Lovers

Early Morning Flight

Hiiii!!! Another long week has come to an end, kids. Does anyone have fun weekend plans? I'm hopefully going to get some writing in, and I'm going to get to see my senior pictures, as well as catching up on sleep, of course! I'm so exhausted right now, so I'm going to head to bed and leave you all with this chapter. Enjoy/comment/vote please!!!! <3
-ab

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June 7, 2026

Patrick

The morning after dinner at Taylor's, Harper and I are awake much too early, packing her a little suitcase for a few days in New York City. I hooked her up with a hotel last night, before coming to bed, so she should be all set to check into that once she lands.

Harper only packs a small suitcase with a few days' worth of sundresses and some comfy clothes for the plane, so it's relatively easy to get her packed up.

"Well," I say, "we should probably be heading to Heathrow if we want to get you through security and such in time."

"Yeah," she sighs. "I can't say that I'm looking forward to the plane flight."

"But you'll be in Taylor's posh plane, at least."

"That's true," she smiles. She gathers up her audition binder, phone and earbuds, book, tablet, and some snacks, then shoves them into her backpack for her plane ride. After grabbing an empty water bottle as a final touch, which she will fill at the airport after she's through security, she slings her backpack onto her shoulders.

"Ready?"

"Ready."

Harper drags her suitcase behind her as the two of us walk out of our house. I'm going to take her to the airport, and I'll stand in the line for security with her, until she has to present her ticket to get through, and I don't have a ticket.

With a private plane, the ticket situation is always dodgy, since she doesn't particularly have a 'ticket,' but Taylor is typically really good about contacting the TSA agent ahead of time and informing them that Harper will be coming through, so they just check her two forms of ID- her passport and driving license- which she hasn't used since she got it, for the most part.

When the two of us arrive at Heathrow, we head straight to the long line for the security checkpoint. I wait with her for as long as I can, and once she gets to the man checking her ID, I turn to her.

"Well, this is goodbye," I say. "You go kill it in New York, love. You're going to be so perfect in your audition, and that big Broadway stage is calling your name."

"Thank you, Patrick," she smiles at me, with a blush in her cheeks. "I love you so much."

She stands up on her tippy toes to allow her lips to meet mine in a quick kiss.

"Be safe," I tell her. "I love you."

"Bye, Patrick."

"Bye," I smile at her, then step out of line and watch as the guard takes her ID, then directs her into a shorter line. I'm able to see her until she walks through the body scanner, then she is gone from my sight.

I know that she's going to be amazing in New York. I also know, however, that that means that I'm going to be losing her for a few months. While she's living her dream- lighting up that stage like she was born to do- I'm going to be stuck back in London without her.

What if she makes fancy friends in New York and doesn't want to come home? What if she meets a guy and decides that she loves him, and not me?

Realistically, I'm not good enough for her. Why she ever thought I was is beyond me, but I'm so thankful every day that she did.

Patrick, I tell myself, Harper loves you. She tells you on every opportunity that she gets.

I try to push the thought out of my head, because I know, deep down, that it's ridiculous. In spite of that, I still can't help but worry a little bit.

I take the tube straight to work, and from there, I'm thrust almost instantly into a busy day of appointments. It's a relief when lunch finally comes. As much as I love my job, it's always nice to have a break, especially as I work mostly with children. They have a lot of energy, and always make me tired.

Harper is scheduled to land at about 16:00 in the UK, meaning that it will be 11:00 in the morning in New York. At the end of my work day, it's a relief to get a text from her.

Harper: I'm safe on the ground in the Big Apple! I'm going to head to the hotel and catch a quick nap perhaps, as well as freshen up before my audition.

Patrick: Perfect. Don't forget to eat.

Harper: No worries there. I'm starving. It's nearly dinnertime back in the UK, and I didn't even have a proper lunch!

Patrick: I hope you had your snacks.

Harper: I did xxx

Harper: Well, I'm going to go catch the subway, but I'll speak to you later. Have a good evening.

Patrick: Be safe, and break a leg in your audition. Love you.

Harper: Thank you. Love you too!

I tuck my phone away, knowing that I need to give Harper a bit of space while she's in New York. She's a fully grown adult woman. I know that she'll be alright.

Still, I find myself worrying about her. She's a girl, alone in New York. That really can't be safe.

I know that it probably can't be too safe for her to travel around London alone, at night, either, but she does that, and she's always been alright. That's somehow different, though. We are both more comfortable in London.

It'll be okay, Patrick. Breathe. She'll be fine.

I don't know how I'll be able to handle all of this, when she's actually living in New York. We will have to find her a nice little apartment over there... I'm sure that will cost a fortune, but it will be worth it to keep her safe.

It isn't long before I find myself back home, cooking up some pasta for dinner. I hope that the hotel check-in went okay, and that she's having a nice nap by now. She didn't contact me saying otherwise, so everything must have gone smoothly.

She's going to kill her audition today, and she's going to get to go and be on Broadway. I bet that this role will earn her a Tony nomination.

She's going to be amazing. She's living her dream.

That realization makes me smile.