Being pre-occupied with the holidays combined with SON's downtime caused this entry to be a month and week later than the last entry. Of course, I apologize. Honestly, if anyone has any good tips on how to pick a timeframe and stick to it, PLEASE let me know! I honestly don't see how some of you guys have the ability to just pump out material day after day after day. You guys are much better than me!

Anyways, here is part fifteen of our story. Oddly enough, I've decided to make the story run longer because I feel I need more time to develop some things that will become important as the story goes on. Whatever happens, I hope that everyone is enjoying where things are at now! Comments are more than welcomed.

AS THE WORLD TURNS

"Luke & Kevin" Part 15

Lucinda sat in her home office reviewing paperwork for her company. She was back in full force after taking a leave to deal with her cancer. It was so hard for her to just sit there and watch other people make major decisions for the business that she built from the ground up. It was what she had always envisioned it to be and the thought of others running it...it scared her. But she was back now, back where she belonged, and nothing was going to make her leave again.

She exhaled deeply and put her elbows on the desk, resting her chin on the platform made by her fists. She aimlessly looked down at the desktop and picked up the day's issue of her newspaper, The City Times. Thumbing through the pages, looking for something to take her mind off work, she found something that did exactly the opposite, a headline about Sean Davis's death. Lucinda rolled the paper up and threw it across the room into a trash can. She got up and went for the door, but before she could put her hand on the knob, it twisted and the door opened. It was Kevin.

"Um, hello, who are you?" Lucinda asked, rather annoyed that he just slipped into her home without notice. "Can I help you?"

"I'm Kevin Davis," Kevin answered. There was an edge in his voice, but he didn't seem to angry. Of course, this was indeed the woman he blamed for his father's death. It was too easy to just take it all at face value and come to the realization that it was Sean's decision to do what he did and that he had to live with his mistake. No, Kevin had to have someone right there to put the blame on, and somehow, he decided Lucinda was that someone.

Lucinda carelessly let out a little laugh. "Ah yes, of course, of course." In her mind, she thought, "This is just what I needed."

"I wanted to know if you've seen Luke yet today. I went to his house, but the place was empty. No one was there"

The diva was a bit relieved. "No, no, I haven't seen my grandson at all today. You must be the young man who's putting his heart on cloud nine, I presume."

Kevin seemed to ignore that comment. "If you see him, tell I need to talk to him, please." He nodded and turned to walk away.

"Um...young man, I can't express how deeply saddened I am about the news of your father's passing. Please except my deepest sympathies," Lucinda said to him as he stood in the hallway. He turned to face her. "If there's anything that Worldwide can do..."

Kevin couldn't believe that this woman just proposed to give him some sort of consolation prize for losing his father. "No, thank you, I'm fine," he simply said, fearing that she would unleash the anger in him.

Lucinda wasn't convinced, so she continued to try to make him see that she was truly sorry. "I just got off the phone this morning with some of the executives at Worldwide and we've decided to put a memorial plaque in the lobby of our headquarters."

"Why?" Kevin asked before he could stop himself, but now it was too late to stop. "Why spend money on a plaque that he'll never see? Why couldn't you just have let him keep his job? I mean, he was working there ever since you even started the business, I'm sure he deserved more than to be given a pink slip."

Lucinda felt cornered. "His whole division was cut. I assure you that we tried our best to keep your father on board, but what had to be done had to be done. We even set up another job for him at another division, but he refused to take it."

Kevin did not know this. Why on Earth would his father pass up the chance of having another job?

"Of course, he would have had to move to Chicago, but..."

"Move...to Chicago?" Kevin asked. And now it was suddenly understandable to him. His mother lived in Chicago and his father, the selfish jerk, didn't want Kevin to live closer to his mother.

"Yes," Lucinda said. "He said that you wouldn't have been able to adapt so easily to the big city life, so he passed on the job for your own good. Not that I'm blaming you for the events that have occured..."

"I understand," Kevin cut in. He didn't know what to feel at this point. The realization that his father's jealous greed killed him...it just tore through the young man's soul. He could have helped his father! If he had only knew about the job offer...

"I hate to rush you, but I do have some business to tend to," Lucinda said, hoping not to ruffle any feathers. She could sense that she had let him down already, she didn't want to make it worse.

"Oh, of course, I'm sorry," Kevin sincerely replied. "Uh...thank you. Thank you very much."

~~~~~~~~~

Lily put her key into the doorknob of her home and turned. Just as she stepped over the threshold, she could hear her husband's vehicle arrive in the driveway. Following were his footsteps as he took the same path that she had taken not too long before. Lily kept the door open for him and smiled at his presence. It was odd, they had been together on-and-off for years and years, yet they still felt a small rush of excitement when they saw each other. They had gone through so much since their first meeting over twenty years ago, but both were now sure that this was it. They were going to be together forever.

Now, they hugged. "My, my, my," Holden said. "I keep bumping into this woman, this amazing woman..."

"Oh, really?" Lily asked, playing along. "Well, I keep seeing this tall stranger, this dashing debonair man..."

"Oh, really? Well, if I catch the jerk, I'm going to knock his head off!"

"Oh, Holden..." Lily simply sighed as they walked into the living room together. She hoped, hoped, hoped that the conversation would not turn to their teenaged son, but she also knew that it was inevitable that it would.

Unbeknownst to her, Holden also wanted to stay away from Luke conversation. He wanted to believe that they didn't have to always be there for Luke's rescue and that maybe he'd figure out his current troubles all on his own. Like Lily, he also had a feeling that they'd eventually start talking about their son. Instead of beating around the bush with smalltalk, Holden decided to just get started with it.

"Where's Luke?" he asked.

Lily let out a small chuckle. "Luke...well, Luke is on his way to see Kevin, or so he told me."

Holden's face wrinkled with question. "That doesn't sound right."

"He's gone to see Kevin, Holden. I'm not going to just say it like it's nothing, especially after what happened today."

Now she had his attention. Honestly, as long as she planned to go on and on about her disapproval of Kevin, he wasn't going to invest much into the conversation, but now, he wanted to know. "What happened today?"

Lily wanted to take back what she said. She figured that she had already handled the situation herself and she really didn't want to get Holden involved. But, on the other hand, he was Luke's father and he did have a right to know. Really, she was beyond pissed when finding out Luke was gay hit her all at once. All Holden had to do was just tell her that he had suspicions, but he didn't. It would indeed serve him right to be left out in the dark, but Lily knew she couldn't do that to him. He was the man she loved.

"Well...I went to the library earlier today to pick up some books for the girls, and right as I pulled up into the parking lot, Luke...was being heckled by a bunch of guys from his school," Lily said. She tried to make it seem like it was no big deal, but she knew it wasn't working out that way. "I had to break it up, but Luke said that everything was fine."

Holden reacted the way she knew he would. "Wait a minute, you say he was heckled. What are we talking, verbal, physical? Who were these guys?"

"Well, when I showed up, they were all cornering Luke in front of the library, and one of them was holding him down, but I don't think - "

"Oh hell no!" Holden exclaimed. He got up and began to walk away, but Lily's call stopped him.

"Holden? Where are you going? Are you going to do something stupid? They're just immature little kids who don't know how to acknowledge the differences in people! They'll learn, someday they'll learn."

"Yeah, because I'm going to teach them a damn lesson!" Holden said. Never had he been so upset about something. "Where's Luke now?"

"I don't know. We talked for a while at the library then he left. I asked him if he was going to be okay and he said that he would be fine. Come on, Holden, sit down. It's not worth getting worked up over."

Holden sat down next to Lily on the sofa. "This was the last thing I wanted to happen to him. The last thing."

"I know...me too, but...I don't know. Luke is a young adult now. I think he's at the point where he wants to experience things. Think about our own lives. Would we be the same people we are today had it not been for things we've had to deal with in the past?"

Holden let Lily's words soak in. What she said made so much sense to him. He kissed her. "No, we wouldn't. And I guess that maybe you're right...this kind of stuff only makes him stronger. But I just wish that I could eliminate all of that from his life. I want to just take it away for him."

"Holden, so do I! We just have to...we just have to let him do what's best for him and not get in the way."

"Okay...and just who are you? What did you do with my wife?"

"What is that supposed to mean?" Lily was glad that their talk became a more light-hearted. "Is your wife not allowed to be mature and make sense?"

"Oh, she is, but she usually opts to take another route," Holden said. He kissed her again. "I love you."

"I love you too."

"And we both love our son."

"Right."

"And so do the girls. And so do Mama and Lucinda, and Meg, and Jack and Carly."

"And Kevin."

Holden looked Lily in the eyes. "And Kevin," he repeated. "And Kevin loves him too."

~~~~~~~~~

Luke showed up and Nora's apartment late in the morning. It seemed like a lifetime since he and Kevin had been with each other and the thought of being close to the person that he loved was something that kept him burning all through the night and into the morning. It was the prospect of continuing his relationship with Kevin that kept him going. He was quite interested in seeing where this thing would go. They were still only in the beginning stages, but in Luke's mind, there was a whole world ahead of the two of them. But for now, they'd have to help each other get through some things. Luke worried about Kevin's feelings about his father. He knew that their relationship was far from conventional, but he did not know what to expect of Kevin's reaction. Whatever it was, Luke had a feeling that Kevin felt that it was done. But Luke himself knew all too well that it wasn't.

He rang the doorbell twice, but there seemed to be no one home. He rang the bell again, this time following it with a knock. Just as he turned around, ready to give up, the door opened and a strange woman appeared. "How can I help you?" she asked.

Luke felt embarrassed. "Oh, I'm so sorry. I must have the wrong place. The last time I came here, it was dark and -"

"Well, if you're looking for my niece Nora, you're at the right place."

"Oh! Okay, yeah. Wait a second, though...you're niece Laura?" Luke looked at her for a second. "Mrs. Davis?!"

"Yes...and how do I know you?" Sheryl replied, as if she was almost ready to slam the door.

"Mrs. Davis, it's me! Luke Snyder! Kevin's best friend."

Sheryl stepped back and looked at him. "Oh, it is you!" she finally said. She took him into a hug. "It's been so long since I've seen you and you've grown so big and tall, I could hardly recognize you!"

"I almost couldn't recognize you," Luke said. They broke apart. "You look really, really good, Mrs. Davis. You know, Kevin told me about what went on between you and Mr. Davis and I'm glad that you...you know, that you were able to move past that and turn over a new leaf."

"Thank you, Luke," Sheryl said. They went inside. "It was hard at times. Oh, it was so hard. I think the hardest part of it all was not having my son with me. But I knew what I had to do and I knew someday it'd all pay off."

"You're right," Luke said.

They sat down on the sofa. "How do you feel about coming back to Oakdale to bury your ex-husband?"

Sheryl paused and looked at him, telling him that his question made her uneasy. "Or is that really none of my business?" he quickly added.

"No, no, it's not that," Sheryl said. "It's just that you're the first person who's asked me that since I've come here and you know, I really don't know the answer. I feel...I don't know. I feel betrayed because that sense of closure isn't there. I always believed that even though I'd never ever get back with Sean, he could be a nice enough guy for me and him to be friends for Kevin's sake. But that can never happen now. I just want it all to be over with so I can go back to Chicago with my Kevin."

Luke's heart was warmed by that sense of hope that Sheryl had. But then he actually listened to what she said. "Go back to Chicago with Kevin?"

"Yes," Sheryl said.

"When did you all decide that?" Luke asked, kind of sternly.

"Well, he's been staying here with Nora for a few days now and I just wanted him to put Oakdale behind him and - "

"Wow," Luke subconsciously let out, not knowing that he cut off her sentence. He didn't know what to feel now. Kevin was honestly going to leave Oakdale without telling him? No, Kevin would have told him. He was simply waiting for the right time to tell him. "When...when are you guys leaving?"

"As soon as we tie up the loose ends with Sean. He didn't want a service, so that'll make things much easier."

"And then...and then you and Kevin will be moving to Chicago?"

"Well...Kevin isn't completely sure yet if he wants to go with me...but I'm going to give him time. I'm sure he'll see what good it's going to do him."

Luke suddenly felt sick. His breath grew short and he became scared. The last time this happened...the last time was too scary to even revisit. He took a deep breath. "I'm going to leave...I have to go outside to get some air."

He went for the door and as soon as he was outside, he pulled out the inhaler that he had to use and took a puff from it. He looked at his car and didn't even think to go back to say goodbye to Mrs. Davis. She was not on his happy list at this moment.

But then a car pulled into the parking lot of the apartment complex. Luke didn't recognize it, but it parked right next to his, so he hesitated going to his car. He didn't want to run the risk of getting mugged or something. But then Kevin exited the car and said goodbyes to the guys inside, thanking them for the ride. As the car drove away, Kevin noticed Luke standing outside Nora's door.

"Oh my God, Snyder, I've been looking for you all day! Where you been?"

Luke looked at him. "I went to the library earlier today. And that's about it."

"Oh okay," Kevin said. "We should go inside, it's getting really frosty out here considering it's summer. Come on."

Kevin took Luke's hand in his and as Kevin put his key into the knob, Luke remembered that Sheryl was sitting inside and she would probably wonder why her son was holding hands with him. The door opened and he quickly jerked his hand out of Kevin's. Obviously not a good idea, as Sheryl was no longer in the living room.

Kevin was surprised by Luke's action. "What's the matter?" he asked as he closed the door behind them.

"Your mother is here," Luke replied.

Disappointed, Kevin rolled his eyes. "You want to go somewhere else?"

"No, I'm fine here. As a matter of fact, I wanted to ask you something about her."

Kevin sighed. "Don't ask me any questions about her, because I can honestly tell you that I'm just as clueless as anybody about her."

Luke took another deep breath. "Actually, it's more about you and her. It's more about you moving to Chicago with her."

"Did she tell you that?" Kevin asked, annoyed. "Did she honestly tell you that?"

"Yes, and it seemed like things are pretty set as far as that's concerned. Why didn't you tell me that you wanted to move?"

"Because I don't! She wants me to move with her, but I'm not going. I'd rather move back into the charred remains of the happy, happy Davis home that move to Chicago. Why...why would I even consider that now that I got you?"

Luke couldn't explain his feelings at that point. He felt that he had overreacted about the whole thing. His breath now back to normal, he smiled at Kevin. It was one of those smiles that said "Come here."

Kevin understood it perfectly and walked closer to Luke. "I told you that I love you and that means that I'll never leave you."

"Of course," Luke said. Kevin put an arm around him and then came the kiss. And soon, both of them had their arms around each other in a soft but passionate lip lock.

As they found themselves in this familiar place yet again, one of them kissing the other to make him feel better, they seemed to forget that they were not alone. Sheryl had gone into Nora's bedroom to find herself something to sleep in and to take an aspirin, but once she realized that she heard her son's voice coming from the living room, she returned. She came down the hall way and before she knew it, she saw it. She saw her son and his boyfriend, standing by the front door, holding on to one another and kissing as if there was no tomorrow.

TO BE CONTINUED...