A/N: Next chapter, coming up!
Luke is now 21 and Pearl is 19. The rest of the story takes place AFTER The Phantom Turnabout.
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Chapter Two – The Historical Museum of Los Angeles
Luke – Fourteen Months Later
January
The Historical Museum of Los Angeles. The place that hired my dad to research the Maze Stones seven years ago that lead to us moving to America and my going to Nodir University. I guess it's no surprise that, in my junior year in college, I would intern here. Most days, I did tours (remembering everything was a lot harder then I thought it would be!), but today I was working in the back, sorting through old papers.
And by old, I mean about 300-400 years old. It was quite exciting, really!
"Here you are!" a voice suddenly said from the door to the archives. I looked up from my fortress of paper to see my best friend and fellow intern, Benjamin Willow, walking towards me, carrying two Styrofoam cups and a bag of McDonalds food.
Ducking down on the pretense that I was adjusting a pile, I made a face at his choice of cuisine. McDonalds was gross. I had no idea how some people could survive off the stuff for months on end.
"Hey, Ben!" I called. "Careful. You don't want to step on the Henry I's accounting datalogs," I said, pointing to a slim pile that he nearly stepped on.
"Ah, right," he said, making sure to miss the parchment. "After all, we wouldn't want to loose that riveting piece of history." He carefully sat in a spot next to me that I cleared and pulled out our lunch while I pulled off the silk gloves I'd been using while handling the documents.
"Thanks," I mumbled as he passed me the cup of Sheetz coffee, wishing for some proper tea.
"You're welcome!" he replied, passing me the only thing I'll eat from McDonalds; a yogurt parfait.
"So, you got stuck in the hole too?" I asked, using the 'affectionate' name we interns used for the document archives.
"Yep. Though they told me to go get us lunch first," he said. I nodded, using the spork (really? Who comes up with these ideas!?) to mix my parfait. I looked, a little jealously, at his Big Mac, wishing, not for the first time, that it wasn't so soaked in grease.
I was starving.
Shaking my head, I took a sip of my coffee, only to be pleasantly surprised.
"Oolong tea? With two packets of honey?" I guessed. Ben grinned at me.
"Yep! I remember that's how you made it last time, right?" he asked. I grinned with a nod, sipping it some more.
"So… you and Jessica are no longer a thing," Ben said after a little while. Having finished my tea and yogurt, I had put the gloves back on and returned to the papers, but this made me stop.
"Ben, Jessica and I broke up eight months ago," I said with a laugh. It wasn't a bad breakup. We just realized, after six months of being together, that we weren't right for each other. "Why bring it up now?" I looked over at him, curious, in time to catch his bright red face ducking behind a stack of Queen Elizabeth I's staff records.
"Well, I just…" he mumbled to the yellowing paper. That's when I suddenly realized.
"Wait… just wait… you. You like Jessica," I said, leaning over to see his face again.
"What!? No!" Ben gasped, though I could see his face turn a darker shade of red.
"You do! Don't deny it! Did you like her while me and her were together? I won't be mad if the answer is yes," I assured him, curious. After a moment of hesitation, Ben finally came out of hiding and nodded.
"Good for you! You should ask her out," I said.
"Just like that?"
"Just like that."
"And… what if she says no…?" Ben asked. I studied him for a moment, thinking.
"If she says no, well, that's the worse that can happen. The best is that you two will be very happy together," I replied, getting a small smile from him.
"Well, alright then," he said, looking through the papers and separating them. I turned back to my own work, and, just for a moment, silence fell between us again.
"Hey, Luke? Got any girl's in your life?" Ben asked, breaking the silence once more. I hesitated, studying the paper in my hand.
"Well, yes," I said. "Sort of. We're not dating or anything like that."
"What's she like? Do you want to date?" Ben asked.
"Well, she's shy at first, but she's a very warm person." I smiled, thinking about her. "She's been my best friend since I first moved to America, and although she's been through a lot in her life, and I mean a LOT, she's always just so happy. She never let it effect her." I sorted through the papers as I talked, picturing her in my head. "And she helped me through a lot too. Heh, I've had a crush on her since we first met…"
"But you dated Jessica. And those two girls before her," Ben pointed out, confused.
"And she's dating now. And she dated someone before him." Luke shrugged. "She doesn't like me the same way I like her. That's all."
"You sure?" Ben asked.
"No," Luke admitted with a laugh. "But girl's are complicated! And I didn't want to make it awkward between us. I mean, she is my best friend. More so then you," I said with a grin.
"Hey!" Ben said, swatting at me. I ducked under his hand, but he grabbed my blue hat.
"Give it back!" I said, holding my hand out for it. By hair was a mess, sticking up in every direction. Ben grinned.
"On one condition," he said.
"What?" I demanded.
"The girl you were talking about. What's her name?" he demanded. I laughed.
"Oh, come on, Ben, you should know that already! I'm talking about Pearl Fey, of course!"
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A/N: And here's another chapter. Wonder if I'm just going to finish this tonight. Hm…
