"Luke."

"Yeah Dad."

"Promised us you'll never do this again."

Luke looked up to meet Henry's gaze at him. He was wrapped up in his long arms protected by his Papi next to him engulfing his strong long arms around his husband and son. He shifted his eyes back and forth between them unrealized the glistening tears began to flood his own again.

"I can't." He whispered softly lowering his gaze down taking a step back away from Henry's embrace. His hand hung low on his side picking on the fabric of his pants still had his eyes gaze low between them.

"Luke-"

"No dad. You can't tell me to stop while you yourself weren't able to, for years. It's unfair. It's too heavy for me to promise you something that I know I'm not gonna be able to commit." Luke stopped him and he could see how Henry glanced to his side seeking Alex's helped.

"He's not wrong babe." Alex adds causing Henry to smack him on his stomach. "This is not about me. This is about Luke. Focus." Henry said nudging his elbow deep into Alex's ribs. He chuckled an air out of his nose before wrapping his arm back around Henry's waist.

"Luke, listen." Alex starts holding Luke by his shoulder.

"I know it's gonna be hard. I'm not gonna lie. It's gonna be really fucking hard." He starts earning another nudged on his ribs. "What are you doing? You're scaring the poor boy." Henry's words seethed through his teeth with his eyes burning gaze at Alex.

"You wanna sugar coat this? I'm sure he'll be right back here with us." He snapped causing Henry to huff his breath alone.

"Luke listen." Alex denies Henry's tantrum next to him before closing on to Luke with his both hand over Luke's shoulder.

"I'm not gonna bullshitting you right now. No one is gonna make you feel worst than you already is right now. But they don't have what you have Luke. They don't have courage, they don't have that big heart like yours. The compassion that you had in you, no one can beat that. For the most important part, they don't have that endurance that you had for years in dealing with grief."

Luke looked up to meet Alex's gaze and he could see he was smiling at him. "Death can wait my son. You need to live your life to the fullest before you are home again." Alex raised his palm cupping Luke's cheek wiping his thumb over the fallen tears.

"By that time, we will be waiting. We will be right here and it will feel like we never left. I promised." Alex smiled showing his perfect dimple that Luke wished he had one just like him. He nods softly in his palm leaning against his warmth before Henry joins him on his side.

"We promised we are not going anywhere, we will be right here waiting for you to come home darling. I swear." Henry claimed and Luke crashed into them for another tight hug.

"I love you both so much. Thank you for everything that you had done for me." Luke says in between their hug and both Henry and Alex smiled in tears.

"Wake up Luke. It's all you need to do right now. Wake up." Henry's voice sounds distant by seconds and Luke noticed he was no longer wrapped in between his parents arm and everything around him is dark.

.

Beep

Beep

Beep

The sound of his own heart beeping next to him. He knew it's his own heart since he can feel it in his ear. There was a lot of touching all over him. His hands, his chest, his face, his legs but he couldn't tell them to stop. It seems that they are trying to wake him up from a deep sleep.

Luke remembers the time Henry tried to wake him up Sunday morning for a market run so he would show him the dock market. He grunted not wanting to go but Henry insisted and fact is, he's glad that he did.

Henry

Dad

Paps

"You need to wake up for us. Wake up Luke."

"We both love you so so much. Always."

Those memory dawn on him and the minute he realized what circling around his mind, he finally got a grip on reality and he tried to pry his eyes open.

It took him a while, a damn while and it was so much harder than he thought. But finally, finally he managed to open his eyes and the first thing he sees was the long lights hanging above him with a white background.

Then a couple of blurring heads appeared in his views as he tried to blink away the blurriness away. He could feel his throat lodged deep and his jaw is wrapped in something. He couldn't open his mouth wide and his throat is too tight, he couldn't even swallow his own saliva.

He tried to reach for the tube out only to get his hand wrapped on the side by one of the floating heads.

"Wait, wait. Not yet." The lady said.

"Luke, can you hear me? Nod if you can." The guy next to him with his head barely an inches away asks Luke this question. He nods frantic trying to get his distance away from the guy.

"Alright my boy. You give a lot of fight for us. We're gonna make you feel better soon alright." He says and Luke had no idea what it meant only that he nodded again to the idea of comfort.

Later he felt a tape being ripped slowly from his cheek and lips only left with the one odd thing hanging in between his teeth.

"Alright Luke, when I pulled this out, you coughed for me alright? Then I want you to take a nice deep breath for me. Is that clear?" The guy asks again and Luke nodded, again.

"Alright on me. One, two, three." The guy pulled out a plastic tube from Luke's throat and he swore he could feel his throat being ripped out leaving traces of blood as he coughed.

He coughed a lot, involuntary even and it seems like he couldn't stop. He wished someone would handed him a glass of water but apparently he couldn't have one just yet. So he just let his throat barks repeatedly sending him in wheeze.

A mask dropped over his face and he saw the earlier lady had placed an oxygen mask over his face for him to breathe and truthfully, the cool wind that spread over his throat does helped soothe his cough a little.

"Easy now. Do you know who you are?" The guy asks holding Luke by his shoulder. Luke nod trying to utter words but he couldn't get it pasts his throat.

"Easy, easy. You don't have to speak loudly. It will hurt for a while until you get used to it. I'm glad you're okay Luke. I do know some people might think the same." He smiled backing away from Luke tossing the gloves in the trash can nearby.

"I hope you ready for it." He says turning Luke's eyebrow frowned in curious.

"What?" His voice raspy and barely audible but the doctor knew that expression well enough to know how confused he might be. So he stride closer taking his seat next to him on his bed.

"For your new beginning. Your second chance in life. Make every moment count Luke. At least, you owed that to the people that loves you and constantly stood by you while you are at your lowest. Hold on to these people Luke, don't ever take this path again."

Luke's eyes lowered staring at his own fingers wrapped in the thin white blanket above his waist. His body is propped up halfway so he could breathe better.

The doctor taps him on his shoulder when he raised himself again. "When it gets too overwhelmed, it's okay to take a breath and seek help Luke. Remember that. Know that you have a beautiful family and they are resilient. I know, I've met them." He smiled taking a few steps away before he stopped at the end of his bed.

"It's really nice seeing you awake Luke. I wasn't sure I would see you coming out of it but here you are." He smiled staring at Luke before he left the room.

Luke sighed exhaustedly leaning his head back against the pillow. The nurse still inside the room taking his vitals giving him his medicine through his IV.

"He's right you know. You have a really beautiful family. They haven't left your side since it happened. They practically lived here now." The nurse laughed writing on the board in her hand.

"H-How long?" Luke's voice croaked but better than earlier.

"Almost a week love. They haven't left your side for almost a week now. Including the Brits." She laughs again when she told him and it tugged Luke's lip upward into a half smile.

His eyes then lowered to his wrist that wrapped neatly in a white bandage. He held his wrist in his hand before a tight knot began to fill inside of him. His eyes began to blur with tears when his fingers traced the outline of the bandage.

"It will heal. Only the one we can't see is hard to heal. But you need to accept this as a reason for you to live on. The mistake you made doesn't defy who you are Luke. The only way you can see through this is by learning from it. There is no success without failure and I'm surely know, there is no lesson learned without making a mistake."

Luke nod weakly at her words still had his fingers picking at the loose thread from his bandage.

"And I know how much you missed your parents. Losing them is not something you can let go that easily. It's a burden to carry those grief. But Luke, killing yourself doesn't make it easier either. You have no idea how much it hurts your grandparents, your aunts and uncle, your cousins. I watched them, everyday. Praying, hoping, crying for you. Don't let them cry over you again while they still mourned over your fathers."

Luke stares at the nurse holding on the board close to her chest. He sighed desperately letting a single tear fell on his cheek. She didn't say anything else before she excused herself and left the room leaving Luke alone with his thoughts and the sound of his own heart beating through the monitors were the only thing he heard at the very moment.

.

"Please tell me he's alright." Ellen practically rushed to the doctor the moment he stepped out from Luke's room. He closed the door behind him with a long sighs escaped his breath and took a few step further away from Luke's room and stare at each of them staring back at him.

"You know I've read about your family. About Henry and your parents." He turned his gaze towards Phillip stood beside Oscar with tired eyes. "How you saved your brother from being killed by your own mother. How he was in a biased court case about the rape allegations and lost. I always thought he never had luck on his side considered how he survives all those years."

"Then I read about how Alex and him met. How he fought in court for him. How he became the best lawyer he was now because of him." His eyes shifted to Oscar and Ellen stood next to each other with their hand clasped together.

"Then I read about Luke. His upbringing. His childhood and his teen age. God forbid I would never survived if I was in his shoe. How Henry and Alex took him in, adopt him, and then I read about the accident that took his life and I thought to myself, why God is punishing this boy too much. Isn't it enough to have him raised in such way now the only stable, loving parent he had, also taken away from him."

He shook his head lowering his gaze down on the floor while they waited for him to deliver the news.

"Luke's awake." A gasps escaped from them and smiled began to form on each of their faces.

"However." He continued.

"Recovery won't be easy. You all know that. But I think everything will be alright. I had a feeling that Luke will be alright." He says with a half smile on his face.

"Can we see him?" Ellen asks and the doctor nodded. "Be my guest. You guys deserved this." He says letting Ellen rushed to the door before she saw the nurse came out holding the folder in her hand.

"Thank you Doc, you gave us all new hope." Oscar says shaking the doctor's hand and he smiled shaking his head softly at him. "I think you have to trust the power of faith and patience. But I have a feeling that he has a guardian angel watching over him from now on." He says and Oscar laughs.

"Maybe couple of them." Bea adds with tears in her eyes. Phillip on that count wrapped his arm around his sister pulling her into his embrace. "He's alright. He'll be alright." He mutters under his breath and Bea couldn't stop her tears from falling.

.

"Luke?" Ellen called as soon as she stepped into the room. Luke who had his head leaned against the pillow raised them when he heard her voice.

Their eyes met from distance causing Ellen to stop in the middle of the room staring at her grandson in bed with an oxygen mask over his face. Luke pulled the mask over his head and his eyes glistened when he saw her.

She looks miserable.

Her eyes are puffy, and dark circles formed under her eyes. Her usual shoulder length blonde hair are not combed properly. Few strands sticking out and he could see the gray strand hides in between her blond stray.

"Are you okay?" She asks still standing a few feet away from him. She worries if Luke didn't want her to step into the bubbles of safety Luke had created for himself by invading his privacy so she waited for him to let her in.

"I'm sorry." Luke bursted in tears hugging his own body shaking in bed before Ellen rushed to him. She wrapped her arm around Luke's frail body letting his sobs into her chest.

"I don't care Luke. I don't care what you did. I just need you safe. I just need you to be alright." She hushed him stroking soft circles around his back. He sobs further into her chest before Ellen pulls him away to face him.

"Tell me you're alright darling. Tell me you will not leave me again, ever again." She asks holding Luke by his hand and Luke looked up to meet her gaze. He could see the resemblance she has with Alex. The sharp tip nose, the furrowed brow and the soft smile she has. He missed that, he missed how his father used to look at him.

"I won't. I promise." He says and Ellen smiled pulling Luke into her embrace once again. "Oh my boy. You are everything to us. Remember that." She whispered pressing her lips on Luke's temple letting her arm wrapped him tight.

Soon the room flooded with tears and hugs by each of them. Oscar pulled him into a tight hugged the moment he saw him. He couldn't stop kissing his forehead over and over muttering gratefulness at his being.

Phillip were more stoic and controlled but the moment Luke pulled him into a hug, his manner broke and he broke into sobs. Luke could feel Phillip hugs are actually meant for Henry, his little brother. Somehow hugging Luke heals that broken part inside of him and Luke knew how he suffers by Henry's lost too.

"I saw them." Luke whispered out of sudden when they finally had their reunion. Their heads all turned towards him sharply, shocked at his words.

"They were so happy together, still Henry and Alex we've known. Bantering constantly, but in love deeply with each other." Luke smiled at the vague memory of his parents. A smile tugged on his lips when he remembers exact words Henry and Alex told him.

"They told me to tell you guys that they love all of you. They are sorry for what happened and they didn't want you guys to linger in the dark for them." Luke continued causing another tear escaped them.

"We will see each other soon enough, and it will feel like they never left. One day, all of us will meet again, we get to tell them our adventures, our success and failure. But most importantly, we can be together again at the end. That's a promised dad told me." Luke smiled staring at the space before him.

"We will." Phillip says choked on his own words before he wiped his fingers over his tears with a widest smile across his face.