Page 15 of When the Leaves Fall

LUCA

D ad can walk around and feed himself, but he still isn’t allowed to drive.

This fact makes him a grumpy asshole ninety percent of the time.

I rarely get a glimpse of the dad I knew before his stroke.

I miss that man. The dad who always had a ridiculous new dad joke to tell me, or the dad who taught me to play catch.

I don’t recognize the man whom I’ve been taking care of for the last six months.

I don’t even remember the walk to the shuttle.

I was in a love-struck daze, but somehow I must have made it on the bus because we arrived at the park and ride where my car is.

I sit in the driver’s seat, start the vehicle, and roll down the window.

I lean my head back against the headrest, enjoying the light fall breeze.

As soon as I close my eyes, visions of Drew’s soft, pink lips appear.

I swear I can feel her hair tangled in my fingers.

I know this will be risky. But like she said, this can only be temporary.

Her mom won’t be here forever, and Drew lives a few states away.

I feel a little sick to my stomach thinking about Drew being so far away, but I quickly push that aside.

No, I can’t think that way. I need to focus on the here and now.

Enjoy the time we have together while we have it.

Based on how quickly her mom is progressing, my professional guess is she won’t be in the CCU more than another week, maybe two. Then they’ll move her to another floor, where she could be for as little as a few days. It’s all up in the air and depends on how much she improves each day.

That doesn’t leave much time for Drew and I to be together. So we need to make the next few weeks count, because it’s most likely all we have. I look outside. A few weeks puts us around the end of October, meaning we have until the leaves fall.

I know we left each other less than thirty minutes ago, but I miss her already. I want to talk to her. So, I shoot her a text.

Can’t stop thinking about that kiss.

Me either.

When can I get a repeat?

Well, it’s probably best we don’t fool around at the hospital.

We’d be asking to get caught.

It’ll be hard to resist, though.

Oh, for sure.

So…a repeat? Plan? I have tonight off.

I’m sure my dad would be okay with staying with Mom tonight.

My place or your hotel?

I think it might be weird to hook up in the hotel room I share with my dad.

Noted.

My place it is.

I glance around my apartment. It’s not messy, per se. But I need to spruce things up a bit before Drew arrives. She doesn’t need to see my dirty underwear lying on my bedroom floor.

How about I cook us a nice dinner too? I know it’s been a while since you’ve had a home-cooked meal.

That would be amazing.

No peppers, kiwis, or peanuts?

You remembered.

You’re on my mind a lot.

…

…

…

Shit. Did I get a little too serious already? I don’t know what it is about Drew, but I feel so drawn to her. It was instant, but it wasn’t just attraction. I found her intriguing right away. The more we talked, the more I wanted it to continue.. To get to know her.

Honestly, same.

Oh, thank fucking God.

Dinner at 6?

What should I bring?

Just your gorgeous self and stunning personality.

So cheesy.

I’m going to get some rest. I’ll see you at 6.

I’m counting down the hours.

I send her my address, do a quick inventory of food I have available to cook, make a grocery list, and then clean up the apartment a bit.

All of that takes just over an hour. I take a nice, warm shower before crawling into bed.

The blackout blinds pulled over the windows help keep my room nice and dark so I can get some sleep.

I set my alarm for 4:00 pm so I have enough time to run to the grocery store before I need to start prepping dinner, which leaves me about seven hours to sleep.

I can’t believe Drew is coming over here tonight. I can still taste her peppermint lip balm when I lick my lips. I can’t wait to taste more of her tonight.