Everyone watched through the window as father and son hugged, and were thanking God in their own way for allowing for this moment to take place. Lulu went up to her mother and asked, "Is Daddy staying?"
Laura looked down at her daughter and said, "I don't know, sweetie. He may stay in town now if he feels he's wanted."
"Why would he ever feel he wasn't wanted?" Lulu asked.
"That's something you'd have to ask him, Lu." Laura had asked herself that same question for five years and never could find any real answer.
"How can I? He probably doesn't want to talk to me," Lulu said quietly.
"Oh, sweetie, don't ever think he doesn't love you. He never left because of you," Laura said.
"I know he didn't leave because of me, but I definitely wasn't enough for him to stay," Lulu said, as she retreated to the other side of the room.
‘None of us were enough for him to stay,' Laura thought, as she watched her daughter slowly leave.
-------------
Luke and Lucky finally released their hold of each other, both wiping the tears from their face. A small smile grew on Lucky's face. His dream had finally come true. Luke had a similar expression on his own face, embracing the thought that he was able to once again speak to his son and hug him.
"So, how are you?" Luke asked.
"Well, I'm hurting, but I'll be fine. You helped a lot," Lucky said.
"I'm glad to do whatever I can to help you."
"If you mean that, you'll stay here now."
"I don't know if I can, Lucky," Luke said. He got up and started pacing, avoiding the sets of eyes watching him through the window. "I destroyed everything I had here. Burned all of my bridges. What would I be coming back to if I stayed?"
"A family who loves you," Lucky replied.
"A family I left. I can't go back to it like I never left, Lucky. Things have changed. I know you've changed, and I know that your mother has had to have changed. And I don't even know that little girl out there who's my daughter."
"I never asked you to move back into the old house. Mom never would let you just move back in like that anyway. She has changed. She's had to be a single parent for 5 years, and she's hated it, but she's also gotten used to it. I'm asking you to stay in town."
"And do what?" Luke asked.
"Get to know your family again," Lucky said with determination.
"But what do I do here, Lucky? I don't mean to be difficult, but I've changed too. I don't have much of a life where I am, but I do have one. I can't just abandon it now."
"Why not? You abandoned this one quite easily."
Luke was shaken by that remark, but he knew that his son was correct. "It's different now. If I come back here, I wouldn't fit in. There's no place for me to fit in here. The club was handed over to your mother, the diner handed over to my sister... so where do I go?"
"You start over, Dad. I'm not asking you to make a decision now, but please stay here long enough to think about it. Those people outside all love you. Well, most of them, anyway. I have no doubt that they'd like to get to know you again, even if you have changed. You couldn't have changed fundamentally. No one can."
Before Luke could respond, Bobbie walked into the room. "Sorry, guys, but I have to break this up. Lucky needs his rest and I know there are a few people out there who want to still see you before I give you something to help you sleep."
Luke nodded and headed out the door when Lucky said, "Dad, wait." Luke turned around and looked at his son, waiting for what Lucky needed to say. Lucky turned to his aunt and asked, "Do you still have that spare room at the Brownstone?"
"Yes, I do," Bobbie said.
"Will you mind if Dad stays there while he's in town?"
"I think that could be arranged."
Luke held up his hand and said, "Wait a minute. Lucky, I'll be back. I promise. But I have to take care of some things first. I only planned for this to be a one-day trip."
"Dad, please stay while you think over what I've said. I know if you leave now, you won't come back," Lucky said.
"I promise I'll return. Lucky, I'm going to make sure I see you get out of here," Luke said.
"But you won't make the right decision if you leave now. Please, Dad. I haven't asked much of you. All I'm asking is for you to stay for a little while. If your decision is to leave town once you've thought it over, then I'll accept it. But I want you to really think about it and not dismiss it as easily as you dismissed us when you left."
Bobbie looked at Luke, knowing that Lucky's words hurt him but were effective. "You can get an extra set of keys from Tammy at the diner. It's the room you stayed at when you first lived there for a short while. And if you're lucky, I'll even make something for you to eat."
Luke nodded and headed out the door. After seeing his son's eyes pleading for him to stay, he knew he couldn't leave. He'd take Bobbie up on the offer for now.
Bobbie went up to Lucky and said, "Thanks, Lucky. Maybe we'll get my brother back after all."
