The flight passed in silence.
I stared out the tiny window, watching clouds drift past like slow-moving ghosts. My music played softly in my ears, but the music barely registered. Everything felt numb. My thoughts were far away—lost in memories of Liam. I kept glancing at the empty seat beside me, wishing he were there, teasing me about my choice in music or resting his head against mine as we fell asleep midair.
A gentle nudge pulled me out of the haze. "Ma'am?" a kind voice said. I blinked up into the face of a flight attendant, older, smiling warmly. "We've landed. Welcome to Seattle."
"Oh," I said, my voice rough from disuse. "Thank you."
I stood slowly, grabbing my bag from the overhead compartment, the world around me moving at a pace I couldn't quite match. As I stepped into the aisle, I turned to the man who'd woken me.
"Sorry—do you have the time?"
"9 a.m., love," he replied with a gentle nod.
"Thanks," I murmured, offering a tight smile before shuffling forward.
The crowd carried me out through the terminal, a wave of unfamiliar faces and reuniting families surging toward the airport lobby. My feet felt heavy, but I kept moving, one slow step at a time. I slung my bag higher on my shoulder, weaving through the noise toward the cab stand—until I heard it.
"EMMA!" I stopped recognizing that voice. Turning, I caught sight of a blur of brunette hair and skinny jeans sprinting toward me—Casey. Right behind her were Andy and my brothers, all grinning like idiots.
Casey launched herself at me, nearly knocking me over as I dropped my bag and wrapped my arms around her.
"What are you doing here?" I asked, stunned. I hadn't told anyone I was coming home.
"Harry called me," she whispered against my shoulder. "Don't worry. No one else knows but me."
I closed my eyes for a beat, overwhelmed with gratitude—for her, for Harry, for someone still looking out for me in the quiet.
She stepped back just as my brothers reached me, crashing into me in what they liked to call a hug but felt more like a gang tackle. Still, I laughed for the first time in days.
"Em!" they cheered in unison.
Despite everything, I smiled.
For a fleeting moment, I let myself feel something other than loss.
They whisked me off to the car almost before I could catch my breath.
"What's your new address?" Andy asked, his eyes scanning me carefully. I handed him a scrap of paper with the hastily scribbled address I'd written down for the cab I'd planned to take. He plugged it into the GPS, and within ten minutes, we pulled up outside my new apartment building.
I hopped out while my brothers grabbed my bags, racing ahead with Andy toward the lobby. Casey lagged, walking beside me. "How are you?" she asked softly.
"Horrible," I whispered, fighting to keep the tears at bay. Casey had that effect on me—one look and I was ready to unravel, pouring out every secret heartbreak in a messy flood of tears right there in the parking lot.
"I didn't even know you were going through all this. Why didn't you tell me?"
"I didn't want to burden you with my love life," I muttered, shrugging.
"Babe, what are best friends for if not to listen to every intimate, embarrassing detail?"
I sighed and linked my arm with hers. "I didn't know how to say it—I dumped a perfectly wonderful man who loved me to be with the bad boy I hated... and then he died."
YOU ARE READING
Capture
Fanfiction[COMPLETED] You can't run forever, eventually you'll be captured. A dark past he's spent years running from threatens to swallow him whole after a simple knock on her door.
