen the kiss. I grasped onto his curly, a moan escaping my mouth when our tongues started playing with one another.

Once again, it felt right.

It always have been right.

Just like that, I no longer felt alone.

I always knew that we would find our way back to one another, and I am not afraid to admit it.

I always knew we were going to live happily ever after.

... Or until tomorrow morning, at least.

I better sleep well tonight, because this week is surely going to be emotionally draining...

I can feel it in my core.