The Unexpected Journey-A Prince Harry Fan Fic

Chapter 16

Maddie found that, that night with Harry, she had slept better than she had since before the shooting. And Harry found that, that morning when he woke, leaving her side was growing increasingly more difficult.

But they both had plans; plans that involved planes and other countries, other people. Plans that had nothing to do with the other—no matter how much they wished they did. She offered to call for some coffee and he offered to help her take a shower with her sling.

Both politely, and regretfully, refused.

His plane was leaving earlier than hers; within hours in fact. So he kissed her; again and again before prying himself from her arms. Then, with his bag full of irrelevant magazines, disheveled hair, a rumpled shirt, and a giddy look in his eyes, Harry left her room to head back to England—but only after he secured a promise he would see her in a month.

Maddie, rolling her eyes at the wide, goofy grin on her face that she could not seem to remove, hurried through her morning routine—as much as she could hurry with her arm in the shape it was in—and went to meet with her friends before they all left South Africa for their varied destinations.

Collins rose to his feet as she approached their breakfast table and was the first to notice a drastic change in her demeanor from the night before. Khenda watched her contemplatively and Ella, having assisted Harry in occupying the reporter, made no bones about it. With a smug smile, she looked to her best friend and asked,

"Sleep well last night Doctor?"

The flush that came to Maddie's cheeks was bright red and the smile that flew to her face was indescribable. Then, in a small, quiet voice, she let them in on the night before; on the promises that had been made, on where she was headed and with whom. And she wasn't quite sure which one of them was happier about the news; herself included. Of course they would keep it quiet, of course she could trust them. They were the three most important friends in her life and, in a show of solidarity, Collins rose his glass to salute her. As the four of them drank to Bendal, to what had occurred, to what was about to occur, they sat in a warm, happy hope for the future.

And then, one by one, they passed hugs around the group; warm, tight hugs that spoke of a loyal love and adoration they had developed. They kissed cheeks and foreheads and promised to meet again. And then they would load up their one bag—the one worn bag that spoke of a well-seasoned traveler, they said their good-byes and they departed.

All knowing they would meet again.

As Maddie flew over the vast continent of Africa, across the depths of the Atlantic, she felt torn between her worlds. Her life at home, her life in Bendal, and that wonderful unknown life that lie ahead. She hoped that she wouldn't soon be forced to choose between them, that somehow she would manage to have them all at the same time.

And when she landed, finally, in the dry, chilly air of Colorado, she embraced her mother; her mother who couldn't stop crying. She let her mother fuss over her and then, together; hand in hand, they made their way to Maddie's first home. And she settled into that life—at least for the moment.

Maddie spoke with Harry nearly every night that she spent apart from him. They would trade off during whose night they would call. Sometimes she would lay awake in her bed, trying to keep her eyes open while waiting for his call. And then there were nights when she would swallow the nervousness in her chest and call him; knowing she would be waking him. But neither of them ever complained; the end result was just too sweet. Their knowledge about each other continued to flourish. Their attraction solidified as they grew closer. And it was these talks that helped propel them forward. Just as they had months before.

They talked about everything. They spent hours talking about those small, mundane things that they never managed to cover during the hot nights in Bendal.