Houston, Texas, in the Clarke Home, Friday, September 26th, 2030, at 6:15 am

Lucas

I roll over in bed and reach my arm out for Rachel, but she's not there. I try to listen to the house, but I don't hear anything. I check my watch on the nightstand.

6:15. There's no way she's at work yet.

Just then, I hear the bathroom door open and Rachel comes out. She's wearing black dress pants that hug her hips and make her long legs look like they go on forever. Her top is teal colored and has fitted sleeves that stop at her elbows. The neckline is rounded, accentuating her breasts. The top itself is plain, but Rachel looks wonderful. She has her hair curled into long ringlets that fall over her shoulders, and her bangs are curled back into her hair.

She smiles at me when she sees that I'm awake, and walks over to the bed. I can hear her heels clicking along the wooden flooring, and she looks much taller.

"I'm sorry, did I wake you up?" she asks sweetly as she kisses me on the lips.

"No, you're always as quiet as a mouse," Rachel makes almost no noise when she walks around and when she sleeps. Sophie told me that whenever they would go on family trips, she and Rachel would always share a bed, and Sophie would check if Rachel was still breathing because she was perfectly still.

She sleeps like death.

I remember laughing so hard with Rachel's family as Sophie described it. I smile back at her and touch her cheek. She gives me another kiss on my nose and starts to head towards the door.

"I am going to make you breakfast." She winks at me and rushes out the door.

I feel my heart jump into my throat as I remember the jewelry box that I shoved into the silverware drawer. I leap out of bed, throwing the comforter onto the floor. I put on a pair of pajama pants, tripping out the bedroom door. I don't have time to grab a shirt.

I tiptoe down the stairs and stop when I can see Rachel in the kitchen. She hasn't opened the drawer yet. I watch her move around, grabbing ingredients from the fridge and setting them down by the stove. She grabs a cutting board and a knife, and a few bowls from the cupboard. My heart starts to pound as I see her walk over to the silverware drawer at the end of the island. She stops to admire the pink roses sitting proudly on the counter. She touches one of them gently and smiles wide for a moment, until her face falls.

She looks very sad all of a sudden.

Rachel shakes her head, as if she's trying to shake out a bad thought. The sound of spoons rattling fills the house as she pulls it open. Her eyes widen as she stares into the drawer. She smiles slightly as she reaches in and pulls out the black velvet box I stashed in there out of panic.

She looks around the room for a moment, to see if I'm there. She can't see the stairs from where she's standing in the kitchen. She looks back down at the box and gingerly opens it. Her face lights up as if there's a lamp shining on her from inside the box. She covers her mouth with her free hand and closes her eyes.

I slowly walk down the rest of the stairs, and Rachel jumps when she sees me.

"Lucas! I'm sorry..." She starts to close the box and put it down.

"No, it's for you," I chuckle and walk over to her. Hey eyes look me over slowly, and I remember that I'm not wearing a shirt. I can feel my cheeks heating up again. "I sort of forgot to put that with the rest of the stuff," I say as I gesture towards my arrangement of flowers and snacks. "You came home right as I was finishing setting this all up, and I tossed the box in the drawer," Rachel giggles at me and rubs her forehead.

I watch her face as she looks back down at the opals in the box. She lights up again and a wide grin spreads across her face. I walk over to her and place my hand on her elbow. She looks up at me, her eyes full of joy and adoration.

"Lucas, you didn't have to get me anything like this," she whispers, glancing at the jewelry again.

"I know, I wanted to," I move my hand around to her back and rest my other arm on the counter next to her. She exhales gently and her cheeks turn bright red. I can feel a twisting sensation in my stomach as she responds to my touch.

"I figured you could wear them with your dress to the fundraiser tonight." I smile at her flirtatiously as I move a strand of hair away from her cheek, keeping my other hand firmly on her back.

Her eyes widen and turn watery as she sets the box on the counter and throws her arms around my shoulders. I hug her tightly and pick her up. She giggles against my neck as I set her back down. As soon as she pulls her face away from my neck, I don't hesitate, pressing my lips to hers. She makes a small noise out of surprise, but quickly melts into me.

I've been holding back with Rachel because I couldn't stop thinking about what she did with Sam every time I touched her. Now that I know the truth, I feel like Rachel and I can finally get back on track.

She rests one hand on my bare chest, running her fingers through my hair with her other. Her palm is soft and warm against my skin, and her touch sends electricity through my abdomen. I part her lips with my tongue and deepen the kiss. The quiet sounds of Rachel moaning against my mouth drives me crazy. I quickly lift her up and set her on the counter. She's incredibly light, picking her up is nothing compared to things I have to carry at work.

"Lucas, wait," Rachel says, out of breath as she pulls away from me slightly. I study her face, trying to read her. "I need to talk to you about something." Her face looks worried, and her lips almost turn into a pout, making them look even more kissable.

"Whatever it is, I can wait a little longer." I smile at her sweetly before kissing her again.

I know that she has had something on her mind since the explosion. I don't know if it's related at all, but something has been bothering her all week. I assumed it had to do with our inevitable conversation about her time in Seattle, but there's still something she hasn't told me, I can see it in her eyes. I want to give her the space to share right now since she's being forthcoming about it, but my attraction to her is getting in the way.

"I've waited far too long for this." I kiss her passionately, pushing her back slightly.

She tightens her grip around my neck to hold herself up. We kiss for a few short moments before we get interrupted.

Ring ring, ring ring, ring ring.

My phone plays the opening theme song from Rawhide from the bedroom upstairs. It's Cooper's ringtone.

"You've got to be kidding me," I mumble under my breath as I pull away from Rachel. I sigh deeply, resting my forehead against hers. "You have no idea how sorry I am right now."

She giggles at my frustration and kisses my cheek.

I gently help her down from the counter, holding her close to me still. I kiss her one more time on the lips before I head upstairs to answer my phone.

"Yeah, what is it, Coop?" My tone is irritated, and I can hear some sort of rustling in the background.

"Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed," Cooper says through some crunching.

"You might have interrupted something between Rachel and I," I say pointedly, trying to get him to understand. The crunching stops for a moment and I hear Cooper laugh.

"Oh, man," he laughs some more. "I promise you that I'm sorry." I can hear him shove something else into his mouth and the crunching continues.

"Cooper, are you eating chips right now?" I look at my watch and smile. "It's six thirty in the morning."

Cooper laughs loudly.

"They're plain potato chips! It's fine!"

I can feel my irritation with him fading as I picture him eating a bag of potato chips in his pajamas while Anne scolds him.

"Anyways, I'm calling because the test was approved for tomorrow morning, so we have to get it and finish up the repairs today." My heart drops.

We're almost ready to perform the demonstration again, but we have days of work to fit into one if we are going to be ready by tomorrow. Rachel's fundraiser is tonight, and I promised her that I would take her.

"Shit, Coop," I sigh heavily into the phone. He stops crunching his breakfast.

"I know, Rachel's little shindig is tonight. We will work as fast as possible, I'll whip the boys into shape."

I laugh at Cooper's support, feeling a little less anxious.

"Alright, I'll see ya soon, Coop." I hang up and begin to get ready.

I can hear Rachel cooking downstairs, the rustling of pans and the sounds of the knife hitting the cutting board fill the house. My chest feels warm as I think about my life right now. Rachel is downstairs cooking for me while I get ready for work, just like how it used to be. It feels like we are more connected now, though.

I head back downstairs, and the smell of chocolate and hot butter fills my nose. I see a large plate stacked high with pancakes on the counter next to Rachel. There's another bowl that looks like it's filled with colorful fruit. She sets the last pancake on top of the mountain and begins carrying it over to the dining room when she notices me.

"Oh, hi!" She looks over my clothing and frowns. "You have to go?" Her voice is so sad it breaks my heart.

"I do, but I'll eat with you really quickly." I smile at her apologetically. She gives me a weak smile back and nods, moving to set the plate on the island instead.

"Thank you," I say as I kiss her on the cheek and sit down on one of the black stools.

The chairs have large square cushions with a padded backrest. We originally had small rounded stools, but I barely fit on them and they weren't comfortable to eat at because there wasn't anything to lean on. Rachel and I have spent many meals sitting at this counter, as well as having snacks, trip planning, catching up from our day, and reminiscing together.

"I really have to go, but we can have a conversation when I get home from work." I smile at her, and she looks at me nervously as she sets the plates back down. "I have to help the crew finish up some repairs for our test tomorrow. I am going to do everything I can to take you to your fundraiser tonight." I look at her seriously, letting her know she can rely on me.

She gives me a sad smile and puts her hand on my arm.

"Okay." She nods quickly and kisses me on the cheek. I can tell that she doesn't believe me, and it makes my heart ache. She starts to clear the counter again, avoiding my eyes.

"Rach," I say as I pull her back to me. "I promise."

Her eyes search my face for a while before she responds.

"Okay, Lucas." She smiles at me sweetly and gently kisses me on the lips.

I smile against her and press my nose against hers.I kiss her forehead and start walking towards the front door. As I throw my shoes on, I turn back and look at her.

"I'll see you tonight. I love you."

"I love you too." She waves at me, and I head out the door, pumping myself up for the grueling day of work I have ahead of me.