Dusk **UNDER CONSTRUCTION**

Chapter 12

"Are you going to say anything?" I ask. He looks at my puzzled. "You haven't spoken to me all day."

He's silent, making me think he's keeping some weird vow of silence. "It's not like you've made an effort to talk to me," he muses.

"Touche," I reply.

We arrive at Adam's house and head to the basement. Luke, like usual, sits with me while the others set up. "You know your text scared me this morning," he says.

"You asked, I delivered," is my reply.

"Don't get me wrong, I'm glad you told me, it just scared me," he says. "We're so similar," he mumbles, hardly audible.

"I wrote another song last night," I finally say after a long pause.

"Can I hear it?" he asks as he turns to me.

Do I really want him to hear my deepest thoughts? Singing a song that you've written is hard, especially the first time because it makes you vulnerable. After a while, I nod.

"Quickly, let's go," he stands up, offering me his hand. I accept it and he pulls me up. We head over to the piano where I sit down. After a shaky breathe, I lay my hands on the keys and begin to play the intro.

"It's been a long day without you, my friend

And I'll tell you all about it when I see you again

We've come a long way from where we began

Oh, I'll tell you all about it when I see you again

When I see you again

Why'd you have to leave so soon?

Why'd you have to go?

Why'd you have to leave me when I needed you the most?

'Cause I don't really know how to tell ya

Without feeling much worse

I know you're in a better place

But it's always gonna hurt

Carry on

Give me all the strength I need to carry on

It's been a long day without you, my friend

And I'll tell you all about it when I see you again

We've come a long way from where we began

Oh, I'll tell you all about it when I see you again

When I see you again

Oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh

Oh

How do I breathe without you?

I'm feeling so cold

I'll be waiting right here for ya

'Til the day you're home

Carry on

Give me all the strength I need to carry on

So let the light guide your way

Hold every memory as you go

And every road you take will always lead you home, home

It's been a long day without you, my friend

And I'll tell you all about it when I see you again

We've come a long way from where we began

Oh, I'll tell you all about it when I see you again

When I see you again

oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh

Oh

When I see you again

See you again

When I see you again"

There are claps as I finish pouring my heart out, I turn around to notice the rest of the band behind me cheering, having abandoned their setting up. "We need to put that on YouTube, it's beautiful, Maya," Fiona smiles.

I shake my head "I'm not sure I'm ready for that just yet but maybe one day," Fiona nods in understanding.

"Alright guys!" calls Fiona. "So I've gotten us a busking gig in front of the mall. It's in two weeks meaning that we need to practice every day!" She says seriously. We nod and begin practising. The others making me practice 'See You Again' a few more times, Thomas vowing to learn it on guitar so we can perform it at our busking gig.

Luke once again comes and sits with me while the others pack up after an hour long rehearsal. "Look at us, maybe we should actually help them for once?" he asks. We both look at each other then burst out laughing as if it's the funniest joke in the world. "In all seriousness though, I wanted to talk to you."

"Obviously,' I joke, causing him to chuckle. "Aright, hit me with it."

"You may have noticed Hannah being a bit off today. We had a fight this morning, about you. She doesn't like how much time I spend with you."

"I wouldn't either, Luke," I say softly.

"I get that but I can't keep away from you. For years, my life was laid out before me, Amaia. I had a set path I was going to follow, I was basically a more attractive version of Thomas. From a young age, I was told that one day I was going to marry Hannah. Her parents were rich and my Dad thought it would be a good business move," he sighs as I listen intently. "Then everything went down and I lost everything. The only thing I didn't lose was Hannah's obsession with me. I tried but I just couldn't feel anything for her then you came along and I actually felt something. So then I thought maybe, just maybe if I could feel something for you then surely I could feel something for the person that I was always told I was going to end up with," he finishes breathlessly.

I struggle to process the words. "Do you feel anything for her?" I ask.

He shakes his head, "I tired, I really tried," he says.

"So you're using her? She really likes you, Luke."

"I know but-"

"No buts. No matter how much I don't like her, this isn't fair on her Luke."

With that, I get up and walk away.