FORGIVENESS

Chapter 6

            The nurses on the second floor soon became accustomed to the dark haired man being at his cousin’s side almost constantly. The only time he left his side was to take a short walk to work the kinks out of his muscles, to go to the restroom or to get some coffee from the vending machines. Otherwise he was right there at the younger man’s side, holding his hand and talking to him. The closeness between the two young men was plain to see and so was the dark haired man’s worry and concern. Some of the younger nurses made a point of talking to the dark haired man and flirting with him. They loved it when he smiled even if there was always a trace of sadness in that smile and in his eyes.

            Luke’s nerves were stretched to the limit. It had been almost 5 days since the accident and Bo still showed no signs of waking up. The doctor’s tests had shown that his head injury was healing along with his other injuries but he still wasn’t waking up. Luke kept talking to him until he was almost hoarse trying to find a way to get through to him and make him open his eyes.

            Luke dozed in his chair when he got too tired to keep his eyes open any longer. He was dozing when he heard a soft whimpering sound that instantly awakened him. Anxiously, his eyes darted to his cousin’s face. Bo’s eyes were still closed but he was slowly tossing his head from side to side. As he leaned closer, Luke could hear the barely audible words that Bo was muttering “Luke…..where’s Luke…..I want Luke…”

            “Bo, I’m right here, cuz….” Luke said, grasping his hand and holding on tightly “It’s Luke…I’m right here with ya….open your eyes.” He held his breath as Bo’s eyelids slowly fluttered open and he looked at Luke with those beautiful baby blue eyes.

            “Luke?” Bo whispered as if trying to reassure himself that Luke was really there.

            “Yeah, it’s me…” Luke said, the tears falling freely down his face. Tears of happiness and relief that Bo was finally awake. He reached out to gently stroke Bo’s cheek. “How do ya feel?”

            “Like I got hit by a truck….” Bo mumbled. He looked at Luke fearfully, his eyes searching his cousin’s face anxiously “Are you okay?”

            “I’m fine….you’re the one that got hit by the car….” Luke told him with a soft chuckle.

            “Oh, yeah…” Bo said as his memories of the accident slowly came back, at least what he could remember which wasn’t much. “I was afraid you were going to get hit….I couldn’t let you get hurt…”

            “I’m so sorry, Bo…..it was all my fault.” Luke said, his voice cracking with emotion and pain as he tried to shed himself of his guilt.

            “Accident…..not your fault…” Bo said, his voice growing tired and weak. He struggled to keep his eyes open as he tried to reassure his cousin that he wasn’t to blame for what happened.

            “Yes, it was.” Luke insisted, not willing to let go of his guilt so easily. “I shouldn’t have got mad about Becky Sue.”

            “I shouldn’t have asked her out behind your back….” Bo whispered. A small smile tugged at his lips “I think I learned my lesson on that one….”

            “No girl is worth it if they come between us…” Luke said, trying to hold back the tears that threatened again.

            “I love you, cuz….” Bo whispered as his eyes closed and he drifted back into a deep sleep.

            “I love you too, Bo….” Luke whispered back, not sure if Bo could hear him or not. He smiled as he laid his head on the bed beside Bo and dozed off himself, still clutching his cousin’s hand tightly. That was how Uncle Jesse found them when he arrived a short while after that. He smiled faintly at the image. There was nothing that was going to keep those two apart. Gently, he touched Luke’s shoulder and said his name.

            Luke opened his eyes, blinking at his Uncle for a moment as his mind cleared. Straightening up in his chair, he smiled at his Uncle and said “He woke up, Uncle Jesse. He’s gonna be okay.”

            “Praise the lord.” Jesse said in a relieved voice. “Are you okay now?”

            Luke nodded slightly and looked back at Bo’s face. “I am now….” He said quietly. He knew that Bo had forgiven him and that had relieved his guilt. He made a solemn promise to himself that nothing like this would ever happen again. No girl would ever come between them and when Bo got out of here, Luke would take care of him just like he always had. Things were back to normal, at least as normal as they ever got in Hazzard County.

THE END