The Other Side of Hollywood | Luke Patterson

TWENTY-SIX✨

Julie was quick to jump on board with my idea; I'd told her I wanted to write a letter to Luke's parents, telling them that their son's dreams weren't for nothing and how much he loved them despite his dramatic exit. She didn't question why I wanted to do this; to her, I was still Luke's girlfriend. Julie told me not to worry about the letter, though; I wasn't the only person Luke wrote an apology song for; there was one for his mother too, one that would tell his parents everything he wanted to say; it was perfect.

"Okay, so just tell them you live where Luke's old studio is, and you found this song," I began instructing Julie on what to say to Mitch and Emily as we walked up to their front door,

"Got it," Julie nodded, gripping the paper tightly in her hands, "This was really sweet of you, Harper," Julie complimented me; I smiled at her, hoping Luke would feel the same way. I'm almost positive this is the boy's unfinished business, and all he wants is to cross over; he can't stay mad at me once he realizes I've helped him, right?

"I just have something I need to do," I told her, glancing over slightly at my house. I may not have left my family on bad terms, but it still wasn't easy knowing I never got to say goodbye or tell them I love them one last time, all this thought about helping the boys get closure with their parents was making me long for the same thing.

"Oh," Julie frowned, "You're not staying?"

"You're gonna be okay," I reassure her, nodding at her encouragingly, "Mitch and Emily are sweethearts; I'll be back soon, I promise." Julie nodded, allowing me to poof away; unknowing to her, I was closer than she thought, now in the living room of the house that used to be mine. Noise flowed through my house from different directions; next to me on the coach was my sister, bouncing her youngest daughter on her knee as the older one, Harper, listened to music on the TV, singing along happily. I could hear mom and dad in the kitchen, laughing and talking as mom prepared dinner. As much as I longed to stay in the company of my sister or go see my parents, I wandered up the stairs, going into the room that used to be mine. Even though this room now had a crib and was most likely used as a guest room whenever Hanna's babies stayed over, I knew mom would never throw away my things; she was too sentimental. I checked the wardrobe and closet first, but nothing of mine was there. Maybe they didn't keep it in here, I decided, leaving the room and entering the one directly next store, my parents' room. To my delight, there was a bookshelf on the wall, full of mom and dad's books; I scanned the shelves, hoping to find what I was looking for; almost giving up until I spotted it, an old leather-bound journal placed neatly on the bottom shelf. "Perfect," I whispered to myself triumphantly; I grabbed the book, moving over to the desk on the other side of the room. I planned to write one last entry and date it back to the day before I passed away; I just needed my parents to know how thankful I am for them and for my sister to know how much I love her; I got to work quickly, the words flowing out of me effortlessly.

July 21, 1995

Dear Diary, it's been exactly seven months since Luke left me; seven months of pure heartbreak and sadness, but I got through it. I can't take any credit for that, though; my family has been fantastic throughout this, whether it be my dad making stupid jokes and bringing me home my favourite flowers from the grocery store just because. Or, my mom making me my favorite desserts and then proceeding to divulge in them with me as we watched cheesy movies. I've never once felt alone throughout this experience. Hanna has been especially amazing; she knows that losing Luke also means losing my two best friends, so she always lets me tag along with her and her friends, despite the fact that they're all older. Hanna doesn't care, though, and if I realized one thing throughout these last few months, it's that my real best friend is her, and no matter who comes into my life, she always will be. I'm visiting Luke tomorrow, but right now, I don't want to worry about that and what might happen; instead, I'm going to think of all the things in my life that are good and the people who I love more than anything.