CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO
❝ DAYLIGHT ❞
⊱ ⸺ { •♟• } ⸺ ⊰
𝐉𝐔𝐋𝐘 𝟏𝟑ᵗʰ, 𝟏𝟗𝟗𝟕
THE FRONT DOORS OPENED. The guards accompanied him, finally exchanging a few silent smiles of companionship. He walked forward alone. He felt the warmth of the outside enveloping him and the warm breeze gently caressing his body.
He looked up at the blue sky and felt the sun's rays warm his face. The breeze that blew that day was different. It had a different meaning. Almost nostalgic.
That day had come.
That quiet, calm and peaceful day was just another normal, hot summer day for everyone. But for him it was the day that marked a new phase in his life. From now on he was free.
He walked slowly along the asphalt towards the exit. He carried his few belongings under his arm, ready to start again. Walking through that gate was a simple gesture, but it was also the moment he left his guilt behind. The moment he left that place forever.
It was hard to explain what he felt. It was a peace that gave him butterflies in his stomach and shivers of excitement. Perhaps fear and anxiety, as he felt he was throwing himself into the unknown.
Freedom made him feel nostalgic, like it was something from his past. Simple things like walking down the street was something he hadn't done in a long time, but now he could do it without fear. He almost didn't know how to do it.
Surely he would have to go through a whole process of getting used to it. To get used to being a normal, free human being again and to live his daily life in peace without having to look back in fear of being hunted, caught or arrested. Now he could put the guilt behind him, although he would never get rid of the stigma of being an ex-convict. He will always carry that weight on his back. It's impossible to forget the past.
But what's past can't be changed, so now it's time to focus on the present and build the future. A future with Max. And give her the life she deserves.
Now he was free. But he will only be truly free when Max becomes free.
Facing the world after years of imprisonment is much more painful when you don't have the person you love by your side. But still, he won't give up. It's time to start again.
Lucas smiled gratefully and walked down the street without looking back.
AS SOON AS HE LEFT the place, he went to fulfill his greatest wish. He had been away from home for seven years. Why wait any longer? He had nowhere else to go. So he went to his real home.
His first wish after his release was obvious. It was to see Max. So Lucas was on his way to the women's prison in Texas.
He had called the prison ahead of time to schedule the visit so that he could arrive as quickly as possible and be directed to the visiting room. And so it was.
He couldn't control the sweat that insisted on running down his forehead. He could feel his entire body vibrating with nervousness. He could have sworn he was going to faint. As if he were at the altar and the bride was about to arrive.
He had been hiding in the dark for so long. A darkness he hated. But now he could see the light at the end of the tunnel. The light he had prayed so hard for. He had begged for forgiveness and mercy had descended upon him. He had finally found the light whose rays penetrated his skin and filled his lungs with life.
"Lucas?" A familiar voice murmured in the distance, as if asking a question whose answer was already known, but he couldn't believe it was true. This time the voice wasn't on the other end of the line or echoing in the back of his mind. It was there, it was close. Closer than ever.
Hearing the voice paralyzed him. Although his legs wanted to run to meet her, her bright blue eyes met his and time stood still.
All his life he had lived in darkness, hiding his sins. But it was in the darkness that he found his light. She was the light that lit up his life.
"Max?" He finally murmured, letting her name slip from his lips like a whisper. It really was her.
As soon as the guards finished removing her handcuffs, she ran toward him, and he did the same.
Their bodies crashed against each other in a tight embrace. Lucas lifted Max's body slightly due to the intensity of the moment. It wasn't long before their chests exploded with emotion and they burst into tears.
Time stood still. It didn't matter if the people in the room were watching them curiously, nor did it matter where they were. Nothing around them mattered, just them. They sobbed into each other's arms, releasing all the pain and longing that had been trapped inside them for all these years. Even if they weren't sure yet, they knew for sure in that moment that they were each other's home. Their aching and longing hearts beat strongly together, healing each other.
As they slowly broke the embrace, still standing in the middle of the room, Lucas stroked Max's face, wiping away the tears that soaked his soft skin.
Time had passed. Seven years had passed. Older, more mature. She was no longer a girl, but a woman.
"You look beautiful, as always. Time passes, but beauty never fades." He confessed in a whisper, and Max could only smile, hiding her embarrassed face in his chest.
They let out a happy laugh through all the tears. Still holding her face, he pulled her close and leaned in, kissing her lips as if it were the first time. Goosebumps ran down their spine. Feeling the heat of each others bodies was almost an utopia. Even though he was no longer a teenager, she let him live a teenage dream.
Being together once again brought them back to the night they met.
"I still remember seeing you in that black uniform with your deep red hair carefully tied into a bun. I still have the image of your blue eyes staring into mine in that crowded bar. Without a doubt, the best night of my life." He murmured between kisses.
"I also remember the first time I saw you. Hearing your voice echoing through my body and your sweet brown eyes staring into mine. Your lips twitching in that sweet smile I'll never forget." Max confessed in a whisper, unable to look away from his eyes.
"We will never forget everything we have experienced together. The car rides, the conversations, the laughs, the tears, the confessions and the arguments until the wee hours of the morning. The baths in the fountain, the lake and the sea, the nights outside with the fire burning. The barefoot walks along the streets and through the fields of flowers. The reasons why we love each other so much, why we're soul mates." Lucas murmured with his eyes closed, leaning his forehead against hers, still wrapped in each other's arms.
Seven years without seeing each other, just listening to each other's voices and reading the words in their hearts. Seven years apart, but the love remained intact. They were no longer teenagers, now she was twenty-six and he was twenty-eight.
"I missed your smile so much, your warmth, oh my... I can't even put into words what I'm feeling right now." This explosion of emotions was hard to explain, she just wanted to grab Max and take her away. But unfortunately it was too soon.
"I missed you too. And believe me, I've come a long way from wanting to run away with you since you've been here." Wrapped in each other's arms, they exchanged tears and happy smiles.
Seeing Lucas for the first time in a long time was an inexplicable feeling. He seemed to have grown, his muscles were more defined, and there was a beard on his face. He was definitely a man now. It was clear that he'd taken the time to work on himself, inside and out. She couldn't have been prouder or happier to see him well, happy and healthy.
Finally, they sat around a small table, hands intertwined. What they saw and what they felt at that moment was a permanent longing of the heart.
Time didn't matter. He had spent all these years waiting for her, and now time would only stop for a few minutes. They had so much to talk about. In spite of all the contact and updates, the need to recount all the experiences of their lives so far, face to face, eye to eye, was immense. They talked as eagerly as if it were the first time.
Almost an hour later, they only took the initiative to say goodbye when a guard alerted them to the end of visiting time. They had just been together and already missed each other. Lucas promised to return the next day. He had lived away from her for too long, and he didn't want to live like that anymore.
As he left the room, he felt that he had forgotten something, that he had left something there that he needed, that belonged to him. He looked back to see her looking at him with a look that asked for more. They exchanged one last wistful smile until the next day.
𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐂𝐇 𝟏𝟏ᵗʰ, 𝟏𝟗𝟗𝟖
Lucas slid out from under the car he was repairing. He stood up and wiped his oil-smeared hands on an old rag in the pocket of his blue overalls. He wiped his sweaty brow with the back of his hand. He set the screwdriver down next to the open hood of the white Mustang he was working on.
He put his hands on his hips and looked around the huge garage. Most of his coworkers had left the place, but he stayed to work overtime. Not only did it help him focus on something else, but it also made him feel useful. He realized he was actually good at it. While in prison, he studied a lot about cars and mechanics, with the intention of getting an education and maybe one day opening his own car dealership.
Lucas found work near the city of Austin at a car repair shop. In fact, the knowledge of car mechanics he had acquired during his years in prison was invaluable in finding him a job. From day one, he won the kind and compassionate heart of the owner of the place.
Of course, he couldn't take anything for granted, he was an ex-convict just getting experience, but he was eternally grateful that the humble man in his fifties who owned the shop had given him the benefit of the doubt. He was watched every day. He just hoped that he wouldn't be falsely accused of anything bad that happened, as if he was the cause of all evil because he had been in prison. He tried to be talkative and friendly so that his co-workers would like him and not see him as a threat.
When his shift was over, he said goodbye to the receptionist and left the garage. As soon as he stepped outside, he felt the freedom emanating from nature and the city.
The sky was practically covered in white clouds, and only a few rays of sunlight managed to break through the fluffy cotton blanket and illuminate the city. The temperature had dropped considerably since noon. He pulled the jacket tighter around his neck.
He rode his bike along the city's avenues until he reached his small rented studio on the outskirts of the city.
He bought a bike to get around because he didn't have enough money to buy a car. It wasn't a motorcycle, of course, but it was pleasant to feel the cold wind on his face as he pedaled at a high speed, exercising all the muscles in his legs. It reminded him of his childhood days when he used to ride his bike around the neighborhood.
Of course, it wasn't that good to use it in the winter, but some sacrifices are worth it.
He had been visiting Max every week for the past few months. He felt that she seemed much happier since they had first met, her eyes and skin gradually brightening. He wanted to see her well, healthy and happy. He couldn't wait to get her out of there so they could finally live together.
A few weeks ago, he spoke on the phone with Elijah, who was now living with Hunter in Miami. They were surfers now and still lived in a trailer. The wild, free spirit would never leave them. But they hadn't gotten into trouble yet. That was progress.
They planned to get together sometime, but decided to wait until Max was free, which meant they would have to wait a little over a year.
After stripping off his oil-stained blue jumpsuit and taking a good shower, he went down to the town cafe across the avenue. The sky was already turning orange and would soon become a black sheet.
Upon entering the small cafe, the walls were lined with shelves of alcoholic beverages. The smell of tobacco filled the air, men and women chatted eagerly after a day's work, and the shopkeeper served coffee non-stop.
At the entrance to the cafe, a large, dirty, skinny dog lurked, sniffing the floor and waiting for a customer to throw him some crumbs.
It wasn't the first time Lucas had seen this dog from a distance, and he remembers that the first time he saw it, he was impressed by the fact that it looked like a German Shepherd, just like Phoenix. But he had never seen it up close.
He imagined that if the puppy they'd had was still alive, it would be as big as this one, although it looked very dehydrated.
Seeing this dog again touched his heart. It reminded him of Phoenix and the beautiful memories he had with that lovely little pile of soft fur and how Max had loved him and taken him out of the bushes when he was hungry and cold.
He would never get rid of that kind of pain. The longing would run through his whole life, but he knew that time would heal him. He took a deep breath, trying to push the bitter memories away, when the stray dog approached him.
Lucas stood up, ready to leave, but the dog approached him, lifting its head to sniff him and greet him. The dog walked around him as if examining him, and that's when Lucas noticed something familiar.
The collar.
Even though he was all dirty and muddy, he couldn't help but recognize the blue and red pattern on the fabric that Jane and Max had wrapped around an old belt to make a collar for... Phoenix.
His heart started beating at a crazy rate. As he crouched down, completely perplexed and still in disbelief, the animal also became aware of something familiar. Maybe his smell, maybe his face, he didn't know for sure, but he started to run around, jumping for joy and wagging his tail wildly. Crazy with excitement to have found what he was looking for. Who he was looking for.
He jumped on his lap and licked his face compulsively. Unless someone had taken the collar and put it on an exactly identical dog, but the animal's happiness denied any doubt.
He hugged the animal. The animal's body shook desperately.
"Phoenix! I missed you too. It was hard without you too, buddy." Lucas spoke to Phoenix, who shook his slender body more and more whenever he heard his voice.
The dirt and the intense smell of the dog's fur did not matter to him anymore. The people around them watched them uncomprehendingly, many of them with disdain considering the animal's condition, but they were certainly witness to a beautiful reunion.
He had come from Louisiana to Texas, to the suburbs of Austin, where he now lived.
A few minutes ago, his heart was dying with longing for that little creature, and now tears of happiness were streaming down his face as he saw that little creature no longer so little.
He couldn't wait to take it back to the apartment (hoping no one would report him for doing such a thing), give him a bath, and feed him properly. Lucas couldn't wait to tell Max the good news. He could already imagine the smile of surprise and relief on her face.
Surely one of the best days of his life. All the more reason to trust and believe that there is hope and that the future that lies ahead of you is more incredible than you can imagine. That is the power of the great miracles of second chances.
Every day life showed him that there was still a lot to do in this world, it wanted to reward him. Motivation and joy gradually grew. everything was falling into place. and soon he would have the woman of his life in his arms, free, just for him.
© cxstlebyxrs