2011
Edward Harvey POV
Sitting in Whitney's office felt surreal. I had imagined her in here many times. Sipping coffee from a white mug with 'Whit and Sass' written in gold cursive. A photo of the birthday gift from Finn had been posted on her Instagram. Typing away on her keyboard furiously with soft classical music playing in the background. A corner office with bright white walls, black furniture and framed certificates adorning the walls. My imagination was much further from the truth than I had expected.
Whitney's office was sandwiched in the middle of three others that ran the outskirt of this side of the building. A glass floor to ceiling window and a wooden door separated the office from the hallway, the glass frosted horizontally for privacy. A large window on the far end of the office let in a view of other buildings and offices across the street. A desk sat in front of the window and three dark brown leather chairs positioned in front of it. It seemed unfair that she would have her back to the view for so much of her day. The walls were painted a pale grey and there was another enlarged photo stretched on a canvas on the wall opposite me. It took up a large portion of the wall and gave life to the otherwise dull office.
Whitney busied herself with tidying her desk while I stared at the photo. "Is this yours too?"I asked pointing toward the image.
Again, I knew it was hers. I'd not seen this one before yet I could still see the resemblance.
"Yeah, a lot of the work in the office is mine. Alex and his wife have some pieces in their home too. They help to feed my shoe addiction." Whitney laughed at her admission of addiction and I couldn't help but join her, the sound is contagious.
"This one is different to the others though. It's the only one with people in it." It was true, this was the only one in the office that I had seen with people in it. The others were close-ups of flowers and landscapes of fields. None had any real identifying features and it would be hard to pinpoint where they were taken unless it was stated or you questioned the artist.
"Nothing gets past you does it Edward Harvey? I chose this one myself. It's one of my favourite of everything I've taken." she stopped what she was doing and turned to look at the photo.
"Why is that?" I pressed her for more information, hopeful that she would divulge the truth behind the image.
While she was fixated on the image, my eyes were trained on her. It looked as if her face had lit up from the inside. Her eyes sparkled with passion for this certain image. A glow radiated from her whole body.
"Uh, this one is special. I took it during my lunch break one day. I was in the park when the elderly couple arrived." she moved to lean on the side of the desk, her eyes never leaving the image. I wanted her to carry on. I wanted to hear her voice, to hear her passion for this particular image, not just see it beaming from her.
"I remember seeing the bright red cardigan that the woman was wearing and her lipstick that matched her cardigan perfectly. She stood out among the dark corporate suits and skirts in the small park. She was pushing the man and I was intrigued by them and wondered why they were at the park in the middle of the city so I grabbed my camera out of my bag and watched them through my lens.". Her head tilted slightly as she recalled the memory.
"As luck would have it, while I had my lens trained on them the women placed her hand on the man's shoulder, he raised his opposite hand crossing it across his chest to place his hand on top of hers. The man's face lit up the instant his hand met hers." Whitney's voice had softened. She was completely lost inside her memory and I was captivated as she had drawn me into it too with every word.
"The happiness that radiated from him was infectious. I kept pressing the shutter button capturing every moment they shared. It was as if he had forgotten momentarily that she was behind him. The touch of her hand on his shoulder reassuring him that she was still there, still close. The feeling of her presence making him the happiest person in the park and possibly even the city."
There is no way she could have known that she had just described everything that I was currently feeling. The feeling of her presence had made me the happiest person in this city. I was vulnerable and nervous about the truth of who I am to her coming to light. As if she sensed my nerves, she cleared her throat and carried on.
"I decided to put it up here in hope that one day someone might come in here and recognise them. I want so much to give them this moment that I have of them, frozen in time. But I've not found them yet."
In this very moment, I could see the Whitney that I knew, the Whitney that Muse-Less knew. I'm not ready for her to know me like that yet, not just yet.
"Good story. Shall we go?" I acted less interested than I truly was but I needed to get her away from here. Get her somewhere she could be herself.
As we made our way to the basement I tapped on my phone arranging for Benjamin to ready the car. As the elevator doors opened we made our way to the car and Benjamin opened the door for us. Whitney made a joke about 'the muscle' and stopped in her tracks. Her constant hesitation to be around me was beginning to annoy me. Why couldn't she cooperate and just go with my flow?
"Do you mind if I drop my car at home first? I need to feed my cat too." she pulled an innocent face out of nowhere and batted her lashes at me like a child. How could I say no? Her act was awfully adorable and amusing.
"I can't say I've ever been turned down for a cat before. First time for everything though right?" I agreed to her plan and like lightning, she turned and went to her car and yelled something to Benjamin as he closed my door.
********************
"Evelyn, please change my travel arrangements. I am staying the weekend here and won't be travelling back till Monday. There are some things I want to take care of here first. Email me the details when you've confirmed the flights."
"I'll get right onto it. What shall I tell your father? He will be expecting an update on the Hardman meeting as soon as possible."
"Tell him it went well. My extended stay is for a personal matter, I will explain it further to him when I arrive back in London. Can you also call the restaurant here my father recommended and make a reservation for two, 7pm. Txt me the details. Have a lovely weekend Evie. I hope you can get back to sleep, apologies for the early interruption."
I needed more time. Even if Whitney were to turn me away and shut me out, I needed time to make sure she heard me out and understood me and what she means to me.
Benjamin followed Whitney through the streets to her home and before long we had pulled up outside a quaint 1920's villa. As Whitney went inside my phone chimed alerting me that our reservation had been made.
"Benjamin, I'll need some time this weekend alone with Ms Bennett. During dinner may I ask that you arrange for a drive car to be delivered to Ms Bennett's house. Evelyn is arranging our change of travel and we'll be leaving sometime on Monday. You're more than welcome to stay at the penthouse as planned."
"Yes Sir I can arrange that. Thank you for the offer but I have relatives that live just out of the city that I would like to visit... If that is okay with you?" I had no idea Benjamin had family in this part of the world.
"Of course, you should have mentioned that earlier, we could have made plans for you to visit them. It seems this trip is going to be beneficial for both of us."
"Thank you, Sir."
"One more thing Benjamin, I need a full security profile on Ms Bennett and this Finn. Full disclosure."
"As you request."
********************
Curtains were drawn and a few lights flicked on around the house and after a moment Whitney emerged through the door and I made my way around the car to open the door for her. As she slid in she watched me and gave me a thankful smile and my heart near on melted.
"So, where are we heading?" her tone was much more casual than earlier at the office.
"The chef at Origin is a good friend of the family and I've informed him we will be in at seven. The restaurant is highly recommended."
"The food there is amazing. Let me show you some of my favourite parts of the city first and then we can head up there." something had changed and her body language wasn't comfortable any longer. I could feel her closing off slowly and pulling away from me.
********************
As we drove to our first destination, Whitney rattled off random facts and sights of the city and narrated the journey as Benjamin drove and I sat tensely looking out the window. She pointed out some of the oldest buildings in the city, the ones that sat between high-rises and were dwarfed by the height of their modern neighbours. The car weaved its way through the streets and Benjamin pulled the car into the curb and Whitney was out of the car before I had time to unbuckle my seatbelt.
"Welcome to the cultural hub." she stood in the centre of the paved street and spun around with her arms out wide.
"If Bohemian Rhapsody was a place on the map, it would be here. This street is such an eclectic mix. It's like a melting pot of all the best things in life. Art, food, music. It's so lively. Most people call it the heart of the city."
"This is one of the top ten must-see spots of the city. Come on, I'll show you what's down this way."
We walked side by side down the path. It was like a strip mall. There were people wandering around, drinking coffee at the cafes and buskers strategically lined the street, just far enough apart so not to disturb the others vibe.
I could hear the sound of splashing water and a few shrieks followed by laughter. This place really was interesting and I had no idea what I was walking into. I watched Whitney move to the side of the street closer to the storefronts as we continued down and I again heard splashing water. Whitney slowed her pace and pointed for me to look up at a sculpture in the middle of the street.
The black structure stood in the middle of a pond like concrete pool. On all sides of the structure, there were brightly coloured buckets of blue, red and yellow. The pond below was an awkwardly large square shape and at one end had a rockery and at the opposite end, there was an assortment of long grasses that looked like they had been transplanted from a beaches sand dune. As we stood, watched and waited, skateboarders careered down the other side, narrowly missing two women walking in the opposite direction.
"This was quite the innovation of its time, the first pedestrian mall in the country. Trams used to run up and down the street till the late 1960s. Instead of conforming to the changes of the city around it, this street seems stuck in a time warp. It keeps its character and doesn't seem to change much as the decade's roll by." she kept her eyes trained on the fountain and nodded as the water began to fill the top buckets.
"You might want to step back slightly." I followed her advice and watched as the lower buckets were filled with water from the ones above it and eventually the water was emptied out onto a bench cut out on one side of the fountain's pond. We laughed together as drops of water splashed on the spot I was standing on a few moments ago. Her shoulders had relaxed and she'd been smiling, genuinely, this entire time. Her happy mood was infectious and I found myself mirroring her bright smile.
"The local council seem to find the complaints they get about the 'pesky fountain' amusing. I can't remember how many times I've seen some unsuspecting tourist sit there and have a bucket unload on them." she chuckled as the fountain once again emptied and splashed the surrounding path. "I've often watched locals at rush hour walking home that have perfectly timed the splashes with the way they navigate through the other people on the path."
I felt oddly out of place. This area was full of hipsters and indie types. Me and my three-piece Armani suit didn't fit in among the colour and vibrancy of this place. It felt so busy with style. So many different genres were fighting each other for dominance and recognition and the crazy fountain stood right in the middle of the chaos. Whitney watched me take it all in and chuckled to herself.
"Not what you're used to?"
"This is very different to what I'm used to, but it's interesting at the same time."
"Let's head back, there is plenty more of the city for you to see." she began to head back up the street to meet Benjamin. Her hands made their way into the pockets of her blazer and she nodded her head to a drum beat I hadn't noticed earlier that was getting louder as we walked.
"Buskers?" I questioned her.
"You've not heard the beat before?" I shook my head. "It's the local Hare Krishna group. They often come up and down here with their instruments and do their mantra chant. It's quite catchy too."
Out of nowhere, a group of fifty or more people descended on us. Some were beating on large drums carried on ropes around their necks others had cymbals, castanets, triangles. They were a walking band. They surrounded me and I couldn't see Whitney anymore. The music became louder and louder as I was swallowed up by the mass of people. They moved around me banging, shaking their instruments and dancing while chanting loudly. Their smiles stretched on their faces as they bumped into me from all angles. Elbows, arms, wrists flying towards me at speed as they spun themselves in circles entranced in the beat. I was continuously shoved this way and that. My heart was racing and my breath was catching in my chest. I could hear Whitney giggling but she was nowhere to be seen. I searched the faces of the crowd as they continued to bump and push me. I was beginning to panic. I couldn't make my way out of the sea of people and the sounds were growing louder and louder. I called out her name but couldn't hear myself speak. Whitney, where are you? Someone get me out of here. I was dizzy and the bodies around me were beginning to blur. I was trapped with no way to escape. They were consuming me.
"Edward! Edward, I'm right here. Look up here Edward." I pulled my eyes up from the ground and recognised her mustard yellow blazer.
"Oh shit. Edward look at me. Take deep breaths okay?" I could hear her words but they weren't sinking in. It was as if my brain was blocking any action or thought. My eyes were flickering over the people still moving around us and the booming of the drums in my ears was deafening.
My body felt weak, legs like jelly, I couldn't control them. Suddenly I felt her cold hands on either side of my face. Her nose was inches away from mine as she pulled me closer. Her eyes fixated on my pupils.
"Edward, look at me. Focus on my voice. Listen to me, let me guide you back. Come back to me. Breathe. Deeply. In through your nose. Out through your mouth. I'm right here. It's just you, and me. Let the rest of the world fade out. You're going to be fine, just breathe. Look at me, Edward. It's me, Whitney."
I followed her. Let her breathe for me. In. Out. Even before I realised I was doing it on my own. I looked at her, just like she said. I concentrated on her and only her. I was regaining control and she was pulling me back, back from irrationality. I blinked rapidly and focused on her eyes as she was focused on mine. I could feel my conscious thought returning. I could feel her close to me. Her hands still holding my face tightly. She was pulling me into her and out of my fear. So calm and sure.
"I know it's you, Whitney. I'm here." just as suddenly as she had grabbed me in her hands, she let go, pulled away and took my wrist to pull me away from the crowd and back to the car. Her heels clicking against the paved path as she hurried us back to the safety of the car.
"I'm so sorry Edward. I-I, I didn't know you're claustrophobic. I didn't realise. I'm sorry. I shouldn't have taken you down there." her voice was shaky and once again, she was shutting me out.
"Is everything alright Sir?" Benjamin turned in his seat to inspect me.
"Yes. Yes. I'm fine Benjamin, just a slight episode with a crowd." I waved him off with my hand.
"Whitney, please. You weren't to know. You did nothing wrong. You did everything right. You brought me back. I'm fine now. Nothing to worry yourself over." I wanted to hold her and take all of her worry and doubt away. Bring her back to me the way she had pulled me back.
"Please forgive me. I never meant for any of that to happen." her head was down and she hadn't looked at me since her hands left my face.
"There is nothing to forgive. Let's carry on shall we?" I patted her knee in a gesture of reassurance, "You said there is still much of the city for me to see." I was trying my best to dismiss her feeling of guilt but it wasn't working. I knew she would bottle it away and pretend to carry on in normality. It killed me to know I was the cause of her pain.