Fallen

Chapter Eight

The wait was slow, filled with long days of work and evenings spent with Nick and Ellie until they undoubtably passed out and I'd leave Nick on the sofa to drag Ellie's ass up to bed. Each ring of the café bell above the door, every time my phone vibrated, I prayed it was Blaine telling me he was okay. I tried to fill my head with thoughts about work, what I'd have for dinner or the food I needed to buy for the week, but quite often the thoughts of Blaine would trickle through and I'd be overcome with sadness, fright and anxiety all at once.

Danielle had the brilliant skill of detecting when Blaine was on my mind and did her best to snap me out of it. She noticed me flinching and glancing at the café door whenever it opened or checking my phone at any possible moment in the day. Her plan was to interrupt me with a job or a question she already knew the answer to, but it was her way of protecting me from the loneliness creeping in. After a few weeks, I came up to her by the till and flung my arms around her.

"Hey, you alright?" she asked.

I nodded and held her tight. "Thank you."

That was all I needed to say. She squeezed me and let me do what I needed to show her my gratitude.

It had been just over three weeks since Maria had shown up at my door. By this time, I had been through many thought processes – wondering if Blaine was okay, if I'd ever see him again. Maybe he'd forgotten about me, or found someone else? I told myself that was be fine, we were never a couple. He could be with whoever he wanted to be with. It was fine. Honestly.

After a long day at work, I slammed the door shut behind me, kicked off my shoes and headed up the stairs to the shower. With my head still full of distractions, I pushed open the slightly ajar bathroom door to come face-to-face with a dripping wet, naked Nick stood on the mat outside of the shower. We made eye contact and he grinned.

"Hi, Anna."

"Oh my god, Nick!" I blocked my eyes with my hand and scarpered out of the room and back down the stairs, bumping into Ellie in the hallway. She gave me a confused look.

"Are you alright? You look like you've seen a ghost."

I was annoyed and embarrassed and unable to get my words out. Seconds later, Nick came running down the stairs with a towel flung around his lower half. I couldn't look him in the eye.

"What?" Ellie asked.

"Anna just walked in on me in the bathroom." His voice was full of humour. My cheeks burned red. Ellie laughed as Nick put a wet arm around me.

"Hey, it's alright. No need to be embarrassed. I'm not."

I shrugged his touch from me. "Who the hell showers with the door open? Jesus Christ, we have a bathroom lock for a reason."

Nick just laughed. "I wasn't expecting anyone to come barging in like you did. It was almost like you wanted to see something."

I knew he was teasing me, but I still shoved him roughly. Ellie couldn't keep back her chuckling. I grunted and stormed back up the stairs. "Shut the fucking door next time," I called.

"No worries, my love." They were both giggling like a pair of children down there.

Just as I stepped into the bathroom, the doorbell rang. I heard Nick say that he'd get it just as I turned on the shower. There was a low conversation before a loud voice called up to me, muffled by the water hitting against the bathtub. With a sigh, I swung the door open and bounded to the top of the stairs.

"What?" I yelled back.

Nick appeared at the bottom of the stairs with a smug grin. "I said your boyfriend's here."