Chapter 44 #2
Everything happens very quickly after that.
Pete raises his gun again with intention, aiming it directly at Luke’s head, his finger on the trigger.
Luke’s mother lets out a blood-curdling scream as she pushes her way out from behind her son’s back, trying to block him with her body, but she’s only about 5’5”, so she doesn’t make a very good shield.
Now, I have no choice but to make my move.
I charge out into the room like a linebacker rushing to sack the quarterback, putting all my weight behind my momentum, just as I hear Luke shout, “Ethan, no!”
The next few seconds feel like they take a thousand years to play out.
Pete spots me, turning his body slightly with surprise as I charge at him.
Right as I make contact, pushing him off balance, he squeezes the trigger, and the shot rings out in the small room.
He wasn’t prepared to guard against such a tackling blow, and his own weight works against him as gravity hauls him to the ground.
He gapes at me in flabbergasted confusion as we fall before he knocks his head against the tile, and the gun goes flying from his hand.
From the corner of my eye, I can see that Luke also goes down.
His body recoils slightly before he crumples to the floor.
No! My heart cries just as his mother screams his name, collapsing at his side.
Pete tries to struggle against me, his hands gripping at my shirt, clawing at my face as he tries to drag me off of him.
But he’s not faster than I am, and I don’t hesitate to throw my fist into his skull, putting everything I have behind it.
The punch knocks his head against the tile again, and then he goes still, unconscious.
“Luke!”
His mother’s cry wrenches me out of my daze, and I scramble off Pete’s body as soon as Marcus and Ben leave their hiding spot. They move in the opposite direction of me, covering Pete in case he gets back up, while I drop down next to Luke’s motionless form.
No, god, please, I beg wordlessly. Don’t be dead. Please don’t be dead.
Mercifully, he’s still alive, but it doesn’t look good.
He’s been shot in the chest, blood pooling around the wound right above his heart.
He’s barely clinging to consciousness, in a daze.
I try to put pressure on the wound on his chest, and the pain of it makes him cry out.
But with the wound on his arm, he’s bleeding too heavily, losing it too quickly.
“Luke,” I cry, my mind going blank with terror. What do I do? What do I do?
He comes around slightly and looks up at me, a tear falling out of the corner of his eye. But there’s relief in his expression, a rapture to finding out I’m all right. Of course, he’d be more concerned about me at a time like this.
“Ethan,” he says, his voice barely more than a whisper. He reaches his right hand up to my face, cupping it gently. The contact is like the first kiss of the sun’s rays in spring after a harsh and cloudy winter—light and fleeting. I lean into it fully, tears coming to my eyes.
“I’m here, Luke,” I say, giving him a weak smile. “Help is on the way. They’ll be here any minute. Just hold on for me, okay?”
Luke smiles slightly, his lip trembling. And then he shudders somewhat like his body is spasming, his eyes going wide with fear at the involuntary reaction. “I’m sorry,” he cries quickly—almost as if he’s desperate to get it off his chest before it’s too late. “I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t,” I snap, and my heart jolts. “Don’t you dare. We’re not saying goodbye, okay? You’re going to be fine.”
“I’m so sorry,” Luke cries again, gasping for breath. “I was so stupid.” Each word is like a hammer strike to my heart.
“We were both stupid. None of that matters.”
“I—” he starts, but then his throat constricts, the words getting strangled off. I can feel how his heart is racing beneath my hands as I hold them firm over the wound on his chest.
“It’s okay, Luke,” I try and soothe. I know panicking is only going to make it worse. “It’s going to be okay,” I say, wishing with all my heart for it to be true. Where the fuck is the ambulance?
Luke’s mom has been clinging to his side this whole time, silent tears streaming down her cheeks. “Luke, baby,” she cries. “My poor baby. I’m so sorry. I should have listened to you sooner. I should have left when you told me to. Forgive me, baby. Please forgive me.”
Luke turns his eyes toward her, giving her a complicated look.
It’s almost impossible to describe the expression on his face.
I wouldn’t call it forgiveness, but it’s still compassionate.
There’s bitterness to it, as well as sorrow.
After hearing how betrayed he felt when she abandoned him the first time Pete nearly killed him, I can only imagine the feeling hasn’t left him.
But he’s also terrified, and she’s still here, at his side now. That’s got to count for something.
He starts breathing more rapidly, his body going into shock. He’s trembling more violently now, too, unable to control it.
“Luke,” I cry, my voice strangled. Oh, god. What do I do? Somebody help me!
He looks at me again, his eyes losing focus.
“Luke, please,” I beg. “Please don’t leave me. I love you, okay?” The words fly from my lips against my control.
Luke’s eyes widen slightly, and he lets out a quiet sob. He moves his hand to my shirt, clinging to it with what little strength he has left. He looks at me with such quiet misery that I can’t leave it there. Not when now might be the only chance I’ll have to tell him the truth.
“I fell in love with you a little bit the first time I saw you when you walked into the shop,” I say softly, and I can’t help but smile as I remember that moment and how it left me awestruck.
“I didn’t know what it meant then because I was an idiot.
I just knew I wanted to be near you. Every time we talked or did anything after that, that feeling just kept growing.
When I finally figured it out, it hit me so fast that it scared me.
But I’ve been in love with you the whole time we’ve been together. I should have told you sooner.”
I’m full-on crying, unable to keep it together. Luke’s hanging on every word, his eyes wet with tears. He’s holding on with everything he has left. I can’t stop now.
“I love everything about you,” I continue, my voice shaking.
“I love how you look at me like you never want to stop looking, and that you see me. I love how it feels whenever you touch me and how your voice sounds deeper in the morning when you first wake up. I love listening to you sing and that you don’t judge me for my hopeless romantic tendencies.
I love the way your lips do that little half-smile whenever you’re amused.
And how your eyes come alive when you’re angry. ”
Luke can’t help but laugh, even in this state. His lips twist up in that signature way, but it’s cut short by the spasms and the way he gasps, his body desperate for air. He’s already lost so much blood. I can’t even feel his heartbeat anymore with how faint it’s gotten.
“You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me.”
Suddenly, off in the distance, I can hear the sound of sirens blaring down the road, the cavalry finally coming to our aid. Thank god. But Luke’s losing consciousness too fast. He’s starting to settle in a way that’s more terrifying than the shaking.
“Luke, just hang on,” I say desperately.
His grip loosens on my shirt, his hand dropping to his side. He gives me one last longing look, and then his eyes flutter closed, his body going limp.
“No,” I cry. “No, Luke. Please, god, no.”