Ace Huxley's Daughter

34

"Mum?"

"Olive? What's wrong?"

"I'm um- Are you at work?"

"Just about. Honey, why are you calling?"

"Can you pick me up? I'm at Euston?"

"Euston train station?"

"Mhm." I nodded. I knew her route to work. She'd either be passing right now or she'd be at the office which wasn't miles away if I had to go in. "I can walk to the office if it's easier. I just want to go home though." Silence. I looked down at the outfit I'd pulled out of my bag whilst I was on the train. Managing to change in the tiny toilet into something that wasn't a short silk black dress and tugged on converse. Mum wouldn't be amazed by the whole thing but honestly if she saw what I was wearing an hour ago she'd collapse right here and I really didn't need another hospital trip.

"I have a meeting until 11, I can take you home then if you want to wait in my office?"

"Okay, I'll head down there then."

"I'll have Conrad meet you Olive." She hung up before I could fight against it. Of everyone. In the whole world. Underworld. The devil herself. I would rather see Cerberus right now than him. I didn't need perfectly styled blond hair or baby blue eyes or a clean-shaven razor-sharp jawline. I needed my bed. And silence. And an empty house so I could just fix my head and withdraw my uni applications and book in the tattoo removals.

I grabbed us both a coffee and a croissant for my breakfast because I should have been in Paris. I should be eating Parisian breakfast with Sonny and looking at the Eiffel tower from our bedroom with shaky legs and my hair sticking to my forehead, covered in just a bedsheet. But 3 little words and he'd taken it from something fun and meaningless to love. Love. It wasn't possible. I slipped my phone back onto Airplane mode, stopping anymore texts coming through from him. I couldn't handle it right now and I don't know if I should be blocking him or ... what do I even do?

"All black. I'm sure you're mother's going to love that." Deep stuck-up accent and a leathery scent I'd recognise across the Thames. I pushed my phone into my front pocket, turning to him and sighing, forcing a smile onto my face. "You tanned."

"Travelling around Northern Europe in the heat of summer does that to you." I tapped the top of the coffee I'd gotten for him and he didn't hesitate to take the holder from me.

"Eat. You look exhausted."

"I am. That's why I need the coffee."

"You're mum sounded panicked Olive."

"Oh, you know what she's like. I came home early. She's worried something happened. I just got home sick. Bored."

"You, bored? I thought that was what you wanted?"

"Listen, have you ever been on a tour bus with 3 middle aged men for 5 weeks? The odd few nights I had in hotels were spent listening to other people not sleeping. I have read every book I brought with me twice and bought 3 more. I just wanted to come home." He looked at me as I stopped to push some of the food into my mouth, balancing the remainder of my dignity on my head. "What?"

"I missed you. Really missed you."

"Aren't you all soppy?" His lips pulled up the smallest amount, higher on one side than the other. "You've got that look on your face that you want to say something but not sure if you should."

"No, I don't."

"Yes, you do. I can see it in your eyebrows."

"In my eyebrows?" I nodded. "We can talk about it when you're settled back in at home Olive."

"I'd rather not. Say as you think and speak it from your souls."

"Henry VI, Part 2 Act 2?"

"Act 3, scene 1 line 247. Said by?"

"York." I nodded. "Fine. Why did you break us off Olive?" Here we go. The question on the tip of everyone's tongue. The elephant in the room.

"You know why."

"No. I can't say I do in all honesty. It doesn't quite make sense to me. I propose, you say sorry and leave the restaurant. Next thing I know I'm knocking at your door 2 days later and your mum tells me you've gone to travel with your dad for a little while? Other than that, one text you sent as you got home saying it didn't feel right and that you were sorry for leading me to believe that's what you wanted, there was no explanation. And then one random Wednesday morning your mum calls me as I'm setting up my office for the day to say your outside Euston train station and I had to get to you."

"To be fair I didn't ask her to do that. She hung up before I could say I was fine walking there by myself." He sighed. "I'm sorry. I guess I freaked out a little."

"You're allowed to panic a little Olive. It's a big decision, I know that. But I thought that was exactly what we were aiming for here. I really like you and I know we've not exactly been seeing each other a terribly vast amount of time but I want to be settled into our marriage before my father retires and I get the firm darling. That way it's easier to combine them both."

"I know."

"Do you feel better? After the break away from everything? Having time to yourself to think?" I nodded weakly. "Good. Maybe we can talk about it a little more this weekend? We can go out again, work out any worries you have?"

"I think I want to go back to University. The Royal College of Art in Kensington." He handed me my coffee, smile growing as he chuckled.

"Darling, you can get any pretty degree you want. They won't be much use once the children arrive."

Of course. Children.