Disclaimer: I do not own ATWT or its characters.
Author's Notes: My first (possibly only lol) lurefic! AU; no train universe. (Even as a Nuke I don't really accept the train as canon - FU ATWT). I hope they're not too OOC here; it doesn't really come naturally for me to write them together, but can I have an apple for trying? This is a two-shot; I'll try to remember to post the conclusion tomorrow. :)
Apologies for a few inside jokes based on some great times with LuRe friends. Thanks for putting up with the token Nuke LOL.
Summer 2013
"What now?"
Luke Snyder closed his eyes, drawing in a deep, contented breath as he contemplated the question. Finally he stood from his perch alongside the fountain, reaching out to thread his fingers with those of his boyfriend.
"A break?"
Reid raised their joined hands to press a firm kiss to Luke's knuckles.
"Sounds good."
Grinning, Luke led Reid away from Bethesda Fountain, and to a small hill underneath a tree. Luke dropped down to sit, then lay back against the grass there. Reid raised a doubtful eyebrow.
"You expect me to lay there? And be climbed all over by God knows how many of New York's smallest germ carriers?"
Luke looked upwards, pretending to consider something. "I was thinking if you lay here, you might be climbed all over by one of Oakdale's largest germ carriers-"
Reid had dropped to the ground before Luke even finished the sentence. Once he lay back, Luke rolled so that he was lying atop his boyfriend. Reid smirked, wrapping his arms around the younger man.
"I guess I can risk it. I've had all my shots," Reid quipped.
"Yet after three years you're still not housebroken," Luke volleyed back.
"HEY!" Reid poked Luke in the ribs just hard enough to make him flinch, then dissolve into giggles. A devious look appeared in Reid's eyes as he moved his hand lower, slipping it into the waistband of Luke's jeans.
"Knock it off!" Luke bodily pushed himself off of Reid, his expression a perfect blend of annoyance and arousal. "There are kids all over this park!"
"So?" Reid deadpanned, "it's never too early to start learning about sex ed- OW!"
After dispensing a pinch to Reid's wrist, Luke's arms folded in aggravation as he now stood over an unrepentant Reid. Suddenly, Luke realized he'd been had. "You did that on purpose!"
Reid grinned as he rose to join Luke. "Guilty as charged." Leaning in to whisper into Luke's ear, he added, "You are just so fucking hot when you're flustered. I couldn't resist."
Luke wanted to stay mad. But he felt practically singed by the look in Reid's eyes - the one that told Luke he was the sexiest thing ever to walk the face of the Earth. His mouth twisted into a pout of sorts in an attempt to cover the burgeoning smile.
Reid knew, though. He leaned forward to kiss the pout from Luke's face, and Luke gave up any pretense of remaining angry as he eagerly returned the liplock. Suddenly, Reid pulled back, and chastised Luke. "There are kids all over this park!"
The answering punch to the shoulder was the least Reid deserved in response, he figured. Anyway, it had been worth it to get under Luke's skin. He grasped Luke's hand and began walking, since break time was clearly over.
"Where to?"
Luke mulled over the question again. This getaway to New York had been a complete surprise. Reid had come home to their apartment from his last workday of the week at Memorial, and announced they were taking a trip. He gave Luke an hour to pack, but refused to say where they were going.
In their three years together, Reid had proven himself a closet romantic, surprising Luke every now and then with thoughtful gestures Luke never would've expected. An impromptu trip to the Big Apple certainly fell into that category. He and Reid had enjoyed an incredible, passionate weekend, exploring the city by day and each other by night.
There was only one final sightseeing item on Luke's mind, though he knew it would sound hokey.
"What?" Somehow, Reid had picked up on the fact Luke was withholding something. "Just say it, Luke. What do you want to do?"
Luke nodded. "All right. Promise you won't laugh?"
"With this much mystery, it must be really bad. The best I can promise is I'll try not to," Reid answered, thinking that a reasonable compromise.
"Reid!" Luke said in exasperation. As terrific as they were together, Luke still had the rare insecurity. Their differences normally didn't bother him, but occasionally, Luke felt like an immature farm boy next to Reid's sophisticated neurosurgeon.
Sensing Luke's uncertainty, Reid immediately moved to reassure him, placing a soft kiss against his temple. "I'm sorry. I won't laugh; I promise."
Luke relaxed instantly. If Reid promised, it was as good as done. Still, Luke worried his idea would sound lame, but finally voiced it, anyway.
"You know those red steps? Across from our hotel, in Times Square?"
Reid was perplexed, but nodded.
"Remember that movie we saw," Luke continued. "Where the couple finally gets together on those steps at the end of the film..."
"Yeah," Reid confirmed. Considerately, he refrained from adding that he'd rather poke his own eyes out before seeing that schlocky celluloid atrocity ever again.
"Well, I thought it'd be romantic if you and I got our picture taken there."
Reid raised an eyebrow. That seemed like a lot of buildup for such a small thing. "Okay," Reid said, then giving it a bit more thought, tacked on, "just you, me, and five hundred of our closest friends."
"It's Sunday evening, though. It shouldn't be as crowded as usual," Luke argued.
"Yeah, you're probably right," Reid replied appeasingly. Of course, Luke knew Reid was just trying not to take the wind out of his sails. But Luke felt he was right, and they'd be able to cap off their trip with this final special memory. He was already daydreaming of showing off the pic on his Facebook wall, and watching all the comments about how cute and in love they were roll in.
Because this June evening was unseasonably mild, they decided to walk back to Times Square. As they strolled hand-in-hand, Reid indicated points of interest along the way, including the Dakota, where John Lennon had lived and died. Luke loved listening to Reid play tour guide, marveling at the way his boyfriend shared his impressive wealth of knowledge in an interesting and accessible way.
"You're really smart," Luke began, winning a raise of Reid's eyebrow. Luke realized how ludicrous a statement that had been to make to a brain surgeon, and amended, "No, I mean, about other stuff; not just brains. History. Culture. Important things-"
Reid affected an affronted gasp. "Brains are important!" .
Predictably, Luke rolled his eyes. "You know what I mean! God, for someone with such a healthy ego, sometimes you suck at taking a compliment."
Releasing Luke's hand to wrap an arm around his waist as they walked, Reid leaned in conspiratorially and said in a low voice, "I love compliments. Tell me again how good I am in bed."
"GAH!" Luke wouldn't admit it, but they both knew Reid was driving him crazy. Just as the good doctor intended; he wouldn't have minded if Luke forgot all about the damn steps, and dragged him straight back to their hotel room.
But, no dice. Once Luke Snyder got an idea in his head, he would not be deterred. As they neared their destination, Luke's face fell. He could barely tell the steps were red at all, so thoroughly were they covered by an absurdly high percentage of the weekend's tourist population.
"You were right," Luke conceded.
"No, hey, we can find a spot," Reid insisted. He tugged Luke by the hand towards the steps, then unceremoniously began climbing them. Reid weaved them through microscopic spaces between people, who had to shift sideways to let them pass. Luke mused that they probably weren't winning friends in this ascent, and there'd be no one willing to do them the favor of snapping a picture at all.
Finally, they had to stop several rows from the top. Reid had hoped to navigate there, but even he couldn't move the mass of humanity stuffed onto the last few rows. Still, he immediately looked around for someone to serve as their impromptu photographer.
Noticing a young college-aged girl eyeing them appreciatively, Reid knew he'd found his mark. "Excuse me, miss," he began, in his best impression of a solicitous voice. "I was wondering if you might be willing to take a picture of my boyfriend and I."
"Holy Cas!," the apparently smitten girl gasped.
"Come again?" Reid questioned.
"I mean, sure!" The blushing girl held out her hand to take the camera, which Reid handed over though he now suspected she was a bit weird. Still, he could admit the young woman was attractive in that cute co-ed way, even sporting a ridiculous knit monkey cap which seemed overly warm for June.
Reid pulled Luke close, sliding his arms around Luke's waist as they posed for the camera. Just as the girl snapped the photo, however, Luke was jostled roughly by a stray elbow from behind, causing him to pitch forward. Thankfully, Reid's arm shot out, saving him from doing a header down the stairs, and becoming a human bowling ball that took out several rows of unsuspecting victims with him.
"Let's try again," Reid suggested, but Luke had endured enough of this decidedly unromantic experience.
"No, that'll be fine," Luke interjected, earning a look of disbelief from Reid, who could only imagine how that picture had turned out. "Really, Reid - I just wanna go back to the hotel and relax."
"You won't get an objection from me there!" Reid reached out to get his camera back, and thanked the girl for her time.
"No problem," she enthused. "You guys are the cutest couple we've seen all weekend!"
"We?" Immediately, Reid wondered why he'd even asked, but the question was answered as the girl pointed he and Luke out to what now looked to be her incredibly large group of friends.
"We're friends from all over the world!" This time, it wasn't the girl who spoke, but a brunette woman closer to Reid's age. Whatever. Reid didn't care, and was eager to get Luke back to their room and celebrate their final night in town together.
"Wow, that's cool!" Reid shut his eyes in a pained expression as he heard Luke suddenly take an interest in these strange women. To Reid's chagrin, Luke continued to be sociable. "How did you all meet?"
"Through our favorite soap opera!" Incredibly, several more disgustingly adorable college girls stepped forward, each sporting the same silly hat as the first. Reid wasn't sure which had spoken. Frankly, he didn't give a damn, as his visions of getting Luke into the huge, luxurious bathtub back in their suite began disintegrating.
"Really? That's different," Luke returned, unaware that daytime television shows could produce such real-life interactions. Reid's eyes glazed over as the women all excitedly twittered some more; he saw that several actually were tweeting, after snapping not-so-stealthy photos of he and Luke.
Reid watched Luke happily interact with this group of total strangers, his earlier upset forgotten. He couldn't but help admire Luke in this moment (as in so many). Luke had a naturally inquisitive nature, especially about people, and his interest was always genuine. There was something innate within Luke - an aura, maybe - that exuded from him and drew others to him, everyone wanting to bask in his light.
While he'd never make such a saccharine observation aloud, Reid knew it was true. Luke was special, and it was obvious to anyone who met him. Reid couldn't help but to silently thank the fates for the twelve thousandth time that somehow, miraculously, Luke chose to be with him.
He knew Luke had gotten other offers - and continued to receive them frequently - but for some unfathomable reason, Luke saw worth in Reid. So much so that he not only stayed with him, but seemed genuinely happy to do so. Reid couldn't figure it out, but he wasn't one to question his good fortune.
He never asked why he was given the brains to be... well, a brain surgeon, and he sure as hell wouldn't ask why he was given Luke. He'd just take him, thank you very much, and keep him. Forever...
Reid's brief reverie was interrupted by a petite, pretty woman inexplicably modeling a hot pink wig for this outing. "You would be a big hit in daytime," she told him with an admiring once-over.
"Good God," Reid scoffed. "I pity any poor schmuck working on a soap opera. The dental bills alone from chewing all that scenery would be astronomical." Reid shuddered in distaste.
Though the woman was clearly intrigued by Reid's snark, Luke was offended on her behalf, and stepped in. "Reid, many important social issues were first addressed in depth in the soap opera genre," he contended. Immediately, Luke realized his mistake.
"You watch soap operas?" Reid's face was like a child's on Halloween, Christmas, and the last day of school all rolled into one. His delight at this humiliating discovery could not be contained, and he positively beamed. Which annoyingly, made him all the more stunning.
Luke cringed as what must've been twenty women collectively ignored the obvious slight against their show, while dreamily drinking in the unparalleled vision that was a smiling, sexy Reid Oliver. Oh, brother. Luke knew he'd have no allies in this debate, even though every last woman would otherwise agree with him. It's like Reid was the sun and they were flowers in the garden, powerless to do anything but lean in towards him.
"We need to be getting back to our hotel," Luke announced apologetically to the group.
As the ladies moaned in disappointment, the thirty-something brunette interceded. "Can we at least get a picture with you guys? You've definitely been a highlight of our trip." While her words included them both, Luke noticed her eyes were trained squarely on Reid. Reid noticed, too, and somehow, managed to look even more pleased with himself.
"Sure," Luke smiled. Besides the fact they were nice girls, it would give Luke a little more time to put off the inevitable ribbing over his supposed soap fandom. One of the monkey-hat girls enlisted another tourist to take the picture.
When it was taken, Reid slipped the first girl he'd spoken with his card, much to Luke's surprise. Until he overheard Reid ask her to email him a copy of the pic. Crap, though Luke. Reid was never planning to let this go.