Love Like Wildfire

Chapter VI: Pt. 1

   { Disclaimer: I know next to nothing about Wayne's team/Mollie's family, so any details are merely of my own imagination. Sorry if they don't quite meet your expectations! Mentioned songs are Wildfire by the ladies themeselves and Night Time by The xx. }

   The sounds of multiple voices was ultimately what caused Frankie to submerge from sleep. It took her a moment to really want to wake, but then she registered one of the voices as Wayne's, and stretched an arm out. A hand swept empty, cool sheets, and she retracted. She hated being cold, and grabbed the blankets to pull closer around her. The temperature had been radically dropping lately, London preparing for winter. And it seemed the Sandford-Bridge household had yet to turn on the heat. Grumbling, she turned on her side, twisting up in the warmth of her comforter. Wayne spoke again in the distance, and she cracked her eyes.

   The door to the bathroom was cracked, and light spilled into the dim room. She saw the shadow of his feet moving about, and then an even softer voice replied him. Puzzlement creasing her brows, she propped up on her elbow tiredly, listening harder. Accompanied with his voice was the unmistakable sound of his razor across his cheek as he shaved.

   "Why would they plan that?" Wayne grunted, obviously not pleased with whatever discussion he was having with the mystery voice.

   Gathering her blankets up around her, Frankie stood, knuckling the sleep from her eyes. Padding across her bedroom, she jarred the door and peeked her head in. Wayne stood at the bathroom sink, half his face shaven, the other lathered in foamy shaving cream. Propped against the mirror sat his phone, lit up with a call from a name she didn't recognize, or couldn't given how she'd just woken up. Having not realised her in the doorway right away, Wayne rinsed his razor under the sink's spray of water, and said, "I don't think I can leave Frankie."

   "What?" she blurted out. A wave of panic and fear hit her in the stomach. Either she had come into the conversation at the wrong time or she was realising that leaving Wayne for Mollie, whether the blonde wanted her or not, was going to to be much harder than she thought. If she felt this way, then did she really want to give him up on a whim?

   Eyes flashing to the mirror, Wayne stared at Frankie's figure in the doorway. Reaching forward, Wayne grabbed his cellphone and took it off speaker, quickly telling whoever was on the line that he would call them back later, the receiver placed to the side of his face clear of shaving cream. Hanging up, he turned around.

   "Did I wake you?" he asked sincerely. For someone having been caught about leaving his girlfriend, he didn't sound worried that she overheard him.

   "Who was that?" Frankie demanded, glancing at the phone he shoved into his jean's pocket. He was currently shirtless and even his amazing pecs and abs couldn't distract her. She couldn't sort how she felt at the moment.

   "That was just Alex from the team, babe," Wayne tried reassuring, hearing the tone with which she spoke. "It's not what it sounded like, trust me." Stepping forward, he touched her shoulder in a sort of massage, a smile forming. "I just meant that I don't think I could leave you alone for Thanksgiving."

   And just like that, the swirling waters of emotion in the pit of her stomach were swept away and replaced with stupidity. Resisting the urge to sigh to show how much what he had said really affected her, she merely dropped her shoulders. That was strange. On Sunday, she had entertained the thought of leaving Wayne in favour of Mollie, and now that she was hypothetically given the chance to end their relationship, she panicked. Obviously... she couldn't do it. Or manage to get out unscathed.

   "Oh?" Frankie found herself asking, hands balled up in his bedsheets. Wayne nodded, turning back to the sink to grab the handtowel and wipe at some of the cream that had threatened to drip. He started shaving again as he replied, "Yeah, Alex rung to tell me about the team leaving for a week long camp over Thanksgiving holiday for football. It's a great opportunity, but I'd feel awful leaving you for the holiday."