Chapter 34
Lucas
Lucas knew this was where he needed to be right now.
After the craziness of the storm and the swirling emotions that were threatening to overtake him, Lucas needed to be in his calm space, even if it was just for a few hours.
After that, who knew? He’d filled his backpack with some clothes and had his wallet with him.
He could ride out to another town or maybe get a train into the city. He wasn’t sure.
All he knew was that right now, he needed peace.
And he needed to be at the place where he used to be with Willow when times were good.
Here, at the Falls, he could simply sit and be still.
He could listen to the gentle sound of nature and time passing.
Apart from a few fallen trees, the area around here had not been too badly impacted by the storm, and amazingly, their battered little cabin was more or less still intact, sheltered by the huge fir trees that guarded it.
Lucas huddled on the small chair inside, gazing out the broken window.
His mind was restless like the Falls themselves, and his entire body ached with weariness.
He couldn’t forget Jake’s words in The Diner – he was planning on staying in Honey Springs and Lucas wasn’t the type of man who came between people in a relationship.
Nor could he ignore the way they had held each other.
He knew he had to step aside. Before that though, he needed time to heal; perhaps he had never really done that before and that was part of the problem.
Greg used to tease to him, telling him he was crazy to have ever fallen for a girl like Willow.
In truth, Lucas knew that he should have let go of hope years ago and he thought he had, but when Willow had rocked back into town, it was hard to ignore the feelings that crept quickly back.
He had hoped that they would go away eventually, but as Willow got closer to him, everything intensified. And then that night, during the storm—
Lucas bit the inside of his cheek. He couldn’t bear to relive that all again. It was all he had been thinking about and it was starting to drive him crazy.
Years ago, Lucas had written Willow a letter.
It had seemed like a good idea at the time, but in reality, it had been a desperate attempt to tell her how he was really feeling.
Willow had been here with him in the cabin, telling him excitedly that Jake had asked her out, and Lucas knew in that moment that everything he loved and cherished was about to change.
Willow didn’t know what Jake was really like.
She had only really gotten to know him in high school and still thought of him as the shy little boy who once lived next to her when she lived with her mom.
Lucas knew differently. And Greg. And Rachel.
They had all experienced the nasty side of Jake, who in high school had become the popular jock and targeted anyone who he viewed as beneath him.
Lucas could kind of put up with the nasty slurs and occasional beatings, and he certainly hadn’t told Willow – not wanting her to think he was weak or needed her help in any way.
But now, Willow was going to be Jake’s girlfriend and Lucas knew that would be the end of their friendship.
Jake wouldn’t want his ‘girl’ to be hanging around with a loser like Lucas – he was far too controlling for that – and Lucas wasn’t even sure he wanted a friend who could date someone like that.
The letter was his last shot. It had been his mom’s idea, after she had seen how miserable he was.
‘Willow will want to know the truth; she’s a nice girl,’ she had said. ‘Give her all the information. Let her decide.’
Lucas planned to drop the letter at Martha’s house the next morning and then wait here at their cabin after school to see if Willow appeared. He walked over to the house with the letter clasped in his hand, only to find Willow in the doorway with Jake. He had come to pick her up for school.
Lucas realized in that moment that it was too late. Willow had already decided. And she was happy. What right did he have to make her choose?
So, he did the only other thing he could do; he allowed himself to drift back into the shadows.
He avoided her. He ignored her calls. He tried to make himself forget about Willow Davis.
He stuffed the letter in a bag alongside other memories of Willow and hid it under his bed.
He couldn’t bear to destroy it, but he no longer wanted to see any of it.
And he watched as Willow and Jake’s relationship got stronger and stronger, and something inside him got weaker and weaker.
Lucas had to learn to rebuild himself, and with the help of his friends, he did.
Now, once more, he would have to start the process again.
He leaned back on the chair, closed his eyes and allowed his mind to drift, his hand subconsciously rubbing his mom’s bracelet. He hadn’t slept well in days.
His mind churned over thoughts of Willow, and then his mom and then The Diner. They all began to fuse together into a hazy mess.
Lucas loved Honey Springs, that brief time he left had been one of his unhappiest periods, but now everything was at risk.
Could he really live in the same town as Jake again?
Could he really live here with Willow after what had happened?
Nausea swelled in his throat. This was all such a mess. Even the calmness of this place wasn’t helping him.
He didn’t have a clue what to do next.
The rapping on the cabin door stirred him out of his reverie. He pulled himself up stiffly, running a hand through his messy hair. His mouth was dry, and he licked his lips.
‘Who is it?’ he croaked, getting up from his seat.
Mia, he expected. She probably followed him down here. He knew she was worried about him.
The door opened slowly, and Willow stood in the shadows.
‘I was hoping to find you here,’ she said shyly.
Lucas stepped back. He wasn’t sure what to say or do even.
‘How did you know?’ he croaked finally.
She smiled and held up a creased piece of paper. ‘I found your letter to me. It’s a few years too late, but I came to meet you, like you asked—’
‘My letter …’ He took the paper from her as things slowly clicked into place. ‘You were in my room?’
‘I’m sorry. I was worried. I asked Mia to help me look for clues to try and find out where you might be and she found this,’ Willow replied gently. ‘Luc, it’s so beautiful.’
‘It’s stupid. I should have ripped it up ages ago.’
‘No, you shouldn’t have, and I’m glad you didn’t.’ She walked towards him. ‘I only wish you had told me back then.’
‘What good would it have done? You were in love with Jake.’
‘But I didn’t know how you felt. I didn’t have all the facts,’ Willow insisted. His mom’s words echoed in his ears, and he frowned. She always had been right about stuff like this.
‘Besides,’ Willow continued, ‘I didn’t realize how bad Jake was to you. I mean, I know he could tease and stuff, but I didn’t realize the extent—’
Lucas shifted uncomfortably. ‘It was no big deal.’
‘Of course it was a big deal. You were my friend, and I couldn’t see you were hurting.’ Willow was almost shouting now. ‘I should have seen it. I should have stopped it—’
‘None of this was your fault, Will,’ Lucas said softly.
He sat back down, and Willow joined him on the seat opposite.
‘I mean, it’s not a huge surprise you’re here,’ she said finally. ‘It was always our special place.’
‘I guess I’m an obvious kind of guy,’ Lucas muttered.
‘We were so happy here,’ she replied. ‘We had such lovely times together didn’t we, Luc?’
He nodded. He could barely look at her. If this was her building up to an apology, to regret what they did the other night, he wasn’t sure he could take it. This was why he wanted to leave without seeing her; he wanted the coward’s way out.
‘I realized how much I loved you back then,’ she breathed. ‘And how much I still love you.’
He looked up. Her eyes were moist with tears. She reached forward and took his hands in hers. ‘Luc, I love you. I think I always did. It took that night in the storm to make me see—’
‘You don’t regret it?’ he croaked.
‘Regret it? I can’t stop thinking about it.’ Her smile was shy. ‘It was beyond amazing.’
‘But Jake? He’s back?’
‘Jake and I were over long before I came back to Honey Springs. He knows that as well as I do,’ Willow replied. ‘I spoke to him before I came here. He’s not sticking around. He already has bigger plans.’
‘Really?’
‘Yeah, he’s going to head to the Ridge, get a place there so he can do his mountain rescue work.
He’ll still be close enough to visit Eric occasionally, but he won’t be here all the time.
’ Her eyes sparkled. ‘He didn’t love me, Luc.
Not really. Jake just liked the idea of being with someone. That’s all.’
‘And you?’
‘I love it here. I love Honey Springs. I love my matcha wagon and I love being with you,’ she said sweetly. ‘I have everything I want here. It just took me a little time to realize it.’
‘You’re telling me,’ Lucas groaned.
‘I’m not on a rebound, Luc,’ she insisted. ‘I promise you. I’ve just come to realize what I really need.’
‘It’s about damn time!’
She giggled softly and then came over to him, planting herself gently on his lap. Her arms whipped around his body. Her lips met his. Warm, soft lips that seemed to blend perfectly against his.
He pulled away. ‘I love you, Willow Davis. Even though you made me wait for far too long.’
‘Some things are worth waiting for,’ she whispered. ‘Now, I don’t know about you – but I need a little warming up. How discreet is this place anyway?’
‘Oh, discreet enough,’ he assured her, pulling her back towards him.
The roar of the waterfall echoed in the distance as their bodies pressed together once again and Lucas, finally, felt what he longed for all these years. Peace.