Is It Really Love?

PHILIPPA

Two years ago....

As I boarded the plane from Nile's Crest, the weight of leaving behind twelve years of my life hit me like a running train. Seeing the plane move through the window seat, I lost my battle against the tears that were threatening to make an appearance earlier, when I had hugged my best friends goodbye. 

The fatigue of a sleepless night, and my exhaustion from the breakdown took me in their arms and I fell into a deep slumber. Three hours later, I found myself standing at Cranberry Falls's Airport. 'Here's to the start of a new life' I thought and left for our new flat at Maple Street with my family.

"Sweet Honey Homes" I snorted as I read the name of our apartment. Our flat was on the eleventh floor of the thirty floor apartment. Each floor housed four flats. A hundred and twenty families living together in a giant complex. 'This should be fun' I thought. 

It took a few days for all our furniture to arrive and more still for us to arrange everything. But a month later, everything was in its place in the giant flat and I was a step closer to calling it a home.

One month later....

I arrived at my physics lecture five minutes early and took a minute to compose myself. I was in junior high and after scoring 96% in my sophomore year, my parents had high expectations from me. I had to make a mark. It didn't matter if I was in a new city with a completely different culture or on a different planet amongst aliens, I had to perform my best.

Dragging myself back to the present, I let my eyes roam and observe everyone around me. My attention was caught on a girl sitting on the other side of the class, across from me, in an all black outfit with her hair's length that rivalled my own, which was saying something, since my hair reached my waist. 'Though, perhaps hers are curlier' I thought. She was sitting alone, engrossed in her phone, not bothering to make petty conversations with her peers. 'Maybe she's an introvert' the thought crossed my mind. Something in me told me to approach her, maybe she was a nice person. Letting my urges take over me, I grabbed my things and slid into the seat beside her.

"Philippa Jones" I held out my hand.

"Abigail Brown," She replied while shaking my hand.

Up close, I noticed she had the cutest button nose and a mischievous glint in her eyes. 

We fell into easy conversation, and I found out that she lived pretty close to my apartment. 'This is great' I thought. 'I won't have to travel alone now'. Approaching her was the best decision I had made all day, even better than adding that extra bit of cocoa to my coffee earlier this afternoon. We attended the lecture and decided to go home in the same cab to get a proper idea of where the other lived. As it turned out, her apartment, Paradise Place, was on a street just behind my own. 

After coming back to my flat, I told my parents about Abigail and they were ecstatic that I had found a friend and someone to go to my classes with.

The world really is a small place. Each of us is connected to one another in the most unimaginable ways. It's the universal truth. When people realise that they have this connection with a stranger, some call it a coincidence, while the others call it fate.

But the real question is, are you smart enough to acknowledge this?