to love a beast - fiction - as the world turns - luke snyder/dr. reid oliver
After a tight hug, Holden makes his way quickly from the room, and Luke's eyes lock back on the beast, who is slowly advancing toward the bed. Suppressing the urge to scoot away from it, Luke watches him mistrustfully, wrapping his arms around himself. As the beast reaches the bedside, it reaches a paw up towards Luke's face.
Luke flinches away instinctively, he can see short little claws that take the place of nails. The beast makes a scoffing sound, and touches his face lightly anyway, almost tentatively.
"Don't have a heart attack Mr. Snyder, you hit your head particularly hard in the forest, and there's a high possibility of a concussion." The paw is soft, and surprisingly gentle against his temple, he can only barely feel the tiny points of the claws. It makes Luke confusingly hot and shivery for a moment. The beast picks up the lamp from the bedside table, and passes it in front of Luke's right eye, and then his left, it's cat-like face looking intently at each of his eyes as it does so.
"What are you?" More words are spilling out of Luke's mouth, and for a moment he thinks the beast will be angry, but it only sighs, as if annoyed.
"Close the gash in your face unless I instruct you to speak." It stows the lamp back in it's place. "Now, what is your name?"
"Luke Snyder," Luke replies, confusion and annoyance in his tone. "But you already knew that, you've called me by my full name." The beast makes another annoyed noise.
"To confirm that you are not concussed, it's necessary to ask you some simple questions and check that you respond correctly." It makes a face that might be described as 'put upon' by Luke's mother. "Though perhaps simple questions might prove to hard for you. Your father's name?"
"Holden Snyder," Luke replies, only a little bit sulkily. He resists the urge to cross his arms.
"And your brother?"
"Ethan Snyder." Luke feels a little impatient, hoping that the beast is not about to question him on his whole family, but the beast seems satisfied.
"Now, do you feel as if you might regurgitate gastronomical juices?" Luke blinks, shaking his head. Another sigh from the beast. "Do you feel like you're going to throw up?"
"Oh, no," Luke says, feeling like an idiot, then feeling annoyed as he realizes that was probably the beast's intention. "The back of my head just hurts." Luke feels a paw tenderly probing the back of his skull, and he winces as it reaches the right side, a few inches to the left of his ear.
"You'll have lots of bruising, but nothing terribly serious, if you don't do anything idiotic." The beast's tone suggests that it believes idiotic actions on Luke's part are highly likely. Luke is trying not to be too offended, he's starting to realize that the beast truly enjoys seeing Luke affronted, but it's getting harder and harder.
"Excuse me…" he starts with no shortage of acid in his voice, and then drifts off, and attempts to survey the beast casually. There's an awkward pause, and then the beast laughs, almost too loudly.
"You're trying to figure out if I'm male or female, aren't you?" Now Luke can tell that the beast truly thinks him simple. "To save you further awkward questioning, I am in fact a male monster."
"Well I didn't think it would be polite to assume," Luke says defensively.
"All the more reason not to be polite," the beast quips. "And now, out of bed Mr. Snyder, no sleeping until tonight."
"What time is it?" Luke asks with a yawn, feeling a little exposed as he tosses the covers off and swings his legs over the side of the bed. He crosses his arms over his chest, staring at the creature who is his captor.
"Perhaps a little after nine in the morning," the beast replies, stepping back to allow Luke to stand. Now that Luke's paying attention, he can hear the light clack-clack of nails against the floor.
"Nine in the morning?" Luke repeats with some surprise, the room is so dark it gives the impression that the time is much later.
"That is what I said, are you hard of hearing?"
"Are you done being an asshole?" Luke shoots off before he can stop himself, the constant insults are beginning to grate on his nerves. Perhaps not the most intelligent thing to say to a creature that has threatened to eat him. The beast surveys him with intelligent eyes, and then his mouth approximates what Luke guesses would be a smirk on a human face. The teeth on display should worry him, but instead he finds himself smirking right back.
"Unfortunately for you, Mr. Snyder, not until I've breathed my last breath. Now boots on, to keep you from boredom, and therefore keep you from being an annoyance to me, you'll be getting a tour." Luke toes on his boots, which he finds by the end of the bed. They've been cleaned of mud and are looking newer than they have for many years. The beast watches him, his gaze far more penetrating than Luke is comfortable with.
"Now, follow me."
~
They've made their way up and down a few metal corridors, the beast opening a door and stepping back to allow Luke to peek in as the purpose of the room is explained. Both the hallways and the rooms are at around the same lighting as Luke's room, which makes it a little difficult, but his eyes are adjusting quickly.
He spends just as much time looking at the beast as he does at the manor. Out on the slightly better lit corridors, Luke can now see that he wears a midnight blue shirt fitted for his uncommonly wide shoulders and chest, which tapers into a smaller waist. Over it is a black waist coat, and finally black pants, which end above his knees that remind Luke of a dog's hind leg. Luke tries not to stare, but the sight of a dressed beast moving almost silently beside him is a distracting sight. It's a wonder the beast has not caught him at it, and it seems he almost does as he halts them in front of a set of ornate French doors.
"And this, Mr. Snyder, is my library," he says, introducing the room as he has all the others, and swinging the doors open. Luke's jaw drops. The room is of a size that can only be described as mind bending, and all available wall space appears to have been dedicated to bookshelves, impossibly tall metal shelves that reach nearly to the vaulted ceiling. The lighting is more generous here, illuminating the assortment of wide plush chairs, as well as a few couches in the same style. Where tables aren't piled high with books, they hold strange little anatomical models. As Luke steps closer to one, he can see they're made out of plastic, which is even stranger to Luke than anything else he's awoken to today. He knows he's been sheltered in Oakdale, but he didn't think that plastic had been in use for many, many years.
They are disconcerting in and of themselves, does this beast enjoy human meat so much he decorates his library with models of the organs he considers tastiest? Luke comments on this, doing his best to sound offhand, though a quiver manages to worm it's way through his speech. The beast stares at him with wide eyes, seeming to look as nauseated as Luke feels.
"Maybe I should speak as if to a toddler from now on, I was being facetious." The beast shakes his head, and fakes a shiver.
"I certainly hope so," Luke says, ignoring the first part of the sentence and taking a few more steps into the room. They're both silent for a long moment as the beast watches Luke move down one wall, looking through book titles with a smile. Finally he turns back to the beast, grinning at him. "I don’t know that I've ever seen so many books in one place."
The beast's face is inscrutable for a moment, then it breaks back into the smirk from before.
"I'm glad it pleases you, Mr. Snyder."
~
The sunlight hurts Luke's eyes as he follows the beast of a side door, cunningly disguised as more patchwork metal wall. The area they stand in is explained as the 'side yard', and it's filled with trees and shrubs. It appears to have been a garden, once upon a time, though it has since run wild. Luke loves it immediately, and he runs his hands lightly over the colorful blooms that line the path, following as the beast leads him along.
"I thought this might amuse you," the beast says over his shoulder as they walk. They emerge into a hollow, which is mostly occupied by a long wooden building, and Luke can see immediately that it was once a stable. It's a little dilapidated now, but still appears sturdy, with one long wall knocked down and cleared away completely. As they come around to face the building where the missing wall would be, Luke catches his breath. There is a herd of wild horses quietly grazing there, all knee deep in the tall grass that grows in the shadow of the once-stable.
"And your horse is there," the beast says quietly, putting a paw on Luke's back and pointing to the stalls still inside the building. Dusk is put up in a stall at the very end, is munching contentedly on fresh grain and looking for all the world to be as spoiled as Luke allows him to be at home. A goofy grin spreads over Luke's face as he carefully makes his way to Dusk's stall, the wild horses edging away from them, though they appear to be more concerned with the beast's hulking mass.
"Well weren't you just no help last night," Luke says quietly, laughing a little as he reaches up and softly scratches behind Dusk's right ear. "Spooking like some lady's pony, we'll see if you get any sugar tonight." Dusk nudges his velvet nose over Luke's cheek, snorting a little. Luke sighs, feeling truly at ease for the first time for quite a few days. He looks back over at the beast, who has the strange expression Luke can't quite decode on his face, but before he can ask about it, he's startled out of his skin by another voice.
"Dinner is being laid out, if you're interested." Luke whips around, his eyebrows almost disappearing into his hair. He can see the shape of a woman in the shadow in the stable, but she's vague and blurry. Luke blinks his eyes tight, wondering if he'd gotten dust in them. When he looks at her again, she looks just the same, and she reminds Luke of a film in the fancy place in the city his grandmother has described to him as a 'cinema' when she had last visited.
"Katie…" the beast growls at her, his face turning him back into the menacing creature from earlier. Luke takes a few steps away from him, puzzled at this turn of events.
"Reid…" Katie singsongs back at him, completely unafraid of his annoyed anger. "He's probably starving, bring him inside to the dining room." She then turns to Luke, grinning widely at him. "I'm sorry, he likes to forget social graces like meals and introducing people to one another. I'm Katie, and I'd shake your hand but-" she laughs a little, "I'm a little unable to." Luke stares at her a little, smiling hesitantly, and Katie looks as if she's resisting the urge to coo at him. "Oh Reid he's adorable, you've neglected to explain a thing." The beast makes an annoyed noise, and gestures between them with one clawed paw.
"Mr. Snyder, this is Katie, Katie, this is Luke Snyder." With another sigh, he continues. "Katie keeps my house for me, and likes to consider annoying me her secondary job. She's a hologram." Luke nods with a little more understanding, Lucinda had talked at length about the hologram she'd bought to answer her door, but he had been under the impression that they were merely expressionless, autonomous computer programs for a single purpose. Still, he asks no questions, Katie is smiling brightly at him, and it lightens his heart to be around someone in such a good mood.
"So Luke, I can imagine you are rather hungry, would you like to come inside and have a bite to eat?" Katie's enthusiasm is infectious, and when Luke's stomach growls they both laugh. The beast makes another annoyed noise, and they both laugh harder. "Reid, it wouldn’t hurt you to lightening up."
"But why take the chance?" His tone is full of venom, and Luke shakes his head, laughing a little.
"So your name is Reid? Interesting name for a beast." Katie makes a face at the beast, crossing her arms over her chest.
"You haven't even told him your name? Are you touched in the head, or do you want to keep the poor boy frightened of you forever?" To Luke's utter delight, Reid appears agitated and sheepish, shifting his weight from foot to foot.
"I was getting to that," Reid mutters. Katie shakes her head at him, and her body shimmers a little before disappearing. Reid nods to Luke, gesturing him back towards the manor. "Come on, I'm hungry myself, and if we don't eat soon, perhaps I will be interested in how man flesh tastes."
~
The table is laid out with a veritable feast of many different foods, and Luke's stomach grumbles again as he looks over the bounty.
"Well, don't stand there staring at it," Reid says, sitting down at one end of the table. Luke laughs a little, shaking his head as he sits. He begins to ladle himself some of the tomato soup from the tureen nearest to him, the scent making his mouth water, and he's almost finished with the bowl before he looks up and sees that Reid hasn't even begun yet.
"Is something wrong?" Luke asks curiously, raising an eyebrow.
"No, I just…make quite a mess when I eat. I've never quite been able to negotiate these," he says, gesturing to the just a little too long teeth that protrude from his upper lip.
"Why does it matter?" Luke asks incredulously, staring at Reid.
"Just because I look like a beast, doesn't mean I have to behave like one," he replies, looking at Luke angrily from across the table.
"As if you don't behave like one?" Luke says, laughing a little. He spots Reid staring at a plate of sandwiches towards the middle, and he stands, picking one up and going to the other side of the table. "Now open up."
"Are you serious?" Reid asks, looking at him skeptically. Luke shakes the sandwich a little, bending until their faces are even.
"You're hungry, which means you're going to eat this sandwich," Luke says, matter of fact. "Do I have to play the airship game? Are you three years old?" Reid opens his mouth reluctantly, and Luke carefully holds out the sandwich, looking down at the table to give him privacy as he takes a bite. As he hears him swallow Luke looks back up, smiling triumphantly. "See? I don't understand why you made it so difficult," Luke says with some exasperation.
Reid has a strange expression on his face, and Luke hopes that eventually he'll be able to read his features as easily as anyone else.
"Just an impulse, I suppose."
Luke returns to his chair, and Reid clears his throat as he piles a few more sandwiches onto his plate.
"So…do you have…hobbies?"
He sounds so awkward that Luke wants to laugh, but he holds it in because he's glad that Reid's not being as much of a jerk as he was before. Luke shrugs, spooning up more soup.
"Not particularly, I help my father on the farm, well, helped," Luke says, trying not to wince as he's reminded of his family. "I take care of my siblings. Spend time with my friends."
"Come on, everyone has a least one thing they enjoy doing," Reid says, and Luke believes he might be raising an eyebrow sardonically at him, it's harder to tell when said eyebrow mostly blends in with the rest of the hair on his face. Luke considers for a moment.
"Well, I like telling stories," Luke says shrugging. He's never thought of it as a hobby, just something to send Ethan off to sleep, or to distract the girls when they both had influenza at the same time. While he enjoyed it, it was just something second nature to him, like eating or breathing. "My family likes them but…" Luke shrugs again.
"If you'd like I…I have paper in the library. If you'd like to write some down." Reid is clearly uncomfortable, but for some reason, Luke finds it endearing.
"I'd like that a lot," Luke says, smiling.
Chapter Six.
Luke flinches away instinctively, he can see short little claws that take the place of nails. The beast makes a scoffing sound, and touches his face lightly anyway, almost tentatively.
"Don't have a heart attack Mr. Snyder, you hit your head particularly hard in the forest, and there's a high possibility of a concussion." The paw is soft, and surprisingly gentle against his temple, he can only barely feel the tiny points of the claws. It makes Luke confusingly hot and shivery for a moment. The beast picks up the lamp from the bedside table, and passes it in front of Luke's right eye, and then his left, it's cat-like face looking intently at each of his eyes as it does so.
"What are you?" More words are spilling out of Luke's mouth, and for a moment he thinks the beast will be angry, but it only sighs, as if annoyed.
"Close the gash in your face unless I instruct you to speak." It stows the lamp back in it's place. "Now, what is your name?"
"Luke Snyder," Luke replies, confusion and annoyance in his tone. "But you already knew that, you've called me by my full name." The beast makes another annoyed noise.
"To confirm that you are not concussed, it's necessary to ask you some simple questions and check that you respond correctly." It makes a face that might be described as 'put upon' by Luke's mother. "Though perhaps simple questions might prove to hard for you. Your father's name?"
"Holden Snyder," Luke replies, only a little bit sulkily. He resists the urge to cross his arms.
"And your brother?"
"Ethan Snyder." Luke feels a little impatient, hoping that the beast is not about to question him on his whole family, but the beast seems satisfied.
"Now, do you feel as if you might regurgitate gastronomical juices?" Luke blinks, shaking his head. Another sigh from the beast. "Do you feel like you're going to throw up?"
"Oh, no," Luke says, feeling like an idiot, then feeling annoyed as he realizes that was probably the beast's intention. "The back of my head just hurts." Luke feels a paw tenderly probing the back of his skull, and he winces as it reaches the right side, a few inches to the left of his ear.
"You'll have lots of bruising, but nothing terribly serious, if you don't do anything idiotic." The beast's tone suggests that it believes idiotic actions on Luke's part are highly likely. Luke is trying not to be too offended, he's starting to realize that the beast truly enjoys seeing Luke affronted, but it's getting harder and harder.
"Excuse me…" he starts with no shortage of acid in his voice, and then drifts off, and attempts to survey the beast casually. There's an awkward pause, and then the beast laughs, almost too loudly.
"You're trying to figure out if I'm male or female, aren't you?" Now Luke can tell that the beast truly thinks him simple. "To save you further awkward questioning, I am in fact a male monster."
"Well I didn't think it would be polite to assume," Luke says defensively.
"All the more reason not to be polite," the beast quips. "And now, out of bed Mr. Snyder, no sleeping until tonight."
"What time is it?" Luke asks with a yawn, feeling a little exposed as he tosses the covers off and swings his legs over the side of the bed. He crosses his arms over his chest, staring at the creature who is his captor.
"Perhaps a little after nine in the morning," the beast replies, stepping back to allow Luke to stand. Now that Luke's paying attention, he can hear the light clack-clack of nails against the floor.
"Nine in the morning?" Luke repeats with some surprise, the room is so dark it gives the impression that the time is much later.
"That is what I said, are you hard of hearing?"
"Are you done being an asshole?" Luke shoots off before he can stop himself, the constant insults are beginning to grate on his nerves. Perhaps not the most intelligent thing to say to a creature that has threatened to eat him. The beast surveys him with intelligent eyes, and then his mouth approximates what Luke guesses would be a smirk on a human face. The teeth on display should worry him, but instead he finds himself smirking right back.
"Unfortunately for you, Mr. Snyder, not until I've breathed my last breath. Now boots on, to keep you from boredom, and therefore keep you from being an annoyance to me, you'll be getting a tour." Luke toes on his boots, which he finds by the end of the bed. They've been cleaned of mud and are looking newer than they have for many years. The beast watches him, his gaze far more penetrating than Luke is comfortable with.
"Now, follow me."
~
They've made their way up and down a few metal corridors, the beast opening a door and stepping back to allow Luke to peek in as the purpose of the room is explained. Both the hallways and the rooms are at around the same lighting as Luke's room, which makes it a little difficult, but his eyes are adjusting quickly.
He spends just as much time looking at the beast as he does at the manor. Out on the slightly better lit corridors, Luke can now see that he wears a midnight blue shirt fitted for his uncommonly wide shoulders and chest, which tapers into a smaller waist. Over it is a black waist coat, and finally black pants, which end above his knees that remind Luke of a dog's hind leg. Luke tries not to stare, but the sight of a dressed beast moving almost silently beside him is a distracting sight. It's a wonder the beast has not caught him at it, and it seems he almost does as he halts them in front of a set of ornate French doors.
"And this, Mr. Snyder, is my library," he says, introducing the room as he has all the others, and swinging the doors open. Luke's jaw drops. The room is of a size that can only be described as mind bending, and all available wall space appears to have been dedicated to bookshelves, impossibly tall metal shelves that reach nearly to the vaulted ceiling. The lighting is more generous here, illuminating the assortment of wide plush chairs, as well as a few couches in the same style. Where tables aren't piled high with books, they hold strange little anatomical models. As Luke steps closer to one, he can see they're made out of plastic, which is even stranger to Luke than anything else he's awoken to today. He knows he's been sheltered in Oakdale, but he didn't think that plastic had been in use for many, many years.
They are disconcerting in and of themselves, does this beast enjoy human meat so much he decorates his library with models of the organs he considers tastiest? Luke comments on this, doing his best to sound offhand, though a quiver manages to worm it's way through his speech. The beast stares at him with wide eyes, seeming to look as nauseated as Luke feels.
"Maybe I should speak as if to a toddler from now on, I was being facetious." The beast shakes his head, and fakes a shiver.
"I certainly hope so," Luke says, ignoring the first part of the sentence and taking a few more steps into the room. They're both silent for a long moment as the beast watches Luke move down one wall, looking through book titles with a smile. Finally he turns back to the beast, grinning at him. "I don’t know that I've ever seen so many books in one place."
The beast's face is inscrutable for a moment, then it breaks back into the smirk from before.
"I'm glad it pleases you, Mr. Snyder."
~
The sunlight hurts Luke's eyes as he follows the beast of a side door, cunningly disguised as more patchwork metal wall. The area they stand in is explained as the 'side yard', and it's filled with trees and shrubs. It appears to have been a garden, once upon a time, though it has since run wild. Luke loves it immediately, and he runs his hands lightly over the colorful blooms that line the path, following as the beast leads him along.
"I thought this might amuse you," the beast says over his shoulder as they walk. They emerge into a hollow, which is mostly occupied by a long wooden building, and Luke can see immediately that it was once a stable. It's a little dilapidated now, but still appears sturdy, with one long wall knocked down and cleared away completely. As they come around to face the building where the missing wall would be, Luke catches his breath. There is a herd of wild horses quietly grazing there, all knee deep in the tall grass that grows in the shadow of the once-stable.
"And your horse is there," the beast says quietly, putting a paw on Luke's back and pointing to the stalls still inside the building. Dusk is put up in a stall at the very end, is munching contentedly on fresh grain and looking for all the world to be as spoiled as Luke allows him to be at home. A goofy grin spreads over Luke's face as he carefully makes his way to Dusk's stall, the wild horses edging away from them, though they appear to be more concerned with the beast's hulking mass.
"Well weren't you just no help last night," Luke says quietly, laughing a little as he reaches up and softly scratches behind Dusk's right ear. "Spooking like some lady's pony, we'll see if you get any sugar tonight." Dusk nudges his velvet nose over Luke's cheek, snorting a little. Luke sighs, feeling truly at ease for the first time for quite a few days. He looks back over at the beast, who has the strange expression Luke can't quite decode on his face, but before he can ask about it, he's startled out of his skin by another voice.
"Dinner is being laid out, if you're interested." Luke whips around, his eyebrows almost disappearing into his hair. He can see the shape of a woman in the shadow in the stable, but she's vague and blurry. Luke blinks his eyes tight, wondering if he'd gotten dust in them. When he looks at her again, she looks just the same, and she reminds Luke of a film in the fancy place in the city his grandmother has described to him as a 'cinema' when she had last visited.
"Katie…" the beast growls at her, his face turning him back into the menacing creature from earlier. Luke takes a few steps away from him, puzzled at this turn of events.
"Reid…" Katie singsongs back at him, completely unafraid of his annoyed anger. "He's probably starving, bring him inside to the dining room." She then turns to Luke, grinning widely at him. "I'm sorry, he likes to forget social graces like meals and introducing people to one another. I'm Katie, and I'd shake your hand but-" she laughs a little, "I'm a little unable to." Luke stares at her a little, smiling hesitantly, and Katie looks as if she's resisting the urge to coo at him. "Oh Reid he's adorable, you've neglected to explain a thing." The beast makes an annoyed noise, and gestures between them with one clawed paw.
"Mr. Snyder, this is Katie, Katie, this is Luke Snyder." With another sigh, he continues. "Katie keeps my house for me, and likes to consider annoying me her secondary job. She's a hologram." Luke nods with a little more understanding, Lucinda had talked at length about the hologram she'd bought to answer her door, but he had been under the impression that they were merely expressionless, autonomous computer programs for a single purpose. Still, he asks no questions, Katie is smiling brightly at him, and it lightens his heart to be around someone in such a good mood.
"So Luke, I can imagine you are rather hungry, would you like to come inside and have a bite to eat?" Katie's enthusiasm is infectious, and when Luke's stomach growls they both laugh. The beast makes another annoyed noise, and they both laugh harder. "Reid, it wouldn’t hurt you to lightening up."
"But why take the chance?" His tone is full of venom, and Luke shakes his head, laughing a little.
"So your name is Reid? Interesting name for a beast." Katie makes a face at the beast, crossing her arms over her chest.
"You haven't even told him your name? Are you touched in the head, or do you want to keep the poor boy frightened of you forever?" To Luke's utter delight, Reid appears agitated and sheepish, shifting his weight from foot to foot.
"I was getting to that," Reid mutters. Katie shakes her head at him, and her body shimmers a little before disappearing. Reid nods to Luke, gesturing him back towards the manor. "Come on, I'm hungry myself, and if we don't eat soon, perhaps I will be interested in how man flesh tastes."
~
The table is laid out with a veritable feast of many different foods, and Luke's stomach grumbles again as he looks over the bounty.
"Well, don't stand there staring at it," Reid says, sitting down at one end of the table. Luke laughs a little, shaking his head as he sits. He begins to ladle himself some of the tomato soup from the tureen nearest to him, the scent making his mouth water, and he's almost finished with the bowl before he looks up and sees that Reid hasn't even begun yet.
"Is something wrong?" Luke asks curiously, raising an eyebrow.
"No, I just…make quite a mess when I eat. I've never quite been able to negotiate these," he says, gesturing to the just a little too long teeth that protrude from his upper lip.
"Why does it matter?" Luke asks incredulously, staring at Reid.
"Just because I look like a beast, doesn't mean I have to behave like one," he replies, looking at Luke angrily from across the table.
"As if you don't behave like one?" Luke says, laughing a little. He spots Reid staring at a plate of sandwiches towards the middle, and he stands, picking one up and going to the other side of the table. "Now open up."
"Are you serious?" Reid asks, looking at him skeptically. Luke shakes the sandwich a little, bending until their faces are even.
"You're hungry, which means you're going to eat this sandwich," Luke says, matter of fact. "Do I have to play the airship game? Are you three years old?" Reid opens his mouth reluctantly, and Luke carefully holds out the sandwich, looking down at the table to give him privacy as he takes a bite. As he hears him swallow Luke looks back up, smiling triumphantly. "See? I don't understand why you made it so difficult," Luke says with some exasperation.
Reid has a strange expression on his face, and Luke hopes that eventually he'll be able to read his features as easily as anyone else.
"Just an impulse, I suppose."
Luke returns to his chair, and Reid clears his throat as he piles a few more sandwiches onto his plate.
"So…do you have…hobbies?"
He sounds so awkward that Luke wants to laugh, but he holds it in because he's glad that Reid's not being as much of a jerk as he was before. Luke shrugs, spooning up more soup.
"Not particularly, I help my father on the farm, well, helped," Luke says, trying not to wince as he's reminded of his family. "I take care of my siblings. Spend time with my friends."
"Come on, everyone has a least one thing they enjoy doing," Reid says, and Luke believes he might be raising an eyebrow sardonically at him, it's harder to tell when said eyebrow mostly blends in with the rest of the hair on his face. Luke considers for a moment.
"Well, I like telling stories," Luke says shrugging. He's never thought of it as a hobby, just something to send Ethan off to sleep, or to distract the girls when they both had influenza at the same time. While he enjoyed it, it was just something second nature to him, like eating or breathing. "My family likes them but…" Luke shrugs again.
"If you'd like I…I have paper in the library. If you'd like to write some down." Reid is clearly uncomfortable, but for some reason, Luke finds it endearing.
"I'd like that a lot," Luke says, smiling.
Chapter Six.