I found myself huddled in the back of a coffee shop in the centre of town, a book gripped in my hands, but the words on the page didn't make it further than my peripheral vision. Instead my mind was painting a page of its own, only this one didn't have distinguishable lines and left my thoughts more coiled up than before. Not only did I have the memory of my nightmare to ponder about, but also the comfort Luke had provided. He'd been keen to make it clear that he was simply there to protect me, yet his compassionate actions had gone directly against what he had assured yesterday, filling my mind with a fraction of optimism that we could at least get on.
However, I had woken up this morning only to find the house empty, a tattered note hung on the fridge to inform me that Luke had 'gone out'. He was meant to be protecting me and I knew the threat was imminent, meaning Luke not being around wasn't safe in the slightest. I had full faith in what he was doing, but that didn't prevent the worry that seized my veins at the reminder he had been absence from my sight for nearly eight hours. What only made this worse was that fact that I was still in the dark as to what or more so who we were hiding from.
My father had assured me that it was safer for me not to know, but in regards to my sanity, it left me scratching for a release of the anxiety constantly clamping against my chest. My lack of memory left my body feeling heavy, as if the constant battle for finding the smallest inkling of a memory was only adding to the suffocating quantity of thoughts already piled up in my mind. Both my mother and father had refused to answer any of my questions regarding my past, only leaving me with a few vague details on the car crash that left me void of memories and that my safety was somehow linked to the secret intelligence agency my father ran. It was my right to begin building my life back up again, but I couldn't do that without the support of my family, not when they'd shipped me off to the other side of the world with simply a pair of crutches and an ignorant jerk for company.
My months in the hospital hadn't left me induced in a single nightmare, but my first night out in the real world had rifled my body with sheer terror. I still couldn't comprehend the pain my body had been under in the time my sub-conscious had drifted into a depth of pure, unimaginable horror. It left my body feeling distant, my eyes wanting never to shut in fear of the haunting images making a return.
I had Luke to be thankful for. He'd calmed my body in its sate of frenzy and allowed my mind to return to a state of peace. I wasn't certain on how long he had stopped with my tear-wrenching exterior last night, but the image of him cradling me was the last I received before I was plummeted into a relieving slumber. The sights I was haunted by in my nightmare still left me uneasy, the shrill of the frantic voice being repeated in my mind with every breathe I took, my fingers toying meaninglessly among one another as if warding off the chilliness icing my veins.
"Excuse me?" My body flinched at the beckoning above me, my eyes darting up instantly to greet a tall, young man. "Do you mind if I sit here?" he requested, motioning to the empty seat opposite me. He soon took note of my evident uneasiness, his body remaining patient as he spoke. "It's just this place is packed and-"
"No, it's fine," I silenced him, suddenly feeling guilty for my unreceptive attitude when he first approached me. It was only at this point that I had taken my gaze away from the book in my hands to notice that the cafe was in fact now brimming with people, the seat opposite me appearing to be the only vacant one. "Sorry, I'm not with it today."
"Don't sweat," he said, politely taking a seat. His blonde, unruly hair fell slightly over their ears, a quiff resting softly over his forehead, where tanned olive skin adorned his striking features. "I'd gathered that before I came over here."
I raised my brow, feeling suddenly self-conscious that I was giving away a message of not being well put-together in the slightest. He waved off my uncertainty, a small laugh escaping his lips. "I don't know many people that would pay for a coffee that they're just going to watch go cold."
My eyes flew instantly to the mug next to me, the black liquid remaining limp and untouched.
"It wasn't my intention," I commented, a small smile playing on my lips at my idiocy.
"Never is," he agreed. "Ed, by the way."
"Kate," I said, reaching to welcome his outstretched palm in a polite handshake.
"Short for Katherine? Classic name for a Brit there," he mused, and only know did I notice that he too possessed a thick British accent. "What brings you to the states?"
"I'm staying with a friend for a while," I said a little too quickly, though Ed didn't take note of my uneasiness and simply nodded. "What about you?"
"I'm studying over here," he smiled. "Criminology."
"That sounds pretty heavy going."
"Oh it is," he confirmed. "Not my personal choice, but when my dad's paying for it I can hardly complain."
"Pushy parents?" I theorised.
"You know the sort?"
"All too well," I laughed quietly. "It's nice to get a break sometimes."
"Even if that involves just watching your coffee go cold?" he mocked.
I feigned a frown, "I was reading."
"What books you in to?"
"Murder mysterious funnily enough," I replied, briefly casting my gaze down to decide what genre the book below was, considering not one page of it had been fully comprehended by my mind. "I like the twists, the ones you can't predict."
Ed nodded politely, reaching across the grasp the book to skim the blurb. "I doubt my mind could take anymore dealings with the law, but I can see why you like it. Adds a bit of suspense to your life right?"
"You can say that again," I laughed. "What about you? You do much reading?"
"I don't tend to have the time for books, aside from the ones I'm assigned of course," he responded.
"I probably have a little too much time on my hands. There's only so much time you can spend out of reality before you're thrown back into the deep end."
"You've got a fair point there," he said, taking a sip from his mug as his eyes dropped slightly, curiosity flushing his features as they did so. I was left perplexed, though as his gaze ceased to falter from my wrist it became clear he had caught sight of the ink carved into my skin just above my hand. "Didn't peg you as a tattoo-type?"
"Neither did I," I replied honestly.
"Do you mind me asking what it translates to?" he asked hesitantly, but before I was given the opportunity to come up with another lie, his phone beckoned his attention from beside him. His smile fell as he internally read the message, his hands already lurching for the coat that had been strung over the back of his chair. "I'm so sorry, I've got to run, my dad needs me home."
"No worries," I smiled. "It was nice meeting you."
"As for you," he replied, already nearing the door, but stilling to send me a grin. "Don't be a stranger, I'll catch you around sometime Kate?"
"Of course," I smiled, sending Ed one final wave before he fled from the building in a hurry.
Following his departure, I decided that I too should head home, especially as it was beginning to get dark outside, and the walk back to our apartment was a good twenty minutes.
It was surprisingly warm for September, with the humid air invading my senses as I left. The streets were just as busy as when I had arrived, the market area in the centre of Syracuse being flooded with a mass amount of people, the usual hustle and bustle working its way through town during rush hour. Despite this chaos, my walk home was surprisingly peaceful and the movement around me kept my mind at bay and away from everything that had suffocated it relentlessly throughout the day.
Arriving home, however, wasn't as serene as I had have hoped. Upon entering the house, I was greeted by Luke and his unpleasant expression as he leant against the banister. He watched me carefully as I entered, his eyes tracing every move I made as I anticipated his words.
"It isn't safe for you to be wondering around Adelaide," he sighed, seeming bored by my presence.
"Maybe you should have covered that in the oh-so-detailed letter you left on the fridge," I retorted.
"It's a bit of a given Adelaide, you're currently being tracked down by some incredibly bad people to say the least right now, and you think you can go wondering the streets of New York by yourself is a good idea?"
I rolled my eyes, edging toward the stairs. "I suppose I did," I admitted. "Then again, you are the one that left me alone, so even if I was here, the incredibly bad people that want me wouldn't have had an issue with taking me."
"I wasn't far," he argued limply, the expression flushing his features presenting his awareness at his carelessness.
"A safeguard? Isn't that what they call you?" I questioned, already knowing the answer. "My father should really rethink that title, you'd have to be around me for that one to work."
"Stop with the smart attitude Adelaide," he dismissed. My feet went to advance onto the stairs, but Luke preventing me from doing so as he gently blocked the stairwell with his tense arm. "You don't know shit about all of this, so don't go judging me on it."
I raised my palms in mock defence, "If it were up to me, I'd know the ins and outs of the people tracking me, but that isn't the case. And don't go off on one about me judging you, because I was hoping we'd actually get along, but you're the one that's thrown that idea straight over your head."
"Adelaide, I'm your safeguard, not-"
"-my carer. I got it, you don't have to tell me again," I reminded, my voice full of exhaustion. It was petty and the last thing my mind needed right now was his ignorance. "But maybe it's yourself that needs a reminder, because the Luke comforting me last night clearly didn't get the message."
My words forced his hand to drop, allowing my body to continue on the stairs, but as I neared the top, his voice spoke out once more, "Just know that next time you have a nightmare that I'll happily let you deal with it on your own."