Chapter 39‐ No Love Lost

17 3 24
                                    

WARNING:
EMOTIONAL CONTENT.
Includes abandonment, divorce, cheating, single parent after breakdown of marriage, emotional distress.

It was a Friday morning, and the roommates decided they should make the most of the sunshine. They went down to the park and invited Jay and Cassie along too. Tabitha suggested a group day out, under the guise of enjoying the weather, but in reality she wanted to take Luka's mind of his upcoming music recital in two days. His constant stressing out was seriously starting to worry her.

"So, then the powerpoint just completely shut down, and we could see all the tabs she had open!", said Cassie.
"They were all dating websites."

The group laughed at the story.

"No way, she must've been so embarrassed!", exclaimed Sutton.

Jay shook his head.
"Forget that, the most embarrassing part was that she accidentally clicked on one, and a guy's profile came up", he said, pointing to Tabitha.
"What was his name again?"

"The Love King sixty five", answered Tabitha, making everyone laugh again.

"Your creative writing classes sound so cool", said Jace.

"What about forensics? Now, that's a seriously cool subject", said Jay.

"It's really interesting, you know.
There's just a lot to remember."

"It's the same with paramedic science too", said Anvi.

Cassie turned to Luka.
"Are you excited for your music recital?"

"Uh... kind of.
Yeah.
I'm really nervous though", replied Luka.

"Don't be", said Jay.
"You'll be great."

"Yeah, and you'll have all your friends there to support you too", said Cassie.

"Do you two want to come?"

"Really? You want us there?", questioned Cassie.

Luka nodded.
"Honestly, I'd feel the pressure a bit more, but I really want you both there."

"Well then I'll definitely be there", smiled Jay.

"Me too", said Cassie.

KJ looked over at Cassie, a small smile appearing on his face.
The pair hadn't spent much time together, but KJ liked how sweet she was.
After living in a flat with people with pretty big personalities, it was nice for KJ to be able to talk to someone who was sweet and a little awkward.

"Ok, ok let's play frisbee!", suggested Tabitha.

The group spread out as Tabitha got a frisbee out.
Tabitha tossed the frisbee towards KJ, who caught it with ease.

"Comin' your way now, Luka!", called out KJ, before throwing it.

The frisbee soared through the air, missing Luka entirely.
It landed in a bush further down the park. Luka ran over to get it.
His eyes landed on a man in the distance, who was buying an ice cream.
Chills ran across his body, and he felt like his heart stopped.

You'll also like

          

"Why's Luka staring at that man over there?", asked Tabitha.

Sutton shrugged.
"Maybe he's waiting for the ice cream van to be free instead?"

"Aw, I want ice cream now", said Jace.

"Let's go over and get some", suggested Tabitha.

"Cass and I will keep an eye on the bags", offered Jay.

The group approached Luka, who was still staring at the man.
Confused and a little concerned, Tabitha tapped Luka's shoulder.

"Hey, who are you looking at?"

Luka gulped.
"My dad."

◆◆◆

Luka barely said a word as he walked back home, the others not wanting to say something that could stress him out.
Luka slammed his bedroom door shut, leaving the rest of the roommates in the living room.

"Ok so... this is weird, right?", asked Jace. "What would his dad even be doing here?"

"Exactly!
Didn't he say his dad moved out of Moorside years ago?", questioned Sutton.

"He's got some nerve, showing his face here", said Tabitha.

"It's not like he knew Luka went to uni here though", said KJ.

"I don't care", said Tabitha.
"What kind of man cheats on his wife?
If he tries to worm his way into Luka's life, he'll only hurt him."

"Look, we don't know if that's exactly what he's doing here", said Jace.

"What, do you really want to take that risk?", questioned Tabitha.

"I think it's Luka's decision", said Sutton.
"As much as we want to protect him, if he did want to talk to his dad, we can't stop him."

In Luka's room, Luka was desperately trying to get hold of his mum.
He knew the chances of getting through to her would be low, because she was visiting family, but he had to try!

Did she know he was in Moorside?

A knock on the door pulled him away from his worries, just for a split second.
After telling the person to come in, the door opened to reveal KJ.

"Hey", he said.
"Just wanted to see how you were doing."

Luka sighed.
"Not good, to be honest.
My head's spinning.
I haven't seen my dad since I was twelve!"

"Well, you don't know if he's here for a while.
He might just be in the area for today", said KJ.
"Who knows?
Maybe you'll never have to see him again."

Luka frowned, the weight of KJ's words bearing down on him.
He hadn't thought about it like that.
He never needed his father.
He never felt like he missed out, because he always had his mother.
She was more than enough for him.

But now, the thought of his father leaving again felt different.
Any answers about why his father felt the need to destroy Luka's family life would vanish with him.

amazing as always! I missed this book so much

1y ago

1
I love Cassie & Jay, I think they're a great addition & I love the friendship of kj & Cassie, they're so cute!

1y ago

1
ROOMIES: First Year | AN APPLYFIC [CLOSED]Where stories live. Discover now