Collapsed In Love

6

The group arrived in York after a two-and-a-half-hour train ride. They each made their way home, all of them living quite close to each other. As soon as Sidney arrived at her flat, she went straight to her sofa, grabbing the phone sitting on the table next to it. She carefully dialed the number still written on her hand and waited patiently as it rang. She bit down on her bottom lip, questioning her decision more and more as the seconds passed by. Should she have waited a bit longer? What if he won't answer? What if he only did that as a gesture to be polite? Her heart was racing in her chest, a lump forming in her throat as a few more seconds went by with no answer.

"Hello?" She finally heard his voice come through the other end. She smiled at the sound.

"Hi, Damon. It's me..."

"Ambiguous," he laughed. "Hey, Sid. I'm glad you called..."

"Of course I called. That's why you gave me your number, right?"

"Right," he chuckled. "So, how was your train ride back home?"

"It was fine, a tad uncomfortable, but fine," she shrugged.

"Have you had the chance to eat anything? I kind of stood in the way of your breakfast this morning..."

"Not yet, but I'm seeing everyone for lunch in a bit."

"Brilliant."

Sidney hated phone calls more than anything in the world. They were probably even more awkward than talking to people in real life, having to sit there like an idiot and wait for the other person to say something, anything. She would often cough to fill the silence, resulting in a pretty sore throat.

"I took a look at the train schedule while at the station..." Damon paused. "There's, uh, there's another train from here to York at 3 PM."

"Yeah? That's... interesting..." She furrowed her eyebrows.

"Right... so, I was thinking that maybe, if you want to, I could come to York for a few days? I really want to see you, Sid..."

Sidney's heart jumped in her throat. She swallowed hard and took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. "That would be great..."

"Really? Perfect! I'll probably be there by six at most... I need to start packing. God, I can't wait to see you!" Damon gushed on the phone, sounding like a teenager.

Sidney couldn't help but laugh. "You're adorable, Damon." She smiled. "See you soon."

They both hung up, and Sidney sat back on the sofa, letting out a long sigh. She was excited, nervous, anxious, and a bunch of other emotions she didn't even know she had. She was also terrified because she had no idea what would happen, and she didn't know where things were headed. She was scared of getting hurt again, but she was also excited to see what was in store for her.

It was almost time for Sidney to meet her friends for lunch, so she quickly showered and changed into a nice pair of jeans and a white blouse. She grabbed her purse and made her way out the door, feeling the butterflies in her stomach flutter around. She took a deep breath and tried to focus on the fact that she was meeting her friends, not Damon. She had to keep reminding herself of that. She walked down the street, taking in the sights and sounds of the city. She was surprised by how many people were out on this particular day. She made her way into the pub where they were supposed to meet. It was a cozy little place with a few tables and chairs scattered around. A small bar was located at the far end, and the walls were covered in different alcohol bottles. Sidney looked around, trying to spot her friends. They were already there, waiting for her at one of the tables. She made her way over to them, greeting them with a smile. Victoria was the first to speak.