Chapter 6

Holden was headed back to the farm. "You should stay at the farm tonight."

Luke shook his head. "No. If Noah calls or comes back, it will be at the apartment. I want to go home."

Holden looked at his son. "Luke..." He stopped before he even started. There was no way he would be able to change Luke's mind. "Okay."
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Luke walked into the apartment. He looked around. The chicken was still sitting on the stove, untouched. He walked over to the phone and picked it up. He held it to his ear. There were no messages. He continued to looked around the apartment, almost in a daze. It was so quiet. Nothing seemed real.

Luke walked into the bedroom. He looked at the bed. It was unmade.

Noah kissed Luke's forehead. "Well, I better go get a shower."

Luke pushed up on his elbow. "You need help with your back."

Noah smiled back at Luke. "I'd love that, but whenever you help me in the shower it ends up lasting an hour and I really need to get out of here."

Luke remembered their conversation from the morning. He turned and went back into the living room.

He went over to the sofa. One of Noah's shirts was draped over the arm. He picked it up and held it close. He took in it's scent, as he slowly sat on the sofa.

The tapes fell out of the box, that Luke was holding. "I can't believe I did that. I had them sorted by date and category."

Noah bent down. "I'll help you."

Luke reached for a tape at the same time as Noah. Their hands touched. Luke sat up.
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Luke was watching Noah put on his tie. "I can help you."

Noah stood there. Luke began to adjust Noah's tie.

Noah stared at Luke.

Luke looked up and saw Noah staring. "What's wrong?"

Noah shook his head. "Nothing."

Noah leaned in and kissed Luke.

Luke pulled away briefly and then began to kiss Noah back.
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Luke was sitting in his wheelchair. "Well if you want to go walking down by the pond, I guess I'll have to get out of this wheelchair."

Luke put his legs down on the floor and began to push himself out of the chair.

Noah looked on in amazement.
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Noah was lying on top of Luke by the fire. "That was amazing."

Luke stroked Noah's hair. "You are amazing."

Noah looked up at Luke. "I love you."

Luke held Noah tight. "I love you too."

Luke came back to the present. Tears were streaming down Luke's face again. He cuddled Noah's shirt while lying on the sofa. "You can't be gone. I can still feel you." He held the shirt even tighter. "Just hold on. I'll find you." Luke fell asleep cuddled up on the sofa, still holding on to Noah's shirt.
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Jill finished wrapping Noah's leg. "There, how is that?"

Noah nodded. "Much better. Are you a nurse?"

Jill shook her head. "No, but being out here, you have to depend on yourself for most things. My husband was always getting hurt somehow or another, so I had to learn."

Noah smiled. "I'm lucky you found me."

Jill patted Noah on the shoulder. "No. I'm the lucky one. It will be nice to have a little company while I'm trapped here."

Noah got concerned. "Trapped?"

Jill nodded. "There a big snow storm coming through. It's lucky that I found you when I did. It will probably be a couple of days before they get back here and dig us out."

Noah nodded. "Isn't there any way to call out. Do you have a phone."

Jill shook her head. "I keep track of things on my radio, but for the most part I'm isolated. I went into town the other day because I knew I would probably be trapped out here, so don't worry we will be fine."

Noah sighed. "Did I have anything on me when you found me?"

Jill motioned towards the other room. "I went through your pockets, before I laid your clothes by the fire to dry. There wasn't anything in them. No wallet, Nothing that would tell who you are."

Noah looked at the ground. "I'm starting to think that I was just some bum. Who travels without any ID?"

Jill got up and got some PJ's. "Here, why don't you put these on? I'll go get you some more aspirin. You will probably be in more pain during the night."

Noah watched her leave and put on the PJs. He had trouble getting the leg over the wrapping at first but he was able to manage.

Jill came back into the room and stopped at the door. She stared at Noah. Noah saw her staring. "Something wrong?"

Jill shook her head and looked at the floor. "No."

Noah looked down at the pajamas. "These were your husband's."

Jill nodded. "You actually remind me of him a little bit. He had dark hair and blue eyes too."

Noah took the medicine from Jill. "I'm sorry."

Jill shook her head. "It's not your fault. I brought you a sleeping pill too, just to insure you get a good rest. Good night."

Noah watched Jill walk out the door. "Good night."
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"Jill are you there?" The voice came over the short band radio.

Jill rushed over to answer it. "I'm here Ben."

The radio spoke again. "I was worried about you in this storm. Are you alright out there?"

Jill nodded. "I'm fine. I've got plenty of supplies."

Ben came through again. "I wish you had stayed in town instead of going back out there. It will be days before we can dig you out. I don't like the idea of you being out there alone"

Jill put the receiver to her mouth. "I"ll be fine don't worry. Get to me when you can. I'll probably turn off my radio to save power, so don't worry if you can't get me. I'll see you in a few days, Ben."

The radio spoke for the last time. "Okay, you take care of yourself."

Jill looked back at Noah's and put down the receiver. "Oh, I will."

She got up and went over to Noah's clothes. She held up the medallion. She turned it over and read the inscription. 'All My Love Luke'. She thought for a minute. "I wonder who Luke is?" She picked up a picture. He was with a blond boy about his age. It was one of those pictures from a photo machine. "I wonder if this is him?" She shook her head. "It doesn't matter. He doesn't remember him."

She took the medallion and picture and placed them in a box and put it on the mantle. She touched Noah's clothes and felt that they were dry. She folded them and placed them on the chair.

She gave one last look in the direction of Noah's door, as she walked to her bedroom. "Good night dear."

Coming Soon: The discovery
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Chapter 7