“I can’t do this.” She said weakly.
“Hey…” He dropped the suitcase beside him and placed a hand on her back. “Look at me.” He said and waited for her to do so. She slowly lifted her head to meet his gaze, looking at him expectantly. He reached for her left hand and gestured towards her hand. She looked down and saw his finger tip run along the tattoo of strength she had scripted on her ring finger. “You see that?” He asked, watching as she gazed down at their hands and the way his fingertip underlined the word.
“You can do this. You are strong enough to do this. I promise.” He said softly before he dropped her hand onto her lap.
She stared at her band of strength. Funny, she thought, how when she and Jake had gotten those tattoos she really believed that the reminder would will him to do anything. Why was it so hard to look down at that band now and have it mean the same thing to her? She looked up at Luke, he looked so confident in his proclamation that she was strong enough to do this. He believed she could kick her habit, it was right there in the eyes that were looking back at her. She took a deep breath.
“Okay.” She whispered and he took a step back, allowing her room to step out of the truck. Luke pulled up the handle on her suitcase as she closed the door behind her. He looked her over and watched as she shoved her hands into the pockets of his sweatshirt as they started to walk towards the entrance of Lakeview.
He dreaded the end of the walk, knowing that once they made their way to the entrance of the facility, he would have to say goodbye and leave her. He couldn’t walk her in, hold her hand and make sure she was alright. She would walk into that building with her own fate in her hands and completely out of his.
He questioned himself and how he should say goodbye to her. Since her stay in the hospital, she wasn’t as cold as she had been the last few months, yet still he held back from acting the way he yearned to when it came to her. Did he hug her or kiss her cheek? Or did he wait for her to make a move to say goodbye? He blew out a strangled breath when he realized she had stopped walking in front of him and that they were standing in front of the entrance of Lakeview.
She looked up at the building before her and then turned around slowly to meet Luke’s gaze. “Well, this is it…” She said, letting the last word of her sentence trail off.
“You’re going to be just fine... I promise.” He said softly, and then in an effort to busy his hands, he rolled her suitcase to her side and took a retreating step backward. He shoved his hands into his pockets and looked down for a moment, unsure what to do. He lifted his head and looked back at her. She tilted her head to the side and studied him for a moment.
“I guess I should go inside.” She placed her hand hesitantly on the handle of her suitcase and began to turn around. She glanced down at herself and noticed she was still wearing the sweatshirt she had borrowed from him. “Oh, I almost forgot…” She said and turned around towards him. “Your shirt.” She said as she went to grab the end of it to lift it over her head.
Luke placed his hand over hers instantly and shook his head. “Keep it. When you’re feeling lonely, it’ll remind you you’re not alone and that I’m only a phone call away.” He dropped his hand quickly.
“The website says I can’t have any contact with anyone until after I complete detox.” She stated and her eyes searched his. For what she had no idea.
“So then I’ll hear from you in a few days…” He said giving her the green light for her to call him. Little did she know he’d probably be staring at his phone until she did.
Cara nodded and then reached into her purse and pulled out an envelope. “I will call you then.” She stared down at the sealed envelope that had Luke’s name printed on it.
“What’s that?” He asked.
She tore her eyes away from the envelope and reaching out to hand it to him as she looked up at his face. “I found a journal of Jake’s and there were some letters in the back of the book. This one was addressed to you.”
Luke stared down at the envelope for a moment, recognizing the familiar handwriting that belonged to his brother. His breath hitched, a little piece of his brother lived on in that note, he thought. It was something new to Luke, that Jake had never said whether it was written or spoken, there was something Jake wanted to say to him. He swallowed the lump that was lodged in his throat and reached for the letter.
She watched on as he stared down at it in his hands for a moment before he carefully slipped it into his back pocket.
“Thank you.” He said hoarsely.