If I Fell│John Lennon/Beatles FanFiction

Chapter 39 - 13.Oct.1963

Chapter 39

October 13, 1963

"Oi, driver," I said, my hand clutching the seat. Cold air tunneled in from the open front windows as the man kept drifting toward the right lane. "We're not on the continent, y'know. This is England, where we drive on the bloody left."

The man tutted at me as he stepped on the gas. He was a shite driver, but at least we were close to the flat. Several agonizing minutes later, the cab rolled to a halt a few houses down from 57 Green Street, a brick building with white accents and wrought iron fencing. A small crowd of fans wandered around the outside. They kept almost constant surveillance outside the front door in the hopes of meeting one of the boys.

I climbed out of the back seat of the cab, my teeth chattering. Bloody twit of a bloke refused to roll up the windows, arguing the chilly night air helped keep him awake. And as much as I appreciated him not falling asleep behind the wheel, I contemplated telling the driver to fuck right off as I sat freezing in the back. But my mood wasn't his fault...not entirely at least. Besides, he was the only driver who was willing to take my word that he'd get paid when we arrived at the destination.

"I'll be back in a mo," I mumbled to the man with an uneven beard. 

My feet ached with every damned step, and I was so ready to chuck my heels into the nearest rubbish bin. I rubbed at the nuisance ache in my head like it was second nature, which it was by this point. Headaches came and went, and I barely noticed them anymore. They were just an irritating part of life.

I sidestepped a fast-moving bloke in a suit before he stopped and pivoted on his heels. I recognized him immediately. Neil stared at me before pressing his palms to his eyes and rubbing. His hair was a proper mess, and he reached for me, his hand latching around my upper arm as if I might disappear if he let go.

"Blimey, Liv, here you are," he said, pulling me in the direction of the boys' flat. "John's about to murder me."

"Nell, listen," I said, as I ground to a halt, "I've gotta pay the cabbie, and I don't have me damned purse on me. You have any money on you?"

He looked at me, a deep wrinkle in his brow, as he dropped his grip on my arm and shoved his hand into his pocket to retrieve his wallet. He handed me a bit of money, and I hurried back to pay the driver. The car peeled away the moment I paid. Holding back a sigh, I turned to see Neil right behind me, apparently not trusting me to stay put.

"Ta, Neil, I'll pay you back once we're inside."

"Don't worry about it." He wrapped his hand around my arm again. He pulled me with him toward the stairs leading to the flat. "Was about to get into the car and drive back to the Palladium to look for you." 

"Jeezus, no need to manhandle me," I grumbled, pulling my arm out of his grasp. "I'm not goin' anywhere. The hell 'appened, anyway?" I ducked my head as we walked by a group of fans, my entire body shivering from the relentless chill in the air. "I was gone less than a minute and you lot bloody disappeared."

"We were given the okay to head to the car, and we didn't have much of a choice, did we?" He wrapped an arm around me, a bit more gently this time. "Damned car was parked fifty metres from the doors. We somehow got to it without being killed by the mob. Was madness, wasn't it?"

We stepped up a handful of stairs and came to a halt under a curved archway. Neil fished a key out of his pocket before unlocking the door and pushing it open. We stepped into the building and disappeared from the fans' view as Neil pushed the door closed so no one could slip in behind us.