The last day Olivia Byrne and Lukas Fuller saw each other, so much was left unsaid.
But as made-vampires terrorising the streets of London start to make news headlines all the way in Australia, Olivia feels compelled to return to the city of sorrow...
When the plane jolted as the tyres hit the tarmac, my stomach churned. Glancing out the small window, my eyes anxiously worried over the grey sky. Before I had left Australia, supposedly they were having great weather—which made me hopeful knowing certain people wouldn't be out.
But at some point during my trek across the Indian ocean, layover in Dubai, and final flight to London Heathrow, Britain decided it had to roll out its welcome wagon for me in the way it knew best: doom and gloom.
As the cacophony of seatbelts unbuckling echoed around me, my lunch made its way up my throat.
He won't know you're here just because you step foot on London ground, I tried to soothe my stewing thoughts and racing heart. It's not like there's some magnetic force that makes your presence known to him. So stop worrying.
A few deep breaths later and after grabbing my carryon from the overhead, I forwarded off the plane in slightly eased spirits.
Though not eased enough.
To my dismay, the line at customs for international travellers was long, giving me ample waiting time to hop back on the spiral of doubt and concern.
Even if he doesn't know I'm here... what if we run into each other?
Like, I know London is huge but... That's my luck, right?
I had finally cleared customs and had reached the luggage reclaim area. Though the taste of vomit started to permeate my mouth, making my eyes water with disgust.
And what do I possibly say to him if we do run into each other? Hi? How are you? Sorry? I'm not even sorry though...
Can I just run away?
Would he even want to talk to me again?
How do I make it so that we never ever run into each other while I'm here?
My teeth nipped at my nails as I watched the bags circulate on the conveyor, my eyes desperately seeking out mine.
C'mon... I need to leave... I need a distraction... I need—
The black and brown suitcase filled my vision, relief washing through me. For a moment, my mind had a break.
As I focussed on pulling my suitcase off the conveyor, as my head whipped back and forth at the signs overhead, trying to navigate my way to the taxi area, my thoughts were occupied by mundanity for once.
Though once I stepped outside into the frigid air, my eyes falling on a black cab pulling up by the couple nearby me, something about their ages, the way they looked at each other, or perhaps it was the duck keychain hanging from her back consumed me at once.
I knew I had next to no time left.
Pivoting on my heel, hand clutching my bag, I ran back into the airport, wound my way around the other travellers, and headed straight for the first bathroom I could find.
After bursting through the door and into the first cubicle, my head immediately whipped over the toilet as I blew chunks into the bowl.
Welcome back to London, Ollie, I sarcastically thought before another wave of puke made its way out of me.
Heave after heave, I emptied my stomach and the anxiety that had built within me. Though the tears started to come shortly after as I took shaky breaths and wiped the acidic liquid from around my mouth.
"You're going to be okay," he breathed into my ear, crouching on the bathroom ground beside me.
"Evidently I'm not," I shot back as I braced myself against the toilet again, wondering if another round was about to hit me.
The symphony of flushing toilets and flowing taps sounded around, meaning I wasn't alone. Though I didn't care if people assumed I was talking to myself. I mean, for all they knew, I was on a phone call... while vomiting into a toilet in an airport bathroom. Strange, sure, but I'm sure Heathrow had seen more bizarre breakdowns.
"I never should have let you convince me to come back here," I then hit him with as the next wave of nausea subsided.
"You say that now..."
"And I will keep saying it until I'm on a plane back home," I bitterly muttered, wanting to send him a glare but too worried any sudden movement might trigger instability.
"Just think about the good you will do being here," he tried to console me.
Though all I could think about was all the bad I did last time... And that had me turning to look straight into his blue eyes with guilt.
"Stop," he said, realisation washing through his face. "I've told you many times, it's my fault and mine alone. I chose it."
"But you wouldn't have made that choice if—"
"Olivia," he whispered, as if disappointed that I could never get off this carousel, letting it drag me round and around in my grief.
Deciding it wasn't worth the back and forth—because we'd never see eye-to-eye on the matter—I changed the topic. Slightly. "We don't even know if I will do any good here. What if I can't find one? What if I do and am... powerless. Let alone, can I even... y'know." The words 'kill them', hovered in the air between us, though it was clear Ben understood what I was alluding to.
"That will be an issue we face later. At the earliest tomorrow. For now, you need to get off this floor—"
"But—"
"No. You're going to get up. You will wash your face." His hand extended out to wipe my chin, to no avail, of course. "You will go back outside, catch a cab to your hotel, and have a nice long sleep. Then, tomorrow, we will worry about the next step."
"But I—"
"Will feel better after some rest," he told me. "Trust me. The emotions only feel this bad right now because you haven't slept in almost forty-eight hours."
I wanted to fight with him more, to tell him just how wrong he was. Though only proving his point, my eyelids slowly fluttered closed, sluggishly opening back up as the weight of slumber really started to catch up now that I was resting on steady ground. "Fine," I conceded. "Though tomorrow, first thing, we are going to see if I can find them and if there's any point to me being here. Because, as soon as we find out I'm useless—"
"You're heading home. I know." But the spark in his eye told me he'd never let me do that easily. Not without another fight about it.
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