The Pull of Destiny (25 page)

“Sorry about
that. I had- stuff on my mind.”

“It’s okay. We
all do,” I told him, smiling up at him. He stared down at me, biting his lip.

“You’re brave,”
he said softly.

“I am?”

I thought I was
the biggest wimp to ever walk the earth, but he was entitled to his own opinion.

Luke nodded.
“Yeah. If I was dealing with your issues, I’d be a wreck. But you- you always
have a smile on your face and you’re helping me, the biggest screw-up on the
planet. So that makes you- brave.”

“I don’t think
you’re a screw-up.’

“Then you’re
the only person who doesn’t.” But Luke appeared to be pretty pleased by that,
judging from his smile. “So, I was wondering- can we get together later on in
the week?” Luke asked hurriedly, looking at me. “That is, if you don’t mind.”

I had to will
myself not to shake my head before he finished his sentence. No need to appear
overeager.

“Sounds like a
plan,” I said, my heart beating a little faster. Another afternoon to look
forward to. Hanging with Luke was always eventful. “What’s next on your
agenda?”

Luke cleared
his throat, giving an embarrassed laugh. “You’ll laugh at me,” he said.

I shook my
head. “Me? Never!”

“Well, I’ve
never been to the top of the Empire State Building-,” Luke started.

I couldn’t
contain the laughter bubbling up in my throat and I collapsed in a giggling
fit. Laughing felt good after all that crying.

Luke waggled
his finger in front of my face. “You see? I knew you’d laugh,” he said mildly.

“Sorry, but-
really?” I snickered.

“Yeah.”

“We should
definitely go. 17 years in New York and you’ve never been to the top of the
tallest building here?” I grinned. “What kind of New Yorker are you?”

“Not a really
good one. I haven’t been to Liberty Island, either,” Luke admitted, a smile
tugging at his lips.

“Then we have
to go to both those places,” I said.

“We will, don’t
worry,’ Luke said, looking down into my eyes. “Hey, is that your real eye
color?” he asked suddenly.

Nodding, I
said, “Yeah.” I sighed. “I don’t really like their color. Everyone else in my
family has brown eyes.”

“It’s what sets
you apart. They’re a really gorgeous color,” he said, squeezing my shoulder.

“Thanks,” I
said, my pulse jumping in my throat. I swear, if he doesn’t stop with the
sweetness...

Grinning
wickedly, Luke added, “Even though you’ve been crying.”

“And you claim
to be on my side,” I joked and he laughed.

“Sorry.”

My cell phone
alarm went off and I sighed.

“That’s my
alarm. I have to go,” I said reluctantly, not wanting to leave. “Work calls.”

“Aw!” Luke
exclaimed, sounding remarkably like Faith. “Now I’m gonna be so bored. I hate
being alone, so you’ll have to stay.” His eyes gleamed. “I’ll call your boss
and tell him you’re sick.”

Feeling chuffed
that he didn’t want me to leave, I shook my head. “Nuh-uh. I have to go or
he’ll fire me.”

“But who’s
gonna keep me company?”

“Your friends,”
I pointed out.

Luke wrinkled
his nose, avoiding my eyes. “They’re all- busy.”

“You are so
lying,” I said, folding my arms over my chest.

“Guilty,” Luke
said, grinning sheepishly.

Curiously, I
asked, “Haven’t your friends wondered about you lately?”

Because mine
certainly have. Like when I blew Shazia off today when she wanted us to go to
the bookstore. She was not impressed.
I’ll have to make it up to her.

“Nope, but I
guess they will. Soon.”

“Are you gonna
tell them?” I asked.

“No.” A crafty
smile. “That’s why I need you to hang with me coz you’re the only one who knows
and I feel comfortable around you.”

Nice try,
Luke.
Unfortunately, I didn’t think that Nino would understand. “You’ll get me
fired,” I told him, reaching under the table to get my bag. Luke removed his
arm from my shoulder.

“Okay, I get
the hint,’ he said in a mock upset tone. “I’ll finish all this ice cream, then
I’ll go home and work on my list alone, even though it’s more fun when you’re
around.”
How sweet!
He looked at me, just as I was getting to my feet.
“Hey, was it you that marked ‘bring sexy back’ on my list as done?”

“I really have
to go,” I said, backing away from the booth.
He saw that? Uh oh!
“I’ll
see you at school, bye!”

I almost ran
out of Baskin Robbins, my cheeks flushing in embarrassment.

CHAPTER 12

wakeup call.

Luke’s Point
of View

My checkup with
Doctor Khan started out routine. First, I was given an MRI which always freaks
me out. Even with the earplugs they gave me, I still got a headache from the
noise of the MRI scanner. Then again, what doesn’t give me a headache these
days? And being strapped onto an examination table without moving for
forty-five minutes with a scanning device around my head is a nightmare. And
while the gesture was nice, the ‘relaxing’ music that was being piped into the
examination room didn’t help.

After I got the
MRI over and done with (luckily before my claustrophobia kicked in) I was given
a number of small tests and had to give a blood sample. That just reminded me
of how much I hate needles. I actually had to keep my eyes screwed shut the
entire time the nurse had the needle in my arm, gritting my teeth. Okay, it
didn’t hurt. But when it came to sharp objects piercing my skin, I was a baby.
Plus, I really don’t like hospitals.

Finally, after
all the required tests were done, I headed back to my private room to change. I
seriously didn’t understand why dad bothered renting a room for an hour when I
could have just waited in the waiting room like everyone else. He probably
would have preferred to have me on a leash, one as tight as possible.

So I hung out
in the boringly sterile room, lying on the neatly made bed, flicking from
channel to channel and secretly hoping (even though if you asked me I wouldn’t
admit it) that CiCi would just randomly walk in, the way she had last time I
was here. I was really starting to enjoy her company, even though I thought she
was insane the first day I talked to her. I guess I was justified- she almost
broke my nose, after all!

But after
getting to know her a little better in the past couple of weeks, I was
beginning to realize that she hid more than I expected under that bubbly
exterior of hers. A lot more. All she’d been to me before the penthouse
incident was the smiling girl I borrowed pencils from but now I considered her
a friend. And believe it or not, selfish rich kid Luke Astor, the guy who was
famous for looking out for self and nobody else, cared about what happened to
CiCi.

The story she’d
told me about what happened to her niece made me loath her cousin even more.
And the way she had cried in my arms... I sat up in the bed, tossing the remote
to the side as the image of CiCi crying filled my mind. The girl missed her
niece with all her heart and she felt like it was her fault. I wanted to know
what was going on in her life, but I figured she would tell me in her own time.
In the meantime, it wasn’t wrong for me to remember how pretty CiCi looked when
she was crying, was it? Because if it was, then I was guilty. And even though I
had felt sorry for her when she was crying, all I could think about as I held
her was how amazing her hair smelt and how soft her skin was and how
unbelievable it felt having her in my arms. Wondering what her home life was
like, I realized that I wanted to do something big for her, just to let her
know that I was there for her like she was there for me.

Before I could
think harder about that, Dr. Khan walked into the room, smile intact, a file in
his hands.

I swung my legs
over the side of the bed and rested my feet on the floor as he sat down next to
me.

“Okay, Lucas,
your results are in.”

“And?” I gave
him a sideways look but he was focusing on the papers in his lap. Or
concentrating on not looking at me, which meant...

Dr. Khan cleared
his throat. “We have some news,” he said.

I knew it!

“It’s bad news,
right?” I said dryly. Why wasn’t I surprised? “No offence, doctor, but I’m used
to expecting bad news from you these days.”

A deep breath
from Dr. Khan as he finally looked at me, his eyes filled with compassion. My
stomach lurched. God, now what? “Well, it certainly isn’t good news. Lucas, the
size of your aneurysm hasn’t changed.”

 “And that’s
bad because?”

“If the
aneurysm doesn’t grow, we can’t operate.”

Oh. I ran both
hands through my hair then looked back up at the doctor. I didn’t know what to
think anymore. “So two months turns into...what?” was all I could ask.

“We’re not
sure,” Dr. Khan said. I could tell he was choosing his words carefully in an
attempt not to panic me and I felt laughter bubbling up in my throat. Great.
Now I was hysterical. At least I was in a hospital already; the good doctor
could just sedate me if I decided to go crazy. “We can’t calculate the growth
rate of the aneurysm. That’s why we’re taking this watch and wait procedure.”

I groaned,
kneading my temples. “Damn.”

Doctor Khan
patted me on my shoulder as I hunched over. “I’m sorry, Lucas. Once again, I
wish I had better news for you.”

“So now I have
to wait till the damn thing decides to grow or rupture, just so I can get rid
of it?”

Dr. Khan
nodded. “Technically, yes,” he replied. “But don’t you worry yourself. Your
aneurysm won’t rupture. You’re receiving quality medical attention.”

Groaning again,
I scratched the nape of my neck. “My dad is gonna be so pissed,” I mumbled,
envisioning him pacing up and down the living room, yelling at me. He’d
probably just grab a chainsaw and try to remove the aneurysm himself.

“Why?”

I raised my
head, stared at the ceiling. “Coz he thinks I’m doing this on purpose, just to
spite him or something,” I said slowly. Dad was such a dick about stuff lately
that he thought everything I did was to spite him.

“He’s just
scared, is all,” the good doctor proclaimed. I looked at him, biting back a
smile. Dad, scared? Dr. Khan had no idea what he was talking about. “You’re his
only son; he doesn’t want anything to happen to you.”

I didn’t even
bother contradicting him, even though my inner voice was going ‘if only you
knew.’ “Yeah. I guess you’re right,” I said, fighting to keep a smile off my
face. Back to the matter at hand. “So, where do we go from here?”

“Of course,
we’ll still be monitoring you weekly and if there isn’t a change in the size of
your aneurysm, just take it as a good thing,’ Dr. Khan told me. “A lot of
people live healthy lives with aneurysms.”

I stared
dubiously at him. “Doctor, I’m 17. I can’t go live my entire life with these
headaches. That’s a bit much, don’t you think?” If I had to pop Tylenol every
day for the rest of my life, I’d go insane! “Can’t you just operate
regardless?” I asked hopefully.

Dr. Khan looked
shocked, shaking his head rapidly. “No, Lucas, that’s out of the question,” he
replied, sounding outraged. I shrugged, feeling deflated. Just asking. “To
operate when the aneurysm is that size is too risky.”

I bit my lip.
“Bummer,” I muttered. “Doctor, is there ever a time you actually give your
patients
good
news?”

Because he
couldn’t be full of doom, gloom and bad news, could he? Why would anyone even
want to be a doctor?

“Why, yes! Just
today, I removed a cancerous tumor from a three year olds brain.” Dr. Khan
smiled proudly. “He’ll make a full recovery and won’t need chemotherapy when he
grows older.”

I looked at him
in admiration. “Hey, kick ass! My doctor’s a rock star!” I exclaimed. My turn
to clap him on the shoulder, see how he liked it.

“Alas, I’m just
an ordinary man,” Dr. Khan said self-depreciatingly.

“But I’m in
good hands, right?” I asked, suddenly seeing the good in the situation. More
time to work on my list, more time to hang out with CiCi, more time to get to
know her and listen to the way she rambled when she was nervous.