FIC: On Second Thought (32/37)
A Luke/Reid fic in which Noah is in trouble. (As the World Turns, PG-13)
Title: On Second Thought (32/37)
Author: sleeper6
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Luke/Reid, Noah, Ruth, assorted characters
Summary: Noah is blind again and needs Luke in L.A. What will Luke and Reid do?
Disclaimer: All belongs to As the World Turns, not me.
Warning: Will contain angst so read only if you don’t mind that.
Previous: 1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10/11/12/13/14/15/16/17/18/19/20/21/22/23/24/25/26/27/28/29/30/31
Ruth’s eyes slowly opened and focused on her hotel room. Her head throbbed as she rubbed her eyes and tried to remember the earlier events from that night. She recalled how she and Angelo had drank, laughed, flirted, danced, gone to her room, and, if the lack of Ruth’s clothing proved correctly, slept together. At that, Ruth smiled. It had been very good and far too long since it’d last happened. Ruth hugged the pillow and touched the spot next to her, the empty space illuminated by the night lights of Bangkok peeking through her window.
Suddenly, Ruth sat up. She jumped out of bed and removed a bag from under it. She unzipped it, rifled through it and breathed a sigh of relief. She glanced at the laptop still on the desk and everything else that was exactly as it had been before she invited the man into her room. Ruth didn’t trust anyone in her life so it was normal for her to be suspicious whenever someone got to close to her. Angelo, for instance, had been fun and charming, and Ruth had definitely enjoyed his company, but he had shared his secrets with her, and she couldn’t help but be a little wary of him.
They had been into the fourth hour of talking when Angelo asked her:
“Are you going back to the states?”
“Not if I don’t have to.”
“You in trouble back home?”
Ruth leaned closer to him and whispered breathily. “I find trouble; trouble never finds me.”
Angelo leaned closer to her.
“Why do you ask?”
“Because I have to go back, but I can’t.”
“Why not? Are you wanted there or something?” she asked, giggling.
Angelo grinned and sipped his cocktail.
“You’re a bad boy.”
“Who needs a favor from a good girl.”
Ruth sipped her drink. “I ain’t so good.”
Angelo touched her arm. “You’re perfect.”
Ruth sat up straighter at his touch. “Perfect for what?”
Angelo glanced around before talking quietly. “I need some things delivered, and if you do this, half of the money I get is yours.”
Ruth sat back. “Drugs?”
“I prefer the term ‘recreational substances.’ And you know how much money you can make. I bet your nephew told you how rich this business is.”
Ruth bit her lip. She didn’t know why she’d told Angelo about Noah and Charlene and a few other private things about herself, but his smile was hard to ignore.
“Thanks but I don’t have any reason to go back and I’m not hurting for money right now.”
“A little extra can’t hurt,” said Angelo.
Ruth played with the straw in her drink. “It can if I get caught.”
“You won’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because you’re smart. I could tell from the moment I first saw you.”
“Is that all you saw? Just someone to do your dirty work?” Ruth asked, a little hurt.
“No, I see a woman who’s smart and beautiful and call pull this off perfectly,” Angelo declared.
“And why would I want to help out a complete stranger?” Ruth asked, her eyebrow quirked.
“Then let’s not be strangers,” Angelo said, leaning in and kissing Ruth.
In the end, Ruth declined his offer, fell asleep and didn’t see Angelo leave her room. Sitting on the floor with the bag in her lap, Ruth pushed the thought away. She didn’t agree to Angelo’s request because she’d already taken a major risk in Oakdale and had, thankfully, succeeded, all due to the generosity of Luke Snyder. She didn’t want to lose what she’d gained, and that’s why she wouldn’t be heading back to the U.S. to smuggle drugs and risk incarceration, or run into Luke and face the loss of her fortune.
She rested her head on the bed when her phone buzzed with a new message. It was from Noah.
Ur plan worked. Got Luke. Help me keep him here. Come quick
Her heart beat fast as she scrolled through the pictures attached to the message of her nephew and his ex, images she never thought she’d see after the way Luke and Noah had acted with one another, as if they really were over each other.
Ruth laughed at the way fate was treating her. After years of struggling and having nothing in her life, Ruth was suddenly being rewarded, richly. First, she’d managed to blackmail Luke into half a million; then, a man with a nice smile had offered her big money for a favor, and even though she’d refused, it had still been an offer made to her; lastly, her clever scheming had worked as Luke-and his money-now appeared to be ready to return to Noah-and just when Ruth thought she had no reason to return home.
She stood up and began packing.
“I thought you were really going to kiss me earlier,” Luke said, laughing as he walked out of Noah’s bedroom, buttoning his shirt.
Noah chuckled, following Luke out of the bedroom. “No way. You probably would’ve hit me.”
Luke whirled around to face Noah. “I would not have!”
Noah smirked. “Luke wouldn’t, but I’m not so sure about Luciano Grimaldi.”
“What are you talking about? I’m not a Grimaldi.”
“Really? Whose idea was it to stage a fake reunion between me and you to trick my aunt into coming over here?”
“It was just as much Grandmother’s idea as it was mine.”
“But who started it?” asked Noah, clearly enjoying challenging Luke.
Luke became flustered as he sat on the couch in the living room. “Do you hate me?”
Noah sat in the chair opposite him. “Of course not, Luke.”
Luke looked down at the floor. “But you always had something to say when I turned into my-into Damian.”
Noah sighed. “I shouldn’t have been talking. I mean, it’s not like I’m Mr. Perfect, you know?”
Luke stared at Noah with a sad smile.
“And it’s not like you mean to be like this,” Noah said, shrugging. “But you have to sometimes, especially when a woman like her threatens and hurts you.”
“I’m sorry, Noah. About your aunt, I mean.”
Noah shook his head. “I won’t lie. I wish it could’ve been different with her, better. I really wanted to know about my mother, and she seemed like the one person who could finally introduce me to her. She said she had lots of memories and stories about her. I only wish she would’ve liked me enough to stick around and share all that with me.”
“Noah, it wasn’t you.”
“I hate what she did to you and-and Reid. I’m sorry, Luke.”
Luke leaned forward on the couch. “Don’t blame yourself, Noah, for what she did. She’s the bad guy, not you.”
Noah laughed dryly. “For once, huh?”
“Noah, if you want to stop this, just tell me. I’ll call Grandmother and-”
Noah stood and rubbed his shaved head with one hand. “No, don’t. She’s a horrible woman who came here and played me and you and Reid for fools. Let her get what she deserves, whatever that may be.”
Luke looked at his watch. “Has she responded yet? I have to be back home by eight.”
Luke also checked his phone, but there were no messages from Reid. He had called Reid several times throughout the day but had gotten only his voicemail. Luke understood that Reid was extra busy today as the fundraising event was taking place that night, and there were many preparations still to be made that included and required the Chief of Staff.
Noah read the reply message on his phone: I’m coming.
“She’s on her way,” Noah said. “I guess we put on a good show for her.”
Luke grinned. “It was fun pretending to make out with you, and if the directing thing doesn’t work out, there’s still hope for you as an actor.”
Noah laughed and then became serious. “What now?”
Luke texted Lucinda and then looked at Noah. “We wait for Grandmother’s move.”
“Thank Lucinda Walsh for Plan B,” Dr. John Dixon told Angelo as they both sat opposite Lucinda in the back of a chauffeured car outside the hotel where Ruth Mason was staying. It was still the middle of the night in Bangkok since they were several hours ahead of Oakdale and Los Angeles.
“Plan B?” inquired Angelo with interest.
Lucinda read Luke’s text and smiled at Angelo. “Plan A-get the silly gal to voluntarily smuggle the drugs and get caught doing so-didn’t work, obviously.”
Angelo blushed embarrassingly. “Sorry. I thought she’d go for it; she was desperate about a lot of things.”
“So Plan B is to make her.”
“Make her?”
Lucinda nodded towards a bag very similar in appearance to Ruth’s. “Go up and escort her to the airport. John and I will be there waiting for you.”
Ruth opened her door to see Angelo standing and smiling at her.
“I came to apologize for what I told you, about wanting you to-”
Ruth grabbed his hand and pulled him in. “Don’t worry about it; there’s no time. I have to get to the airport ASAP. Can you help me?”
Angelo smiled and nodded.
Ruth and Angelo raced into the main Bangkok airport.
“What’s the rush?” asked Angelo as he followed Ruth, carrying three of her bags. “I thought you weren’t going back anytime soon.”
Ruth walked to the counter for her ticket and to check in two of her bags. “Things might be getting so much better real soon,” she answered him with a wide smile.
“Oh?”
“But I have to go help my nephew to make sure it happens just like I wanted.”
“Good luck with that,” Angelo said.
“I don’t need luck,” Ruth said, leading the way to the security checkpoint. “I have a brain.”
They stopped and looked at each other.
“Well, this is goodbye,” Ruth said with a smile.
Angelo stared at her before dropping her bag on the floor, grabbing her shoulders and kissing her roughly and passionately. As Ruth held on to Angelo, Lucinda discreetly walked by the kissing couple and picked up Ruth’s bag from the floor while dropping the bag that resembled Ruth’s and which contained things that would get Ruth in a lot of trouble in a short while.
“Wow,” Ruth said as she and Angelo parted.
“Bye, Ruth,” Angelo said before sprinting off.
Ruth fixed her wavy hair, picked up her bag, and smiled. She was in a great mood. Nothing could make things better except for a call to a certain neurosurgeon who Ruth wanted to make sure knew what his young blond boyfriend was up to in Hollywood.
The hospital gala at Metro was a success from the start. Almost all of Oakdale’s wealthiest showed up to donate to the new additions to the pediatrics and cardiology wings. Reid was becoming nervous as it was almost time for his speech. He was normally comfortable speaking in front of groups of people-as his job required-but he was feeling particularly anxious that night because he never spoke at these types of events. He was used to leading board and staff meetings but not galas where his speeches would be heard by so many types of people.
He searched for Luke, who had promised to be here for support, and whose support Reid always needed. He checked his pockets for his phone before remembering that he’d left it in his car. He’d been doing that all day-forgetting his phone in different places and thus, missing a lot of calls from Luke.
“Reid, it’s a good crowd!” exclaimed Tim from his place by the bar.
Reid nodded as he walked by.
“Hey, Doc!” Henry Coleman said as he grinned at Reid.
“Henry. How’s your mother-oops, I mean your wife?” Reid said, needling Henry, which he had still not gotten tired of doing after more than a year.
“Ha ha, very funny. How’s your son, by the way-oops, I mean your boyfriend?” Henry said.
Reid laughed. “He’s great; we’re great!” He left Henry to go outside for his phone.
“So are we! So are we!” Henry shouted back.
Reid almost bumped into Chris.
“Reid, it’s almost time. Don’t disappear on us.”
Reid pointed to the door. “Going to get my phone. Be right back,” he said before Chris could respond.
Reid closed the door to his car and jumped a little as his phone began ringing. He saw the name and number and hesitated before answering.
“What?”
Ruth’s giggling instantly filled Reid’s ears. “Nice to hear your voice again, Doctor.”
“What do you want?”
“I’m looking for Luke.”
“He’s not here, Ruth!”
“Oh, so he’s not back from L.A. yet? I guess he really is staying with Noah this time.”
Reid wasn’t sure he’d heard correctly. “What?”
“I’ll send you the pictures, Doctor. And me, Luke and Noah will send you a postcard later. Bye bye!”
Reid read the message waiting in his inbox. He then opened each picture one by one and stared in shock at the images of Luke in Noah’s bed with Noah all over him. Reid leaned against the car and shut his eyes.
Ruth, her mood improving with each minute, put her bag on the conveyor belt and merrily passed through the metal detector. As she turned around to retrieve her bag, an airport officer held out a hand.
“Ma’am,” he said sternly, pointing to the inside of the bag in his hands. “Could you explain what you have in here?”
***
Next chapter is the last of Ruth forever!
Next
Title: On Second Thought (32/37)
Author: sleeper6
Rating: PG-13
Characters: Luke/Reid, Noah, Ruth, assorted characters
Summary: Noah is blind again and needs Luke in L.A. What will Luke and Reid do?
Disclaimer: All belongs to As the World Turns, not me.
Warning: Will contain angst so read only if you don’t mind that.
Previous: 1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10/11/12/13/14/15/16/17/18/19/20/21/22/23/24/25/26/27/28/29/30/31
Ruth’s eyes slowly opened and focused on her hotel room. Her head throbbed as she rubbed her eyes and tried to remember the earlier events from that night. She recalled how she and Angelo had drank, laughed, flirted, danced, gone to her room, and, if the lack of Ruth’s clothing proved correctly, slept together. At that, Ruth smiled. It had been very good and far too long since it’d last happened. Ruth hugged the pillow and touched the spot next to her, the empty space illuminated by the night lights of Bangkok peeking through her window.
Suddenly, Ruth sat up. She jumped out of bed and removed a bag from under it. She unzipped it, rifled through it and breathed a sigh of relief. She glanced at the laptop still on the desk and everything else that was exactly as it had been before she invited the man into her room. Ruth didn’t trust anyone in her life so it was normal for her to be suspicious whenever someone got to close to her. Angelo, for instance, had been fun and charming, and Ruth had definitely enjoyed his company, but he had shared his secrets with her, and she couldn’t help but be a little wary of him.
They had been into the fourth hour of talking when Angelo asked her:
“Are you going back to the states?”
“Not if I don’t have to.”
“You in trouble back home?”
Ruth leaned closer to him and whispered breathily. “I find trouble; trouble never finds me.”
Angelo leaned closer to her.
“Why do you ask?”
“Because I have to go back, but I can’t.”
“Why not? Are you wanted there or something?” she asked, giggling.
Angelo grinned and sipped his cocktail.
“You’re a bad boy.”
“Who needs a favor from a good girl.”
Ruth sipped her drink. “I ain’t so good.”
Angelo touched her arm. “You’re perfect.”
Ruth sat up straighter at his touch. “Perfect for what?”
Angelo glanced around before talking quietly. “I need some things delivered, and if you do this, half of the money I get is yours.”
Ruth sat back. “Drugs?”
“I prefer the term ‘recreational substances.’ And you know how much money you can make. I bet your nephew told you how rich this business is.”
Ruth bit her lip. She didn’t know why she’d told Angelo about Noah and Charlene and a few other private things about herself, but his smile was hard to ignore.
“Thanks but I don’t have any reason to go back and I’m not hurting for money right now.”
“A little extra can’t hurt,” said Angelo.
Ruth played with the straw in her drink. “It can if I get caught.”
“You won’t.”
“Why not?”
“Because you’re smart. I could tell from the moment I first saw you.”
“Is that all you saw? Just someone to do your dirty work?” Ruth asked, a little hurt.
“No, I see a woman who’s smart and beautiful and call pull this off perfectly,” Angelo declared.
“And why would I want to help out a complete stranger?” Ruth asked, her eyebrow quirked.
“Then let’s not be strangers,” Angelo said, leaning in and kissing Ruth.
In the end, Ruth declined his offer, fell asleep and didn’t see Angelo leave her room. Sitting on the floor with the bag in her lap, Ruth pushed the thought away. She didn’t agree to Angelo’s request because she’d already taken a major risk in Oakdale and had, thankfully, succeeded, all due to the generosity of Luke Snyder. She didn’t want to lose what she’d gained, and that’s why she wouldn’t be heading back to the U.S. to smuggle drugs and risk incarceration, or run into Luke and face the loss of her fortune.
She rested her head on the bed when her phone buzzed with a new message. It was from Noah.
Ur plan worked. Got Luke. Help me keep him here. Come quick
Her heart beat fast as she scrolled through the pictures attached to the message of her nephew and his ex, images she never thought she’d see after the way Luke and Noah had acted with one another, as if they really were over each other.
Ruth laughed at the way fate was treating her. After years of struggling and having nothing in her life, Ruth was suddenly being rewarded, richly. First, she’d managed to blackmail Luke into half a million; then, a man with a nice smile had offered her big money for a favor, and even though she’d refused, it had still been an offer made to her; lastly, her clever scheming had worked as Luke-and his money-now appeared to be ready to return to Noah-and just when Ruth thought she had no reason to return home.
She stood up and began packing.
“I thought you were really going to kiss me earlier,” Luke said, laughing as he walked out of Noah’s bedroom, buttoning his shirt.
Noah chuckled, following Luke out of the bedroom. “No way. You probably would’ve hit me.”
Luke whirled around to face Noah. “I would not have!”
Noah smirked. “Luke wouldn’t, but I’m not so sure about Luciano Grimaldi.”
“What are you talking about? I’m not a Grimaldi.”
“Really? Whose idea was it to stage a fake reunion between me and you to trick my aunt into coming over here?”
“It was just as much Grandmother’s idea as it was mine.”
“But who started it?” asked Noah, clearly enjoying challenging Luke.
Luke became flustered as he sat on the couch in the living room. “Do you hate me?”
Noah sat in the chair opposite him. “Of course not, Luke.”
Luke looked down at the floor. “But you always had something to say when I turned into my-into Damian.”
Noah sighed. “I shouldn’t have been talking. I mean, it’s not like I’m Mr. Perfect, you know?”
Luke stared at Noah with a sad smile.
“And it’s not like you mean to be like this,” Noah said, shrugging. “But you have to sometimes, especially when a woman like her threatens and hurts you.”
“I’m sorry, Noah. About your aunt, I mean.”
Noah shook his head. “I won’t lie. I wish it could’ve been different with her, better. I really wanted to know about my mother, and she seemed like the one person who could finally introduce me to her. She said she had lots of memories and stories about her. I only wish she would’ve liked me enough to stick around and share all that with me.”
“Noah, it wasn’t you.”
“I hate what she did to you and-and Reid. I’m sorry, Luke.”
Luke leaned forward on the couch. “Don’t blame yourself, Noah, for what she did. She’s the bad guy, not you.”
Noah laughed dryly. “For once, huh?”
“Noah, if you want to stop this, just tell me. I’ll call Grandmother and-”
Noah stood and rubbed his shaved head with one hand. “No, don’t. She’s a horrible woman who came here and played me and you and Reid for fools. Let her get what she deserves, whatever that may be.”
Luke looked at his watch. “Has she responded yet? I have to be back home by eight.”
Luke also checked his phone, but there were no messages from Reid. He had called Reid several times throughout the day but had gotten only his voicemail. Luke understood that Reid was extra busy today as the fundraising event was taking place that night, and there were many preparations still to be made that included and required the Chief of Staff.
Noah read the reply message on his phone: I’m coming.
“She’s on her way,” Noah said. “I guess we put on a good show for her.”
Luke grinned. “It was fun pretending to make out with you, and if the directing thing doesn’t work out, there’s still hope for you as an actor.”
Noah laughed and then became serious. “What now?”
Luke texted Lucinda and then looked at Noah. “We wait for Grandmother’s move.”
“Thank Lucinda Walsh for Plan B,” Dr. John Dixon told Angelo as they both sat opposite Lucinda in the back of a chauffeured car outside the hotel where Ruth Mason was staying. It was still the middle of the night in Bangkok since they were several hours ahead of Oakdale and Los Angeles.
“Plan B?” inquired Angelo with interest.
Lucinda read Luke’s text and smiled at Angelo. “Plan A-get the silly gal to voluntarily smuggle the drugs and get caught doing so-didn’t work, obviously.”
Angelo blushed embarrassingly. “Sorry. I thought she’d go for it; she was desperate about a lot of things.”
“So Plan B is to make her.”
“Make her?”
Lucinda nodded towards a bag very similar in appearance to Ruth’s. “Go up and escort her to the airport. John and I will be there waiting for you.”
Ruth opened her door to see Angelo standing and smiling at her.
“I came to apologize for what I told you, about wanting you to-”
Ruth grabbed his hand and pulled him in. “Don’t worry about it; there’s no time. I have to get to the airport ASAP. Can you help me?”
Angelo smiled and nodded.
Ruth and Angelo raced into the main Bangkok airport.
“What’s the rush?” asked Angelo as he followed Ruth, carrying three of her bags. “I thought you weren’t going back anytime soon.”
Ruth walked to the counter for her ticket and to check in two of her bags. “Things might be getting so much better real soon,” she answered him with a wide smile.
“Oh?”
“But I have to go help my nephew to make sure it happens just like I wanted.”
“Good luck with that,” Angelo said.
“I don’t need luck,” Ruth said, leading the way to the security checkpoint. “I have a brain.”
They stopped and looked at each other.
“Well, this is goodbye,” Ruth said with a smile.
Angelo stared at her before dropping her bag on the floor, grabbing her shoulders and kissing her roughly and passionately. As Ruth held on to Angelo, Lucinda discreetly walked by the kissing couple and picked up Ruth’s bag from the floor while dropping the bag that resembled Ruth’s and which contained things that would get Ruth in a lot of trouble in a short while.
“Wow,” Ruth said as she and Angelo parted.
“Bye, Ruth,” Angelo said before sprinting off.
Ruth fixed her wavy hair, picked up her bag, and smiled. She was in a great mood. Nothing could make things better except for a call to a certain neurosurgeon who Ruth wanted to make sure knew what his young blond boyfriend was up to in Hollywood.
The hospital gala at Metro was a success from the start. Almost all of Oakdale’s wealthiest showed up to donate to the new additions to the pediatrics and cardiology wings. Reid was becoming nervous as it was almost time for his speech. He was normally comfortable speaking in front of groups of people-as his job required-but he was feeling particularly anxious that night because he never spoke at these types of events. He was used to leading board and staff meetings but not galas where his speeches would be heard by so many types of people.
He searched for Luke, who had promised to be here for support, and whose support Reid always needed. He checked his pockets for his phone before remembering that he’d left it in his car. He’d been doing that all day-forgetting his phone in different places and thus, missing a lot of calls from Luke.
“Reid, it’s a good crowd!” exclaimed Tim from his place by the bar.
Reid nodded as he walked by.
“Hey, Doc!” Henry Coleman said as he grinned at Reid.
“Henry. How’s your mother-oops, I mean your wife?” Reid said, needling Henry, which he had still not gotten tired of doing after more than a year.
“Ha ha, very funny. How’s your son, by the way-oops, I mean your boyfriend?” Henry said.
Reid laughed. “He’s great; we’re great!” He left Henry to go outside for his phone.
“So are we! So are we!” Henry shouted back.
Reid almost bumped into Chris.
“Reid, it’s almost time. Don’t disappear on us.”
Reid pointed to the door. “Going to get my phone. Be right back,” he said before Chris could respond.
Reid closed the door to his car and jumped a little as his phone began ringing. He saw the name and number and hesitated before answering.
“What?”
Ruth’s giggling instantly filled Reid’s ears. “Nice to hear your voice again, Doctor.”
“What do you want?”
“I’m looking for Luke.”
“He’s not here, Ruth!”
“Oh, so he’s not back from L.A. yet? I guess he really is staying with Noah this time.”
Reid wasn’t sure he’d heard correctly. “What?”
“I’ll send you the pictures, Doctor. And me, Luke and Noah will send you a postcard later. Bye bye!”
Reid read the message waiting in his inbox. He then opened each picture one by one and stared in shock at the images of Luke in Noah’s bed with Noah all over him. Reid leaned against the car and shut his eyes.
Ruth, her mood improving with each minute, put her bag on the conveyor belt and merrily passed through the metal detector. As she turned around to retrieve her bag, an airport officer held out a hand.
“Ma’am,” he said sternly, pointing to the inside of the bag in his hands. “Could you explain what you have in here?”
***
Next chapter is the last of Ruth forever!
Next