Have you ever felt silly for stumbling into a moment you clearly weren't supposed to see? Felt completely and utterly uncomfortable to the point that you are half tempted to bolt, or just duck your head into your shirt and pretend the world doesn't exist. 

"Uh... Hi," I stammered, flustered as I drank in the sight of Luke standing with a woman who had touched him so tenderly as they exited his trailer. 

Luke ran his fingers through his hair, as if mentally preparing himself for a heavy conversation. Like he owed me some kind of explanation which left me feeling a swirl of conflicting emotions. He didn't owe me anything, and yet the idea that he thought he did spoke volumes about what he thought about our non relationship. 

He looked at me, weighing his words carefully. "She's—"

"I'm his aunt," the woman blurted. Her eyes screaming lies, her posture screaming nerves. She was older but not by a lot. 

What was she to Luke? I stared at her, at Luke, processing. "Okay," I said, confused by how utterly awkward it all was. Wondering why she cared to lie. 

The woman looked down, her fingers tugging at the bottom of her flannel shirt, her scuffed up boots grinding into the asphalt. She's afraid, I realized. Me knowing the truth, terrified her. But I couldn't understand why. 

Luke's jaw tightened, body going rigid at the confession. "Aunt," he echoed. Seeming to swallow the word like poison. 

The woman offered me a shy smile and that smile made her look familiar. Tugging at a memory I couldn't place.

Had I written a piece on her? Was she another actress? 

I offered her a wave hello, trying to yank the conversation off the awkward train and onto the normal human platform of human interaction. "I'm Em."

She nodded, her smile brightening. "Yes, I've heard about you." Then she walked over and pulled me into a warm embrace, startling me. My eyes caught on Luke's for a moment, my own wide in surprise. 

The look on his face was worried. Open with deep rooted concern. 

The woman stepped back, drinking me in with open curiosity. "Luke has told me so much about you. Did you really drop pizza on him the first time you two met?" 

A surprised laugh fell out of me as Luke's eyes widened in embarrassment. How much did she know?

I nodded and looked back at Luke. "Yep. He scared me half to death when he greeted me after coming straight from the shower."

She walked over and smacked Luke's arm. "You never told me that!" she chastised. "No wonder she reacted that way! That's a terrible way to answer the door!"

He rubbed the back of his neck, fighting a smile at her reaction. "She broke in. I didn't realize she was there."

The woman took my hands in hers, posture relaxing, her brown eyes sparking with determination. "Please don't let his grumpy exterior scare you too much," she said. "He takes a while to warm up to people."

I wasn't sure what to say to that. But she didn't give me much of a chance as she continued, determined to plead Luke's case, whether Luke was on board with it or not. "He really does like—"

"Okay, thanks for visiting. Time to go." Luke suddenly began  to steer her away, but not before she shouted back over her shoulder. "It was very nice to meet you, Em! He's a great guy! Lot's of great qualities! Just give him a chance!"

Then the woman was gone, kissing Luke's cheek before slipping away as she told him to behave himself. Luke turned back to me, and the warmth that had filled his expression was gone, replaced with something guarded. 

I shoved my hands into my pockets, attempting to figure out what kind of strange situation I had walked into. When it was clear that Luke wasn't going to say anything, I decided to push. 

"I like your... Aunt."

 Luke's eyes flashed but he said nothing.

"Okay then... nice talk." I began to walk away, off the studio lot, too tired to argue with him. If he wants to be all weird and secretive, that's fine.

A moment later, footsteps sounded behind me, and I was surprised when Luke followed. "Nothing is simple in the Walker family," he said by way of explanation.

As we reached the sidewalk, headed toward the garage where our cars were parked, I turned to look up at him, my hair picking up in the afternoon breeze and sending it flying wildly around me. "Well, that's obvious. The world got to see one of your family dinners on reality tv."

Luke looked away, a muscle working in his jaw at the memory of someone he knew getting arrested on live television. I immediately regretted my words at the clear hurt crossing his face.

As the crosswalk light turned green, Luke stepped off the curb, suddenly eager to put distance between us. He was so focused on crossing, that he didn't spot the car barreling towards him with no plan to stop. 

...

I used to think people exaggerated when they talked about the world slowing down, everything stuttering to a near stop when something bad yanks at the strings that keep time steady. But as I watched Luke and the car that was going to shatter him before my eyes, I felt time jolt, stutter, seeming to respond to my inability to breath, my heart dropping like a stone inside my body, no longer beating. 

And in that moment, my body responded faster than I could think, seeming to be the only thing unaffected by the sudden time shift. And I bolted, shoving him out of the way, both of us crashing to the ground and rolling, a set of limbs and gasps and blood seeping through the cracks in broken skin.

I instinctively tried to shield Luke's large body with my mine as the car barreled past, so close that my hair whipped out of my face. Luke blinked up at me, his face a mix of startled surprise and worry. "You saved me," he said so quietly that I nearly missed it.

"Are you okay?" he asked, his face so close to mine, body still pinned to the asphalt, breath tickling my neck as hands brushed my face, my arms, my hips, checking to see if I was unbroken. I selfishly didn't respond right away. Well maybe not from selfishness, but instead utter shock as the world jolted back to normal speed and I found that I was shaking. 

The world must have gone out of focus for a moment, because the next thing I knew, I was back on the curb, sitting on the edge, fingers digging into my knees, body cold all over. Luke was talking and I found him sitting next to me, trying to get my attention. 

"Bermuda?" 

I took in a shaky breath as the world slammed back into focus. "That car... saw you," I said staring out at the crosswalk were Luke's life almost ended. "And they didn't stop."

I turned and looked up at Luke, taking in the sight of scratches along his arms, the gravel and blood imbedded into his skin, the rips along his clothes, and felt my heart squeeze. This was the version of him that hadn't been touched by the car, and he was still cut and bleeding. 

"What is going on? Why did someone try and poison you? Try to run you over?" Could numbness gave way to anger. "And don't give me some vague answer. I want a real one because I may not be there next time." 

Luke looked ready to slump over, exhausted. I could tell he wanted to sweep it under the rug, to pretend it didn't matter. 

"Luke," I said, irritated when my voice cracked. "Talk to me."

It was the way his name sounded on my lips that seemed to cut through his resolve, giving away to surrender.

He stood up and held out his hand. "Come on."

I shook my head. "I'm not going anywhere until you talk."

He looked back at the street, swallowing. "It's a long story and I really don't feel like talking about it so close to where we both almost died." He gestured for me to take his hand again. And this time, I took it. 

---

Thank you for reading chapter twenty eight! I hope you are enjoying the story! Or are at least curious to see where it goes!

UPDATE DAYS - A NEW CHAPTER EVERY FRIDAY!

Is the woman actually Luke's aunt? If not, who is she? And why did she lie?

Have any guesses on who is after Luke? 

What will Luke tell Em? 

What will happen next?

CHAPTER QUESTION - I recently finished watching a rom-com and am always looking for more book and movie recommendations in that genre. What is your favorite rom-com?