The Way Back | ✓

3.5

note: surprise! Bringing the weekend to an end with a third update whooo! I wasn't going to update this chapter until Thursday but I've finally gotten back to the groove of writing this story (after being stuck on it ever since nano ended) and my flow is going great. I couldn't help but post this chapter. 

This chapter is important, to London's relationship with her sister and her issues with her mum. I'd love to hear your thoughts so please do drop them in the comments! 

*new note: I spotted a plot hole and so this chapter had to go under a little reconstruction. This is the revised version of the chapter. 

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Clutching the food parcel, London took a deep breath and rang the doorbell. She half expected for the door to open, for Gwen to hug her instantly and thank her for being there but instead, Inesh stood in her sister's place, a welcoming smile on his lips.

"London," he said, his face brightening at the sight of her. Inesh's voice was accented, only having moved from Sri Lanka a few years ago for work.

"Inesh," she greeted, "I brought these." She handed him the food parcel as he opened the door for her. "Do you mind warming them up?"

"No problem. Gwen said you were bringing food over. I love it when you bring food from Tollerz, that place is expensive," Inesh laughed, closing the door behind her. Then smiling softly, "I'll get the food and the wine. You know where to find Gwen."

On Gwen's low and moody days, she could be found in the guest bedroom, a room that Mum used when she came over to Porte Orlands to visit London and Gwen. Gwen and London moved to Porte Orlands for university since it was considerably cheaper and the education was good at the same time. Mum would visit them every so often and stay in the guest room. It was during Christmas break, when Gwen was in her last year and London in her second year, that life changed. The sisters had gone back to London to stay with their parents for a week, to enjoy Christmas and New Year's with them, but instead they'd had to live the horror that followed Christmas day.

When London returned back to Porte Orlands, keeping up with semester had proven to be arduous and when exams rolled around, the breakdowns doubled. Eleven months had passed since their mother's first suicide attempt that Christmas day and tragedy struck again, ten times worse. Her mother had attempted again, and succeeded. The breakdowns London had were unbearable then, and soon after she dropped out of university. The breakdowns rarely happened these days but London couldn't say that her life had improved over the span of the four years following her mother's death.

"Gwen," London said quietly, entering the room.

She hadn't been over to Gwen's place in a couple of weeks but noticed that the furniture had changed up on the way to the guest bedroom. Gwen loved change. She couldn't live without change — life was too bleak then, she'd told London once when London told her it was hard keeping up with her constant changes to her house.

"Hey," Gwen said, no trace of a smile. She was huddled in blankets and London felt cold too. When it was winter the guest bedroom always seemed to get colder than the rest of the house.

"Scoot over," London said, plopping down on the bed. "It's cold."

They sat there for a while, close together, warming each other up as they let the silence speak for them. It was only after Inesh popped into the room, lay down the reheated food, two wine glasses and what looked to be a pricey bottle of wine, plus two boxes of tissues, did the silence break.

"I've been shitting myself for the last four years," Gwen confessed the instant Inesh exited the room, the door clicking shut behind him.

London didn't even pretend to not know what Gwen was talking about. Instead of offering Gwen comfort, telling her that it was all right and it wasn't as bad as it seems, she sat quietly, looking at her sister like she felt a similar pain. The same pain. The truth was that it was not all right, it hadn't been for quite some time now, and it was as bad as it seemed. There was no use lying to her older sister.