Luka and Alison
Paradise
by JES 2
Alison felt Luka's hand brushing
back her hair; she sighed contentedly and opened her eyes to see him smiling
down at her. A sight I'll never grow tired of, she thought.
"Morning,"
Luka said, still toying with her hair.
"Morning," she answered,
snuggling closer to him. It was just so nice to be near
him, to have him with her always.
"So," Luka asked, trailing
his hand down her arm, "What do you feel like doing this
morning?" She chuckled wickedly.
"What do you think?" She
tilted her head up to him for a kiss, but as she did so, a loud
crash came from the kitchen, distracting her.
"What
are they doing down there?" she sighed, looking at the door.
"Who cares?" Luka replied,
pulling her back to him. "They're big kids. They can
take care of themselves." She laughed again, and
decided to forget about the mess being made in the kitchen, at
least for now...
Alison and Luka lay amid the tangled
sheets, arms wrapped around each other, content. All was
quiet in the house- almost too quiet, she thought.
"What do
you think they're doing down there?" she asked Luka.
"I'm
sure we'll find out soon enough," he said with a shrug.
"Mom? Dad?" Matt
called tentatively from outside the bedroom door. "Are
you awake yet?" Alison sighed. Right on cue, she
thought.
"Yes,
dear," she answered reluctantly.
"Are
you, um, decent?"
"Give us a minute," Luka
called. "Only took him nineteen years to learn to
knock first," he whispered to Alison as she dug through the
sheets, looking for her top.
"What
are they doing in there?" she heard Chris ask his brother.
"What'd ya think they're
doing?" Matt replied. There was a beat as the
implication sunk in, then Chris exclaimed,
"That's
gross!"
Luka looked up at the door. "What's
so gross about it?" he whispered. Alison just smiled.
"Tell
me, when you were seventeen, did your parents ever make
love?"
"You mean- my mom and dad…
?" Luka asked, feigning incredulity. Alison laughed
and swatted him with a pillow.
"Mom? Dad?" Matt called
impatiently, "I don't mean to, um, rush you, but I have to
go to work soon."
"Okay, okay," Luka
answered. He finished smoothing the covers while Alison
arranged the pillows. "Ready?" he asked. She
nodded.
"Come on in, boys," she
called. She sat next to Luka, propped up on pillows, trying
to look innocent, but failing miserably.
Chris
held the door for his older brother- Matt had a huge bouquet of
flowers.
"Happy Anniversary, Mom and
Dad," they chimed in unison. Matt put the flowers on
the dresser, then came to give his parents a hug and kiss.
"They're beautiful!" Alison
exclaimed. And so typical of Matt, she thought- always a
romantic. Chris had followed his brother to the bedside,
and he handed a package to his mother.
"Its
not much," he said.
"Maybe
if you didn't spend all your money on Patty," his brother
teased.
"Like
most of your money doesn't go towards stuff for Jenny!"
Chris shot back.
"Boys..." Luka warned,
instantly quieting them. Always a competition, Alison
thought. She smiled at Chris as she opened his gift; she
could see her younger son looking anxiously from his gift to the
flowers Matt had gotten. Poor Chris, Alison thought- it
always seemed that he had to struggle for things, while
everything seemed so easy for Matt- and his older brother never
let Chris forget it. But even though the wrapping was really birthday paper,
she knew the gift inside would be perfect. Chris might not
realize it yet, but he had special talents of his own.
She wasn't disappointed. Chris
had gotten a photo album with a large "20" on the
cover, to mark their twentieth anniversary. Inside he had
collected pictures of all the highlights of Luka's and Alison's
life together, starting with their wedding in front of the
Justice of the Peace, then going through the birth of first
Matthew, then Christopher, and finally Mary-Anna.
"Where is your
sister?" Luka asked when they got to her picture,
"Still sleeping?"
"No- she's making you two
breakfast in bed," Matt informed them. Alison and Luka
exchanged looks- their daughter's cooking left a lot to be
desired. No wonder there had been a crash before, Alison
thought.
"I
hope she doesn't poison you," Chris said.
"At
least there's a doctor around if she does," Matt put in.
"Doesn’t
help if he's one of the victims," Chris pointed out.
"Boys..." Luka growled.
Then he laughed and whispered to Alison, "We'll eat just
enough to be polite." She punched her husband in the
shoulder.
"She tries," Alison said,
trying to be diplomatic. "And after all, she's just
fourteen."
"When my mom was
fourteen..."Luka started; Matt and Chris rolled their eyes,
anticipating another "when I was younger" story, but
Alison stopped Luka short.
"You weren't around when your
mother was fourteen," she reminded him. Luka gave her
a funny look, but held his tongue. They went back to
looking at the photo album.
Chris had missed nothing- he had
found pictures of nursery school and first communions and all
their trips- pictures of them all in Disney World and Croatia and
Ireland. He even included shots of Luka at work in County,
with first Kerry Weaver as chief, and then John Carter.
Now a days Luka didn't spend too much
time in the ER; he was mostly in the classroom, teaching new med
students; but at least once a week he took a shift, to keep his
hand in. Chris had pictures of Alison's classes, too.
She had switched from teaching college to teaching high school,
after a break for having the children; Luka hadn't been real
happy when she went back to work, but with so many mouths to
feed, the extra money came in handy. And teaching at St.
James had meant a break on the kids’ tuition, as well.
There were more pictures- of picnics
and family days and Little League and school plays- twenty years
of good memories, of good times, of love. Luka's arm was
around Alison, and he squeezed her to him.
"Did you ever think we would be
so happy?" he whispered. Alison kissed him lightly on the
cheek.
"Actually, yes," she
answered. She looked at their sons, tall and handsome like
their father- but more importantly, happy and healthy. They
looked so much alike- people often asked if they were twins-
but they were so different. Matt breezed through life; he
had decided when he was five that he was going to be a doctor,
just like his dad- and there was no doubt in anyone's mind that
he would succeed. It was just that easy for him.
Chris, on the other hand, struggled
with his studies, fighting his way through school, studying for
hours to get Cs and Ds while his brother got As almost without
trying. No, Chris's talent lay in his hands, Alison
thought; give him any kind of tool, and he could make anything,
fix anything. He still had one year of high school left,
but already the appliance shop and the local carpenter were
fighting over him. We haven't done half-bad with them,
Alison thought with a smile. They've made us so proud
already.
Mary-Anna breezed in with their
breakfast on a tray. Mary-Anna, who would have been spoiled
rotten if the boys hadn't had a say in things; she had been
unexpected, Luka and Alison had been told the boys would be it,
that there’d be no more children. And then Mary-Anna
had come, completing things somehow. She was always so
happy, so carefree. The boys would bicker and tease, and
even fight sometimes, but it never bothered their sister; she
would just laugh and let everything roll off her back. Mary-Anna
had many talents- unfortunately, cooking wasn't one of them.
"A special breakfast for special
parents," she announced with great fanfare. She put
the tray between her parents on the bed; Luka and Alison couldn't
help but exchange smiles- she had made them chocolate chip
pancakes.
"Thank you, sweetheart,"
Luka told her, kissing her forehead. "That's really
very special." Mary-Anna just beamed.
"I think you'll find they came
out perfect," she promised. "Try them!"
Alison bravely took a fork and was ready to bite into a pancake
when the doorbell rang.
"Saved by the bell," Luka
whispered so only Alison could hear; she had to stifle a laugh.
"That'll be Patty," Chris
said. "I have to go to work." He gave his
parents a quick kiss and hug. "Sorry I have to
run," he said as he headed out. "Happy
anniversary, mom and dad!"
"I have to go, too," Matt
said reluctantly. "Can't be late for work."
A statement that had been drilled into his head by his father a
long time ago, Alison thought.
"Can you drop me off at the
pool?" Mary-Anna asked. "I have to help teach the
beginning swimmers class today. Matt rolled his eyes and
nodded yes- part of the deal of having his own car was that he
had to give his siblings rides whenever possible. He and
his sister gave their parents hugs and kisses, then they were
gone, too, their "Happy Anniversary!" echoing down the
hall as they breezed out.
Luka looked at Alison, and then
started laughing at the sudden quiet. "Just a typical
morning in the Kovac Castle," he said. He picked up a
fork and stabbed at a pancake. "Do you think
it's safe?" he asked, just looking at it. Alison tried
a bite of hers.
"A little- heavy," she
commented, reaching for the chocolate milk to wash it down.
"Ah, then they are
perfect," Luka said with a smile. Alison looked at him
curiously. "Just like the ones at Doc Magoos!"
Luka explained. Alison had to smile, remembering that day
twenty years ago when they'd had their first date. But
suddenly the smile left her.
"What's
the matter?" Luka asked.
"The
kitchen..." Alison answered.
"It probably looks like a
disaster area," Luka acknowledged. Alison took the
tray and started to get out of bed, but Luka stopped her.
"It'll still be there
later," he whispered, a gleam in his eye. "Right
now, we're all alone. And it is our
anniversary."
"I like how you think, Dr.
Kovac," Alison said as she put the tray on the floor.
"It's been a good twenty years, hasn't it?" she
asked as she pulled him to her.
"Pretty damn good," Luka
said as he started kissing her. "And here's to at
least fifty more." Luka wrapped his arms around her
and kissed her deeply. Flashes of the past played
through Alison's mind. It hadn't all been perfect; there
had been fights and tears along with the joy, but always, always,
there was their love for each other, keeping them together,
making them stronger, making them whole. Surely, Alison
thought as she gave herself to Luka for the millionth time,
surely this is paradise.
The End