The Love Abroad

Chapter 12

We finally land at Heathrow, with the British sun shining through the small window next to me.

Kris & I sit in our seats, leaving everyone else to rush out of the plane. Behind us I can hear Luke talking to Tom, about what I'm not too sure.

"You ladies want to grab a pint?" Luke leans around our row of seats, looking and Kris & I.

"No thanks, Marie & I have some things to discuss. Pronto." You should have heard the tone in her voice. She sounded annoyed and a little bitchy.

Fantastic.

He nods his head and leans back into his seat before grabbing his carry on. He mumbles to Tom once again then to us. "I'm heading out then ladies. It was a fun weekend." We both smile and nod, me quickly waiting for Tom to follow.

Nothing.

"Hey Tom," Kris says. I can feel him adjust his posture in the seat behind me, "Yes?" He sounded nervous, a lot like how I'm feeling. "Do you want to come over later? Watch a movie or have dinner?"

Honestly I have no idea what Kris was up to but I knew that it wouldn't come without a price.

"Uhhh sure. I suppose I can drop by,” he said stumbling on his words. "Is that okay with you Marie?"

No it's not okay. Not at all. "Of course." I lied trough my teeth knowing that Kris was testing me. As soon as I gave the okay, she stood up gathering all get bags. "We should be going. Tom, we'll see you later." She looked to him with a smile and began walking off the plane.

Both Tom & I stand up in sync. "Is everything okay?" he asked genuinely concerned. Trying to avoid eye contact I shift my body away from him picking up my purse, "No. She knows." I didn't even have to explain what I meant because he knew. He let out a deep sigh, probably pinching the space above his nose, like he always does when something is conflicting.

I begin to head out when I feel him touch my back. "It'll be okay." Tom has always been the optimistic guy, ever since we first met 4 months ago. I don't respond verbally but the shake of my head let him know that I was hoping for everything to be okay.

The car ride back to our flat was quiet; Kris ignored me when I tried to talk, even though I wouldn't call a mumble as actually talking. 

The smell of dew filled the flat as the window was left open. It must have rained while we were gone. Before I could dart into my room, Kris bellows out the loudest cough I have ever heard. I look to her, her face flushed with embarrassment. "Sorry. That was very.... unlady like." She looks to me with a smile, trying to hide behind the need to laugh.

So I did it for her. The next thing I know, we're both laughing, with our arms around each other. "I'm sorry if I acted a crude bitch today." She says, grasping my arms firmly. "It's okay. I should have told you everything. Friends tell each other things."

Kris knew about my friendship back home with Liz. I've known her since freshman year in high school, but she changed once she got her first boyfriend. Suddenly I was being ignored and ditched when we did hang out. For the last year or so, I never really had anybody to open up to. Until I came to London and met Kris.

So we sit at the table and I tell her everything. How Tom and I really went back to the suite and engaged in coitus (sorry for the Big Bang Theory reference.) I told her I just went with it, how much I wanted it even though deep down I promised myself I wouldn't do this. 

"Now things are a little awkward between you two," she said taking a sip of the tea she made earlier. "Well, it's not really awkward. I think we're both just on different levels emotionally. I'm not ready for a relationship and I think he is." I never did tell Kris about how Tom confessed how he 'loved' me because I knew she would literally flip shit.

"Well, truthfully, you and Tom are kind of.... perfect for each other." I cough a little when she said that. "Excuse me? Perfect? HA!" Kris adjusts herself, takes another sip of tea and continues. 

"I'm serious. You guys have a ton in common. Cambridge, Shakespeare, morals, though patterns, music. If I believed in soul-mates, I would say you two are just that." I sit there looking at my hands and feeling a bit uncomfortable. "I'm not saying that you should go against what you want, but just be open to the fact that things happen for a reason. You don't want to push Tom away as a friend just because you refuse to come to terms with how you really feel."

She was absolutely right. Tom is everything I've ever dreamed of and even though I'm not ready to be committed, I can't ignore that there's something between us. I just need to talk to him. 

Kris grabs her phone and places it to her ear. "Who you calling?" I snoop. "Tom. Remember, I invited him over?" I can hear the phone ring about 5 times. Tom always picks up his phone, especially if it's his friends. "He's not answering. Interesting." Kris leaves a message.

"Did anything happen between you on the plane after I left?" I shrug in response. "I might have kind of...ignored him a little." Kris grunts, shaking her head in disappointment. "He probably thinks you want nothing to do with him which is why he's probably not answering."

"Why is it such a big deal that he comes over anyway? We just spent a weekend with him in Paris!" She looks at me, her eyes darkening. "Because I wanted you two to talk, get your minds off what happened over the weekend. Move on."

And now, that's not going to happen. 

I spend the rest of the night calling and texting Tom, pretending that nothing happened. He never responded. Sex ruins everything, guys. Once you bring sex into the equation, nothing is ever the same.

And for Tom and I, we need things to be the same or we might drift apart.