Luke

Copyright and Disclaimer: 1. This is a fictional story with fictional characters. 2. No one is to steal this story under any circumstances. 3. This story deals with relationships and not sex, so if you're looking for a story with a lot of sex in it, this isn't the story for you.

Hello again all! Hope you all are still enjoying! Here's part 25 titled, `The Escape.'

`THE ESCAPE'

"Shane, it's me again. Call us when you get this message. We just want to make sure you're okay," Ford paces back and forth holding his phone tightly as he leaves yet another message to Shane's voicemail. After he hangs up he looks at Luke and Benji who are sitting with Jackson on the sofa of Shane's place.

Shane's been missing for three days now and no one's heard of him. They called his assistant, Darla, at work, but all she knew was that he turned in his resignation and hasn't been heard from since. The guys became extremely worried when they found out that he quit his job.

"This is all my fault," Jackson sighs shaking his head angrily.

"No it's not," Ford interjects. "He's been stressed out for a while now."

"I didn't realize it was this bad," Benji adds. "I guess I've been so consumed with my own troubles that I didn't really see how upset Shane's been."

"He'll be fine," says Luke calmly. "He probably just needed some time to relax and clear his head."

"Luke, he quit his job," Ford points out. "I think it's a little more serious than that."

Luke silently nods his head. He realizes that it is serious, but he doesn't want to say it out loud, otherwise he'll worry too much.

"Should we call the police?" wonders Jackson.

"No," Luke shakes his head, "He'll be back. He wouldn't just disappear forever. If we call the police then it's just going to make this big circus. He'll come back when he's ready."

"Absolutely," Benji says optimistically. "I'm sure he's fine."

"You sure about that?" Ford asks.

"No," Luke shakes his head, "But we have to believe it."

"Jackson, why don't you stay with me while Shane's gone?" Ford suggests.

"I don't want to impose," Jackson replies.

"You won't," Ford insists. "I don't want you staying here by yourself."

"You sure?" Jackson asks.

"Of course," Ford nods.

After everyone leaves Shane's place, Luke goes to Derek's apartment to spend the night.

"How you doing?" Derek asks when Luke arrives.

"I'll be okay," Luke nods his head, "Just worried about him."

"Everyone at the paper is worried too," Derek says.

"He's never done anything like this before," says Luke. He sits down at the kitchen table while Derek pours him a cup of tea.

"Anything I can do to help?" Derek asks as he comfortingly wraps his arms around Luke and gives him a gentle kiss.

"Just keep doing this," Luke gives Derek another kiss. "This is enough for now. We'll find Shane. He has to be okay." Luke searches Derek's eyes until he sees Nick in there, looking back at him. He smiles and wraps his arms around Derek tightly, he feels the comfort knowing that in some ways, Nick is there with him again, giving him the comfort he needs.

The next day, Ford wakes up and goes to the kitchen and turns on a pot of coffee for him and Jackson. He then goes into the living room where Jackson is staying and finds him already awake and staring at the ceiling.

"Morning," says Ford gently. "You sleep okay?"

"Not really," Jackson uses his arms to push himself up on the couch in a sitting position.

"Was the couch uncomfortable?" Ford asks.

"No, it's not the couch. The couch is great," Jackson clarifies. "I just can't stop thinking of Shane and wondering where he is."

"Yeah," Ford nods not knowing what else to say. He can't find any words that could comfort Jackson or himself right now. "Do you want some breakfast?"

"Sure," Jackson says with a half-smile. "Can you help me into my wheelchair?"

"Yeah of course." Ford grabs the wheelchair next to the sofa and positions it in front of Jackson. "So how does Shane do this?"

"Well, I rest my hands on the arm rests and Shane gives me a little boost into the chair," Jackson nods. It takes a bit of effort, but Ford gets him into the wheelchair. After Jackson is ready, they head into the kitchen for breakfast.

As they're sitting eating breakfast together, Ford inquires about the other daily routines that Shane would do to help Jackson out.

"So after breakfast, does Shane help you shower and stuff like that?" Ford asks.

"Yeah," Jackson nods. "Showering, getting dressed, taking me to physical therapy, emptying my catheter... God, I never realized how hard I was making things for him. This is my fault."

"It's not your fault," insists Ford. He rests his hand on Jackson's shoulders to make sure Jackson hears and understands him. "Shane loves you. He didn't do this because of you."

"You don't know that," replies Jackson feeling horribly still.

"I may not know his true reasons for why he went away, but I know he loves you."

Jackson smiles, feeling comforted slightly. "Shane's lucky to have friends like you and Benji and Luke. I hope he realizes that."

"I hope he realizes how lucky he is to have you." Ford gets back up from the table and pours him and Jackson some more coffee.

"What if he's stranded somewhere?" Jackson asks worriedly. "He could be stuck in the middle of nowhere."

Ford begins thinking of that possibility. His mind suddenly pictures Shane stranded in the desert. His car broken down, the wind blowing dust all over him, his clothes are all torn and ragged and he's shivering inside of his car with no way of coming home. And then all of the sudden a dust storm comes and-

"He must at least be somewhere safe, right?" Jackson asks snapping Ford out of his thoughts.

"Yeah," Ford nods. "I'm sure he's fine." The two grow silent, both of them becoming increasingly worried. Their worries are fortunately interrupted by the doorbell.

"I'll be right back." Ford excuses himself from the table and goes to answer the door. When he opens it he comes face to face with a huge vase of flowers.

"Are you Ford Ohara?" the deliveryman asks.

"That would be me," Ford answers rolling his eyes at the flowers.

"Sign here please," he hands Ford a clipboard with a delivery confirmation slip to sign. Ford signs it and then takes the vase of flowers. "have a nice day."

"Thank you," Ford says before closing the door.

He walks back into the kitchen and sets the flowers down on the counter.

"Those are beautiful," Jackson admires.

"It's the fifth bunch of flowers I've received in the past couple days," Ford rolls his eyes. "They're from Pacey."

"Still haven't talked to him, huh?"

"Nope and I don't plan to," Ford replies.

"From what you told me, it seems like he was genuinely confused about the break-up," Jackson tries reasoning.

"We weren't broken-up," Ford shakes his head. "We never said anything about breaking up."

Ford goes to the trash and picks up the flowers and throws them away.

Meanwhile, Derek and Luke are eating breakfast together at the Broken Yolk when thy spot Benji walk in carrying a newspaper with him and a thick binder full of papers.

"It's Benji," Luke says to Derek.

"Invite him over," Derek suggests.

"Is that okay? I won't if you'd rather just have a breakfast with the two of us," Luke says.

"It's fine," Derek smiles. "I should get to know your friends better."

"You're the best," Luke smiles squeezing Derek's hand gratefully. He then calls out to Benji and gestures to an empty seat at their table.

"Morning guys," Benji says. "Good to see you again Derek."

"You too," says Derek friendly.

"You two look cute together eating breakfast. You sure you don't mind if I crash?" Benji asks.

"Not at all," Derek says. "Sit down, please."

"So how did you guys sleep?" Benji asks sitting down.

"I've had better nights," Luke replies.

"You just have to stop stressing. Shane's a big boy. I'm sure he's fine," Benji says. "He just needed to blow off steam, but he'll be back."

"I guess you're right," Luke nods understandingly. "Still can't help being a little worried."

"Don't. I've known Shane for a long time and there's nothing he can't handle," Benji says.

"What's all that stuff?" Luke asks changing the subject and gesturing to the big binder of papers in Benji's hand.

"It's my sales figures from my store here and my New York stores," Benji replies.

"I thought you already figured out why your New York stores were doing so well?" Luke asks.

"I did, but I'm just seeing how much of our business in New York is really due to Donna Vanderbilt," Benji replies. "Is it possible she's really spending that much money?"

"How much is she spending?"

"Thousands of dollars per transaction," Benji reveals.

"Seriously?" Derek asks in amazement. "Wouldn't that be nice?"

"Tell me about it," Benji laughs.

"So are you going to try and call her?" Luke asks.

"Yeah," Benji nods, "I'm going to call my Soho store later today and get her phone number."

"Hope it all works out," Luke smiles.

"I would hate to close my store here," Benji sighs. "It's my original, you know?"

"Yeah," Luke replies. "I know, but this economy right now is scary. Prepare yourself, just in case."

"I know," Benji nods. He then turns to Derek, "Sorry. You hardly know me and you're already hearing all my drama."

"It's fine," Derek says. "I was telling Luke, I should really get to know you guys better so feel free to let out all the drama you got." He lets out a smile.

"I like this guy," Benji says to Luke.

"He's pretty great," Luke agrees.

The three of them proceeded to have a great breakfast together and Benji got a chance to really know Derek and he saw how happy Luke truly is with him.

After breakfast Benji goes home and calls up Suze, the store manager of his Soho location in New York.

"So you've never actually seen Donna Vanderbilt?" Benji asks confused.

"No," Suze answers, "Her assistant just calls our store and tells us what she wants and we ship it to her."

"That's weird." Benji then inquires, "Does she not live in New York?"

"She does." Suze honestly doesn't quite understand it either, "We send it to a place on Park Avenue."

"So she really spends anywhere from eight hundred to thousands of dollars?" Benji asks.

"Amazing, huh?"

"Incredibly," Benji answers. "So I'm guessing she buys all women's clothes?"

"That's another weird thing," Suze replies. "She buys men's clothes. I'm guessing she is buying for her boyfriend or husband, but you'd think she'd buy women's clothes now and then, right?"

"That is weird." Benji furrows his eyebrows in confusion. "Does she have a number I can reach her?"

"Yeah," Suze answers as she fumbles with some papers to find the number for him. "Is something wrong?"

"No," Benji shrugs, "I just want to talk to her and thank her for being a loyal customer and offer any further assistance."

After Suze gives Benji the phone number he hangs up with her and dials Donna Vanderbilt's phone number.

"Hello?" a soft female voice answers.

"Is this Donna Vanderbilt?" Benji asks.

"Oh...No...This is her assistant."

"Oh hi," Benji says after a pause. "My name's Benji. I'm the owner of B's Boutique."

"Oh hello. I'm Jenny, Mrs. Vanderbilt's personal assistant. Is there a problem with her last purchase?"

"No," Benji replies. "I was calling to just give my thanks for being such a great customer during these tough economic times."

"Oh, well, money isn't exactly a big issue for Mrs. Vanderbilt," Jenny replies. "But thank you for calling. She'll appreciate it."

"I was also calling to let her know that I have a location in San Diego that carries different clothes from my New York locations if she's interested," Benji explains.

"Oh, I'll let her know," Jenny says.

"I also noticed through her past purchases that she exclusively gets men's clothes," Benji says. "Are they for her husband?"

"Um...yes," Jenny answers after a pause.

Benji cocks his head wondering why she answered like that, but decides to ignore it. "Does she not like any of the women's clothes?"

"Oh it's not that," Jenny replies. "She...makes her own clothes."

"Oh I see." Benji is impressed. "Well, I am managing my store in San Diego so if there's anything she needs from our location please don't hesitate to call."

"I'll definitely let her know," says Jenny in a perky voice. "Thanks for calling."

"No problem," Benji smiles. "I actually have some new Spring items, so if she's interested I can send some stuff over."

"Okay, go ahead and do that," Jenny says. "Let me get you a credit card number to charge it."

"You don't want to discuss it with Mrs. Vanderbilt?" Benji asks.

"No, I'm sure she'll be fine with it. Just send anything you thing will be suitable for a forty year old man," Jenny explains. "A thirty-four waist and shirts in a size large."

"Oh, okay." Benji is surprised by how easy it is for him to sell this woman clothes. "You're sure she'll be okay with this?"

"Absolutely," Jenny replies. "You ready for the credit card number?"

After she gives him the credit card number, Benji hangs up and jumps up and down excitedly in the air. He didn't think he'd be able to save his store so easily.

Elsewhere, Shane is lying down in his hotel room looking blankly at the ceiling. He's been sleeping for most of the day. All he's been doing since he left San Diego is sleep.

"What the fuck is wrong with me?" Shane sighs to himself. He feels horribly for running out on Jackson, but he has faith that his friends have been keeping an eye on him.

Shane gets out of bed and goes to the window of his hotel room and looks at his view. He can see the Statue of Liberty in front of him and further down the street he can see the Eifel Tower. He's not sure why he decided to drive to Las Vegas, but he wanted to escape and the first place he thought of was Vegas.

He picks up his phone and turns it on for the first time in three days and sees that he has ten text messages as well as eight voicemails. He's about to check his messages, but as he'd dialing his voicemail he gets a sudden rush of panic and turns it off again.

"What the fuck is wrong with me?!" Shane sighs angrily to himself and slams his fist against the wall.

Everything seems to be a mess for him and he doesn't know where it all went wrong. He thought at first it was just being tired from taking care of Jackson, but it's more than that. He's been in a rut and he doesn't know when or how that happened. It just seems that one day he woke up and hated his job. To make things worse he was neglecting his visits with his son and now Brenda doesn't even want him around Wyatt. He knows running wasn't exactly the best option, but he just needed an escape. He doesn't know how long it will be for though. But for now, he feels a little relief to be able to disappear for a while.

Shane showers and gets dressed and then heads down to the casino and orders himself a drink. His troubles will always be there, for now he wants to escape and that's what he plans to do.

While Derek is at work, Luke is at his place writing his monthly column for West Coast Style magazine, he needed a distraction from worrying about Shane. As he's writing he begins thinking about Nick and how hard he fought for a second chance with him years after they had broken up.

FLASHBACK

"Nick, I was an idiot for not fighting for us before," Luke said, "I'm not going to do that again."

"You can't just expect to pick up where we left off," Nick said, "You can't just say sorry and expect things to go back to the way they were."

"I know," Luke said, "And I'm going to do anything I can to make this right."

"Don't say that," Nick said, "People say they'd do anything, but in the end they never mean it."

"I do," Luke affirmed, "I will do whatever it takes."

Although Nick wanted to stay angry, he couldn't help but be impressed by Luke's response. Was he really willing to do what it takes to get a relationship back?

"One dinner?" Luke asked. "Please?"

Nick sighed and thought it over a bit before answering, "Fine. You can pick me up at seven."

"Perfect," Luke said, "I'll see you tonight."

END FLASHBACK

Luke thinks hard about Nick and about Derek now. He remembered that the key to that relationship working was because they were completely honest with one another. He finally decides. He has to be upfront with Derek and for that to happen he feels that he has to tell him about Nick. He has to tell him the truth.

Over at Ford's place, him and Jackson are talking and getting to know one another better when there's a light knock on the door. Ford goes to answer it and is more than surprised to see-

"Pacey," Ford says without a hint of emotion. He's not about to let him have any sort of affect on him. Even if he did fly all the way from Denver to see him.

"Hey," Pacey says. "It's good to see you sweetie."

"Sweetie? Seriously?" Ford asks. "Go away." He then closes the door on him.

"Was that Pacey?" Jackson asks.

"Yeah," Ford rolls his eyes as he goes back to sit in the living room.

"Go talk to him," Jackson encourages.

"No," Ford replies. "I'm done with him."

"He came all the way from Denver to see you," Jackson points out. "Just hear what he has to say."

"Why? He can't say anything to make me change my mind," Ford says as Pacey knocks on the door again. "Go away!" Ford yells towards the door.

"Ford, I know we're not extremely close, but can I ask you something?" Jackson asks.

"Sure," Ford replies.

"Have you ever felt about anyone the same way you feel about Pacey?" Jackson asks.

"I'm...I'm sure I...have," Ford says weakly as he tries to think about the people he's dated in the past, but realizes that there's no one he's cared about nearly as much.

"Do you really want to give up on someone you care about that much?" Jackson asks as Pacey knocks again at the front door. "Just hear what he has to say."

Ford thinks about Jackson's words and debates silently to himself. Maybe Jackson has a point. Maybe he should listen to what Pacey has to say. But can he forgive him for sleeping with someone else? True they were `technically' broken up, but they were hardly broken up for a long enough time to the point where sleeping with someone is acceptable, right? But then--

"If you're going to talk to him, then do it now before he leaves," Jackson says interrupting Ford and all the questions he's thinking about.

"Right," Ford says getting up and heading back to the door. He then turns back to Jackson for one last reassuring glance before opening the door again. Pacey is still standing there looking hopeful. "So you want to talk?"

"Please," Pacey says. "Can I interest you in a walk?"

"Fine," Ford says. "Five minutes."

"That's all I need," Pacey nods in agreement. "Thank you."

Ford closes the door behind him and they head to a nearby park.

As they begin walking together, neither one is saying a word. Pacey is trying to find the right thing to say, while Ford stares blankly in front of him, regretting going on this walk with each step.

"So talk," Ford snaps.

"Ford, I don't do stuff like this," Pacey begins. "I have never gone out of my way to try and win someone back like this."

"So?" Ford asks. "Does that mean I should automatically forgive you?"

"No, that's not what I mean," Pacey defends. "I'm saying that I've never cared about anyone like this before. I love you. You know I love you. I would never do anything to try and ruin our relationship."

"Really? So sleeping with someone else doesn't count as you trying to ruin our relationship?" Ford snaps angrily.

"I thought we were broken up," Pacey points out. "I would never have done that to you if I thought anything differently."

Ford doesn't say anything, he's not sure what he thinks or how he feels.

"Ford, in all my past relationships I've never been faithful," Pacey begins.

"Oh, is this supposed to help your case?" Ford asks sarcastically.

"What I'm trying to say is that with you, I had no trouble being faithful because I genuinely love and care about you," Pacey says. "I didn't need to cheat on you because everything I ever wanted I have in you. I really thought we were broken up. You have to believe me. I wouldn't have done that otherwise. You know that."

"But-" Ford begins, but he sees that Pacey actually makes a good argument. He then goes quiet again.

"I don't sit around and think about things that I've lost," Pacey replies. "Until now I've never tried to win someone back once we break-up. I thought we were over so I threw myself back into dating cause that's what I do. I do the same thing in business. If a deal doesn't go through then I go right to the next business proposal and try again. I didn't sleep with that guy because I didn't care about you anymore. I did it because I was trying my best to move on and forget about you, but that's impossible."

Ford doesn't say anything, he's suddenly not sure what he thinks or how he feels.

"I've never cared about anyone the way I care about you Ford," Pacey says as he stops them from walking and turns himself so he's face to face with Ford. "You believe me right?"

"I guess," Ford sighs quietly. He's still angry, but he understands Pacey.

"So you believe that I really thought we were broken up?" Pacey asks.

"I...guess," Ford replies again.

"So are we good?" Pacey asks. "Please?"

Ford is quiet. He's thinking it over. It does make sense to him and as much as he wish it weren't true, he does care about Pacey more than he's cared about anyone else. He loves him.

"Yeah. We're good," Ford shrugs. Even though he's forgiving Pacey, it doesn't mean he's completely gotten over what he did.

"Thank you," Pacey says gratefully as he wraps his arms around Ford tightly. Ford pats Pacey back, but still is upset.

"Let's go back home," Ford sighs as they walk back to Ford's place.

"Can I interest you in a weekend in Denver?" Pacey asks.

"I can't," Ford replies. "Stuff is going on right now with one of my friends and until he comes back, I'm not going anywhere."

"Well, I have to go back to Denver in a couple hours, but maybe next weekend?"

"Yeah...maybe," Ford replies coolly.

Pacey is a little taken aback by Ford's tone, "You sure we're good?"

"Fine," Ford replies quickly.

That night, Luke and Benji went over to Ford's place for dinner.

"You're going to tell Derek that he's Nick?" Benji asks after Luke told them his plan.

"Yes," Luke nods. "I have to."

"That's going to blow up in your face," Benji replies.

"When I was with Nick we didn't keep secrets from each other," Luke explains. "It has to be the same with Derek."

"He'll probably think you're crazy and run," Benji says.

"I thought of that, but if it's truly Nick then he'll come back to me because that's why he's here in the first place," Luke points out.

"That is so romantic," Ford gushes.

"Or crazy," Benji adds.

"Jackson, you're the tie breaker. What do you think?" Luke asks.

"I think it's kind of romantic," Jackson replies. "You should tell him."

"Okay, but don't say I didn't warn you," Benji throws in.

Luke takes a bite of his salad and thinks it over a little more to himself.

"Well today was pretty productive for you guys," Jackson points out. "You've decided to come clean with Derek, Ford and Pacey made up-"

"You guys did?" Benji asks.

"Yeah. He came over earlier today," Ford shrugs.

"Then why don't you seem happier?" Luke wonders.

"Just because I've forgiven him doesn't mean I'm still not pissed off about it," Ford says. "I can forgive. I can't easily forget."

"If you're still mad then you obviously haven't forgiven him," Benji says.

"Well...I'm back with him," Ford reasons. "That's practically the same thing."

"No it's not," Benji retorts.

"It is," Ford insists. "Can we just drop it. Please?"

"Fine," Benji shrugs letting it go. He then changes the subject. "Well, I got a hold of Donna Vanderbilt today."

"And?" Luke asks.

"I just shipped her two thousand dollars worth of clothes," Benji gushes.

"Oh my God. That's incredible," Jackson notes.

"That's amazing!" Luke smiles. "Congratulations!"

"It's the weirdest thing," Benji adds, "I was talking with her assistant and she just told me to send whatever. Didn't care what I sent or how much."

"This lady is that rich, huh?" Ford asks.

"Apparently," Benji says. "So I'm going to send some more stuff next week."

"So you saved your store," Luke says. "That's amazing."

"It's fabulous," Benji boasts happily.

"You know, since today seems to be a day of progress for everyone maybe you should try getting a hold of Shane again," Ford says to Jackson. "Maybe he'll answer this time."

"Yeah," Jackson agrees as he takes his cell phone and dials Shane's number. "Maybe today will be a lucky day all around."

The phone begins to ring. It rings once...no answer. All the guys are looking at Jackson with hopeful eyes. Will Shane pick up this time? It rings again...no answer. All of them feel as if time is standing still as they will Shane to answer the phone. It rings a third time...no answer.

"Come on Shane," Jackson says quietly. "Pick up."

It rings a forth time...it goes to his voicemail.

"No answer," Jackson shakes his head in disappointment.

"Damn," Benji sighs. "I was hoping today would be the day."

"We must not be thinking of something," Ford says. "I'm sure if we think a little harder we can figure out where he went."

"He could be anywhere," Jackson sighs.

"No," Luke replied. "He'll have gone somewhere we could think of."

"But where?" Benji asks.

"Does he have any place he would escape to?" Jackson asks.

"Escape," Luke says quietly to himself, trying to think things over.

"Do you think he went to his sister's place?" Ford wonders.

"Where does his sister live?" Jackson asks.

"Sacramento," Benji says.

"Does anyone have her number?" Ford asks.

"No," Benji shakes his head.

"Me neither," Jackson says.

"Wait a second," Luke gets their attention. "Something you said a second ago Jackson."

"What did I say?" Jackson asks.

"You asked if there was any place he would escape to," Luke replies.

"What about it?" Benji asks.

"That word `escape,' he used that word the day he left," Luke replies. "He said he wanted to escape, remember?"

"Not really," Benji replies.

"Wait-" For interrupts, "I think I remember something like that too."

"He did, right?" Luke asks.

"Yeah, where was it he said he wanted to go?" Ford asks trying to remember.

After a couple moments of thinking, Luke and Ford both look at one another having figured it out.

"He's in Vegas," they say at the same time.

To Be Continued...

With any comments, questions, or feedback please e-mail me at ilj4ever44@yahoo.com.