Lucas got more sleep than he'd had in a long time, but he did still wake up several times during the night due to nightmares, which was typical for him. He did eventually stir at a reasonable hour and yawned, stretching before he actually got up. He still felt a bit drained emotionally, and his throat was sore and dry from crying. He rubbed at his eyes and ran his fingers through his hair to try and fix it up a little bit. He looked around and didn't see anyone at first, so he went to the kitchen to get something to eat. He didn't like coffee much, but he could probably do with some to keep him alert despite the extra sleep he'd gotten. "Mel?" He called out to try and figure out where she was.
Melissa had been standing at the sink, humming to herself as she cleaned the dishes leftover from the night before. Unsure if she had actually heard something or if her mind was playing tricks on her, she shut off the water to go check. When she did, she almost ran into him, squeaking in surprise.
"Sorry! I didn't know you were up." She apologized quickly, taking a few steps back. "Well- uh, good morning! How'd you sleep? You hungry?"
Lucas flushed and stepped back when Melissa nearly barreled into him, holding his hands up in front of himself with a nervous smile. "I-I didn't mean to scare you… my bad. Good morning, I slept fine, and… yeah." He rubbed at his arms and winced, just now noticing how achy he was from bruises all over his body. "What did you make?" He asked, taking his hands off of himself so he wouldn't hurt as much. He was still a bit nervous to see Melissa's parents' reaction to him being there.
"No, no you're fine!" Melissa laughed, turning around to grab a plate of waffles. "Glad to hear you slept well. I made waffles if you want them- not sure if they're still warm, so you may want to heat them up first."
Handing the plate over, she went back to the sink of dishes. If she was being honest, she had no idea how her parents were gonna handle the news. She wasn't fond of having difficult conversations with them, as they weren't consistent on how they took it. She just really hoped Lucas wasn't there when she finally talked to them. She knew they would be up soon, so she hoped to be out of the house early enough to miss them, and she could talk to them while Lucas was at practice.
"Alright… thanks, Mel." Lucas headed into the kitchen and got a waffle as well, heating it up in the microwave so that it was warm. He sat down at the table to eat, although he didn't feel especially hungry. He was still a bit uneasy from the previous night. He looked up when he heard some footsteps from upstairs. "I guess we should probably head out before they come down, right? Save ourselves the trouble… do you want me with you when we have to ask your parents if I can stay?" He asked, looking over to Melissa.
Once again Melissa shut the water off, setting the last plate aside to dry. "Yeah, probably… it'll be better not at like seven o'clock in the morning." She joked, drying her hands off. At his second question, she couldn't help but feel a little guilty. She didn't want him there if they didn't react well- but it also might help in the persuading process. And she wouldn't mind having a little moral support. But if her mother started yelling, she didn't want that to upset Lucas, or deter him from wanting to stay. "I… I think it would be better if you weren't there. Not that I don't want you, I just think it might… go smoother if you aren't right there." Melissa replied, flexing her fingers after cracking her knuckles. A total lie, sure, but she didn't want to voice her real reasons.
"Right, yeah… that makes sense." Lucas sighed softly and ran his fingers through his hair. Since his own father was so difficult, he just assumed that it was sort of normal for parents to not respond well to questions. "We should get going, then. Don't want to be late." He got to his feet and washed his plate before he headed off to change into the clothes he'd brought in his overnight bag. He didn't like to think about how he'd have to go back to his house to get the rest of his things if he was going to stay here. He shook his head a bit and finished getting ready, then headed down to the front door to meet Melissa.
Melissa had the key ring of her house key slid around her finger with one of the other rings on her hands. Backpack slung over her shoulder, she turned to greet Lucas with a smile. "You ready to go?" She asked, opening the door with her free hand. Sticking the key in the lock, she sipped from her coffee cup, and checked her watch. "If not, we've still technically got fifteen to twenty minutes before we need to go. Unless we're walking, then we've got like five."
"Yeah, I'm ready. Might as well just get there early and not risk running into your parents." Lucas shrugged and threw his backpack over his shoulders. He opened the door and let Melissa out before he followed her. Despite being a little groggy from it being early in the morning, he seemed perfectly normal and chipper. It definitely wasn't obvious that he'd run away from home and had a full breakdown just the night before. He didn't act like someone who had such a terrible home life. "Do you have the same classes today?" He asked, humming softly to himself.
Melissa nodded, trying not to notice how calm he was acting. "Yup, same classes for the first semester." She chirped, dropping her house key in her backpack. Pulling a strand of hair out to let it frame her face, she turned to face him. "Are you okay? I know technically that's a stupid question to ask, but I just… yeah."
Lucas nodded a bit, but he paused and his smile faltered when Melissa asked him if he was okay. His gaze went distant for a moment, but he blinked a couple times and put his smile back up. "Y-Yeah, I'm alright. I'm fine. Better…" He laughed weakly, not meeting Melissa's eyes. He was more rested than usual, but he still felt tired, and he couldn't stop thinking that his dad was going to suddenly show up behind him and attack him. Chances were the drunk bastard was passed out on the floor anyway, but that didn't stop Lucas from glancing over his shoulder once in a while.
(I think I'm going through a bit of writer's block rn- so i apologize for the lack of creativity)
Melissa wasn't convinced with his jumpy behavior. He seemed ultimately too nervous to actually be alright, but she didn't want to push. So she pushed a smile up in return, the concern not leaving her gaze. If she were to start asking questions, he may go back to that panicked state from last night, and she wasn't sure if she could handle that right now.
In the meantime, she let her mind wander a bit. She mulled their conversation over from the night before, trying to pick it all apart and understand everything she couldn't quite grasp from the night before. The two walked in an almost peaceful silence- not even the sounds of birds chirping quite yet. Though Melissa was too lost in her thoughts to even notice.
(Np!)
Lucas relaxed a bit and sighed softly in relief when Melissa didn't push the subject. He was definitely better than he was last night, but he still wasn't really in a great state to talk about it. He still felt on edge and like everything was at the brink of spilling over at any moment, so it would be better for him to be able to take some time and settle down before he started answering a lot of questions. He hoped that school would help get his mind off of it.
Soon, they arrived at school and Lucas held the door open for Melissa. He drew in a few deep breaths to steady himself before he headed in as well. "Well… um… I guess I'll see you soon, then?"
Blinking out of her thoughts, she realized they had made it to school. "Oh! Yeah- I'll see you at lunch." She smiled, tucking her loose strands behind her ears. "Then I'll meet you back at the house tonight, right?"
She pushed all her pressing thoughts aside, trying to stay focused. She had practically ignored him the whole way there, and didn't mean to- and didn't want to do it again now.
"Right. See you soon." Lucas smiled softly with a bit of a sad look in his eyes. He really didn't want to leave Melissa right now. He felt better with her by his side, but they were at school and they had different classes. He couldn't reasonably stay with her. So after a few moments of hesitation, he seemed to realize that he had paused and waved as he headed off to his first class.
As much as he didn't really care for school, it was at least a safe place that his dad couldn't get into. They had drills and stuff to keep students safe when dangerous people came into the building, after all, and his dad didn't know what classes he took anyways.
(Feel free to skip until lunch, I don't think anything interesting will happen until then lol)
(I'm feeling the same way aha)
Melissa had barely notice anything going on her classes. And even after she had caught something Laura had said in between two of her classes, but only bits and pieces of it. She was still trying to figure out everything that happened with Lucas. The more she thought about it, the more it hurt. He had essentially been lying to her for years. Every time they got together, he pretended everything was okay- and she just went along with it. And even now, she was acting like nothing was wrong- even wishing nothing would be. How could she have been so-
"Hey, you okay?"
Melissa snapped out of her thoughts, as she flicked her gaze up to her friend standing across from her. "Oh- uh yeah, why?" She asked, taking in her surroundings, now realizing she was in the cafeteria with Laura sitting across from her.
"Maybe because you've been staring at a blank wall for ten minutes. Did you hear anything I said?" She asked, brows pushed together in worry when Melissa reluctantly shook her head. "You sure you're okay?"
"Yeah, just distracted. Found out some news last night, and just thinking it over." Melissa shrugged her question off, making her way to the lunch line. Laura's concern didn't drop, but she didn't insist, taking a moment before going back to talking about whatever she had been talking about before.
Lucas made his way into the lunch room and found a secluded table for him, Melissa, and Laura if she wanted to join. He'd brought a lunch bag to deter any suspicion, but there was next to nothing in it. It wasn't like there was a whole lot of food at his house, and he didn't really have the money to buy anything. He wasn't hungry anyway, so it didn't matter. Thinking about everything and worrying only killed his appetite.
He rested his head on the table, one arm concealing his face and the other hand resting on his head, his arm against his cheek. It blocked out some of the loud, garbled noise of the cafeteria, but he still glanced up when he heard Melissa approach. He looked a bit worse than earlier and he generally wasn't doing great, but he was as okay as could be expected considering the situation. One look at him was enough to suggest that he was the cause of the 'news' that Melissa was worried about.
"I'm still waiting to find out if I'm on the team, though." Laura shrugged, giving Melissa a soft smile. Melissa had done everything she could to stay present in the conversation, occasionally adding her own thoughts in. But the second she noticed Lucas, her focus drifted once again. Melissa's posture loosened as she approached the table, noticing how bad Lucas seemed to be doing. Realizing she might be giving something away, she pushed a smile through, and sat down. She practically kicked herself for the slip. Whether Laura noticed or not, she didn't say anything.
"Hey Lucas!" Laura smiled, sitting next to Melissa as they set their trays down. "How are you? Haven't seen you in quite some time." Her bubbliness could appear slightly suffocating at times, but it was at least incredibly genuine. She seemed to have ramped it up, most likely to the gloominess of the two next to her. Melissa gave Lucas a weak smile, hesitating before eating some of the food on her tray.
Lucas lifted his head properly and tousled his hair so that he would be a little bit more put together. He didn't want to show just how off he was at the moment. He offered a weak smile as well and suppressed a yawn as he waved to Melissa and Laura. He hated to have been lying to Melissa like this (well, not lying so much as just… leaving a few things out, right? That made him feel a bit less guilty, but not much), but he also couldn't bear to tell her everything that had been going on. It would break her heart, he was sure, and maybe she'd even blame him for not fighting back? No, Melissa wouldn't do that, but Lucas did still worry about her reactions and how she might think less of him for allowing his dad to behave this way.
He shook his head to clear the thoughts and refocused on the conversation at hand. "Hi, Laura… I'm alright. Just a little tired. You?" He asked, resting his head on the knuckles of one hand.
"Aw, I'm sorry about that. Do you want some caffeine? I could go get some for you." Laura offered, ready to hop up the second she suggested it. "And I'm doing well! I've got a meeting after school for yearbook team, and then hopefully I'll find out if I made it on the soccer team later this afternoon. You two could come to my games if I make it!" She rambled, grinning from ear to ear having distracted herself from her own question.
"That could be fun," Melissa nodded, chewing her food thoughtfully. She was really trying to stay focused, but avoided looking at Lucas to keep her thoughts focused. She could think about everything later- now wasn't the time.
"Um… sure, if you want to." Lucas had learned that Laura liked to have something to do, so if getting him something caffeinated would make her feel better, he figured that would be best. "Hopefully you make the team. I'll try and come if I don't have a baseball game or practice I have to go to." He smiled weakly, knowing that Laura probably wouldn't look close enough to see that it was fake.
He looked over at Melissa, but noticed that she was trying not to look at him, so he looked down at the table, feeling guilty. He knew she had to be feeling awful and guilty as well, but he didn't know what to say to her, especially not with Laura right there.
At his acceptance of her previous offer, she quickly hopped up from her seat. "Alright, I'll be back in a jiff!" Laura chirped, walking off with a lot of purpose in her step. When she was gone, Melissa reluctantly turned to him, trying to make her mind go blank from all her thoughts. She needed to deal with them later, and she was going to make sure she didn't get distracted.
"So- now that she's not here, how are you really holding up?" Melissa asked softly, noting he didn't seem to be eating anything. She doubted he even had any food with him, in that paper bag. When the realization hit, she swiftly began dividing food up on her plate to share with him.
"Thanks, Laura." Lucas's smile fell after Laura was gone and he sighed, running his fingers through his hair. "I don't know, honestly… I can't think, I can't focus. I feel a little better when I'm with you. Little safer, I guess. When we were walking to school, I felt… I dunno. Exposed. Like he might jump out and attack me from behind at any moment. He must have noticed I'm gone by now, and I'm sure he's furious." He drew in a wavering breath and shook his head a bit. He noticed that Melissa was giving him some food and blinked.
"Oh, Mel, you don't… you don't have to…" He argued weakly, but his voice trailed off. With Melissa there to make him feel a bit more secure, he realized that he was pretty hungry. He'd had a bit for breakfast, but before that he hadn't eaten much of anything. He sighed and relented, thanking her softly. "I just… wanted to apologize, Mel. For… everything. I should've told you sooner. I should've been honest with you. I-I feel really awful, and… and being scared isn't a good excuse for not telling you."
Melissa nodded along to what he was saying, sliding her tray over to him. "Even if that's the case, I won't let him get to you." Although that was a rather empty promise, as she didn't really have a way to back up her words, the determination on her face said she would at least try to stick to her word.
When he began arguing about the food, she definitely stayed firm in insisting he needed to eat something. Her brow was raised until he relented, and she let a soft smile settle on her features when he began to eat. But when he began to apologize, her smile dropped.
"No- don't apologize. If anything I should be apologizing for how I reacted. I know it was hard for you to tell me, and honestly I didn't react the greatest. You had every right not to tell me."
'Even if I don't understand why you didn't…
Melissa shook the thought from her mind, finishing the rest of her own portion of food.
"But I just… it was so stupid to try and handle it all myself, I-I dunno. I could have left, could've gotten away from him. I didn't have to live like that and I knew that, I… I guess I'm just stupid." Lucas sighed and started to eat a bit, but it was hard to focus. "I guess I'm just scared of… losing what I've got left. Even if what I've got left is an alcoholic bastard." He shook his head, tapping his foot on the ground anxiously.
"Even now, I feel guilty about leaving. Like I abandoned him. Like I've done something wrong. I really don't want to go back, but I feel like I should. Like… what if something bad happens to him because I'm not there to… t-to divert his attention… god, it sounds so stupid now that I say it out loud. Letting him hurt me because it stops him from hurting himself… he deserves it more, doesn't he? B-But if I'm not there to stop him from hurting myself, it's my fault, isn't it?" He seemed more distressed now, and more frustrated with himself and conflicted.
