Disclaimer: I don't own ATWT because I would never have been stupid or cruel enough to kill Reid….Bitter? who me?

AN: Here is the next chapter! I hope you like it. If you do, please review!

Chapter 14

"You got a house! Really?" Allison exclaimed as Luke told her the good news. Katie had told her all about Luke and her looking for a house together and how badly that had gone. "Wow. Last I heard you had gone to all the houses on sale around here and disliked them and all of a sudden you're making a deposit on a house with . Did you change your mind about a house?"

"No, not at all. Katie knew this guy who knew this woman who's a real estate agent, and it turns out that the agent had a house on sale that wasn't announced anywhere because the old woman who owned it had very precise criteria she wanted to see in the potential buyers. So Reid and I went to visit the house and the elderly woman this week-end and signed on the house today."

"Wow. That means you met her criteria."

"uhm uhm" Luke nodded, sipping his milkshake. Allison and he had decided to go out, just the two of them. "I was a little nervous since Reid tends not to make the best first impression…."

"No kidding" interrupted his friend, snorting.

"but it turned out that her late husband Herbert was as socially inept as Reid. I think it played in our favour. I think she wanted to find people for whom the house would mean as much as it did for her late husband and herself. And she did. Oh Lord Alli, you should see that house. I couldn't have dreamt for a better house than this one. It's perfect. "

"It must have been hard for the old lady to leave after all these years."

"Yes. She loved that house so much I felt I needed to have her permission to add a pool."

"Really?" It surprised her although it really shouldn't. Luke was very sensitive towards others and always wanted to please people. "Did she give it?"

"Yeah. Turns out it was one of her dreams but they never could afford it. I promised to send her pictures when the pool is done."

"Aww. That's so nice of you. I'm sure that means a lot to that woman. Plus, finally you'll have a place where you can swim with Reid without him having a minor freak out!" Both friends laughed at that. It was kind of cute how Reid disliked unsanitary water.

"Soooooo….when do I get to see that dream house of yours?" Allison was excited. Her friend's eyes had lit up when he had talked about the house. She couldn't wait to see it. Plus, Luke moving in the house meant she would get to move in with Katie and she couldn't wait for that either. The older woman was such a joy to be around and such a comfort too. She knew Reid and Katie were close and the separation would be hard on Katie but she intended to be there for the other woman every step of the way just like Katie had been for her about Casey.

"Well….since the house had been on sale for a while, everything was pretty much ready for the sale already so we're moving in this weekend. You are, of course, expected to be there and help us move in."

"I'll be happy to. Tell you what. How about I help you start packing your things today. This way, you won't have to confront Lily on your own."

Luke suddenly frowned. He had been so excited about the house and moving in with Reid, he had completely forgotten about the situation with his mother. Oh Lord. How was he supposed to tell her he was not only moving in with a man she disapproved of but actually buying a house with him? Buying a house with someone was a big step; it showed how serious Luke and Reid's relationship is. While he hoped with all his heart that that would show his mother Reid wasn't a phase and maybe help her realise just how important Reid was to her son, he doubted it. If anything, it would make her even more furious and determined to make Luke break things off with Reid.

"You had forgotten about your mother hadn't you?"

"Completely" Luke said dismayed. "God, Allison, what am I gonna do? We got into a huge fight last time I saw her and now I'll be announcing that I'm leaving the house for good, and that I'm moving in my own house with Reid. I have absolutely no idea how she'll react."

"uhm. Maybe packing today is not the brightest idea. We need to think of a plan to make things as smooth as possible. Do you think...Do you think maybe your dad could talk to her about you moving out? I mean, she hasn't been acting towards you as if you're an adult and nothing you did to try and make her understand you're an adult worked. Maybe your dad can talk some sense into her. I'm sure he has loads of experience as to how to deal with your mother. I mean, beside your dad, the only one who could do it would be your grandmother but considering their issues, it might make things even worse."

"Very true. As much as I love grandmother Lucinda, I'm not involving her in this. Uh. You know I've just realized it's not just my mom I need to announce my moving out to. I have to tell the whole family. I'm not even sure grandmother knows about Reid at all. What if they think we're moving in together too soon? We haven't even been dating for a year."

"Who says you need a year before living with someone? Plus, you just spent the last couple of months basically living with Katie and Reid. It won't be that surprising. Besides, some people get married after dating for four months."

"Yeah…"

"Uhm. Somehow, I get the feeling if Dr. Oliver were here he'd says something like 'especially in Oakhell' " Luke and Allison started laughing. Reid would definitively say something like that. It was true that people in Oakdale tended to marry often. Just look at Luke's parents. How many times had they been married? And divorced?

"You know what Alli, I think your idea has some merit. I'll go talk to dad today. But before that, let's spend some quality time together!"

Luke was sitting at the kitchen table at the Snyder farm, waiting for his dad and Molly to get here.

"Luke hey" His father said as he entered the house. "What are you doing here? Did something happen with your mother? Molly told me Lily hasn't been very accepting of you and Reid."

Luke scoffed. "That's an understatement Dad. We had a huge fight last week. I've been staying with Katie and Reid ever since. And now something new has come up and I need to go back to the house and tell mom something important that will make her completely freak out."

"What is it? Is it something serious?" Holden asked worriedly.

"It isn't something bad Dad. Quite the opposite. There's actually two parts. One, I'm not going to live at mom's anymore and two, I've bought a house with Reid and we're moving in this weekend."

"You….You bought a house?" Holden asked surprised. Sure he knew the doctor and his son were serious in their relationship but he hadn't thought they would be doing things so quickly. Then again, Reid was older than Luke; Holden could understand his wanting to settle down. "Well that's… that's great, son. Congratulations!" He said giving his son a hug.

"What are we congratulating Luke about, honey?" Molly asked, entering the house.

"Reid and I have just bought a house."

Molly's face lit up. "That's amazing news!" She exclaimed, hugging her soon to be step-son. "I'm so happy for you Luke. You and Reid deserve the best." Then her smile went away. "Oh. How did Lily handle that?" She asked, fearing the answer. Lily….well Lily and she didn't like each other for many reasons, but Molly could have gone pass that for Holden and the children's sake. However, she personally thought Lily was acting absolutely ridiculous and cruel towards Luke. He was a grown up. A young grown up but a grown up nonetheless. She had to let him live his life. Plus, how in the world could the other woman not see how Reid was so much better for Luke than that Noah had been. Honestly. Molly had had her fair bit of unhealthy relationships; she knew how to recognize one when she saw one and Luke and Noah screamed unhealthy.

"Actually, it's why I'm here. I was wondering if maybe you could try to talk to her, Dad. At least to try and make her accept I'm moving out. I know she doesn't like Reid and disagrees with me dating him but I feel that my moving out would be a problem even if I wasn't moving in with Reid so…."

"Sure. I'll talk to your mother. Don't worry Luke. Things will settle down. Maybe this will make her realize how serious Reid and you are towards each other and help her accept him." Holden said, offering Luke a smile. Molly frowned. There he was thinking the best about Lily again. Personally, she doubted this is what would happen and by Luke's expression, she wasn't the only one in doubt. If Lily continued like this, she'd have destroyed most relationships with her children. Faith had had issues with Lily for some time, Nathalie was angry with her over her non-acceptance of Reid and making Luke sad and now Luke dreaded having to talk to her. Most of Lily Walsh children were closer to Molly than to her and it wouldn't change anytime soon if that woman didn't wake the hell up! Molly really hoped that Lily wouldn't get her claws on Luke. She could really hurt him. Hopefully, she'd go with the ignorance technique. It would hurt Luke sure but not as much as if she opened her mouth and ranted at him.

"Thanks Dad. I really don't know how to talk to her right now."

"It'll be okay son. I promise."

That night, Holden Snyder went to his ex-wife house to talk to her. He hoped things would go well. He was in for a disappointment.

"Hello Lily. I was wondering if we could talk."

"Of course Holden. Come on in. What did you want to talk about?"

"Luke"

Automatically, Lily's smile disappeared. "What about Luke" She said coldly, crossing her arms on her chest. 'Alright, that wasn't a good start…' Holden thought.

"Luke told me about your recent…disagreement and… uhm… it made him think about many things, one of which being that as he is an adult now, so it might be the time for him to spread his wings for good" Holden and Luke had had a long discussion about everything that had went on with Lily and what he could tell her.

"Meaning?"

"Meaning he feels ready to live his life as an adult and that means moving out for good this time. No more coming back. He's ready to settle down. And I personally agree with him that it's a good move. Luke has been through so much in his young life that he's older in his head than most people his age and most people his age are not living with their parents anymore. I think it's time."

"What are you not telling me? Why isn't Luke telling me this?"

"Well" Holden started, feeling a little uneasy. "After the big fight you had last time, he's not really sure how to go about talking to you anymore. I think he was scared of your reactions. He feels that you haven't been treating him like an adult lately and might not see him moving as something positive and necessary."

Lily looked at Holden attentively. No. There was more than that.

"There's more than that Holden. You're not telling me everything." And then suddenly, it clicked. "No! No! Tell me it's not what I think! Tell me my son isn't thinking about moving in with that…that…man!"

"Lily…" Holden started.

"No! I forbid it! He will not be moving in with that Dr. Oliver."

"Forbid it!" Holden exclaimed, getting riled up. "Lily! Are you listening to yourself? Our son is an adult. We do not have any say in how he lives his life. He can make decisions by himself. Like I said, he's been through a lot and that made him grow up. He knows what he wants. This isn't a phase! This isn't a teenager playing the rebel by disobeying his parents' wishes. This is an adult who is moving in with the man he loves and who loves him back."

"They don't love each other! Luke still loves Noah and thatman is not capable of love." She said, a high level of disgust thrown in with the word 'man'. "Obviously, Dr. Oliver has manipulated our son into thinking he likes him. I don't know how he did it but I'm not letting him continue!"

Holden was shocked. He didn't even know what to say to that.

"Lily….I've met Reid Oliver and I can tell you that no one loves our son Luke as much as him. They're completely in love with each other and if you don't let go of this….Lily…Luke was too scared to come talk to you. Our son was scared of you, of your reaction. Is that how you want Luke to see you? As someone who is denying him the little bit of happiness he's found? I don't know why you dislike Reid Oliver so much but whatever it is, get over it! Because our daughter Nathalie is already angry at you over all the fights you had with Luke and Luke is scared of you…is that the kind of relationship you want to have with your children? Is that the relationship you want with your son? A relationship even more strained than the one you have with your own mother? I've often heard you complain about Lucinda treating you like a child and thinking you can't make your own decisions. What does it say that our son has now the same complain about you?" Holden asked, leaving his ex-wife to her thoughts. Maybe he had been harsh with her but this couldn't continue like this. She was hurting Luke and Holden would do everything to protect his son's happiness.

Lily Walsh had had a bad night. Her ex-husband had pissed her off. How dare he? Who was he to judge her relationship with her children? And why couldn't he realise that she was simply protecting her oldest son? Obviously, Reid Oliver was not the man for their Luke. How could anyone think he was? Well, obviously Molly would. They were cut from the same cloth. Nothing good ever come with them. No. Her son would not be moving in with Reid Oliver. She would talk some sense into him. She would….Lily paused. Luke and she weren't on speaking terms. Obviously, he was in some rebel state. His mother's word wouldn't matter to him. No. She needed someone whose opinion was important to Luke. Someone Luke listened to….a friend….or….of course. Noah would know what to do. Noah's opinion had always been important to Luke. Yes. He was perfect. He would talk some sense into her baby.

Noah Meyer was mad and completely shocked. What in the world was his ex thinking? First kissing Dr. Oliver, which was bad enough, but now he was actually moving in with the guy? Crazy. Noah hadn't wanted to talk to Luke after the way Luke had betrayed him, but obviously someone needed to set him straight. Enough was enough. He had let Luke go to Oliver, letting him experience first hand how awful a relationship with the guy would be. Noah wanted Luke to learn his lesson. Then, maybe Noah would forgive him and they would be back together. But not before Luke had apologized and admitted his wrong doing. He couldn't believe Luke! Moving in with Oliver! Was he completely stupid or what? Did he really think Oliver loved him? Loved him like Noah loved him? Surely he wasn't that foolish…then again….Noah shook his head. Sometimes Luke could be so painfully naïve. Obviously, Luke needed someone to think for him. Thank goodness Lily had contacted him. They couldn't let Luke commit this travesty.

Luke didn't know what to do. Noah had just texted him, saying that he needed to see him urgently. He really didn't know what to do. Was he really ready to face Noah after everything? His relationship with Noah had been difficult and had hurt a lot. It was so easy with Reid in comparison. He didn't have to be afraid of Reid's reaction although he did feel fear at the moment. But it wasn't because he thought Reid would blow his top if he met Noah or make him feel guilty or anything like that. No. It was just an instinctual reaction leftover from his relationship with Noah. He still had issues but maybe talking to Noah would help. Maybe Luke could take this opportunity to have a serious talk with Noah about what went wrong in their relationship. Then again, maybe not. Casey still wasn't talking to Noah, which could indicate that the other boy hadn't changed his opinion yet. But then, why contact Luke at all? Did something bad happen? Obviously, it was something important. Luke was indecisive. On one hand he still cared about Noah and wanted to make sure everything was okay, on the other hand, he was terrified as to how things would go. Luke sighed. He didn't know if he could handle it if things went bad. In any case, he had to tell Reid about this. He had been looking at his phone for the last 15 minutes. Reid was in his lunch break so this was the perfect time but still he hesitated. 'Stop it Luke.' Luke thought to himself. 'This isn't Noah! Everything will be fine.' Luke took his phone and dialled Reid's number.

"Hey Reid!" Luke said with a falsely happy voice.

"What's wrong Luke?" Reid asked concerned. Something was wrong in his boyfriend's voice. Something was clearly upset. Did Lily do something?

Luke let out a small nervous laugh. "You know me so well. Uhm. Listen, I just got a text from Noah saying he needed to see me urgently and..uhm..I wanted to tell you and ask you if…"

"Luke" Reid interrupted. "You don't have to ask me for permission to talk to Mayer. Do I like the guy? No. Do I like the idea of you being with him in any way, shape or form? No. Do I have the right to say anything about you meeting him? No. I'm not your keeper. I'm your boyfriend and as much as I dislike the idea of you going to see Mayer, I accept it. You told me before you wanted to stay friends with him. And yes, we've fought about it. However, that was some time ago. Things have changed. I'm not insecure about Noah Mayer anymore. I know who you love and who you have a good relationship with and that person's name doesn't start with a N."

Luke let out a relieved sigh. "I know. I just….I was worrying over nothing. I knew you wouldn't get angry with me, it's just…."

"You're used to your boyfriend doing so. I know."

"Yeah"

"My only concern is whether or not you're ready to talk to Noah or not. You told me some time ago that you weren't. I don't want you to go there only to get hurt Luke."

"I…I can't guarantee that won't happen because I have no idea what this is about but I do know I'm much stronger than I was back then. You make me strong Reid. I won't let him walk all over me anymore. I'm no one's doormat and I think it's time Noah knows that. I'll go meet him. I just….just be prepared for me not being top shape tonight. It could turn ugly."

"Don't worry. I'll be ready for that eventuality." Well, actually, they would be ready because he had every intention on telling Allison and Katie about this meeting. If it went badly, the three of them would be needed in order to cheer Luke up.

"All right. I love you Dr. Oliver." Luke said.

"Love you too Mr. Snyder"

Luke Snyder was nervous. He was meeting with Noah after many months of not seeing him and them fighting the last time they had seen each other.

"Luke!"

Luke turned around and his heart started beating faster…..because of the intense wave of stress hitting him once he saw Noah's angry face. Oh this was going to be bad. 'Be strong Luke. You can do this!' Luke thought.

"What in the world are you thinking? Are you completely stupid?"

Luke frowned. "No actually Noah, I'm not stupid. Can I know what this is about? No wait let me guess, this is about Reid."

"Reid?" Noah said nastily.

"Well yeah. I can't very well call my boyfriend Dr. Oliver all the time, can I?" Luke tried to joke….failing miserably. Oh this wasn't going to go well.

"Boyfriend? I doubt he thinks so."

"Actually he does" Luke answered carefully, not quite knowing what Noah was trying to say.

"Oh sure, he tells you he does but to him, you're just someone he can manipulate. This latest development just proved it."

"And what development is that exactly?" Luke asked, crossing his arms on his chest.

"Going to live together? Why do you think that is? A place where he doesn't have to pay and can get someone to do whatever he wants! Talk about paradise."

Luke was shocked. How did Noah even know Reid and he were moving in together? "Noah! When you know nothing of something, you're better not to talk about it!"

"What you think he loves you? He probably likes the cash and an easy lay!"

"Excuse me?" Luke said, getting mad. "Wow is that what you think of me? Someone whose only worth is his money and sex. Well, geeze Noah, thank you so much. It's so good to finally know the truth. Wow, I wonder why we're broken up." Luke said sarcastically.

"Well it is why we're broken up. If you weren't so stupid as to fall for Oliver's manipulation, we'd still be together!"

"Really? That's funny because I distinctively remember asking you whether it was all or nothing and you choosing nothing. I remember breaking up with you months before Reid and I got together. We broke up because we clearly weren't in love with each other anymore."

Noah was shocked. "Is that what Oliver makes you believe?"

"Nobody makes me believe anything. This is what happened. Because you see Noah, something I've learned with Reid is that, if you really are in love with someone, you don't hold him responsible for something bad happening to you, you don't keep pushing him away and you don't treat him like shit!"

"I never treated you like shit!"

"Well you certainly made me feel like it. Everything was my fault when we were together Noah. Hell, forget when we were together. It's still my fault now, only now I'm sharing the blame with Reid. Have you ever stopped to think that it takes two to tango and that you were as much at fault as me?"

Noah was so angry that he didn't know what to say.

"Look Noah. I didn't come here to fight." Luke said, calming himself down. This wasn't going anywhere. "Just say what you wanted to tell me and go."

"I wanted to talk some sense into you!"

"About buying a house with Reid? Why? It doesn't concern you."

"I still love you, Luke."

"You've got a funny way of showing it, telling me I'm stupid."

"You're acting like it!"

"How? How is it stupid to move in with the man I love and who loves me back."

"He doesn't love you back!" Noah exclaimed. Couldn't Luke see that!

"So what? You think he's with me for a free place and sex, that's it?" Noah's silence answered Luke's question. "Right. That's why Reid insisted he pays half the house and half the pool. That's why Reid was ready to wait for me for however long I needed before having sex with me. Get real Noah!"

"No you should get real! Okay so Oliver pays half. Doesn't mean he loves you. Doesn't mean he'll stick around when you start pulling shit! What you think he'll stay when you start drinking again? Or kissing another grandfather of yours! I stayed because I love you. Someone lesser wouldn't have stayed through all your shit!"

Luke looked at Noah in disbelief, hurt filling him. He couldn't believe Noah would bring his alcoholism. "Reid loves me for whom and what I am, Noah. He knows I'm an alcoholic and you know what? He didn't run scared. He went to talk to Carly and Jack and is prepared to go to meetings to learn how to be there for me. Just because you don't think I'm worth anything and you don't think that I'm loveable or that someone can love me with all my faults, doesn't mean everybody else thinks like that" Luke said, tears falling down his cheeks. He couldn't believe Noah thought so low of him.

"That's not what I said" Noah said angrily.

"It's what you implied! You know Noah, I used to think you had genuinely loved me. That we both had loved each other and that with time that had gone away with all the problems and fights we had. I knew I was the one in the relationship always giving everything to the other. I knew I was always the one blamed for everything although we were both to blame but this…"

"Look, Luke, I'm just trying to look out for you."

"I don't need someone to look out for me. I'm with Reid now, not with you."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"That you've hurt me more than anyone else before, repeatedly and that when I was with you, I could have used someone looking out for me. You made me feel like shit while Reid makes me feel like I'm the greatest person in the world. You and I weren't good for each other. Reid and I are."

"You're…..I can't even say!" Noah said. He couldn't believe how badly Oliver had gotten to Luke. He manipulated him into thinking Noah hadn't loved him. "Don't you see this is Oliver speaking!"

"No, Noah. If I was Reid, I would be silent, forcing myself to be mature and not insult or punch you. This is not Reid talking. This is me. After a lot of thinking, something you should have been doing in the last few months because you still think Reid is the reason we're not together and he's not. You need to wake up and get a clue Noah. I wanted to stay friends with you but not like this. You accusing my boyfriend of things you have no clue about, insulting me….You know what Noah. I don't need this in my life. When you've thought about things and got your head out of your butt, come and talk to me. Until then, I think it's better if we go our separate ways. "

"You really think he loves you?" Noah scoffed.

"I don't think so. I know so! Because unlike you, every single action Reid does towards me proves to me that he loves me. He doesn't make me feel like shit or that he's a Saint to agree to be with me! And…and" Luke was so pissed, he couldn't continue talking. "Think what you want Noah. Right now, I'm so pissed at you that I don't care. You need help Noah. You need to get your head on straight. Until then, please do us both a favour and stay the hell away from me!" Luke said, leaving Noah standing behind.

When Luke got home that night, Reid, Allison and Katie were in the living room waiting for him, each of them giving him a hug and offering to go punch Noah for him. They could see things had gone badly. But for once in his life, Luke wasn't crushed about his fight with Noah. Yes, what Noah had said and implied had hurt but it wasn't the end of the world….not anymore. Luke knew that if he was able to confront Noah, then he was able to do anything. Although things had gone badly, it was a necessary evil. Luke had needed this talk for a complete closure to his story with Noah. Maybe if the other boy drastically changed attitude and apologized, then they could be friends. But until then, Luke would live without Noah Mayer in his life and for the first time ever, he was okay with that.

AN: There you go for chapter 14. I hope you enjoyed it! I'm not too sure how the confrontation with Noah was so if you could tell me in a review, it would be so appreciated you wouldn't believe it!