"I guess I never really found a home before I met William. That's why, I decided to follow him to London, because he was my home, he was my life. But then, the home that I was always longing for turned into a cold strange place. That's why I came ba...
The alarm buzzed off on the bedside table, but Noora was already awake way before it. She wasn't really sleeping actually. She just lied there on her bed, awake all night, stared blankly at the ceiling, tried to close her eyes to sleep when the dawn came, but still... she wasn't really sleeping. Her eyes were closed, but her mind was wandering around.
It had been eight months since she came back to Oslo... from London. Oh, just by saying the name of that in city in her mind made her feel so vulnerable.
Eight months ago, she came back here to Oslo without thinking anything. She just took off to the airport in the middle of the night. She didn't even bring anything. Not her clothes, not her bag, let alone a suitcase! Literally nothing. She just had her passport and her wallet with her. She even left her phone in the apartment.
Yeah, in the apartment. William's apartment. In London.
That night was cold, in the middle of February. London was snowing quite heavily. Noora stood in front of the mirror for about an hour. She stared blankly to her reflection, trying to find something in there. But she couldn't find it. She didn't even know the thing she was searching for. She just knew something was missing.
In the middle of her confusion, her phone rang. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before took a look at it.
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She put her phone, leaving the last message unanswered. She took a look at the mirror again. Something was on her mind. And she could see there was a doubt on her face. But at the same time, there was also this pride that was burning inside her. A pride she thought she lost long time ago.
Before she changed her mind again, she quickly made her way out of the bedroom. Her wallet and passport were ready on the table in the apartment's hallway. Just when she was about to grab them, something caught her eyes. She paused, and stood there in the hallway. Her eyes were stunned to a big photograph that was hanged on the wall. A photo of hers, smiling gracefully to the camera. Now she knew the thing she was searching for earlier in the mirror. She found out what was missing. Her smile.
And just like that, she made her way out of the apartment. With her wallet and passport in her left hand, and a broken heart in her right hand, she stepped outside and not looking back.
That last message from William was now answered. She wasn't just going. She was leaving.
-----
07.00.
Noora managed to pull herself out of the bed. Apparently lying on the bed for too long didn't feel too good. She could feel her back aching and her neck was stiff from lying on the bed for almost 20 hours.
She made her way to the kitchen to cook some breakfast. Believe it or not, the last meal she had was over 24 hours ago! Since coming home from work on Friday night, she really didn't feel to do anything. So after taking a hot shower and ate a Chinese food take-out, she went straight to bed. And the rest was history. Her life just began again now, the moment she opened the refrigerator and started cooking her breakfast.
