Saturday, Luke's last day at The Royal. Mr Middleditch did the announcement at the briefing, just like the one not so long ago that Luke had interrupted. Surprisingly enough people were genuinely upset, it seemed that in the short time that he'd been there he'd touched just about everybody in some way or another. Luke watched the reactions of everybody, he knew what they were thinking and he thought about how it had all began.
Flashback Outside Hospital
Luke stared after Gordon's car thinking hard, he'd noticed the fact that Gordon often left early, arrived late and sometimes disappeared at odd times, something wasn't right there. In fact there were a lot of things that weren't right at this hospital, the staff were good at what they did but hopelessly incompetent when it came to their personal lives. In reality so was he, he just had a gift, a drive, a need, for meddling and fixing other people's lives.
End Flashback Outside Hospital
Since that day he'd not only played matchmaker with Jill and Gordon. He'd also helped fix Meryl and Frankie's relationship, the bombshell that Frankie had been the father of Samantha Beaumont's baby had threatened to destroy it. He'd been the only one who hadn't judged Frankie, who'd helped him talk to Meryl and sort it out. He'd also been the one to deal with the small problem of Frankie's estranged wife and two children turning up. As he'd explained to Meryl though, you can't plan for true love to occur and when it does you have to hold on to end with all your strength, because, in love, there was no such thing as a second chance.
He'd also helped Jeff and Stella take the first steps on their relationship, the same with Lizzy and Alun. While he hated himself sometimes for meddling in other people's lives, at times when everything went right he felt better about his life. In helping others, he was putting his life to good use, making something of himself. It was this knowledge, and this alone, that stopped him from doing what he'd tried to all those years ago, commit suicide.
When Mr Middleditch announced any other business, Luke stood up, this would be his only chance to say goodbye. What he would say he didn't know, but for once he put his trust in hope.
"I just want to say er . . goodbye I guess and thank you. I've learnt a lot since I came here," to his surprise the words were flowing, for the first time since Rebecca he felt like he knew who he was and where he was going. "Most of all though I want to say thanks for the time that I've had here. I've had the chance to reflect, to work and to do what I'm best at."
Luke shot Jill and Gordon a glance and smiled, everything was going to fine now.
"I've enjoyed working at The Royal probably more than any other hospital, part of me is sorry that I have to leave but I know I'm going onto bigger things."
Luke smiled and looked at the faces, of people who'd become his friends, all together for one last time.
Later that day he walked out of the hospital with no regrets. His work there was done. He'd done as much for The Royal as they'd done for him. Perhaps now was the time for him to take his advice, after all sometimes the best thing you can do is to get on with your life.
A/N: As you can tell I screwed with the timeline totally. Having new characters like Stella and Frankie yet having Gordon still married to Caroline hope it wasn't that confusing.