Together

Mystery Man

Guess what, kids? Tomorrow is the one year anniversary of me publishing this book series! That's crazy, isn't it? How would we feel about a double update tomorrow, in honor of one year? And, to think... if all goes as planned, I'll be writing the last chapter of this book tomorrow. Funny how these things work out, isn't it? But more on that later. Right now, here's a cheeky little update for you all... let's find out about this 'mystery man,' shall we? Enjoy/comment/vote xxx
-ab

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November 5, 2026

Patrick

"Just so you know," I say to Harper, "I have a dinner meeting near Piccadilly Circus, so I won't be home after work, but don't be too freaked out if you run into me this evening before the show."

"Sounds fun," she says, with sarcasm wreaking from her voice.

"You know it," I laugh. "It isn't too big of a deal. I just have to meet with this kid's doctor and talk about his condition before I start treatment, because he was very severely injured... I don't really know many details, but the doctor was very determined to make this happen, so I'm playing along."

"That's not good," Harper frowns. "I hope everything will be alright."

"It will be. He's on the mend, and my job is to help that process."

"Well, with you on the case," she smiles, placing her hand on my arm, "I'm sure that he will heal up just fine."

I roll my eyes. "My, soppy today, are we?"

Harper giggles. "Just kiss me already."

"You don't have to ask me twice."

I press my lips against hers, and we share a lovely kiss before I must be on my way to work. I've got a long day ahead of me, especially with the extra dinner that isn't usually included in my schedule.

My usual appointments drag by, but no more than they usually do. After that, I quickly change in a stall of the the toilets at work, then catch the next tube into the center of this city that I love to call my home.

I walk through Piccadilly Circus to find the restaurant at which I'm set to meet the doctor. Brian, I believe he's called.

As I'm walking, I see a peculiar sight. I don't run into Harper, but across the street, I see a brunette girl with a ballerina's figure and muscles. It's unmistakably Katherine. I don't, however, recognize the boy who she is walking with.

He's a tall, skinny boy with dark hair that's a lovely mix of red and brown, from what I can tell. I would guess that his lineage is mostly from the British Isles. I can't see his face too well, as there is quite a distance between us, but from the quick glance that I get, I can tell that both of them are laughing about something.

Then, I see something even more shocking.

I watch as the boy slips his hand into Katherine's hand. Strange, I think to myself. I've not heard anything from Harper about Katherine finding a relationship.

Of course, I'd be thrilled for her if she did, but I would have guessed that Harper would know by now. Which means that, in turn, she would tell me. It's important to us to have an open relationship, and not keep secrets- even something silly like that. She would be so excited for her best friend that she wouldn't be able to keep quiet about it anyway.

I'll have to ask Harper about it later and see what she might know about this guy, if anything.

My dinner goes smoothly. It really wasn't too necessary, as I have been to school to be a physical therapist, so I don't need this doctor telling me how to do my job. He paid, though, so it was some free food. That's never something that I turn down.

I listened politely and nodded at Brian's suggestions for the little boy's care. It does sound like a quite severe injury, but I am confident that I can get him fixed up with time.

After the dinner, I check the time to see if it is worth sticking around and meeting Harper at her stage door. There is still an hour and a half before her show is over, though, and I don't want to wait that long and kill time in Piccadilly Circus, so I decide to just take the tube back home.

Harper has been riding, both into and out of the city, with Kath, almost every day since we made the move to Hampstead. She shouldn't run into any problems coming home. Of course, she insists the same thing about being alone, which is probably true, but I worry less when she's with a friend.

"So," I say to her, once she finally makes it back home, "I saw Kath today."

"You did?" she asks.

"Yeah, when I was walking through Piccadilly Circus, she was too. Do you know who she would have been with?"

"If it wasn't Nessa or Emmie, then I have no idea. You know Nessa. Do you know who Emmie is?"

"Not particularly, but I'm quite sure that she's a female, and I'm quite sure that Kath was walking with a man."

Harper does a double take at that. "I'm sorry, what?"

"You heard me perfectly well," I tease her, giving her arm a cheeky little slap.

"Does Katherine finally have a boyfriend? Is she not going to turn into a cat lady?"

"You're terrible, Harper Alwyn!" I exclaim.

"Relax, relax, I'm kidding," she giggles. "Actually, now that you mention it, Nessa did mention something to me, a few months back, about there being some... figure... in Kath's life, who she was up at the late hours of the night, texting and giggling with. We assumed that it was a boy. I hadn't heard anything about it since."

"Well, he grabbed her hand today, and she didn't stop him. That's all I saw."

"And it wasn't James? You know him, right?"

"Yeah, I met James several times. It was not James. The guy seemed to be a redhead. I'd say he has a bit of Irish in him, perhaps. I don't know who he was, and I didn't even see his face, really."

"Interesting... I have no idea who it would be," Harper admits. "I'll see what I can dig out of Katherine tomorrow."

"Do it really innocently," I insist. "Just, something like, 'Patrick saw you walking with somebody before the show...'"

"Don't worry, I will," she assures me. "I'm not going to like, accuse you of anything, or Kath, as the matter of fact."

"Good," I say. "I hope you find something out. I'm dying to know what it was all about."

"Don't worry, I'll get the gossip, because I want to know just as badly."