4. "Next time you cross me, I will stab you"

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"Give me a ring when you get there so I know you've got there safely" my mum says as the train comes to a standstill by platform 6. The station's fairly quiet at this hour and the train I am to board looks fairly quiet too, which is good because I want a peaceful journey.

"Yeah, I will" I assure her, before she pulls me into a tight hug. We may have our differences at times but I know she'll miss me. I'll miss her. But we need some space and I know that a break will do us both some good.

"Don't let Tristan get you into too much trouble" Phil smiles, and I smile back and nod, before he pulls me into a slightly awkward hug.

"Please come back soon" Millie sighs as she throws her arms around me too. I hug her tightly and kiss the top of her head.

"I will, I promise"

"I never see Tristan and now I'll never see you either" she mumbles, her voice muffled by my jumper. I hope she isn't crying because I don't want her to cry. It's not like I'm permanently moving away and I'll never see her again.

"It's only for a little while" I tell her, "and I'll come back to see you soon"

"When?"

"Maybe in a couple of weeks" I suggest, "and I'll bring Tris with me if he's free"

"Okay" she nods, seeming a little more cheerful.

"Brittany, are you going to say bye to Ella?" Phil says to his daughter. I don't even know why she is here. I think Phil bribed her.

She stares at me before her mouth curls into a small smirk.

"Bye Ella"

She's probably already plotting how quickly she can turn my bedroom into her own personalised beauty salon or something.

I don't bother to say goodbye to her. I'm not sad about leaving her; it's her fault I'm leaving in the first place.

"Right" my mum says quickly before it gets awkward or before Brittany and I start a fight with each other, "you better get on your train, love"

I nod and she gives me one last quick hug before I grab my suitcase and wheel it towards the train. I step on board and place my suitcase on an overhead luggage compartment, before sitting down in the nearest seat. It's next to a window and I can see everyone stood on the platform waving. I ignore Brittany's smirk and smile at Millie. She looks upset so I blow her a kiss and then the train sets off. Out of the window, I see the platform becoming less and less populated with people, and then it's just fields and the backs of houses. I take my iPod and my earphones out of my pocket and plug them into my ears.

The train journey takes about two hours, so it's around half past ten when I arrive in London. It's quiet at the train station with only a few people milling about, but I can't see Tristan. He's supposed to be picking me up, which is why I picked a later train; less chance of him being recognised by any fans.

I blow a stray piece of hair out of my face and check my phone. No new messages from Tristan. I decide to ring him.

"Hey El, what's up?" He answers.

"Where are you?" I question. It's late at night, I'm tired and I've just spend two and a half hours on a train; I am not in the mood for this.

"... At home?" he says it hesitantly, like it's a question. Like he's forgotten there's somewhere else he should be.

"I'm at the train station" I reply flatly. There is a pause.

"Shit, I thought you were coming on Thursday"

"It is Thursday" I correct.

"No, it's Wednesday"

"Tris, it's Thursday"

Love & War | Brad Simpson ✔️Where stories live. Discover now