Permanent Vacation // Luke Hemmings [au]

8

" I-I haven't seen Michael since the Irwins were here" Liz stutters, poking at her plate with her fork.

"How long ago was that?" I ask, completely unaware of how long I was unconscious.

"6 or 7 hours I think" Luke gasps.

"He could be anywhere!" I scream, standing from the table and bursting towards the front door. My shoes are old and tattered, but I slip them on with ease and reach for the knob.

Luke's arms wrap around my body and hold me back.

"What are you doing?" I yell, fighting through his grasp. I turn and stare him in the face, an angry and anxious expression across my face.

"You're just going to run out there at night and look for him? You have no idea where you're going Violet, and you have no idea where he could be!" He retaliates. I instantly break into tears and hug Luke, falling into his chest.

"He could be anywhere" I sob.

"We'll find him. I'll get the keys to the car and we'll drive around looking. This is a suburb, he can't have gone that far on foot anyways."

-

After driving for 3 hours and stopping at every store and playground, I'm losing hope. What if we never find Michael? What if something happened to him? Why did he run away in the first place?

"There" Luke points at the last playground in the school district. I can see the outline of a body underneath a structure, laying back against it.

There is a very small chance that it could be Michael, but maybe the fact that it's pouring rain and it's almost midnight brings up our chances slightly.

"Michael!" I scream, getting out of the car as quickly as I can. Running through the soaking grass, I make it onto the playground, which has wooden structures soaked and soft from all the rain.

"Michael" I say again, with a lower voice. The man turns around, and I immediatly notice it is in fact Michael, causing me to fill with relief.

He's been crying, and it's easy to tell. I take him in my arms and hug him tightly, completely relieved that he's alright.

"Don't ever run away like that again!" I cry into his chest. His arms wrap around me and his hand rests against the back of my head.

"I-I'm sorry Violet" he sobs into my hair. "It was A-Ashton. I saw him and I panicked. I ran out as soon as I saw him. I though he was going to kill me"

"I promised you I wouldn't let him hurt you, and I'll always keep that promise" I tell him, looking him straight in his blood shot eyes. Luke catches up with us, rain soaking his hair and clothes.

"Are you alright Michael?" Luke asks him, showing more emotion to him than I've ever seen.

"I'm okay, I guess. The voices are really bad right now, though." Michael sobs lightly, "Is Ashton still there?"

"He left hours ago" I tell him, wrapping an arm around his soaking shoulders, "It's freezing out here, let's get back to Luke's house"

As hesitant as Mikey is, he walks with us back into the warm car. I get into the back seat with Michael, while Luke gets back into the drivers seat, starting it up, and driving away. I can see how bad Mikey is, even by just looking at him.

Those green eyes, filled with darkness, that goes along with the bags under his eyes. I know that no matter how much I console and tell him he'll be okay, it doesn't change anything for him. He's sick, he knows it, and I know it too.