I do not own Professor Layton!

Chapter 6

When the truth comes out:

Luke layed in his bed, hiding his head in his pillow. He couldn't believe, that everything had come out now the Professor knew it, he knew that Luke had to live on the street, he knew that Luke had no money and of course he knew that Luke was no true gentleman. While clinging to his pillow with all his strength he could feel something under it. Slowly he came back to himself and sat up in his bed to take a confused look at what he had just found in his hands... The list... Somehow Luke began to understand. Now he could see what he had become. He had lied to his mentor, the only person in the whole world who still cared about him. He had stole something from the Professor, which he wanted to use to find out, what was going on with him. Luke felt awful, what had he done. His thoughts were broken, by a knocking noise, that came from his door.
:"Knock Knock."
"My boy, please come out. I think we need to talk.", a comforting voice said
Silence crossed the house.
"Luke, please. You- I mean. Why didn't you tell me this before?"
Again Luke said nothing, he was unable to speak to the person, who's trust he had broken.
"My boy, I'm so sorry. It is not easy for me to accept Clark's and Brenda's dead and therefor it must be even harder for you. But Luke you could have talked to me about this. Please Luke... say something... anything. Talk to me."
The Professor really sounded desperate, Luke could hear that, and he really wanted to talk to the Professor, but on the other hand he didn't because he behaved so terribly and Luke knew it was hard to talk about his parents without crying, if he'd had to apologize to his guardian, he definitely wouldn't be able to hold back his tears in front of the Professor. Everything Luke did, was writing a little note, which said "I'm sorry" and pulled it under his bedroom door to the floor, together with the telephone-list he had stolen from his mentor.
There was a long period of silence, Well, sometimes the Professor said things like
:" Please Luke, open up." or :"My boy, you know you can always talk to me"
But Luke did not answer.
When the clock turned midnight, Luke was sure that the professor had left and so he packed all his things together and took his jacket. It was time for him to go. in this case, he wouldn't be able to hurt anyone again, by cheating his trust.
When Luke got everything he needed he walked towards the door as quite as he could to open the door very slowly. And he was right, he couldn't see the Professor anywhere. Luke took a step forward and turned around to close the door. But he just had closed the door and wanted to turn around again, he was interrupted by a comforting hand touching his shoulder. Luke winced, in shock he turned around and fell with his back directly to the wall behind him, where he accidentally pressed the light button and turned the light on. There stood the Professor, with a sad expression. Luke looked down at his bag back, which had fell down , when he had turned. He planned on the thought that he could just take it and run... run down the stairs, out of the house, through the London-streets. But then...
:"Please my boy. Stop running away."
That hit a nerve, Luke sunk together to sit down, leaning his back to the wall, behind him. He showed an empty facial expression and the Professor just sat down next to him and began to talk.
:"Luke... Come now my boy. Why didn't you tell me about ..."he hesitated and Luke looked sadly because he already knew, what the professor was about to say:"-about your parents death."
Luke took a deep breath and realized that he was shivering. But he did not talk.
:"My boy, sooner or later you have to talk to me, otherwise we'll have a very dismally life here."
This sentence gave Luke hope. Did the Professor just said that Luke was allowed to stay... Stay here in London, with him. The Professor broke Luke's silence. He finally spoke again.
:"I-I-I'm sorry.", he said.
The Professor was startled by Luke's sudden reaction.
:"Why, my boy? What for god's sake did you do?, the Professor asked, to show that Luke didn't have to feel guilty for any of his actions.
:"I- You- ... I don't know. I mean, I behaved so ... totally wrong and ... After M-m-mom and Dad d-died", that was hard to speak out:"I couldn't go to school or contact anyone and I was forced to take the ship here illegal."
Wow that was hard for Luke to say, the Professor could truly feel the hell Luke had gone through the past year. Now the Professor could understand, why Luke had behaved strangely all the time. Why he winced when he touched Luke's shoulder and why his handwriting seemed to be untrained. This explained everything.
:"Luke, my boy. I can understand your acting in the past weeks and I can understand, why you wanted to run away. But what I can not understand is why you didn't tell me about this. Luke I do not want to accuse you for anything, because I think you had to handle too much in the past months but would you at least tell me why you don't trust me anymore or why you lied to me about this?"
Luke hesitated for a while, unable to even understand why he acted like this. But then he tried to explain his stupidity.
:"To be honest I don't know. I think I just didn't want to lose your respect. But I guess that didn't work."
"Luke why do you think you would lose my respect, because your parents died? This is not your fault. Not at all.", he said, while bursting a little.
:"B-because I couldn't study, I wasn't able to learn something , I became silly and also I had to steal food, after my parents... after their-...", Luke couldn't finish this sentence.
His voice broke and Luke could feel a tear running down his left cheek." Oh no" he said to himself. He was not going to cry not in front of the Professor. NOT NOW!
:"Luke, I know, it couldn't have been easy for you in the past but you have to understand that I'll always be there for you whenever you need help. I'll help you as good as I can, but I need you to trust me.", the Professor said while wiping away Luke's tear.
:"I do trust you. I just... I thought I couldn't handle it if you where disappointed in me. I couldn't handle to lose you, too, the last person on Earth that cares about me."
Luke felt silly by saying this. But he couldn't find any other words.
:"Luke, listen to me," the Professor ordered, while putting both hands on Luke's shoulders and turning his body, that he could look Luke directly in his eyes.
:"I'm not and I am never going to be disappointed in you! And you know why?",This was no question,"Because, in the passed years you've become one of the most important persons in my life and, just like you, I couldn't handle to lose you. You had no opportunity than stealing from others to survive and you had no opportunity to visit schools. Just because you weren't able to do the important things for life, doesn't mean that you've become a bad person. It only means that you had to learn, how some people have to fight for their existence, in a terribly and efficient way. And Luke,my boy there is nothing in the world that could ever make me think any different of you. You're still the kind and true young gentleman you were all those years ago. And I'm admiring you."
That startled Luke :"Why?, that doesn't make any sense."
:"It does my boy. Because you had to go through hell in the past year. You had to do it all alone and you even tried to hide this from me, because of your gentlemanly pride. This is what forms you a true gentleman. The fact that you had to fight for your surviving and still stayed loyal to yourself. You haven't changed Luke. You just think you did."
The Professor's statement made Luke look confused, unable of understanding what his father... - Oh no his mentor had just said... Something was going on in Luke's mind had he just though of the Professor as his father.
:"So you are not going to send me away?", Luke asked hopefully and was a little shocked of the Professor's next action.
The Professor leaned a little more forward and suddenly his hand weren't at Luke's shoulders anymore, they were at his back and his head, pulling Luke into a tight hug.
:"What father would throw his son out on the streets.?", the Professor said
Now everything was in Luke's hands. He could push away and make the point that the Professor was not his father or he could wait it our and then try to explain logically, why he doesn't think of the Professor has his father of he could try another opportunity, which he chose. There a moment of silence, what made the Professor almost driving crazy, what if he had just ruined everything. But all Luke was thinking about was if Clark had been his real father all the time, even if he never had time for him or if his real father had been the person that taught him everything, that has always been there for him, that would never leave him. Now Luke knew exactly what to do.
With all his strength Luke cling to the Professor's sleeve burring his face in the Professor's chest, still trying to fight against his tears but he was starting to shiver by trying that.
:"My boy, it's okay. There's nothing you need to be ashamed of.", said a very lucky and also startled Professor.
That was the moment when Luke let everything go. He totally broke down and let out all his pain. The pain he had to fight back in the past months. While holding the Professor tight Luke cried, sobbed, shivered... He did everything he couldn't do for a very long time while the Professor was stroking through his hair.
There was only one thing left, that Luke had to do now. He didn't know what exactly would be the Professor's reaction but he knew that he had to do it.
When Luke held through the Professor's coat even tighter he said a word, that made the Professor smile and finally feel happy again.
:"Dad!", Luke cried.
Even if that small word, had almost disappeared in a sob, the Professor understood it and held the boy close. This was the point where Luke was able to act normal again.