Denying the Inevitable

Luke’s POV

I slowly made my way up the steps towards the front door of my parent’s house. I knew what I had to do. First I had to go change out of these clothes that I had been wearing for the past two days and then I had to find Brooklyn. I ran my hand over the back of my head. I knew that she wouldn't want to see me, but I just had to let her know why I freaked out. I had to make her understand.

I made my way into my old bedroom as thoughts of the other night began filling my mind. All I've wanted since that day back in Kelowna when I let Brooklyn walk out of my life was to get her back. I finally after three years got that...and I bailed. Laying in that bed with her brought back so many memories and it scared the hell out of me. All I had ever done to her in the past was hurt her. I left because I didn't want to do that to her anymore. I left because I thought that Nathan would be better for her than me. Yes, maybe he doesn't fuck up like I do but he could never love her the way I love her and that's why I came back. I’ve never been able to function normally without her. I went about life, but until she showed up in Toronto I was never really happy. There was always something missing, and it was her. I have this huge empty space in my heart that only she can fill.

Brooklyn Daniels has always been mine and she still is. I was prepared to fight for her and I knew that it was going to be a tough uphill battle. Not only did I have to fight her fiancé for her, but now I was going to have to fight her to let me back in...again. I had done what I promised I would never do to her again. In my attempt to not hurt her I had most likely torn her apart. Again.

“You have some fucking nerve.” I turned around to face my brother who was standing in my bedroom doorway looking like a man possessed.

“Brayden, I..”

“I'm sick of fucking picking up after you!” He screamed at me. I'm not quite sure where, maybe it was when I left for Kelowna and broke up with her, but somewhere along the line my relationship with Brayden changed. It changed and it has never been the same.

“Do you realize that for the past five years my relationship with my best friend has revolved around you?! Me fixing your messes, me picking her up after you knock her down, me holding her together when she's crying hysterically on the phone in the bathroom of the airport because she just found out that she was going to be living in the same city as you, me dragging her drunken ass out of Charlie’s after she..”

“I don't need to hear this!” I shouted over his voice. I didn't need him to tell me about all the times Brooklyn had broken down because of me.

“YES YOU DO!” He screamed angrily. “You do need to hear it because you don't know what you fucking do to her! You're never there to see her all torn up. I am and I am sick of seeing you hurt her. I'm not going to let you do it anymore.” I nodded as I pulled a clean shirt over my head. I didn't want to start anything with him. I just wanted him to shut up so that I could go find her.

“Is she at her mom’s?” I questioned. As I turned to look at my brother his fist came into contact with my face and I was seeing stars. “Jesus Christ Brayden!” I screamed as my hand instinctively went to my jaw and I could feel the blood trickling over my lip.

“Stay the fuck away from her, Luke!” Brayden ordered. We had always gotten along in everything. We weren’t like those brothers that fought for attention or anything for that matter. If one of us did something amazing we were genuinely happy for each other. We were always really tight and agreed on everything. We saw eye to eye on everything...everything except for Brooklyn.

The two of us had always cared about her immensely, just in different ways. We both felt the need to protect her from anything that was threatening to hurt her and now Brayden saw me as that threat...and I guess I was. I had hurt her so many times but I wasn’t going let her leave Saskatoon without me.

“I can’t do that Brayden.” I told him and before I could open my mouth to explain myself Brayden tackled me to the hardwood floor.

Brooklyn’s POV

I opened my eyes and groaned. What the fuck was all that noise?! I sat up and put my head into my hands. This was why I didn't drink all that often. Sure it seemed like an amazing idea last night but this morning...not so much.

“You’re a fucking idiot, Luke!” I heard Brayden scream from the next room and my heart dropped. Luke was here in the house. “If you think I'm going to let you anywhere near her then you'd better think again.”

“I just need to tell her why I..” Luke’s voice was cut off by a loud crashing noise and some grumbling that I knew was the result of Brayden attacking him. As the sounds continued coming from Luke’s bedroom I jumped out of Brayden’s bed and hurried into the next room. I barged through the door only to see Brayden and Luke wrestling each other while getting punches in here and there.

“Hey!” I shouted but went unheard. “HEY!!!!!” I screamed at the top of my lungs. Brayden rolled off of Luke, who I did my best to not look at, and stared at me. “Would you two just fucking stop it?! This is so not even worth it.” I stated as I turned to leave the bedroom.

“It’s not worth it?!” Brayden challenged. “Are you kidding me right now?! I've been wanting to do this for years.” He confessed venomously of his scuffle with Luke. “The other night was the last straw and then today!” He trailed off laughing angrily as he looked back at his brother. “And today you have the fucking nerve to try and talk to her? I don't fucking think so, bro.”

“No! It’s not worth it!” I told him. “You're brothers. You were brothers before I ever came into the picture. I don't want to be the reason you two can’t act like that anymore.”

“You aren't the reason, Brooke! He’s the reason. You didn't do anything wrong. You did nothing wrong.” He told me as if he was trying to convince me so.

“Brooklyn, I need to..”

“DON’T!” I shouted at Luke as I held up a finger to him, signalling him to be quiet. “I have nothing to say to you. If it was anyone other than Brayden in here beating the shit out of you I wouldn't have come in here to stop it. I did this for him. I know he would have regretted this. So don't even try to speak to me. I’m done. Do you hear me?! I am done.” Tears were now spilling over my cheeks as the words left my mouth. Even after all of the shit he had put me through it physically hurt me to say those words to him.

“When I go back to Toronto I don't ever want to hear from you. I want you to pretend that I'm not even there.”

“Brooklyn...please! Just let me..”

“I think I've let you do enough, Luke. I just want you out of my life. I don't want to hurt because of you anymore! I think I deserve a chance to be happy, don't you?” Luke’s eyes softened and I could see the sadness in them. Despite everything in that moment I had to fight myself to not run to him and wrap my arms around him. I've heard that love and hate go hand in hand but I never quite understood it until now. I hated Luke for making my love him the way I do, but I was finally putting my foot down. I wasn’t going to let him do this to me anymore.

Brayden was right. Maybe in time I would let myself love Nathan with everything I had, but even if I never loved Nathan the way I love Luke a life of mediocre happiness had to be better than a life of intense highs and heartbreaking lows.