Love Drunk 2.0: Chapter Twelve

Welcome back to Love Drunk 2.0, sorry for the delay, as you all know technical trouble has plagued me! But I got my PC back up and running so hopefully I can get going with new chapters! Anyway, quick recap: 
Damon, James and Rory all headed to University and came up against problems of their own. Rory was used by a thoughtless girl, James and Mandy had a pregnancy scare that eventually ended up being a false alarm which turned out to be a disappointment for young James, and Damon struggled with being his father's son. Coming home for Christmas should be a nice break for them all, well...


Damon Maloney had only been home a matter of minutes when his dad hugged him tightly and sniffed back the tears that threatened to fall. "Hey dad, good to see you!" He croaked as Dexter rubbed his back the way he used to when he was a baby.
"You look good kid!" Was all he had for a reply.

Catching up with his dad was just as great as he'd imagined on the journey home from university. How he had missed him, despite their teething problems during his teens Damon worshiped his father. He told him about the classes he was enjoying, the Percy Farnsworthy Award and how after much coaxing from Lucy he was entering. He told him all about Lucy, Dex teased his son even though Damon had protested that she was a friend and nothing more.

"You do know that your sister won that trophy too right?" Damon's father piped up all of a sudden.
"Gee dad, way to put the pressure on!" Damon gulped as Dex laughed and patted his son on the back.
"Damey, you've got this! You're more talented than you think!"

"Anyway, when are ya gonna make a move on this Lucy chick, huh? Huh?" Dexter nudged him playfully as he blushed.
"Seriously dad, she's cute and funny and we like the same stuff but...I've got my eye on the prize right now." Dexter was unconvinced but he nodded and let it go.

Damon looked his father up and down, feeling relaxed and comfortable knowing he was home for a whole two weeks with his family. He had really missed his dad, but he couldn't wait to catch up with his mother. "It's so good to see you again dad!" Dexter grinned goofily as Damon spoke those words, and it was infectious! Despite his worries over his brother, Damon smiled too. Home, it was already feeling so good!

Damon's mother was extremely clingy, she'd got her baby back and wasn't giving him up without a fight. If he was honest, he loved being babied by her, he appreciated being the baby more now than he ever did growing up.

"Damey, baby I missed youuuu!" Lainie giggled as she took in her son, "You lost weight!"
"Mum!" Damon groaned, "I'm the same as I was when I left!" he rolled his eyes as his mother tugged at his shirt.
"Nope, you've lost a few pounds baby boy! Don't worry, I'll soon fatten you up!"
"Sure mum." Damon reluctantly agreed, "That'd be cool!"

As they sat together in the kitchen catching up, he could tell that something was bothering her, and he knew exactly what! "Mum, Luke will be okay!"
"I know, he just keeps everything to himself and...well a mother can't work that way! I need to know what's going on in his head!"
"Mum, we're allowed to keep some things from you you know. I mean, you didn't tell your parents every detail of your life did you?" Lainie sighed and smiled sadly.
"No, so is this punishment for what I put your grandparents through?"

Damon chuckled quietly and shook his head, "No mum, it's just your turn to step back and let us make our own mistakes. Which by the way is what I wanted to talk to you about.
"Oh?" Lainie's eyes widened.
"It's nothing bad it's...well I'm going for this trophy that dad and Kee won and...well just don't be too disappointed when I don't win okay?"

Lainie smiled broadly and replied, "I'm not going to be disappointed, because my baby is going to have his name on that trophy like his father and sister before him!"
"Aww mum!" Damon felt a lump in his throat, if only he had as much confidence in himself as his parents did!

Damon was surprised to discover from Dexter that his sister also won the PF award when she was at university, so he thought now might be a good time to ask her for any pointers she could give him. "Yeah, it was a doddle!" she smirked as her baby brother broke out in a sweat.
"Kee, I'm barely keeping my head above water! How did you do it?" Keira chuckled softly and simply replied,
"Being a Maloney is an advantage and a disadvantage!" she winked, Damon was completely puzzled by that!

"What I'm trying to say is, you will find that being a Maloney gives you an edge and everyone around you sees you as the one to beat! That's the advantage!" Keira smiled as Damon grew hotter.

"The disadvantage is that everyone expects the best from you, and anything less than that is not an option! It made me win though, and it will help you too!"
"I don't see how Kee!" Damon shrugged, "I'm totally drowning!" Keira let out a soft chuckled and smiled reassuringly at her little brother.

"Well you've got one advantage I didn't have!"
"What's that?" Damon eyed her curiously.
"A big sister to spend the holidays with looking over your plans!"

"Thanks Kee!" Damon replied softly. Yeah his dad was right, he had this! He was going to win!

Christmas went by without a hitch, Luke was very quiet but Damon put that down to the worries he had over his health, he certainly looked pale and thin. Keira had mentioned tension between Luke and Rosie, Damon knew they still loved each other and he could never understand what Rosie was doing with a stiff like Henry Clarkson! Damon had a couple of days left before he had to go back to university, and he wanted to spend those last days with his big brother. As Luke stood staring into space, Damon joined him and patted him on the arm. "Hey big bro! Talk to me!" Luke's expression did not change, his frown remained and he said nothing. "Luke, please! I'm worried about you!"

Finally Luke sighed heavily and spoke, "I'm in trouble Damey!" his voice shook as he ran a trembling hand through his messy brown hair.
"What do you mean? Luke?" Damon felt a panic rise in the pit of his stomach and it made him feel nauseous.
"A few weeks ago I made love to Rosie, she promised she'd break it off with Captain Specsavers, but she never came back! I can't do this without her Damey I just can't!!!"
"Do what?"

Luke walked towards the clear pool, gazing at the water blankly his face turned chalk white and his eyes rolled to the back of his head. "LUKE!" Damon shouted, trying to conceal the panic in his voice but failing miserably. Suddenly Luke dropped to the ground on his knees with a sickening thud as Damon's cries echoed through the garden.

He convulsed and shook, as if he was having a seizure as Damon tried to hold him down. After what felt like a lifetime of Luke fitting, he stopped...lying still and barely breathing. 

James appeared with Ash behind him as Damon muttered to them "Don't let my parents see! Call an ambulance!"

Many things had gone through Damon's mind on the way to the hospital in the ambulance, dropping out of university, moving into a room next to Luke's to take care of him if he had to, donating any organ he needed without question...Damon knew that the last one was ridiculous but he still went through every possible scenario he could think of to save his brother!

As he sat in a hospital waiting room with his parents and sister, he knew right then that he would, he'd do anything to save his brother! Damon loved him more than he thought was possible, he worshiped him just as much as he worshiped his father! They were his heroes!

The Consultant appeared, introduced herself as Mrs Persephone Han, and informed them that Luke had been put into an induced coma to stop the seizures. They were ushered into an office where they sat down in front of a desk, the Consultant's desk. As Mrs Han sat down and began talking, Damon zoned in and out as her flat toned voice droned on. The one word that did capture Damon's attention was "tumour". The sound of his parents gasping in shock also knocked him back into reality. "As you know the tumour was hiding behind his skull, it was rather small when we first found it but while he was sedated we did another MRI scan and it seems to have grown slightly since October, this means that we are dealing with a grade 3."
"Wait!" Damon snapped, "Hang on, what tumour???" Mrs Han looked at Damon with a puzzled expression.

"The last MRI, back in October? When we found the tumour in the frontal lobe of Luke's brain. It's what we call Oligodendroglioma, common in young men in their 20's the symptoms include headaches, nausea, loss of balance, and as you witnessed today, seizures. I'm sorry I thought you knew, I did tell Luke that he shouldn't be attending these appointments alone, especially when we did the biopsy in November." Damon's mother let out a heart wrenching sob as his father put his arm around her and tried to conceal the tears he was fighting back with difficulty.

With a look of realisation Dexter mumbled, "Oh Luke!" Damon looked at his father with concern and pushed him,
"What dad? What's going on?"
"Luke came back from his hospital appointment back in November with a dressing on his head. I asked him about it and he said he'd fainted when the nurse went to take his blood and hit his head. I'd been worried that he'd been away for so long and he made some excuse about being kept in for observation in case he had concussion. He's been lying all this time!"
"No Dexy!" Lainie wept, "He's not been lying, he's been HIDING all this time! He's been so alone!" she cried and buried her head in his chest.

"At the moment, the main thing is that we control the seizures!" the consultant tried to reassure the family. "The biopsy results were inconclusive but since the tumour has grown, you really must prepare yourself. There is still a chance that it will simply be benign!"
"But there's more of a chance that it will be cancer, is that what you're getting at?" Damon's voice was shrill and the consultant shook her head and smiled hesitantly.
"Right now there is a 50/50 chance of either being true. Once we stabilise Luke's seizures then we can get a better look. Please, try not to worry. He's in good hands and I will take care of him, and although Luke's tumour is quite rare, he's not my first case."

Dexter and Lainie were allowed to see Luke for a few minutes. Damon and Keira left them alone with their son, their brother, there was no point in all of them going in there when he was in a coma. Damon wanted to shout, scream...roar in frustration! Keira grasped his hand tightly and let out a tiny whimper.
"Damey!" she whispered. Damon squeezed her hand gently and replied,
"I know Kee, I know!" Damon had no idea if Luke was going to be okay, he didn't know if he would ever get to speak to his amazing, brave big brother again! And that felt devastating!

The family were advised to go home and return in the morning but Dexter refused to leave his son alone overnight, Lainie was in agreement and sent Damon and Keira home. "We'll call if there is any change." Lainie reassured her children and hugged them both.

When they arrived back home, the rest of the family were awaiting news. Ash and Erin were stood with their sons looking scared. 

"He's in an induced coma to stop him from fitting." Keira let out a huge sigh as her captive audience looked intently at her, "He has a brain tumour!" she sobbed and her voice broke.

"I have to see Dex!" Ash muttered and rushed to the door, Erin grabbed him by the arm with tears stinging her eyes.
"No Ashton, let him be with his boy! You can see him in the morning!"
"He needs me, he..." Ash broke off as the words failed to form in his mouth.
"He needs you to be strong, alert and ready to help him in any way you can. How are you going to do that if you exhaust yourself at the very start? Be on the end of a phone, he knows he can count on you when he needs you! Please Ashton!" Ash finally nodded.

"I'm going for a lie down!" He sighed, wiping his face roughly with his sleeve. Erin let out a deep breath she had been holding in.
"Kee? Damey? You hungry?"

That night Damon slept in Luke's room, he needed to be close to him. He found stacks of letters to Rosie that Luke had never sent, all professing his love and begging her to run away with him to Sunlit Tides. Damon wanted to go round there and give her a piece of his mind, stringing his brother and Henry along like that, tramp!

When morning came, Damon skipped breakfast and took a taxi straight to the hospital. But the sight he was greeted with made his blood boil and the ever present rage inside him bubble at the surface. 

"She wouldn't leave, we told her there was nothing she could do at the moment but...well she just wanted to stay so..." a familiar voice began behind him, his mother. Damon marched straight over to the napping Rosie and poked her hard on the thigh to wake her.

"Ow!" she murmured and opened her eyes, two big brown buttons blinking at him in surprise, "Damon!" she exclaimed and sat up rubbing her thigh gingerly.

"What the f*ck are you doing here?" he demanded as his mother came over looking embarrassed by his outburst.
"I...I just needed to be near him. I had to know what was happening, I..." Damon let out a bitter laugh and fought the urge to twist her arm up her back and throw her out of the hospital.

"Damey, why are you being like this? Your brother is very ill, don't talk to Rosie like that!" Lainie scolded her son.
"You leave him confused, lonely and hurt for weeks and you decide now is the time to get back in touch? You're nothing but a whore!" Damon spat angrily as his mother let out a startled yelp.
"Damon Gordon Maloney apologise right now! That's a horrible thing to say!" Lainie blushed and looked apologetically at Rosie.

"It's okay Auntie Lainie, it's fine. Damon I know you're scared for Luke, we all are, but can we just be friends for his sake? Please?"
"Does Henry know you're here?" Damon replied, untouched by her request.
"What's that got to do..."
"Because you can't have both of them, you're either his girlfriend or you're Luke's! So which is it? Huh? F*cking whore!" Damon growled, waiting for her answer.

Rosie's eyes welled up and her mouth gaped open, trying to speak but finding it impossible. Eventually she found her voice, "Damon I love your brother, always have and always will. He's my soulmate! He's the love of my life! I...got lost! I made a terrible mistake and I've suffered ever since, please Damey, please don't make me suffer anymore! Not when I could lose him for good!" Rosie wept pleadingly.

"You made TWO mistakes!" Damon corrected her, "One was to treat Luke like a piece of f*cking meat the first time, and the other was to go to him and make him believe that you were going to be with him again when all you wanted was to get laid, you frustrated, nympho-maniacal BITCH!!!"
"DAMON!" Lainie gasped as Rosie blinked away her tears and nodded in realisation.

"I...I'm sorry I...shouldn't have come!" she mumbled, rushing past Damon and Lainie and out the door.
"Damon I am so utterly ashamed of you!" Lainie cried, scowling at her son.

"Oh for God's sake mum open your f*cking eyes, that slut used Luke and promised to break up with her boyfriend way before Christmas! He's waited all this time for her to come back to him and she's never showed! Now he's lying in that room like a vegetable! Why should she be allowed to be here? Wake the f*ck up!" Damon shouted and stomped off in Rosie's direction, leaving his mother stunned.

Rosie was a little frightened when Damon caught up with her outside, she'd never seen him this angry before. "Hey! You owe me an explanation on behalf of my brother and I want it now!" he demanded as he spun her roughly around to face him.
"Please Damon my Lukey is lying in there and I can't...I can't bear it I just can't!" she cried and fell to her knees.

Damon didn't know what to do, he no longer felt angry with her, he could see this tiny shaking figure on the ground breaking her heart...and the anger just melted away. "Rosie I..."
"I knew that something wasn't right!" she whimpered.
"What do you mean? Rosie?"
"That day we...were together, he...he said he didn't have time! I thought it was an odd thing to say, I meant to come back I really did Damey I..." she trailed off and looked up into his eyes, the same eyes his brother had.

"Henry proposed, I called him round to dump him and...the bastard proposed!" she let out a bitter laugh. "My dad walked in and guessed what was happening, he shouted my mum and Daisy and Isaac, they all thought we were engaged! Henry was over the moon, he was grinning like a Cheshire cat he's so f*cking manipulative he knew I was going to break it off!" she sniffed and looked back down at the ground. "So you see, these past few weeks I've been trying to get out of an engagement I never agreed to in the first place!" Damon felt awful for the things he had said, calling her a whore and a bitch.

Rosie slowly got up from the ground and rubbed herself down, looking back up at Damon she smiled sadly, "How could I go back to Luke and tell him I was accidentally engaged and desperately trying to wriggle out of it? What was worse? Him thinking I was still with Henry and miserable, or him knowing I was betrothed to him? You decide!" she wiped under her eyes delicately with her index finger and left Damon alone as she walked out of the hospital grounds.

"I'm such a dick!" Damon groaned, there was still no change in Luke.
"No Damey you were protecting our brother, it's understandable!" Keira soothed him. "Anyway, I'd already given her a piece of my mind at Christmas for all the good it did. We've been friends since we were babies but I've never been so angry with her!"
"Exactly!" Damon agreed, then shook his head sadly.

"But Kee, she was totally broken! She's with that Henry creep and she's trapped! Even more so now Luke's out of action. How can she dump Henry without his protection?" Keira shrugged and replied,
"Well, you could always take Luke's place for now. If Rosie does break up with Henry then you offer her the protection she needs, just until Luke gets back on his feet."

"Kee!" Damon gave his sister a sympathetic look, "Luke might never be back on his feet, we need to start facing that!"
"No!" Keira snapped, "I'll never, ever believe that! I refuse to! He's my baby brother! I used to hold him in my arms and pretend he was my baby, just like Uncle Ash did with dad! I can't lose him I can't!" Damon stroked Keira's hand affectionately and nodded.
"Okay, I'm sorry Kee, he's gonna fight this! We all are!" But deep down he wasn't so sure, his big sister needed to hear that though, so he would lie to her...and a little to himself...Luke was going to pull through!

"I can't take this I...I gotta...I have to go!" Damon stood up suddenly and paced the floor.
"Damey?" Keira gave him a frightened look and he stood still to face her.
"I need to get out of here Kee, will you...will you tell mum and dad? I just can't do it! Sorry Kee!"
"DAMON???"

As he headed down the corridor he felt a soft tap on his shoulder, Keira had followed him. "Damey where are you going?"
"I dunno, a walk. Anywhere but here. I'm sorry Kee I'm not as strong as you and mum and dad. I can't sit and look at him like that!"
"Okay, you go and do what you have to do. Luke will understand. And Damon?" Keira looked him in the eyes.
"Yeah?"
"I love you!" she hugged him briefly, and then hurried back up to Luke's room.

Damon took the bus to the ferry, he'd planned on watching the boats in the harbour and just letting his mind go blank. But he found himself getting on the ferry to Lucky Palms. He'd never really visited before, it was always a passing through on the way to Uni kind of visit. When he got there, he was lost. He knew an address there, but he had no idea where it was. After asking a couple of helpful locals, Damon found the place he was looking for and boldly knocked on the door.

"Damon?"
"Hi!" Was all he could think to reply as Lucy Taylor blinked in surprise at the sight of him on her doorstep.
"What are you doing here? Uni starts back tomorrow!"
"I...I know but...I don't think I'll make it back I..."
"Damon what's wrong?" Damon broke down uncontrollably as Lucy pulled him inside.

Leading him into a sitting room with a bar and kitchen in the corner, Lucy dragged him over to the couch, she began pouring two glasses of brownish liquid, "My mum and step dad are out visiting his parents in Bridgeport so they won't be back for hours, I doubt he'll notice a couple of shots of this missing from the bottle." handing him one of the glasses she mumbled, "You look like you need this!"

Damon had downed the brandy in one as they sat in silence for a long time. "Any time you want to tell me...or not...it's up to you!" Lucy finally broke the silence.
"My brother, he has a brain tumour and...I'm not coping very well!" he forced a smile as Lucy's eyes widened and a tiny gasp escaped her ample lips.

"Damon I'm...so sorry!" was all she could think to say.
"Got any more of that?" he nodded towards the empty glass.
"Yes, yes here!" she rushed over to the bar grabbing his glass on the way as she started to pour him another one.
"Bring the bottle!" Damon called to her.

Lucy turned to face him and asked "Do you really think that's wise?"
"Probably not!" Damon shrugged and laughed to himself. Lucy poured the brandy back into the bottle and sat next to him.
"I know you must be feeling pretty crap right now, believe me I understand! My dad died of lung cancer four years ago, it's hell on Earth watching someone you love suffer. And I'll do anything to help you get through this, I care for you Damon...a lot and...I just want you to know that you can count on me to be your friend and support you."

"Right now..." Damon started, right now. What did he need right now? He looked into Lucy's eyes, he took in the shape of her lips, her dainty bust underneath her clothing. He imagined what they looked like, were they prettier than Erica's? What did Lucy look like naked? He couldn't believe what he was thinking! He felt a familiar aching in his groin as he took in Lucy's appearance, it only just occurred to him that he was attracted to her. Yes they were friends and they got on well, but deep down he'd always felt something slightly more for her. All of a sudden he wanted her, he wanted her so very badly. In fact he needed her! "Right now, I need you!"

"And I'm here, I told you..."
"No! I need to feel something, with you! I want you!"
"Damon..." Lucy's cheeks flushed and she could hardly look at him.

She stood up looking around the room bashfully. Damon faced her and crushed her lips with his own, she pulled back in shock, staring him up and down for a moment. Damon was unsure of what to do next, so he went in for another kiss, there was a risk of Lucy smacking him in the face...but it was a risk he was willing to take!

And rather than fight him she welcomed his kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck and pressing her body against his. His hands wandered from her shoulders, down her back and rested on her backside, squeezing her playfully as she moaned against his mouth. 

"Oh Lucy I want you so much!" he growled as her lips parted and their tongues entwined. This couldn't be more different from Erica. Their kissing grew more intense as they slowly, yet subconsciously, undressed each other, eventually ending up on the floor. 

Damon gently parted her legs as she whimpered underneath him, a slight feeling of doubt crossed his mind, was this right? Was he ready? Lucy whispered his name breathlessly as he ran his hand slowly up the inside of her thigh, suddenly he stopped and sat up looking down at her.

The sight of her lying there beneath him, completely naked and breathing heavily, still silently debating whether he was ready and if it was right. "Damon..." she breathed, her eyes gazing up at him. 

He leaned down and kissed her neck softly as a tiny sigh escaped her lips. His lips headed south, scattering kisses all over her breasts down to her abdomen.

She was perfect in every way, there was something pure about her. She was worth a hundred Erica's, her perfume made him feel woozy but in a good way...and her skin was so incredibly smooth and soft. This time he was in control, Lucy was allowing him to take the lead unlike Erica who bossed him around and couldn't stop yelling his father's name! This time, Lucy was calling HIS name! "Oh yes Damon, Ohhhh!" she encouraged him, and it excited him even more.
"Lucy...you're so beautiful!"

A succession of moans erupted from her throat and his name was uttered once or twice as he nibbled her fleshy thighs. His trembling hand found its way between her legs as he ran a shaky finger up and down a sacred place he still felt he shouldn't be touching, making her body convulse and even more moans came from above. Damon's trembling grew more intense and a wave of panic washed over him.

He shot up leaving her lying there looking bewildered and a little hurt. "Damon?" His entire body shook as he struggled to catch a breath.
"I..." he tried to speak as the hurt in Lucy's eyes was unmistakable.
"What is it Damon? Don't..." she sat huddled on the floor looking so helpless.

"...don't you want me?" her tiny voice broke his heart, of course he wanted her, he didn't want anyone else, but this...this was so wrong! He was using her, to make himself feel better. He wanted to lose himself in her. Rather than make this moment between them special and meaningful, he just wanted to get off to forget about how heartbroken he was over his brother's illness.

"I can't do this to you Lucy it's not right! I have to go!" Damon gathered up his clothes and escaped through the front door still fully unclothed. He couldn't wait to get out of there and away from her devastatingly wounded expression.

As he hid in his room, he reflected on his journey home which was long and agonising as Lucy's face invaded his mind. He couldn't stop thinking about how hurt and unwanted she looked. And he left her there, running down her driveway frantically tugging his boxers on, dressing himself all the way down to the nearest bus stop. People staring at him because his shirt was inside out and he was only wearing one shoe not to mention the fact that he was fussing with a faulty zipper on his jeans.

Damon lay on his bed feeling sick, dizzy and guilty. His Uncle Ash knocked on his bedroom door and called out to him. "Dinner time Damo! Come on, keep your strength up kid!" 

Kid! If only his good guy uncle knew exactly what he'd been up to, he wouldn't call him kid! "Damon?" Ashton's voice grew concerned when Damon didn't answer. "I saw you come up here son so don't pretend you're not there!"
"Coming!" he finally answered his uncle.

Sitting at the table with his aunt, uncle and cousins, Damon was still thinking about Lucy! What a complete jerk he'd been. Ash knew that something other than Luke was bothering his nephew and was determined to get to the bottom of whatever it was. "Damon come to the studio I wanna show you something!" After dinner, Ash took his nephew gently by the shoulder and guided him out of the dining room and across the garden to the studio where Sweet Cacophony had recorded their albums for the last 20 plus years.

Finally alone, Damon was about to go and sit down when Ash asked him softly, "Right kid, talk to me!"
"I'm fine Uncle Ash really!"
"Don't bullsh*t me kid, tell me what's going on with you. It's not a request!" Damon ran a hand through his long blond hair and turned to face him, making sure he avoided his eyes.

"I'm not coping with all this stuff about Luke and...I did something pretty crappy, pretty Dexter Maloney to a girl that...well..." he laughed softly, the unmistakable shame in his tone, "She deserves so much better, I think she could possibly be someone that I could...you know, but now I've completely blown it and I just wanna curl up in a ball and hibernate for a hundred gazillion years!" Ash nodded and approached him.

"You know, your dad was a complete a-hole to many a poor girl when he was about your age, but that was all down to getting his heart broken in high school and his big brother getting jilted at the altar. But I'm not making excuses for him Damo, I'm merely pointing out that us guys tend to do stupid things and end up hurting the women that mean the most to us. I mean take your Aunt Erin, I treated her terribly at the beginning, I wouldn't even admit I was seeing someone to your dad or Uncle Drew! We can all be dicks Damo, it's how we rectify our dickdom that counts!" Ash ruffled Damon's hair, and left his nephew to think about what he'd said.

"Hi Lucy, look I know I'm the last person you wanna hear from after today but...I just wanted to say...I'm sorry! I know it's not nearly enough to make up for what I did and...oh Luce if only I could...well I can because I'm talking to a voicemail and I can't see how mad you are at me so, well here goes..."

"Lucy Taylor, the time we spent together working on the PF trophy, well it was the best time I've ever had with a girl! Like ever! One day I will explain something that is still very raw to me but for now I just want you to understand that I feel things for you, I think you know that given the state of little Damon this afternoon but...I know, not the time for jokes! Please know that I did want you, I still do, but I was using you and we were going to have sex for all the wrong reasons! When we do eventually make love it will be right and great, no it'll be amazing and we'll blow the roof off the house and destroy the bed, but for now we should grow to love each other because...well..."

"I think I kinda am...in love with you! I just hope you can find it in your heart to forgive me, I'm taking a bit of time off but I'll be back at the end of January to beat you for that trophy. I meant what I said...I...love you! Bye!" Lucy had listened to that voicemail over a dozen times and every time Damon Maloney said he loved her, her heart swelled!

But she wasn't going to make things easy for him, she wasn't going to return his call and she certainly wasn't going to speak to him when he came back to Uni. Yes his brother was very sick, but that was no excuse for hurting another human being.

She closed her eyes and pictured Damon above her, and little Damon of course, or not so little as she recalled. Lucy had been in love with him since the day he accused her of copying his answers on that test. She'd fantasised about being with him, and today she truly thought she would live out her fantasy. Of course she knew he was using her, she didn't care at the time, she wanted him and however she got him didn't really matter...

...not until this voicemail! Now the game had changed, the L word had been said and there was no going back! And did he actually use the term "make love"? This was serious, Damon was serious about her and it was no longer a case of take what she could get from him. She was going to get everything she ever dreamed of and more! She just had to be patient, and she just had to believe that a boy like Damon Maloney could actually love a girl like her!

Lainie and Dexter hadn't left the hospital since their son had been admitted a few nights previously. Dex couldn't bring himself to leave, he wanted to be with Luke every second of every day he was in there. Lainie felt the same, it was killing her to see her baby lying there with all those tubes and wires everywhere.

Mrs Han, Luke's consultant, appeared with a smile on her face, "Good news Mr and Mrs Maloney!" she announced. "We're going to try and bring Luke round tomorrow. His most recent tests were good and I'm confident that we can control the seizures with medication so...it's looking positive!" Dexter let out a huge sigh of relief as Lainie sobbed a little, but smiled.

"Do you think he'll wake up?" Dex asked nervously.
"I'm very confident Mr Maloney, yes." Mrs Han beamed and tapped the clipboard under her right arm with her left index finger. "As I said this is good news!"
"And the tumour?" Lainie added, the elephant in the room.
"Well Mrs Maloney, that's an obstacle for another day. The main priority is stabilising Luke so we can work on that. Please, don't look so worried. Things are progressing in the right direction!" she reassured them before leaving them alone with Luke.

"Dexy? What are you thinking?" Dex looked over at his worried wife.
"That I'm gonna get my boy back!" Lainie felt a tear roll down her pale cheek, wanting so badly to believe that Luke was going to be okay. 

"Freckles, she's the best consultant in this area! She comes highly recommended! If she wasn't don't you think I'd have brought someone in by now? Let's trust her!" Dexter had the financial means to have any medical professional take on Luke's case, he'd asked around about Persephone Han and was informed that she was indeed one of the best in her field and only the best would do for his boy!

Keira was working on a painting that a client had requested that evening as Joshua and his brother Cormac battled one another at some video game. Her heart wasn't in it, but she had a deadline. Luke was on her mind, and Damon! Both of her brothers caused her so much worry.

"So are you going with Keira tomorrow?" Cormac causally brought the situation with Luke into the conversation as his brother frowned.
"I dunno, she's my girlfriend and he's my best friend...but I just don't feel I should be...imposing!" Josh sighed and put down the controller. "Want a beer?"

"Nah, work tomorrow, gotta keep a clear head!"
"Ohhhh, who the heck are you and where is my little brother?"
"Very funny Josh!" Cormac groaned as his phone beeped, a text from Liam.

"Liam says that Damon is taking a month off Uni! Wow!" Josh nodded.
"I know, he refuses to leave until Luke is awake and they know where they are with him. Poor kid, he's doing so well too!"
"You know, I always thought he was such a little twerp! But I gotta say, I'm proud of the man he's become!" Cormac surprised himself with this revelation.
"Me too!" Josh agreed, "Me too!"

Keira pretended to work on the painting, but in reality she was listening to the brothers discuss her family situation. She envied the Hayes family, the only crisis they ever experienced was Cormac coming out which was hardly a crisis at all, but maybe the fact that he was seeing her young cousin was. All she knew was that Matthew Hayes had barely spoken to his son ever since, and that was why she and Josh had very little privacy.

Keira was still waiting for Joshua to propose, she was beginning to think that being a little older than him was taking its toll. Was he bored of her? Did he want somebody new? Just as she was thinking that, he appeared behind her and wrapped his arms around her. 

"Mac's going round to see Liam for a few hours so..." he nibbled her neck and it drove her crazy, the palette and brush she was holding fell to the floor and a soft moan rose from the back of her throat. Josh hadn't touched her like that for a while.

"I'm off guys!" Cormac mumbled behind them, "Have fun!" he chuckled, and loudly closed the back door.

Josh gently spun Keira round to face him and smiled, "Jesus Kee you're so gorgeous!" She tried to be strong, right now she needed to be, but his touch just reminded her exactly why she loved him in the first place.

What she was about to do was going to be even harder now, why did he have to be so affectionate all of a sudden?

Keira pulled away from his tender embrace and looked into his green eyes, was she doing the right thing? "Kee?"
"Joshy I..."

"Listen, we have the whole place to ourselves, why don't we..."
"Joshua my brother is ill!" Keira's voice was shrill and it made Josh jump a little. 

Keira wriggled from his grip and sat down on her beat up old chair. She'd made up her mind and now he'd shifted the goal posts, knocked her legs from under her and she was as weak as a kitten!

"It's okay baby, I understand!" Josh nodded sympathetically. "But we can just, I dunno, watch T.V. snuggled up on the couch or..."
"Josh!" Keira interrupted, and he was taken aback by the volume of her voice.
"What?"
"I think we both know that...we've come to the end of the road!"

"What are you talking about? Kee?" Josh laughed nervously as Keira sighed, avoiding eye contact with the boy she'd fallen madly in love with over 3 summers ago.
"You and me Joshy, it's over! I'm moving back home to be with my family." Josh staggered back slightly with a shocked expression etched on his face.

"Okay, I understand you want to be with your mum and dad and Damon, but we don't have to be over! I'm more than willing to give you the space and time that you need!" Keira smiled sadly and slowly shook her head as Josh spoke.
"No Josh, enough is enough! We've been living here with your brother for months and you've barely touched me! When was the last time we had sex?"

Josh looked confused as he racked his brains for the answer, "I..." he began but Keira talked over him.
"SIX WEEKS JOSHUA!"
"Nah it's not been that long..."
"Six whole frickin' weeks! It's like you're not into me anymore, and I understand I'm a little bit older and you maybe want a girl your own age. We've only ever been with each other and maybe you want to see what or who else is out there, I get it I do!"

"Kee that is bull and you know it! I love you, you're my forever baby! Nobody else matters!"
"Then where is the ring? Where is the proposal and the wedding and...face it Joshy we've grown apart!"
"No!" Joshua's eyes welled up and he shook his head in disagreement. "No Kee we're...just going through a few things!" A tear trickled down his cheek, "Let's...let's take a break from stuff and we can pick up where we left off once the dust settles and..."

"I'll be gone by the morning! I'll sleep on the couch tonight." Keira announced as she headed for the stairs, leaving Joshua alone to his thoughts.

Cormac was having just as much trouble as his older brother, and it worried him that Liam had gone off him. The once ever affectionate young man had become distant and quiet. Cormac realised just how much he loved Liam when he was 14 years old, and now he was almost 17, Cormac thought things would get better...not worse!

Liam sat quietly as Cormac shuffled uncomfortably behind him. He didn't know what to do, or to say, to find out what had changed between them, he was at a loss. Every time he asked Liam what was up he just shrugged and said "Nothing's up Cormy!" and he had to accept that.
Or did he? Feeling a little more brave, he decided to ask again. "Liam?"
"Hmm?" was the response, not even looking up.
"Please tell me what's wrong? Don't you wanna be with me anymore?" he could feel a lump in his throat as he could see Liam's face turn crimson and he stomped up to face him. Seeing his scowl, Cormac stood up to face him with a worried expression.

"Liam, baby if I've done something, just tell me what it is so I can fix it!" he pleaded with him. Suddenly Liam growled angrily and pointed his finger in Cormac's face.
"Everything's not all about you Cormac Hayes!" Liam spat and strode towards the door. 

He'd been like this for weeks, and Cormac's heart was breaking! They exchanged pleasant texts, updating one another on family and friend matters, but when they were together there was nothing but silence and distance!

Cormac headed home with his heart heavy and full of dread. Liam Maloney was the only human being, male or female, that he had ever truly loved. He didn't expect that to ever change, he found it difficult to let someone into his heart and his life, but somehow Liam had managed to get inside and change him forever. What was he going to do if Liam no longer wanted to be his? All he knew was that he didn't want to be in a world where that was possible!

When his sister arrived with a load of bags and suitcases, Damon wondered what the heck was going on. "Kee?"
"Joshua and I have broken up. So it looks like you'll have to put up with me for a while!" Keira announced quite matter-of-fact. "My decision!" she added, "Don't go giving him a hard time, he wasn't to blame!"

"Okay..." Damon had to admit his second thought was to go round and defend his sister's honour against Josh and get pummelled in the process. But now he didn't have to. Erin was pleased to have another female in the house again since Lainie was spending all of her time at the hospital. Today was the day Luke was waking up and the whole family were a mix of nerves and excitement.

Damon hadn't heard back from Lucy, and to be honest he wasn't surprised. He also hadn't heard much about Rosie since his spat with her at the hospital, she hadn't come back and he felt guilty about that. He wanted her to be there when Luke came round, he felt it was important, she belonged with Luke not Henry!

As Damon stood outside the farm, he recalled Rosie's words, "Henry was over the moon, he was grinning like a Cheshire cat he's so f*cking manipulative he knew I was going to break it off!" Damon balled his fists and the red mist rose once again. Isaac answered the door and let Damon in, skipping off upstairs to his room he left him to find Rosie on his own.

Rosie was sat uncomfortably next to Henry as he bored her to tears about their wedding and pawed at her. But when she spotted Damon her face lit up and she stood and called out to him. "Damey!"
"Hi Rosie!" Damon waved to her as Henry began to scowl. Damon's anger intensified and he blurted out, "So they're bringing Luke round today, I think you should be there!" A slight growl rumbled from Henry as Rosie's eyes brightened at the thought of Luke being awake.

"Oh I..." Rosie looked from Henry to Damon.
"Now darling, you don't want to crowd him, he has his family and..."
"Rosie IS family!" Damon shouted over him.
"Yes but childhood friendship isn't exactly..."
"Rosie is Luke's soulmate, she's the love of his life and he's hers!" Damon interrupted him again and Henry growled again.

"Now listen here you...I am her fiance and we are getting married in a few weeks..." Damon scoffed and once again talked over him.
"Rosie doesn't love you and you know it, so why don't you just accept it!" Henry's face turned a dangerous beetroot red.
"How dare you!" he bellowed as the veins in his neck popped up to say hello. It looked as if Damon had struck a nerve, and oh what a temper the mild mannered scientist had.

"No how dare YOU!" Damon stood his ground, if you hit me it's the end for you, he thought. Drew would throw him out without hesitation if he touched his Godson.
"Be careful little boy!" Henry warned him as Rosie shuffled nervously between them.
"Please, stop!" she begged as Daisy and Kieran appeared from upstairs in a state of undress.

"What's going on?" Daisy whined.
"Oh nothin'!" Damon replied, "I'm just removing Henry from the equation!" he smirked, not taking his eyes off of Henry.
"Oh thank God!" Daisy sighed, "About time you slung your hook you horrible piece of sh..."
"DAISY!" Kieran scolded her as he tried to hide his modesty, but he secretly agreed. No one liked Henry, not even Drew, he only pretended for Rosie and the fact that Henry's company funded a lot of his projects.

"You and whose army little boy?" Henry let out a booming laugh, "We're engaged! Rosie will be Mrs Clarkson soon and there's not a damn thing you or your inbred family can do about it!" Damon wanted so badly to punch him in the throat and hear him choke, but he kept his cool.
"Well, considering you coerced her into marrying you I'd say it's null and void!"
"WHAT?" Daisy screeched, "I knew you weren't that stupid!" she called to her twin.

Damon sighed impatiently and continued "Rosie was gonna dump you that day and you proposed to catch her off guard, and boy did it work! Did you know that she was banging my brother the night before and that's why she was breaking it off? They were gettin' it on and she'd never felt so alive in a long time!" Henry snarled at Damon and lunged forward, but stopped himself from hitting him.

"Whoa there, bit of a temper there have we Henry? You oughta get that looked at!" Damon chuckled. "Rosie doesn't love you, why don't you hold onto that one little shred of dignity you have left and leave her be, huh?" Henry shook his head violently and turned to Rosie for back up, but found none.

"It's true Henry we were together that night and it made me realise, I don't love you and I never have! I love Luke...and I should be with him now more than ever! My soulmate needs me, and you have to leave!" she nodded as Henry's face fell.

"May I have my ring back?" he requested, looking at the ground.
"Here!" Rosie fumbled in her pocket and produced the ring, she'd never worn it and that alone should have been an indication to Henry that she wasn't feeling it.

"Goodbye Rosie, may you and your entire motley crew rot in hell!" Henry muttered and shoved past Damon with a blank expression on his face.
"Yay, big black cloud has gone good morning sunshine!" Daisy declared as Henry exited the house.

"Thank you!" Rosie wept to Damon.
"No problem, future sister-in-law!" he winked at her as she smiled gratefully.
"I HATED him!" Daisy piped up. ruining the moment.

Rosie and Damon arrived at the hospital together. Lainie was pleased to see her there and even more pleased that it was her son who had brought her. "Rosie I'm so happy you came!"
"Me too auntie Lainie, thanks to Damon I have all the time in the world for Luke now!"

The procedure went well, Luke was now breathing on his own and his family waited for him to wake up. When he did eventually come round his first word was "Rosie!".
"I'm here, Lukey I'm here!" she wept and grabbed his hand.
"You've got a LOT of explaining to do young man!" Dexter scolded him with an emotional voice.

"Rosie!" Luke repeated.
"Yes I'm here, I'm not going anywhere!"
"Marry me!" he mumbled, "Dump that loser and marry me!" he giggled weakly and squeezed her hand. Rosie cried and laughed at the same time and nodded.
"Yes Luke! I will marry you! A million times YES!"
"Mum?" Luke called to Lainie.
"Yes my darling, I'm right here!"

"Time to buy a hat!" he smiled, "I'm getting married!"
"The biggest and brightest my darling!" Lainie replied.
"Dad I want your band to play at the reception!" Dexter chuckled and said,
"Biggest and best gig we'll ever do son!"
"Kee?" Luke asked for his sister.
"Yes Luke, I'm here too! You don't get rid of me that easily!"
"Did ya miss me?" he teased her playfully, Keira wept happily.

"Nah, I was enjoying the peace and quiet if I'm honest!" she laughed softly.
"Damon!" Luke called for his little brother.
"Here Luke! I'm here!" Damon sniffed back his emotions and answered him.

"I love you!" Luke grinned and closed his eyes. "I'm so damn proud of you, and I love you!" Damon choked back a sob and replied,
"Ditto!"
"Will you be my best man?" Luke's voice was growing weaker, he needed to rest.
"Of course I will, I would be honoured!" Damon agreed. "Now get some rest, Doc wants to do some tests later so...let's all scram huh?" he gestured for everyone to leave Luke and Rosie alone.

"Yeah we'll see you later kiddo!" Dexter kissed his son on the forehead as the family filtered out of the room. "And we will talk about you keeping stuff later!" he warned him.

Mrs Han was waiting to speak with Dexter and Lainie, she was smiling but she wasn't looking as confident and cheerful as she was before. "Mr and Mrs Maloney, a word in private if I may?"

Inside the consultant's office, Dexter and Lainie sat feeling nervous. Damon and Keira were allowed in as family, but Dex wasn't so sure that they should hear whatever Mrs Han had to say. "I have to say I'm very pleased with Luke's progress so far, however..." she paused and scanned the faces of Luke's parents and siblings, "...we have a long journey ahead of us!"

"When can he come home?" Lainie ignored the solemn tone of the consultant's voice.
"Mrs Maloney your son is very, very poorly!"
"I know I..."
"Until we can determine the nature of the tumour, I would prefer Luke to remain here for the time being." Lainie nodded sadly, knowing that it was for the best.

For the first time in days, Dexter and Lainie returned home as Rosie took their place sitting with Luke. "He wants to marry her!" Lainie blurted out as they got ready for bed.
"Yeah!" was all Dex could reply.
"Keira and Josh have split up!"
"Yeah, that's...unexpected!" Lainie stared her husband down for a good few minutes as he sat on the bed in a daze.
"Dexy?"
"Hmm?"
"Dexy, talk to me!"
"I...I dunno what to say!"
"Just...tell me how you feel!" Dexter turned to look at her with a blank expression as she sat next to him.

"How I feel?" he ran a hand through his hair and let out a long sigh. "I feel...helpless! I feel angry, frustrated, sad, devastated! I feel like I've failed my children, like I should have known my son was ill and my daughter was miserable! How can a father not know? I'll tell you how, because he's bad! He's the worst!" a heavy sigh escaped his lungs.
"If you are a bad father, then I am a bad mother!" Dexter turned to her with an angered expression, piercing her eyes with his own.

"NO!" he scolded her in a low voice. "You are an amazing mother to those kids! I don't ever wanna hear you say that again! Understand?"
"Dexy, I'm so tired!" she sobbed and looked away.

"Me too baby, me too!" they sat there for a while in silence until finally Dexter added, "Evelyn Dawn Robertson Maloney! You are the best wife and mother in the entire universe! I want you to believe that, because it's true! Our children are amazing, and that's down to you! God I love you!"

"Dexy..." Lainie mumbled, "...if I'm all those things you say I am, then it's because I had the best partner in crime to help me!"
"Well..." Dexter chuckled, "...I didn't wanna say but..." Lainie laughed with him punching his chest playfully.

Dexter leaned in slowly and kissed her tenderly. "C'mon, let's get some sleep! We need to be back at the hospital first thing!" Lainie nodded in agreement, but not before she had one last kiss from him, she smiled drowsily and climbed under the covers with her husband.

Cormac Hayes had the day off, Liam was due out of school soon and he planned to spend the rest of the day with him and try to repair whatever had been damaged between them, he decided to give him a couple of hours for his homework and to wind down before he called round. Liam was never out of his mind, Cormac never thought he could ever be this in love and he didn't want to give up on that, he was going to fight for this. He grew concerned when he stopped by the Maloney mansion to meet him and he was greeted by Erin looking distraught. Liam had arrived home late that afternoon, "I heard him come in and he just went upstairs to his room, he won't come out! That was over an hour ago! I don't know what's wrong I..." Erin broke down as Cormac ran up the stairs to Liam's room, taking two steps at a time.

Ash was already trying to coax Liam out, he had jammed the bedroom door shut somehow. "Liam?" Cormac battered on his bedroom door as Ash stepped aside. "Liam open the door it's me!" Not a sound came from the room as Cormac's heart beat faster and faster as every second passed. "Liam I mean it, open it or I'll break it down!"
"Liam son!" Ash called soothingly, standing next to a panicked Cormac, "Open the door, please?"

Ash lost patience and elbowed the door open roughly as Cormac pushed in, followed by Erin and Ash. Liam was slumped against the far wall of his room, his backpack lay on the floor with "Pansy" spray painted on it. Cormac's sick feeling returned along with a fiery rage inside his chest.

He slowly ventured over to the corner Liam was hiding in, and as his face came into view, Cormac's heart sank...bloodied and bruised, Liam's entire body shook with every sob as Cormac knelt down beside him. "Liam, who did this?" he demanded, trying to keep calm for his young boyfriend's sake.
"Leave me alone!" was all Liam would say.
"No, I wanna know what piece of sh*t did this!" Cormac pushed as Erin tried to approach her battered son but was stopped by her husband. Finally Liam looked intently at Cormac Hayes and replied...

"That piece of sh*t...as you call her...is your sister!" and now everything started to make sense, as the realisation hit Cormac like a punch in the gut...

To Be Continued...

Thanks for reading, and for being patient with me! Honestly writing is not the problem, it's the screenshots! Sooooo slow it takes me the whole day to just set them up for posing ugh! Anyway I shall try and get the next chapter out a bit sooner than over a year later, sorry again and I hope you enjoyed it! ;)