All Love Can Be Revived (a Tom Hiddleston fanfic)

Chapter 1- Life Without Tom

~Rose Parker~

I absent-mindedly stir the warm tea in my cup, resting my chin on my hand. My flat seemed more bleak and bland than usual, and I guessed it was due to the lack of housekeeping and light. I'd have to clean this place up eventually.

How long was it been now, anyways? Over two months. Four weeks since he last texted me. I read every single one of them. And I still read them sometimes. Usually late at night when I can't sleep. Sometimes I even manage to not cry.

I had told Kate everything. She was excited for me at first, but then she grew really angry at me when I told her I left. She even ignored me for a whole week. But we're okay now. Whenever Tom texted me to say he was coming over, I went to Kate's house. She hadn't approved of me avoiding him at all, but she wasn't about to stop me. That's all in the past, though. No more Tom, happier Rose, right? And no more Rose, happier Tom.

I sigh lightly, looking around my flat once again. Wrong. I wasn't happier without Tom. Things seemed harder since New York. Writing was becoming hard for me. Concentrating altogether was hard. I think this will all be over soon, though, this depression of mine. It's only temporary. Once I move back to the states, I'll start over. I won't be in New York, so no old memories will pop up.

I jump lightly as my door opens. I turn my head to see a tall young woman with blonde-ish brown hair and bright blue eyes. And, of course, there's that bright smile on her face.

"Have you talked to Tom lately?" She asks.

I simply sigh, looking back down at my tea. "You know I haven't, Kate."

"Well he was texting me for quite a while, you know. Always asking about you. But now he hasn't even mentioned you for a few weeks."

"That's great," I say dryly.

Kate takes a seat next to me, looking me up and down. "You look awful," she points out.

"Well, I haven't put on makeup yet, so-"

"No, that's not what I meant. You can normally pull off no makeup, but you look... stressed. Is it him?" She asks.

"Work is getting harder," I reply. "I feel as if I'm missing out on life, just doing the same thing every day. I mean, I'm not meeting new people, I'm not going anywhere exciting. I feel as if time is flying by and leaving me behind. Like my life will soon be over, and what will I have to be proud of? Do you know what I mean?" I ask, looking over at her with a hopeful expression on my face.

Kate just furrows her brow in confusion. "No... I don't think so. Maybe you need to go shopping. Or eat lunch at a fancy place."

I think about it for a moment. Would that actually help me?

"Tomorrow," she continues, pointing at me. "Twelve o'clock. Our favorite mall. We'll go shopping together."

"Kate, I don't think-"

"Rose, you'll need some Summer clothes anyways, won't you? For when you go to the States?"

She was right. "Fine. We'll go. Happy?"

She smiles. "Very. Anyways, I should go, I, uh... I have to make some plans."

"Okay..." I say, rising an eyebrow. "Nice seeing you."

"Oh, and please wear some nice clothes tomorrow. And maybe brush your hair, and try to smile, and... shower. You really need to shower."

"Yeah, yeah," I mutter. "I know."

Then, with one last smile, Kate says her goodbyes and exits my flat.

I really don't feel like shopping tomorrow.

~

I did exactly what Kate had asked me to do. I took a shower, brushed at my wavy, dark hair, put on some decent clothes, and even a little bit of mascara. She'd better be happy with me.

I glance at the clock on my phone, and realizing it's 11:45, I grab my phone and head out the door. I had originally planned on finding a new place to live so Tom couldn't visit me, but I had never gotten around to it.

While looking around for a nearby taxi, I realize that Kate is probably right after all. Some nice, relaxing shopping with a friend will do me some good. Besides, I want to spend time with her before I move.

As I find a taxi, get in, and tell the driver my destination, I pull out my phone to send Kate a quick text, telling her I may be late. When I click my phone screen on, the first thing I see is my heart-breaking background. A man with light brown hair, a light stubble on his chin, and perfect features pressing his lips against the cheek of a girl. A girl with average features and average looks. So, yes, that girl is me.

I know it sounds stupid to have that as my phone background when I say I'm trying to forget about him, but some memories I can't let go of just yet. I quickly unlock my phone, revealing yet another picture of the light brown haired man. I suppose that's the good thing about liking a celebrity. There are thousands of good pictures of them just on Google alone. My background isn't just of him, though. He's with Benedict Cumberbatch.

After sending Kate a quick text to tell her I'll most likely be late, I shove my phone back into my pocket, just looking out the window of the taxi. It was getting warmer by the day, and I wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Sure, summer is nice with the blue skies, green trees, and nice weather, but summer also means something else. Something that made me a terrible person, but was extremely necessary.

After driving for no more than ten minutes the taxi suddenly stops, and I peek out the window to figure out why. It looks as if all of the traffic has stopped. But why? There isn't any stop lights around here.

The driver unrolls his window and calls out to a nearby officer, asking what happened.

"There's been a wreck," the officer replies. "No one badly injured. May be a while until the damage is cleared out." He soon moves on further towards the wreck.

I let out a sigh. I don't believe I have time for this... Handing the driver the proper amount of money, I open the door of the cab. "I'll get out here. Thank you."

The minute I step out, I quickly make my way through the cars on the street and to the sidewalk. I'm only five minutes away. I quickly start walking, apologizing every once in a while when I pass someone or almost run into them.

I let out a breath of relief when I see the entrance of the mall not too far away. Kate will probably be waiting outside on the benches like we always o when one of us hasn't shown up yet. As I near the bench, however, I don't see her. Has she really not gotten here yet? I turn my back to the bench, looking at the people walking by on the sidewalk. Looking for Kate. Out of the corner of my eye, I suddenly see a glimpse of an all too familiar face. A painfully familiar face. And I do something terrible before I can even stop myself.

"Tom?"