The Stalkers' Guide To Roadtrips

Day 1: Roadtrips and Exes Should Not Mix

                                                “We were meant to be but a twist of fate,

                                                        Made it so we had to walk away.”

Start Destination: Manchester, UK

End Destination: Turin, Italy

Via: Turin-Caselle Airport

4:47 AM (GMT)

The sky is just beginning to lighten when our taxi pulls up at Manchester airport; I quickly scramble out of the backseat and begin to unload the bags as El thanks the driver.

My eyes flit around the area outside the building in search of Rosie and Levi. Rosie travelled down yesterday to pick Levi up from University, we just told our parents she was going down a day early to check that everything was okay with the holiday cottage we had rented out, the one for the holiday in Brighton that we are supposed to be at in a few hours.

I eventually spot the two of them leant against a wall nearby. My breath hitches in my throat slightly and I mentally remind myself that it’s been way more than half a year; I should most definitely be over Levi by now, if not there is something seriously wrong with me.

His dirty blonde hair falls shaggily over his eyes and he doesn’t see me walking towards him until Rosie nudges him in the ribs and whispers something to him. I watch as he stands a little bit straighter and sets his mouth into an obviously fake smile; at least I’m not the only one who can see that this is totally weird.

“Hi Levi,” I greet quietly as I reach them.

“Hey,” he replies.

Neither of us knows what to say after that so it is up to Rosie to carry the conversation, asking me eagerly about how the journey was, to distract both Levi and me with her excitement about the trip. I want to join her but I can’t help but notice Levi trying to covertly reply to texts every few seconds, it appears he really does not want to be here.

When El joins us after talking with the cab driver – who was shamelessly trying to flirt with her – for what seems like an eon, the four of us make our way into the airport building and join the seemingly never-ending queue at the check-in desks.

We do not make much conversation, we are all sleepy and even Rosie – despite her excitement – seems to be too tired to try to speak and hold up a conversation. The rest of us are thankful for that fact.

The queue moves forward slightly and I just seem to be continuously edging my suitcase forward an inch at a time but we eventually reach the front of the queue and Elise hands over our boarding passes and passports. She is the most organised out of all of us and so we have left her in charge of dealing with important things.

When she is finished we step onto the elevator that leads into the terminal and suddenly the excitement – and the gravity of what we are about to do – begins to sink in.

“You ready?” El asks me.

The smile on her face is contagious and I can see that a similar one is plastered on Rosie’s face; in fact her smile is so wide she looks slightly manic.

“You bet, let’s get this show on the road,” I reply happily.