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Birthday Wish by CharlotteDae
| Title: Birthday Wish Chapter: one and only Rating: G Summary: The one thing Luke wants for his birthday is the one thing he can't have Characters: Luke, Noah, Faith, Natalie, Emma Genre: AU, romance Warnings: Massive amount of kitsch Disclaimer: This site is no way associated with "As the World Turns", CBS, P&G, or Van Hansis and Jake Silbermann. This is not for profit. No copyright infringement is intended. Authors submit and write their own work. |
It was a Snyder tradition to make a wish and blow out the candles on Emma’s homemade cake at exactly 00:00 on someone’s birthday. The Snyder kids, except for Ethan, were already too old to believe their wish was going to come true, but they didn’t argue; it was a great excuse to stay up way past their bedtime.
Although Luke didn’t need his parent’s permission to stay up past midnight, he played along. He blew out his 19 candles in one blow, while his family sang “Happy Birthday”. His mother assured him that he would have his wish, as if he were still 5.
“Yeah,” Faith said sarcastically, “your wish will definitely come true this time.”
Luke ruffled her hair in response.
Then it was time to actually eat the cake. It was a simple chocolate birthday cake, but a very good one. It was Luke’s favorite since he could eat solid food, and it was one tradition he wasn’t going to give up on.
* * *
Noah Mayer stepped out of the airplane, through the jet bridge and into the terminal. He half-hoped there was someone waiting for him with flowers or balloons or even just a loving hug, but he had no family left, nor friends.
He walked out of the terminal and breathed in the morning air of Chicago. It was a silly thing to do; after all, it’s not like the city meant anything to him, and being an army brat, no city ever did. Except for one.
He got into the first cab he saw, but didn’t tell the driver where to go.
After a few moments the driver finally asked, “Mind telling me where are you headed?”
Noah still didn’t answer. Then, “Oakdale, please.” One last time before getting shipped off to some unknown place.
The driver pulled out of the parking space and headed towards the exit, in the general direction of Oakdale. “Going home to your sweetheart?” he asked.
Great, a chatty cab driver, Noah thought. Is there any other kind? “I guess you can put it like that,” he said.
“You have no bags,” the driver pointed out.
“Not planning on staying long,” Noah said dryly. He was too nervous to make small talk.
Apparently the driver got the hint, because he remained quiet until they got to Oakdale.
* * *
Luke was up since 8 a.m., typing feverishly on his laptop. He allowed himself to take the day off from his studies, and was amazed to realize his head was swarming with thoughts and ideas that weren’t college-related. His cell phone lay on the table next to him, and Luke compulsively checked it every once in a while. There was only one person he wanted to hear from, and this person was the most unlikely to call him.
Was it so crazy of him to hope that Noah would call to wish him happy birthday? When Noah left him to join the army they didn’t officially break up, but they haven’t been much in contact since, either. And it has been almost a year. Still, that doesn’t mean they stopped loving each other. Has Noah forgotten it was his birthday? Or was he too busy to even send a simple text message? Luke could speculate for hours, but he didn’t want to wallow in self-pity.
He typed for about two hours straight, only stopping to check his cell phone, in case he got caught up in his writing and didn’t hear it ring. It was around 10 o’clock when he finally finished his story – something he was working on for quite a while, but couldn’t get his head around it, until today. He looked up from his laptop, stretching his arms – and almost fell off his chair.
But Luke was the master of quick recoveries, and he got up from his seat, walked over to the screen door and opened it. And there he was, in his glorious army uniform, the last person on earth he expected to see waiting on his doorstep.
Luke was standing face to face with Noah. He considered what to do first: hug him, kiss him, or jump all over him. But Noah was quicker, and he reached his hand to put on Luke’s cheek, as if to make sure he was flesh and blood. He ran his thumb under his eye, wiping away the tears Luke hadn’t noticed he was starting to shed.
“Happy birthday, Luke,” Noah said, finally breaking the silence.
All thought vanished from Luke’s mind, and he did the only logical thing to do: he kissed Noah. His heart started racing; it was the most wonderful sensation, to be able to taste once again the sweet taste of Noah’s mouth and tongue, and smell the mixture of his shampoo and aftershave. Luke put his hands at both sides of Noah’s face and drew him even closer.
Noah fumbled at the back of Luke’s neck and hit his weak spot. Luke let out a soft moan, and Noah wrapped his arms around him, not wanting to ever let go. Being away from Luke for almost a year was more than he could bear.
They finally managed to tear away from each other, but Luke couldn’t figure out what to say. He could feel Noah’s body heat radiating from his uniform, but there was still this one millionth of a doubt gnawing at the back of his mind, telling him he will soon wake up in his bed in the middle of the night.
“What, the great writer is at a loss for words?” Noah said, again breaking the silence.
This brought Luke right back to reality. “Noah Mayer, I didn’t know you had it in you,” he said.
“I didn’t. I guess the army does that to people,” Noah replied, shrugging.
“Spunk and hot uniform,” Luke said. “I can live with that.”
They fell silent yet again. Maybe after being apart for so long, they didn’t know how to be with each other anymore. Or they were afraid to, because they knew what would happen eventually.
But The Great Writer didn’t fail this time. “For how long are you going to stay in town?” he asked.
“Just for today. I got a twenty-four hour leave,” Noah said.
Luke tried not to look too disappointed. He hoped Noah could stay for the rest of the week, but that was apparently too much to ask from a busy man like him. At least he had him all to himself for his entire birthday.
Luke was about to make some coffee when he realized how hungry he was. “Are you up for grandma’s famous chocolate cake? I think there are exactly two slices left.”
“When have I ever said no to Emma’s cooking?” Noah smiled.
If there was anything Luke missed the most about Noah, that was it. The way his smile always made his heart melt and turn into mush, or skip about ten beats. Or - more commonly - both.
Luke took out the cake from the fridge – there were indeed only two slices – and sat at the table, putting the platter between him and Noah. He handed him a fork and said, “Dig in.”
They ate for a while, and then the inevitable Snyder commotion started. Natalie went down the stairs, shouting “Luke! Luke! Happy birth –“ She stopped short when she saw who was sitting next to him, then turned around and ran back upstairs. A minute later she came back down, followed by an unbelieving Faith.
They both hugged him, then started bombarding him with questions, from “How’s it like in the army?” to “Have you shot someone?”
Noah was so overwhelmed that he shot Luke a terrified glance and mouthed the word “help”.
Luke immediately came to his boyfriend’s rescue. “As much as I’m sure Noah would like to spend his only day off answering your questions, I would much rather have him all to myself. Can you guys leave us alone?”
“Fine,” Faith said, obviously annoyed. She turned to Natalie. “That means ‘we want to make out’ in Luke language. Come on, we’re obviously not wanted here.” And they left.
Noah sighed in relief. “Thanks,” he said. “Apparently I’m not the only one with spunk around here.” He was utterly impressed.
“Another Snyder smart-ass. Soon it’ll be Nat’s turn, and then the fun’s over.”
“I just hope Faith wasn’t wrong about the Luke language thing,” Noah said, his naughty-boy grin spreading across his face. “Maybe we can go for a walk or something?”
“Sure,” Luke said. “Just let me give you something else to wear, that uniform seems awfully uncomfortable.”
They went upstairs, and Luke searched through his closet for something that fits Noah. He only came up with an old pair of pants and a striped polo. “Sorry. Out of clean t-shirts.”
Noah took the clothes from Luke. “When in Rome…” he said. He got dressed and checked himself out in the mirror. “I look like a black-haired version of Luke Snyder,” he said.
“And that’s supposed to be a bad thing?” Luke said, raising an eyebrow.
Then they went out. They took a walk around the pond, holding hands, quietly enjoying each other’s closeness. God, has it really been a year? They didn’t know how they managed not to go insane. They finally sat down on the grass, feet in the water.
“Why?” Luke asked suddenly. There was no need to elaborate; Noah understood perfectly well what he meant. He thought that maybe after a year he could finally get a straightforward answer.
“I was a mess, Luke,” Noah started. “I didn’t blame you – I blamed myself. Yes, my father was a horrible man, I know that now. But he was still my dad, he was the one who raised me and cared for me in his own twisted way, and that was the only thing he asked of me. I owed him that much.”
Luke opened his mouth to say what he had already said about a dozen times before, but Noah wasn’t finished. “It’s something I had to do, not only for my father, but for myself. You have no idea what it feels like, to relinquish control and clear your mind completely. They tell you to shoot, you shoot – no questions asked. It gave me a chance to put the world in the right perspective and figure out what I want to do with my life.”
“And that would be..?” Luke asked.
“To be with you,” Noah said simply.
“That’s all?”
“No,” Noah said, “but that’s a good start.”
He leaned in to kiss him. As Luke melted into the kiss, he knew exactly what it felt like to surrender yourself to someone else, to give that one person complete control over your body and your soul.
They sat there for a couple more hours, talking, kissing, or just sitting there and playfully wading their feet in the water. Then Luke’s cell phone rang. It was Emma.
“Hi grandma,” Luke said. “Did Faith and Natalie snitch?”
“They most certainly did,” Emma said gleefully. “I made lunch, you boys must be starving.”
Luke sneaked a glance at Noah. “We are. We’ll be right over.”
When they got back to the farm, his family was already there. They wished Luke happy birthday and welcomed Noah with hugs and kisses. The dining table was packed with all kinds of delicious goods, and Luke noticed there was also a small pile of wrapped packages. Noah nudged him to open the presents, and avoided being showered yet again with questions he didn’t want to answer.
Luke got a horseback riding outfit from his parents, completed with brand new riding boots from Emma. Natalie gave him a CD, and Faith – hair products. The sarcasm never ends. Noah laughed, but Luke shrugged it off and said, “Don’t worry, it’s just a stupid teenage girl phase,” which earned him a nasty look from Faith. He chuckled and hugged her. “Thank you, all of you.”
They ate until they couldn’t have another bite, then everyone scattered to continue their regular daily activities. Luke and Noah went for another round at the pond. They felt as if they could walk around it twenty more times and it still wouldn’t be enough, but they decided to make the most out of their day together. They went for a short swim, after which they just lay on the grass, Luke’s head resting on Noah’s bare chest, watching the clouds pass by. They only got up when the sun was starting to disappear under the horizon, and they were getting cold.
“Luke, dear,” Emma said when they got back to the house, “would you mind sleeping on the couch tonight? Noah deserves a good night’s sleep in a nice, comfy bed.”
Luke had no choice but to agree, but when everybody was fast asleep, he sneaked up to his room, where Noah couldn’t sleep either.
“Luke, what are you doing here?” Noah whispered. “What about Emma’s rules?”
“Screw that. After all this time, how can I sleep down there when I can be here with you?” Luke whispered back, crawling into bed. “And what is she gonna do? Kick you out? You’re leaving anyway.” He drew himself as close to Noah as he could, facing him. He stared into the depths of those bewitching blue eyes gleaming in the moonlight, and absently caressed his arm. “But you’re here now. I’m so glad you came.”
The look Noah gave him was enough to make Luke feel like a complete fool for ever thinking Noah had forgotten him.
“Hold me, Noah,” he said.
Noah did. And as they were drifting away to dreamland, Luke knew that in the morning, when Noah will leave him once again, it’ll all feel like a really bad hangover. But right now he couldn’t care less; his wish finally came true.
CharlotteDae |
Latest page update: made by CharlotteDae
, Sep 21 2008, 12:05 PM EDT
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| Started By | Thread Subject | Replies | Last Post | |
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| Lotsip | oh how wonderful! | 4 | Sep 29 2008, 2:26 AM EDT by Bitrixbf | |
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Thread started: Sep 22 2008, 8:47 AM EDT
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This was such a bittersweet story.
When they finally met you made my heart tighten up. Such a sad and happy story, all at once. Really well done, thank you for writing! |
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