Only The Brave ⟨⟨ʟᴏᴜɪs ᴛᴏᴍʟɪɴsᴏɴ⟩⟩

⟨⟨ ᴍɪᴅɴɪɢʜᴛ ᴍᴇᴍᴏʀɪᴇs ⟩⟩

Just beyond Big Ben was the notorious carnival attraction and stepping out to look at the metal wheel, they couldn't help but hold their breath.
"And I thought the one in Cape Town was big," Vera remarked as they stared up at the London Eye.
"That's a bit naive of you," Simon scoffed and she swatted him as they began walking. Their visit was purely surface visuals, it was easily agreed upon that it would be disastrously expensive, especially if they planned to do multiple things that day. The assemblage of tourists made them grin mockingly at each other and Vera insisted upon another typical photo, to which Simon sighed in resignation and took her phone. Their dynamics made Elora laugh before the blonde forced her into submission and she begrudgingly stuffed down her dignity and took the photo.

Stopping outside of Buckingham Palace was far quicker since it was accepted that staring at the exterior of buildings was growing somewhat boring. However, Simon fulfilled the tedious task of taking their photo again and Vera argued that it was because she wanted to make a collection of the memories. He didn't have the heart, surprisingly, to ridicule her sentimentality and Elora grinned at his compassion because she knew that if it was her, he would have made multiple remarks. They left the large home with a comment of 'I just feel bad for the dude's legs' from the brunette after they had walked passed the soldiers. Vera had, obviously, attempted to make them move but was speedily ushered on by the other two due to their desire to never be seen with someone that idiotic.

Simon assisted them in purchasing supplies for their picnic before assuring them that he would meet them at the British Museum. The endeavor to the shops was filled with Vera's awe at the cost of living in London, to which Elora repeatedly told her that was why she never went to the normal stores and rather risked food poisoning. It had been a common trend in their friendship for the older girl to gravitate to more expensive basic products while the other complained about the impracticality. It was ironic considering, overall, Elora was far more snobbish and expensive than Vera but their different household upbringings always snuck in somehow.

Once they had finally got all their supplies, Simon bid them adieu as he dropped them off and ran to the museum to be the nerd that Elora hypocritically teased him for being. Hyde Park was illuminated with the rare sunlight and they were slightly relieved that the stereotypical indoors nature of Brits led the park to still remain peaceful. The spatterings of people kept to themselves and the pair were able to walk around leisurely until they found an area they were fond of.

Discovering a shaded spot next to a body of water, nestled between a collection of trees and with a view of some perfectly cultivated flowers, they immediately lay down the blanket Simon had thrown at them before settling down. After an awkward photoshoot around their little area, they resigned to eating their food and falling into nostalgic conversation.
"Remember in tenth grade when we went to the botanical garden in town and took those photos for Thomas' art?" Elora grinned as she shielded her eyes.
Vera laughed, "We went with Simon as well, didn't we? Oh, and Jordan was there. Do you remember how sunburnt I got?"
"It was so funny," she snickered, "None of us expected to be in the sun the whole day but I was fortunate enough to be covered completely."
"I remember how Simon kept complaining about needing to study but we forced him to stay."
"Guess not that much has changed."

As they chuckled over their odd friend, Vera took a moment to look around before glancing at her best friend. She thought back to their evenings lying on her bed, just talking about life and their dreams, envisioning their futures and making up future scenarios. Elora would talk about how her father and sister had travelled, leaving the younger two at home left with nothing but hopes and a financially struggling mother. Of course, she would always exaggerate her longing to join their trips and would quickly reassure her that it wasn't as bad as she liked to make it seem. Vera could see her desire for adventure though, it shone in her passionate words and flailing hands - a habit that they had always teased her about. She never did understand why such a reclusive girl dreamt of leaving the country so much but then she spent a day with Elora in London and understood fully. Something had happened when she moved to the bustling city and even though she apparently didn't leave their abode all that much, she was far more vibrant than Vera had ever seen her in South Africa.