Work Text:
“Dad!”
Ray was working at the kitchen table when he heard the panicked cry from his daughter and looked over to see Julie rush in, helping Luke stay upright while Carlos ran by her side. The phantom was grimacing in pain, clutching his stomach as Julie led him over to the couch.
“What happened?” Ray asked as he rushed over to check on the phantom, his dad instincts kicking in.
As though sensing his boyfriend was hurt, Reggie teleported in without warning. Ray jumped- he’d never get used to that- but kept his composure as he joined in helping Luke.
“How are you hurt?!” Reggie cried, rushing over to help.
“Fell out…of…tree…”
Both Reggie and Ray stared, not understanding as Luke was a ghost and shouldn’t be hurt, but then the simply shrugged.
“Oh, well that’s happened before,” Reggie commented casually, earning a glare from the other phantom.
“But not since I’ve been a ghost!”
“He was showing off,” Julie explained, doing a terrible job at hiding her frustration, “and somehow, managed to get actually hurt.”
She placed a hand where Luke was clutching his side, and the ghost cried out in pain, demonstrating that he really was, actually hurt. Reggie knelt by his side, taking Luke’s hand.
“Let me see, mijo,” Ray said gently to Luke.
The phantom lifted his shirt to reveal a blossoming dark blue bruise but otherwise he physically looked relatively okay for someone who just fell out of a tree. Regardless, Luke was a ghost and he shouldn’t be able to develop bruises at all; Julie looked as nervous as he felt, wondering what this meant. It was one thing for Reggie's anemia symptoms or Alex's anxiety to still be able to affect them as ghosts but getting actual injuries? Reggie threw him a desperate “please help us” look as Luke looked away, breathing through the pain as he tried to avoid everyone. He had a feeling that what Luke really needed right now was space, and though he hadn't had a chance to get to know Luke too well, he knew Luke felt comfortable and safer in the studio than anywhere else.
“I think Luke just needs a breather,” Ray announced. “Julie, do you think you could get you and Carlos some lunch and I’ll make sure Luke gets some rest?”
Julie gave him a look, clearly not happy to be asked to stay behind, but Reggie gave her a reassuring nod, seeming to understand what Ray was doing.
“We’ve got this, Julie,” Reggie promised.
“Come on, Carlos,” Julie said, “Dad’s got this.”
Dad’s got this. There was an odd flash in Luke’s eyes, a mix of anguish and grief, and Ray had a bad feeling that the pain the phantom was feeling right now was beyond physical.
Carlos mumbled an unenthusiastic response as he followed, and Julie threw one last helpless look at Luke and her dad.
“Can you help-“ he started to Reggie, but before he could ask phantom teleported all three of them to the studio, where the sofa was still pulled out to a bed.
Shaking himself out the shock that still hit him hard from teleporting (why did it tingle?!), he immediately returned his attention back to Luke, who let out a groan of pain now that he was safely back in bed.
“Jesus, how high up the tree were you?” Reggie asked as he helped his friend lay back.
“I dunno…the top?”
It was moments like this when it really hit him what it was going to mean to have six kids in the house. Now that he thought about it, he didn’t have a clue where Alex and Willie were and could only hope it didn’t involve heights and stunts.
…considering they had left with Willie’s skateboard a few hours ago, he wasn’t sure he’d be that lucky.
Reggie meanwhile, reached out, giving a small experimental poke to Luke’s side.
“OW!”
“I barely touched you!” Reggie complained.
Ray bit back a smirk, knowing he had guessed exactly right that Luke was trying to hide how much pain he was really in.
“How do you feel?” Ray asked, “you can be honest with me, mijo. This is safe space.”
The phantom threw him a please don’t make me look before giving in and mumbling:
“I feel like I cracked my freaking rib.”
“You look like you cracked your freaking rib,” echoed the bassist.
If it was either of his other kids, he would send them to at least urgent care to see if his rib really was cracked. At the least, he’d be able to give him painkillers, but he was at a loss. Luke didn’t even have a heartbeat. How were you suppose to help someone who wasn’t supposed to be able to get hurt?
“Reggie, can you get some ice?”
The phantom disappeared back to the house, and Ray took a seat on the bed next to the guitarist, who was grimacing terribly in pain now that all of his friends were gone.
“I’m sorry,” Luke grumbled, “I know it’s not that bad, it’s just…”
“You’re not supposed to be able to get hurt,” Ray offered. “I would be pretty freaked out too.”
He was freaked out, but of course he was trying to hide it for Luke’s sake.
“Freaked out is putting it lightly,” Luke admitted, squeezing his eyes shut tight. “It’s like…it feels like I can’t breathe. But I don’t need to breathe.”
The phantom raised a hand to check his pulse, and nothing felt like a punch to his heart more than seeing the kids double check to make sure they were still dead.
“I don’t get it,” Luke sighed in defeat. “We can have nightmares, we can get hurt…but we can’t eat or age. It’s like we just get all of the worst parts about being human, without being alive. It feels like I’m being punished.”
The comment gutted him. The kid just looked so afraid of what was happening to him that Ray felt sick inside to see it.
“You’re not being punished, mijo,” Ray promised him. “None of you three have deserved any of this.”
Ray tightened his grip on Luke’s shoulder, taking a moment to just sit with him. He felt like he should be able to do more, but he knew he was kidding himself, trying to approach this like he was dealing with just another injured. This was a kid who felt guilty over his own life and death; nothing he could seemed like it could match the level of pain and fear Luke was feeling right now. He was a ghost who wasn't supposed to be able to get hurt and no one had any answers for him and as a dad, it was the most frustrating feeling ever. All he could do was be there and make sure Luke knew he wasn’t alone.
Bringing a hand to his forehead, Luke squeezed hard and let out a wounded whimper of pain, as though touching his head hurt too.
“Did you hit your head?” Ray asked.
“I think I hit everything,” the phantom mumbled. Ray tried to move to examine his head but Luke flinched, reaching up in instinct to keep him away. “I’m fine, I’m fine I just need a minute.”
“We can take all the time you need," Ray said gently, “and now having this kind of change on top of everything else, it’s got to be a good shock to the system.”
Luke breathed in sharply, wincing again in pain like his ribs really were messed up, and squeezed his eyes shut hard to block out tears and Ray patted his back, as he would have for Julie or Carlos, to encourage him to keep breathing. After a few moments of adjusting to the pain and catching his breath, Luke spoke up quietly, beginning to tell him:
“My dad was a doctor. He was a pediatrician. He was always there, you know, when I was sick or hurt as a kid. It didn’t matter how much trouble I was in or what stupid thing I did. He was always easier to talk to than my mom. I…I missed him, when I ran away from home and when I was dying I just…I wanted him, I wanted my parents.”
The guilt laced in with his words was almost as heartbreaking as the confession itself. Ray swallowed hard, trying his best to not think of Julie or Carlos in the same situation. Luke wanted them now too, he realized, except his parents had been grieving him for twenty-five years. For some reason the Molinas could see him, but his own family couldn’t.
“Of course you wanted them,” Ray told him. “If it had been Julie or Carlos there’s nothing either them could ever do that would push me away when they needed me the most. Your parents would have been with you if they could have been.”
Luke squeezed his eyes shut tight, raising his fingers to pinch his forehead as he fought away the emotions, but then all at once it was like the dam broke and he let out a wounded sob as he fell against Ray’s shoulder. He wrapped his arm around the phantom to give him a shoulder to cry on. He had been able to see the pain Luke was trying to hide from his friends but seeing that it ran this deep was gut-wrenching.
“I’m sorry,” Luke whispered, “I’m sorry…I don’t know why all this is coming up.”
“It’s okay,” Ray promised him. “You’ve been through so much, mijo, don’t be sorry. A fall like that would have scared anyone. Getting hurt can bring up stuff like this, especially…especially in a case like you guys.”
He didn’t know how he could put it any kindlier, but the guys were getting hurt and sick for the first time in twenty-five years. Of course it would make him think about the parents who used to be there for him as kid when he got hurt.
“Thanks,” Luke whispered as he wiped his hand over his face. “Thanks for being there. You don’t gotta be, it’s not like I’m your kid.”
Ray winced at the comment and pulled Luke into an embrace. The phantom grimaced at first and Ray let go, remembering it would hurt his ribs.
“You’re family, mijo,” Ray murmured. “Whatever kind of changes you guys are going through, I’m here.”
Luke sniffled, and it sent a pang of sadness right to his heart. He was just beginning to get to know these phantoms, who had done so much for Julie and helped her so much, but at the end of the day, they were still just children themselves. They were just children who needed a parent to look out for them and for some reason he couldn’t understand, out of all the parents in all the times in the universe, he was picked to look after them.
“Thanks, Mr. Molina,” Luke said again, more confident now. Like maybe he was starting to believe he deserved Ray’s help.
He kissed Luke on the top of the head like he would his own kids and told him:
“Just ‘Ray’ is fine."
“Thanks, Ray.”
After assuring Julie and Carlos that Luke was (relatively) okay and really did just need rest, Reggie poofed back into the studio with ice, faltering immediately when he saw how upset his boyfriend was.
“Hey,” Reggie called gently, sitting next to the other side of Luke. “Hey, it’s okay…you’ve been hurt much worse than this.”
His sincerity seemed to go right to Luke’s soul and he let out a deep sob as he turned to lean against Reggie instead of Ray.
“It’s not that,” Luke choked out, burying his face into Reggie’s chest. “It’s…it’s just a lot, but I’m okay.”
“You’re clearly not okay.”
Ray sat back to give them space, though he kept a supportive hand on Luke’s shoulder as he closed his eyes tight, like he was still silently struggling.
“Want me to find Alex?” Reggie asked. Luke shook his head. “Want me to get Julie?”
“No,” Luke mumbled, “I don’t want to freak her out.”
Snorting, Reggie grumbled in response:
“I hate to break it to you, but she’s pretty freaked out. She saw you fall out of a tree and break like…everything!”
“Great.”
He didn’t offer anything else he let Reggie wrap his arms around him and simply hold him there. Reggie looked up to Ray, offering him a grateful smile for trying to help.
“I think Luke just needs some rest,” Ray offered.
“We’ll rest,” Reggie promised Ray. “Thanks, Ray.”
“De nada,” Ray replied. “I’ll ask Julie to make sure you guys are left to rest. She has some studying to do anyway, but I’ll let her know you’re okay. Let me know If you guys need anything.”
As soon as Ray was gone Luke let out a long groan of frustration, turning his head so that he could bury it in Reggie’s shoulder. Placing a kiss to his boyfriend’s forehead, Reggie combed his fingers through Luke’s hair, letting them take a moment to just lay there before asking:
“How are you really feeling?”
The guitarist let out a long breath, stopping short as pain shot up his side and he let out a round of coughs on instinct. Tired eyes flashed over to Reggie helplessly.
“Like shit,” Luke mumbled. “I’m just…I’m just freaked out. What if I really got hurt? What if I couldn’t play?”
“Like when you broke your arm in eighth grade?” Reggie mused.
Even as the sad smile crossed his face he winced at the memory of how loud Luke’s arm cracked as he unsuccessfully tried to do a backflip and shoot the basketball into a hoop across court at their school’s gym at the same time.
“Yeah, that was brutal,” Luke laughed. His eyes searched Reggie’s again, and he realized how much Luke had genuinely scared himself by getting hurt. “What if I hurt myself and because as a ghost you don’t heal, you’re just broken.”
“Luke…” Reggie sighed, his voice laced with empathy. He could tell how scared Luke was, but he could also hear the guilt in his voice loud and clear. “You didn’t mean to get hurt.”
But Luke’s face only melted even more, and Reggie held him closer.
"What's really going on?" Reggie asked. "You have that look."
"I don't have a look!"
"You have that Luke Look!" Reggie challenged. "Like something else is going on."
He rubbed his hand gently up and down Luke's arm, planted another kiss to the side of his face, trying to remind him that he wasn't alone. At first his boyfriend hesitated, and his voice tiny and broken as he finally confessed:
“I broke down in front of Ray because…because I was missing my parents, alright? My dad would know exactly what to do right now.”
The genuine, raw pain in his voice was like a dagger to Reggie’s soul as he rest his head against his boyfriend. That’s what was wrong: what Luke wanted in the world, more than anything right now, was his dad. He was just a kid who got hurt and wanted his parents. Reggie couldn’t relate, he didn’t exactly have the kind of parents who kissed you to make you feel better when you got hurt, but he knew that as bad as things were between Luke in his parents, Luke really did love his mom and dad and they loved him.
“Your dad would tell you to rest,” Reggie said quietly, “and fortunately, you still have Dr. Peters here to examine you.”
Luke afforded him a dry laugh for that, allowing him to gingerly take the arm he had fallen on. The arm was red from the fall and covered with grass stains but not actually broken. Reggie met Luke’s eyes before placing a kiss to his wrist and sitting the ice pack on top of it.
“All better,” Reggie declared.
“Thank you Dr. Peters,” Luke’s eyes shined even as he rolled them, feigning annoyance. “You know…I um, I think I hurt my lips too, if you also want to kiss them to make them better.”
“Oh that was tragic,” Reggie snorted, “and you say my pickup lines are bad!”
“Yeah, they are, Mr. t-shirt sized beautiful,” Luke mocked.
“Yeah...we’re both kinda helpless.”
“Guess that’s why we were perfect for each other.”
“You’re such a sap,” Reggie laughed.
They shared a smile, and ever so carefully Reggie curled his fingers into Luke’s hand, to prove he was really okay. Just in a bit of pain, just requiring some rest. But okay. Reggie’s eyes met Luke’s again before he leaned forward, placing a soft kiss to his boyfriend’s lips.
“Better, baby?” Reggie whispered.
“Little better…”
He held up his other wrist too and Reggie let out a laugh before he took it and kissed that wrist too. Reggie settled back into the pillows and let Luke snuggle up against him.
“You know we’re not going to have long before-“ Reggie began to warn him.
But he was interrupted by Alex poofing in, wasting no time in rounding on Luke.
“Lucas Mitchell Patterson, what do you mean you fell out of a tree?!”
“Leave me alone, I’m hurt,” Luke whined as he buried his face against Reggie’s chest.
“Yeah, baby needs rest,” Reggie shot, snuggling up to Luke.
Alex opened his mouth, still reeling from shock and worry, which for the drummer usually came out as anger and frustration, which Luke didn’t need right now.
“He needs rest,” Reggie said again, “Dr. Peters’ orders. Also, Ray’s orders.”
At that Alex was more understanding, especially as his eyes searched them over and took in that Luke really was truly hurt.
“Can I stay?” Alex asked, speaker softer.
“Not if you’re going to be mean,” Luke grumbled.
“I’m not going to be mean!”
Reggie scooted them over to let Alex climb into the bed beside them, and at that moment Julie appeared in the garage door, holding her math textbook.
“Hey,” she greeted, “how’s he doing?”
He tilted his head over to check on Luke, whose eyes had fluttered closed but he knew his boyfriend hadn’t drifted off that fast.
“Resting,” Reggie said and then he teased: “Your dad said you had to study.”
She reached behind her back, waving her calculus book at him.
“I…kind of thought maybe you could help me while Luke rests?” Julie asked.
Obviously, she didn’t want to be alone while she knew her phantoms were so freaked out and Luke was in pain and, admittedly, they always felt better when Julie was around too.
And also…math.
Reggie’s face lit up as he asked Luke:
“Do you mind?”
“No,” Luke mumbled. “’s sexy when you talk math.”
A sleepy smile crossed Luke's face as he leaned up to kiss Reggie, making him blush.
“Oh gross!” Julie complained as she rolled her eyes. “Never mind. What was I thinking?”
“Yeah, you just ruined the moment,” Alex shot as he too got back up to follow Julie back to the house. “Julie, I can help you with your homework while Luke rests."
As soon as they were left alone again, Reggie turned his attention back to Luke, smiling at the sight of their hands being laced together over Luke's hurt ribs.
“Did it work?” Luke asked cautiously, not opening his eye.
“Yup, they’re gone.”
Luke grinned.
“Good. What’s a ghost and his boyfriend gotta do for some alone time around here?”
“Fall out of a tree, apparently,” Reggie laughed.
His boyfriend let out a soft sigh as Reggie held him, his fingers brushing gently over Luke’s hurt ribs. He reached for the ice pack that he had placed on Luke's wrist and moved it to his ribs, afraid they were hurt more than his arm. Reggie’s own stomach was in knots at the sight of his friend actually hurt and bruised again, he wasn’t sure his soul was ready to have to worry about Luke getting hurt.
“If you still wanted to talk math though that’d be okay,” Luke spoke up groggily.
Smiling, Reggie felt his soul flutter and didn’t waste any time as he began:
“Did you know the word “hundred” is from the Norse word “hundrath” and it actually means 120 and not 100? And every odd number has an ‘e’ in it!”
Reggie went on, spitting out math facts until Luke was finally asleep and was properly resting. He trailed off as he just watched Luke sleep instead, feeling so grateful that his boyfriend seemed to be relatively okay. While he had wanted to be brave for Luke, Reggie really had been scared. Every day it felt like they were changing more and more; just when they were getting used to being ghosts he didn't know what they were anymore. It was just now hitting him how really, really bad it could have been if his boyfriend had fallen like that and managed to get seriously hurt- or worse. At last, Reggie placed a kiss to Luke’s forehead and murmured to his sleeping boyfriend:
“Next time just be more careful, okay?”