Snow on Christmas

A change in plans

The sound of hurried footsteps and distant announcements echoed through the airport, yet Ash barely noticed them. She leaned back in the stiff plastic chair and stared blankly at the departures board; her backpack slouched at her feet. Her flight wasn't for another hour, but the sense of urgency she had felt while rushing here had long since dissipated, replaced by a creeping heaviness in her chest.

She had taken the afternoon to stroll through cities, walk along the coast and just enjoyed the sun. In the night she tried to get enough sleep but her running thoughts kept her awake. Now, they were running again.

"Leaving Malta is the right decision, isn't it?", Ash told herself that it was over and over again. The adventure was over. The charm was found. And Liora... Liora had her own plans. There was nothing holding her here anymore. So why did the thought of leaving feel so wrong?

She shifted in her seat, unable to ignore the hollow ache in her chest. The memory of Liora's face lingered, the way her expression had faltered when Ash first mentioned her plans to change her flight. She hadn't said much, but the sadness in her eyes had been unmistakable, a quiet plea for Ash to reconsider. Ash had brushed it off, forcing a smile and some excuse about needing to get back to her routine. It was better this way, wasn't it?

The more she tried to justify it, the harder it became to quiet the doubts clawing at her. She thought about the way Liora had smiled through her worry, promising to meet again someday, though neither of them had made any solid plans. It had felt like goodbye, and realising this hit Ash harder than she expected.

Ash glanced around the airport. Other travellers bustled by, their steps purposeful, their voices blending into the distant hum of announcements and rolling luggage. Some were eager, their faces alight with anticipation. Others looked weary, lost in their own thoughts. They all had somewhere to go, a destination waiting for them. And Ash? She wasn't sure where she was going, not really.

She had told herself that leaving was the right thing to do. She couldn't just keep chasing after someone she barely knew. It wasn't practical. It wasn't her style. But practicality felt like a thin shield against the wave of sadness she couldn't shake. She clenched her fists, trying to force herself to focus on the bigger picture.

There were good reasons to leave, she reminded herself. She needed to regroup, to think about her own life and what came next. Staying longer would only complicate things. She wasn't the kind of person who got caught up in fleeting connections, no matter how magnetic they felt.

And she also did it for Liora. She had her own plans. Many plans. Meeting all her friends, catching so many flights, seeing so many things. Ash didn't want to be in the way of that.

But even as she repeated those reasons, they rang hollow. Liora's voice, her laughter, the way she lit up when talking about her travel plans... they had stirred something in Ash she hadn't felt in years. The idea of going back to her normal life, of letting this spark fade into a memory, felt... simply wrong.

Her gaze fell to the floor, her chest tightening with a mix of regret and resolve. This was the right thing to do, she insisted. She had to believe that. Even if it hurt.

Ash pulled her phone from her pocket and scrolled idly through her messages, pausing on the chat with Nicolas. No updates from him yet. She should probably call him soon, but the thought of his inevitable teasing made her hesitate.

She had informed him about being in Malta and that she planned on going home today, but she still felt like not giving him enough information about the situation. Usually they would talk hours about stuff like that. Working together makes talking easier, and both couldn't really say no to a beer after work. Even though it's only been a few years, Ash felt like she knew everything about Nicolas and vice versa.