DaisyMaeDuke

Luke looked at her biting his lip, his blue eyes shining with moisture. "I'm really gonna...miss seein' you all the time...I...I..." Luke Duke was not normally one to fumble with words around girls. Both he and Bo had a gift when it came to communicating with the opposite sex. Still, Sara was unlike any girl Luke had ever met.

Luke nodded a little. He would try, at the very least.

Luke hugged her softly. He was still scared to death, but he supposed it was a start. He knew Sara wouldn't release him if he wasn't ready, whether he felt ready himself or not.

Luke bit his lip. "Th-then I wanna try...goin' home," he said softly.

Luke looked at her. "We could?"

Luke looked over at her as she touched his knee, his voice hallow. "I'll miss you..."

E.

"Wh-what if I...m-mess up...?" he whimpered softly.

Every so slowly, Luke raised his crystal blue eyes to her, fear evident in them.

Luke sat still on his chair staring at the floor as if the tiles would stand up and walk. His mind was racing. He couldn't sort out what to do. So his body started panicking, his hands trembling, his mind screaming at him to do something...anything.

Luke shook his head. "No...thanks..."

Luke's lips quivered. Lowering his head he rubbed the back of his neck nervously.

Luke looked at Bo again. "I miss you," he said again, not really knowing what to do, his eyes full of the conflict in his heart.

He turned looking again to Bo. No matter what Bo said, it wasn't fair that he be handling the farm, doing the work of everyone. Luke was the reason for this. It wasn't fair to him... and for that reason he needed to go back. He missed the brotherly banter during choretime. He longed for the nightly gossip of girls, fixing cars together,Saturday Morning fishing trips when there was no hangover to content with and comforting each other with coffee and each other's familiar presence when there was. He missed the farm itself; the sunrise over the hill that woke him every morning along with the rooster; sitting on the front porch whittling the day away. For those reasons he wanted to go back... He was scared to be on his own. For that reason, he couldn't go back.

Luke swallowed, clenching his hands in front of him turmoil clear on his face. He wanted to go home...but then again he didnt.

Luke swallowed looking between her and Bo. "What'll happen when I go home?" He missed Bo so much...especially at night when he was alone in his room. And now, the look in Bo's eyes melted his heart.

Luke swallowed hard. "Sara..."

Luke reached up putting his hand over Bo's looking him in the eye. It never ceased to amaze him how with less than ten words Bo could bring tears to his eyes, but he had done it again with that remark, so much so Luke had to swallow to keep them at bay.

Luke nodded unable to argue with Bo's reasoning. "Guess youre right cousin."

Eventually Luke let go, wiping at his eyes with the back of his hand, sitting again beside Sara. He wanted so badly to feel just great about everything and, week after week when he saw the disappointment in Bo's eyes, it was just too much. "M'sorry it's takin so long"

"I miss you Bo," admitted the dark-haired Duke softly.

Luke again didn't answer. Words had never been necessary with Bo and he knew now that Bo understood him without saying a word.

Luke just nodded, clinging to him still, as if to make sure that Bo really still was his best friend. "Don't worry, ok?" he asked Bo softly. He knew that as tender hearted as Bo was he probably had been spending some nights fretting. "I think I'll be home soon..." He didn't ask Sara if it was true. He really was scared to think about it. But he knew he couldnt stay here forever.

An overwhelming urge to give Bo a hug on the spot came over him. Crossing to his cousin, despite the fact that Sara was in the room, he wrapped his arms around him and gave a tight squeeze. "I'm so thankful for you...you know that right?" If all of this treatment had done nothing else, the freedom with which Luke offered affection was miraculous in and of itself. It was like a part of him that had been dead, was awakened again.

"I'm sorry Bo..." began Luke softly. "I know I sure ain't made things easier for any of ya." He truly felt bad about it, but at the same time he was trying hard not to let those feelings of guilt overtake him like before.