Dear, Luke

Chapter Twenty One

A loud gasp left everyone's mouth as Meredith muttered her answer. Luke's face faltering as it started to translate in his head. "Wait, what?" he asked his voice low.

Meredith shook her head the tears falling faster down her face as she looked away from him, "I can't do this anymore Luke. We're too poisonous for each other," she cried and turned away, releasing her hand from his and running away.

Luke sat there for what felt like an eternity, his head hung low, and tears dropping on the hardwood floor beneath him. He felt empty. Hollow, you could say, but he mostly felt embarrassed. he had just confessed his love for Meredith and asked her to take him back in front of his friends and hers, and she rejected him. He poured his heart out through the song was very personal for him, because he wrote it about her.

"Um, we're going to take quick break folks. How about we eat some food yeah?" Ashton said awkwardly not the microphone in front of his drums, wiping his forehead that was sweaty.

Everyone in the crowd silently agreed and moved off to go eat, trying to avoid whatever the hell just happened.

Luke got up off his knees, he didn't look at anyone else before he took off after her.

"He just doesn't give up, does he?" Michael said to Calum, who just nodded in agreement, feeling horrible after what just happened.

Luke ran and ran. But he didn't find her. He went to her apartment and she wasn't there. He went to her old house and she wasn't there. Hell, he even went to his place, as if she knew where it was. She was nowhere to be found. Luke couldn't help the sobs that left his mouth as he sat on the curb of some random street, tears flowing and his heart racing. He hit the sidewalk a few times, anger consuming him. He was not angry at her, he was angry at himself. How could he be so stupid as to do that in front of everyone, pressuring her into making a decision right then and there?

Luke hissed in pain and looked down at his bloody hand, not even sure which one hurt more, his hand or his heart. He cursed at himself for being so naive. Maybe they weren't meant n to be, but how come after all this time, he was so deeply in love with her. Why couldn't he let her go? Maybe, it was because he knew she loved him too. Maybe it was because they made a promise to each other, maybe it was because her lips always tasted like cherry. Maybe it was because his heart raced every time he saw her smile or heard her laugh. Maybe it was because he always thought she would be his.

That's when it hit Luke. A thought of where she might be, The park where they spent the whole day just staring at the clouds. Where they just laid there and watched the sky roll by. And with that thought, he broke into a sprint again.

*

"Should we have gone after them?" Julie asked as she snuggled into Michael while they ate their food.

"No, I think they need to figure this out for themselves," Michael said quietly to her.

"I feel horrible," Calum spoke from the other side of their table, running a hand through his dark hair. Janet placed her hand on his, not saying anything but giving him a knowing look and he sighed and grabbed her hands in his.

"Me too, poor Luke," Ashton frowned and took a sip of his beer.

"What about Meredith? Do you know how overwhelming that must have felt for her?" Sasha pipped up.

"Yeah, but Luke spent a long time putting this together and she just rejects him like that? In front of everyone?" Michael shook his head. Julie rolled her eyes and elbowed him in the stomach, "Stop being insensitive towards Mer, it wasn't her fault. I would have said no too if I saw my supposed boyfriend with some other girl all over him in a coffee shop."

"They were on a break," Michael said.

"Stop quoting Friends," Calum mumbled and sipped his beer.

*

Luke stopped in front of the park gate. He breathed hard and he bent over on his knees trying to regain himself. He stood up and dusted off his white shirt that was stained with sweat. He fixed his hair and took a deep breath as if he was going on a first date, or picking her up for prom. He walked forward into the park that had slight snow on the ground, it was melting because spring was approaching soon. The trees looked nothing like they had five years ago, now bare and the leaves that were once there was scattered upon the ground. He walked slowly into the part, the memories hitting him like a ton of bricks, and the smile never leaving his face.

The smile didn't leave until he saw her. Her head in her frail hands, her auburn hair covering her face. The white dress she had on clung to her body, wet as if she had run too. Her shoulders shook as she wrapped her arms around herself, trying to calm down. She sat on a random bench, gripping the seat tightly.

Luke felt like a creep because he just stood there and watched her. He didn't know what to do because he was sure that he was the last person she wanted to see right now.

But that's when she saw him. On Thursday, January 23rd, at 3:02 pm, was when she saw him, and he saw her.