Always and Only You

Chapter Fifteen

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Five years ago

It’s late. She’s in bed and her roommate is asleep in the bunk beneath.

Hey, you … she types.

He didn’t reply to her message earlier in the day, but she knows he always goes quiet when something’s up, the same way she does.

You okay?

She’s on the verge of dozing off, her phone on her chest, when it vibrates and brings her back to full consciousness.

Yeah.

That’s it? Her stomach twists.

You sure?

He sends her a smiley face emoji, but it feels like a cop-out.

She senses he’s not telling her something, which makes her want to leap out of bed and jump on a plane. She could be in London by lunchtime tomorrow. She’s worried he’s not coping but putting a brave face on it.

She types I wish you’d open up to me then deletes it. She’s not sure it would make any difference. She’s also not sure their relationship is at the point where she can ask him to bare his soul. It had been all light and breezy … fun … before tragedy had struck. In the aftermath, they’d talked a lot, but time has crept on and Simon seemed to rebuild himself. She thought it was a good thing, thought it showed he was healing. Maybe she should have factored in that building also usually involves walls.

Maybe she’s being paranoid, but after all they’ve gone through she didn’t expect to be on one side of that wall while he was on the other. It feels like the thing that brought them together is now slowly pushing them apart.

Her phone buzzes.

Off to the pub. Catch you later?

She stares at the words. He’s putting on such a brave face. She nods reluctantly as she replies, even though she knows he can’t see her. Yes she types, then adds Have a good time! And unironically adds a thumbs-up emoji just to show how fine she is too.