EPISODE ONE: Anew Every Morning

Part 2: Rise and Shine

Luke awoke to the obnoxious ringing of his alarm clock, his hungover mind clouded by the throbbing headache.

(O) Turn off alarm

He barely managed to reach out and slam the clock, trapped underneath Nick. They always seemed to wake up in a jumbled mess. Luke and Nick would both insist that the only reason they slept together was because the couch was too uncomfortable, though Luke didn't really mind anymore. He'd learned to deal with Nick.

Though, his body was sore from sleeping fully clothed, his hangover, and Nick crushing him throughout the night. Thankfully, he could feel his friend awakening.

"Get rid of that piece of shit; it's so fuckin' annoying," Nick whined. He was already irritable in the mornings, but especially so when hungover.

"Just get off me. I'm stuck here and I really don't wanna feel your mornin' wood all against me," Luke joked.

"If you hadn't interrupted us, maybe I wouldn't be... Fine. Whatever." Nick rolled over onto his side of the bed.

"Keep dreamin'," Luke teased. Nick just shot him a glare.

(O) Look at phone

"I wonder what that call 'n texts were about." Luke flipped open the cover to his cell phone, noticing that the missed call and messages were from his younger sister, Caitlin. Her texts read, "Please call back when you can Luke," followed by "It is important."

Luke held the phone up to his ear, listening to the voicemail message she had also left. The automated voice confirmed that it had been yesterday night.

Caitlin had said, "Luke, I bet that you and Nick must be livin' large in Atlanta and forgotten about everything by now, but daddy is gettin' worse, and I think you should come visit him. I know that you and Nick have been really busy ever since you left two years ago, and that you and daddy don't get along all the time, but I feel like you should come back to see him again if... um... do you know what I mean?" Her voice cracked. "Please call back soon."

"Fuck," Luke whispered, unable to react much to the news. He did not feel much then except for overwhelming guilt. He and Nick had left their hometown for Atlanta two years ago, as soon as they had graduated college and returned from their infamous road trip. While Nick went back to stop by every once in a while, Luke had neglected to go home since then.

He looked over at Nick, who was pouring himself a bowl of stale cereal. Luke made his way over to the couch, sitting down next to him.

"I'm fixin' to head back and visit for the day," Nick mentioned flatly, reaching for the remote.

[ GO WITH NICK ]

[ REFUSE ]

"I'm comin' with you," Luke decided.

(?) This action will have consequences.

Nick looked back at him, raising his eyebrows. "What? You finally wanna head home? Figured you'd never look back, given it was your 'bright' idea to move out here," Nick bantered.

"Look, man, I know I ain't been back home since we came to Atlanta, and I never came with when you went to visit before, but... it's important now," Luke explained. He thought that Nick understood that something was wrong, seeing that his smug expression turned serious.

Nick looked down, switching their old television on. He didn't press it. "Yeah, okay."

The news reporter began, "Good day, Atlanta. Today is July 20, 2003. As we begin our mid-morning segment, we'd like to discuss…" But neither of them paid much attention to the broadcast. The reporter droned on about the weather, the upcoming elections, rioters, and various local stories. Nowadays, they only had access to a few news networks via their antenna, having been forced to give up cable and any interesting channels a while ago.

"This shit's borin'," Nick complained, reaching for the remote. Luke didn't object.

Nick got up and went to fetch a new top. He replaced his black t-shirt with his old favorite, his trusty Chasers band shirt. Luke smiled, remembering how they had made a stop all the way in Seattle two years ago and listened to the band live as part of that summer road trip. He recalled fighting for Nick's shirt with the band's small, yet devoted, group of fans.

Luke made up his mind and announced, "You know, I think I might have to stay home for a while... more than just today." He knew he had to be there for Caitlin and his mother, Linda, if what he'd feared was really happening now.

"I... think that's a good idea," Nick agreed. He could be daft at times, but he seemed to know what Luke meant. He had probably heard about Luke's father and his worsening condition.

Luke had remained seated on the couch as Nick prepared himself, contemplating the situation and the inevitable. He didn't know what he was going to say. What could he say? It had been two years since he'd left and never looked back. Lately, he hadn't even bothered calling home more than once every few weeks, and he was rarely the one to initiate. His sister or mother were almost always the ones to call first. The guilt was definitely coming back to him.

Thankfully, Nick brought Luke out of his session of brooding. He reached into their nightstand drawer, pulling out a lewd magazine. "Figure I'll need it if we're gonna be home a while," he joked, trying to lighten the mood.

| Yeah, whatever. |

| Seriously? |

| Pervert. |

| … |

"Figures, perv." Luke rolled his eyes, pretending to disapprove. He appreciated Nick's attempt to at least make him laugh.

"I'm the perv now? I've seen your 'french girls,' DiCaprio," Nick teased, grabbing Luke's old sketchbook. Luke chuckled, amused.

Nick began flipping through Luke's sketches. "I sure see why you ended up decidin' to major in art history and not actually drawin' stuff."

"Hey, they're a hell of a lot better than anythin' you could do," Luke retorted, laughing and wresting the sketchbook from Nick's hands.

"Fine... I guess I might give you that one." Nick grinned. "Let's just get goin' already."

Even if he found himself annoyed by Nick's childish antics at times, Luke couldn't deny that he made him smile. He'd have liked to continue joking around with Nick, but he remembered the reason for which they had to go, and began preparing to leave for Tennessee.

(O) Use the bathroom

Luke lifted the toilet seat and emptied his bladder, trying to aim as best as he could. He turned on the faucet, washing his hands and splashing water onto his face to freshen up. He looked up into the mirror, examining his appearance.

"I could probably use a haircut and a shave soon, but I actually do like my mustache and chin stubble. I guess I might start combin' my hair back or to the sides if it gets too long, though," Luke mentioned. His bangs were starting to disturb his eyes. "Maybe I should jus' get it cut real short like Nick does."

(O) Get dressed

Luke opened up their closet, looking at the selection. It mainly consisted of simple tees, sweaters, and jeans. Neither of them paid much attention to their wardrobe. It wasn't like they could afford much more, anyways.

He pulled off his burgundy sweater and pants, replacing them with a simple white t-shirt and a different pair of faded, blue jeans.

"C'mon, man!" Nick slammed the car horn. Luke hadn't noticed that Nick was already outside, impatient as always.

(O) Grab sketchbook

"Can't forget this." Luke made sure to pick up his sketchbook before making his way out, locking the door to their flat. He swung open the car door and got into the shotgun seat. He saw that Nick had brought the magazine with them.

"What? I wasn't kiddin'..." Nick justified, turning the key. Luke just laughed to himself, though he also noticed that Nick was still noticeably more hungover than he was. Thankfully, Luke had always found it easier to recover after a night of drinking.

"Hey, Nick, lemme drive. You had a good deal more than I did last night," Luke said.

Nick looked back at him. "Eh, fine. Whatever."

Luke made his way around the car, chuckling as Nick awkwardly climbed over into the passenger seat. He started the ignition, and they were on the road.