here are some extra imagines i had before this book became an oc story, & now i edited and polished them up for y'all to enjoy all over again :))
idea from hollywillow-
1807 words

♥ ♫ ♥ ♫ ♥

"ready?" luke said, passing by you sitting on the couch. you looked up quickly and nodded.

you raised from the couch, walking over to the piano while luke grabbed his guitar. being able to be with luke again was amazing, and you both felt relieved that the constant need to find each other again had subsided.

now, any chance you got alone, you'd play and sing together in julie's garage. just the two of you, and just like old times.

after things had gotten rough the other day with julie, luke insisted that you spend more time with the talented girl. so you did, of course, because you truly believed that she was sweet. and also, to shut luke up about it.

but you two instantly clicked. julie told you all her stuff about her mom and how much music meant to her, and you told her everything about you and luke. your first kiss, your first date... when you knew. everything.

it was nice to have girl talk. living your whole life with just the guys never gave you an opportunity too, well alex tried many times but you always felt weird about that.

luke smiled over at you while you sat down and took out your own song book, the one he had gave to you. you met his gaze, "what?"

he shook his head slightly, looking down, "nothing, this is just so nice."

you both smiled fondly at each other, and began your session.

you sang mostly from his book. you learned the song that julie had wrote for flynn, 'flying solo', and jammed through 'bright', the song you co-wrote back in 1995. you and luke had a blast, teaching you the chords or seeing who could sing the lyrics louder.

luke asked for you to play ghost of you for him, but you shook your head, "that songs too sad... too sad for this happy moment." you smiled, trying to keep the tears in that came from that painful place. but he smiled back at you, and all the sorrow vanished. there was no need to be sad anymore, for you both had found each other.

when, at a time, you thought you'd never see him again.

but you shook your head again to shake the thought out of your mind, clearing your throat, "i think i'm gonna go to the bathroom, rest my voice." you chirped, pecking luke's cheek with your lips and skipping out of the garage.

he mumbled a quiet 'k', and watched as you left, a smile remained on his face.

he laughed to himself. being with you again was all he ever wanted, but he never thought it would end up being like this. it was amazing.

his eyes landed on your song book, and wondered what filled it in the few years you had spent apart. he reached over and grabbed it, his thumbs gliding over the butterfly and heart stickers that covered it, and the many ripped and crumbled pages inside.

he opened it up. the inside of the covers were filled with pictures of you and the band, but mostly just you and him. he smiled at his favorites, and continued to flip through. he passed bright, and ghost of you, and a few others you had wrote back in the day. the memories that came back to him from each song made him smile slightly. but also sad.

he had loved being with you now, but he desperately missed the way things used to be. he missed going out on dates, talking to his friends, going to school. and even the small things like being excited to get your drivers licenses together made his heart ache. he had time to get his before he died, and teaching you was one of his favorite things to do. but he had died before you officially got it. he frowned on the memories he had forgotten. he was just thankful nothing between you two had changed. everything else had, but you two had stuck.

his fingers fell upon a page that looked fresher than the others, more crisp and white and new.

his eyebrows furrowed as he read the unfamiliar words, it must've been a newer song. the date read 1996, so after he had died, but before she had. his heart immediately dropped to his stomach, but he knew if it was anything like ghost of you, it was going to be good. so he read on.

i got my drivers license last week
just like we always talked about
and you were so excited for me
to finally drive up to your house
but today i drove through the suburbs
crying cause you weren't around

luke couldnt stop his tears from pooling in his eyes. you had gotten your drivers license, but he wasnt there to see it. he pictured you finally getting it, and driving along your streets, and his heart ached even more. he couldnt be there, excited for you, like he had promised.

one line in particular make the boys breath tremble, and he put a hand over his lips to try and stop it.

yeah, today i drove through the suburbs
cause how could i ever love someone else?

luke shook his head, not knowing how he could continue reading this. he could feel his heart breaking from every word, but forced himself to read further. knowing that this was your life, because of him, for too long.

and i know we weren't perfect
but i never felt this way for no one
and i just can't imagine how i could ever be ok now that you're gone
'cause we said forever, now i drive alone past your street

he let out his first sob.

"luke?"

the boy jumped, but his glossy eyes spilled over his face as he looked up to meet his girls gaze.

you frowned, putting your hands awkwardly by your sides, "you read it."

it was all you could think to say. by the look of your boyfriends face, you knew exactly what he had found.

but it was his breath that became more shaky by the second, and he was the one who broke first. he squeezed his eyes so hard that the tears spilled over more, your book sliding off of his lap, and you ran forward. your tears spilled over as well as you finally embraced him, and he slid his arms quickly around your back to squeeze you harder than he ever had. you both sobbed, soaking the backs of each other's shirts. and you're hearts broke together.

"i'm so sorry." he choked, putting his face in the crook of her neck.

she smiled, raising her hand to touch his hair, "it's ok now that you're here," she whispered,
"i dont have to love anyone else."

♫ ♥

the teens now sat awkwardly face to face on the floor. luke held the girls hands in his, pressing his forehead against her knuckles. he took deep breaths and still let tears slip to the floor, and her breathing had yet to go back to normal.

both teens looked toward the ground solemnly.

"i-it," you started, knowing it was time to talk. but your voice cracked so you had to clear your throat once more, "it was right after you died. i-i just felt so alone." he rose his eyes to meet yours, and they filled up with tears, but you pressed on, "the day i got my drivers license, actually." you corrected yourself, "well, the day i passed," you hesitated, "i failed the first time." luke actually let out a short chuckle, wiping away any stray tears left on his face, and you tried to smile at your joke, "i didn't have any other way to express myself, i almost stopped singing all together, but bobbie told me that's not what you would've wanted. so i wrote that as, as a goodbye. to singing, anyway." luke kissed the tips of your fingers and rubbed your arms, "bobbie helped me with the melody, and, with everything else. so, yeah." you ended your speech awkwardly, as another tear streamed down your cheek. luke rose his arm to brush it off with his thumb.

"w-w" luke took a deeper breath before he started again, "we're you driving... when you, uh, crashed?"

you shook your head, "no. it was bobbie." luke nodded, squeezing your hands. you both returned your glances back at the ground.

"i hate that i did this to you," luke mumbled quietly after some silence, awkwardly interlocking his own hands, that at the moment, were very sweaty, "i just feel like so much time has been lost. and you being alone like that-" he had to stop, his voice begun cracking and a sob rose in his throat at just the thought, but you shook your head at him.

"no, no." you said it more sternly the second time, "don't do that to yourself. it wasn't your fault, luke." he forced his eyes to meet yours, and you took each other's hands again, almost like it was second nature during sad times, "bobbie was there for me, writing was there for me, and i got through it. two years." you nodded to confirm your words, and actually found yourself laughing next, "and- oh my, look at us now!" a smile grew on luke's face as he chuckled as well.

he shook his head, "who would'a thought." you smiled at each other.

"and yeah, i spent one more year alone here, like this," you nodded at the boy, "but at least here, i knew. i knew i was going to find you one day. and i would've searched until i did. and then you found me."

the teens stared at each other for a moment more, just appreciating each other and the moment they shared.

luke's hands went to your shoulders, pulling you in for one last hug. you smiled against his shoulders, and felt him take a breath.

"i will do anything in my power," he said confidently, but his voice still shook, "for you never to be alone again."

the words made your breaths falter, but you nodded your head against his shoulder. his hands went to detangle your hair against your back, and you sighed. being without him for two earth years, and one dead year, you finally felt a little more free now that that conversation was out of the way. and you could finally hold him again.

and soon, both the teens found rest like that. tangled in each other's limbs, resting on each other's shoulders, protecting each other, forevermore.