Author's note: Okay, so I just want to say that I'm not sure how fast these chapters are going to come, since I've been getting busier and busier. I'm so sorry for the wait.
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"Dad?"
"Yeah Joan?"
"Leave Luke alone."
Will looked up sharply from the newspaper. "Excuse me?"
Joan took a deep breath. "I talked to Grace yesterday. She said she was so happy where she and Luke were, and that Luke was happy too. Dad, Grace never admits anything, especially that she's happy. She even called Luke by his first name. Not geek, or Rocket Boy, or Girardi. She called him Luke. I think that we should leave them alone, let them come back on their own."
Will looked at his daughter, trying to decipher what she had just said. It's true that whenever the Polanksi girl came over, she always seemed to have a scowl on her face. And Will had never known Grace to call any of his children by their first names. Was Joan right? Should he leave his youngest son and his girlfriend alone together, wherever they might be? If Luke was happy, maybe that was all that mattered...
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Joan drove to the bookstore in a good mood. Things with Adam had finally become normal, a big achievement for them, and her father had though about postponing the search for Luke. Hopefully, that was exactly what God wanted, for Luke and Grace to be somewhere together.
Joan shivered at the thought, but kept reminding herself that God always had a plan, even if it never was obvious. And as much as she found it annoying to do everything God asked, she always like feeling like she helped the world somehow, like with the ripples.
As Joan walked in, her boss was just leaving. "Another wife emergency?" Joan asked. He nodded and grumbled, muttering incoherent words as he sped towards his car.
No one had come in the store for a while, so Joan began to think about what God's plan could be. Surely he didn't want Luke and Grace to... Her mind didn't want to even think the notion. The bell on the door rang, jerking her out of her thoughts. Joan groaned at who it was.
"Speak of the Devil," she said, before she realized what she had said.
"Actually, I don't think you were actually talking, and I am not the Devil, though some do think I am." Soprano-looking God said to her.
"Okay, whatever," Joan said, rolling her eyes. "What do you want? I'm busy today, and I don't have time for riddles."
"I see that the store is pact," God said, gesturing to the empty store, "so I won't keep you long."
"God is sarcastic. Great!" Joan snapped. "Just like the first time we met you were snippy."
"You understood snippy just like you understand sarcasm. It's how I work."
"Yeah, yeah, you work in mysterious ways. I know." Joan sighed. "Just get on with it."
"Did you talk to your father?"
"I talk to him this morning, and since you see everything everyone does, you should know that," Joan said, wanting to get this over with. God was being annoying today, even more than usual.
"No, I mean talk to him, take an interest in what he's doing. Think about it. I'll be back tomorrow," He said, before leaving the store with his signature wave.
Joan felt discourage. She talked to her father, all the time. She didn't know what would be different this time. Groaning, Joan decided to go find a book to get her mind off God for a while.
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When Joan got home, she found her father on the phone with someone. It wasn't often that her father was home before her, and Joan sensed something was up.
"Dad?" Joan asked, cautiously walking into the kitchen. Her father turned to her and raised his index finger to show he would be off in a minute. Joan sat patiently at the table till her father got off the phone. The curious side got the better of her, and she asked, "Who was that on the phone?"
Will frowned. "Remember that kid that Luke used to play with when we used to go up to the mountains?"
"George, or Greg, or something," Joan answered, a little confused to where this was going.
"He got stabbed today."
Joan gasped. She remembered the little kid with big glasses, an older version of Luke. He was probably an adult now, and Joan couldn't bear to think that he was stabbed. "Did he get stabbed in Arcadia?"
Will nodded. "He was passing through and stayed for lunch. He got mugged leaving the restaurant, and got stabbed for fighting back. He was going to visit his grandmother."
Joan felt tears well up in her eyes. "Oh god. That's horrible. Is he going to be okay?" Joan hoped that George would pull through. She had always been found of him when they were younger, and she hoped that maybe she could spend some time with him again. If Luke knew, he would already have gone to the hospital.
"Oh no! Luke doesn't know! They were best friends. He needs to know!" Joan said, hoping her brother would come home because of this.
"We'll have to wait till he calls. He didn't leave a number for us to call," Will said, a shadow passing over his face. He didn't like the fact that he could not reach his youngest son.
Joan nodded. "Okay. I think I'm going to go see Adam." Joan left, her good mood gone.
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Author's note: I'm sooooo sorry I didn't update faster, but my mind was drawing a blank at what to write. I had the plot set up, but didn't know how to deliver it. Plus, I've been so busy with homework, and more and more tests are popping up. I'll try to update faster, but I'm not making any promises. And sorry for the kinda short chapter.