The others

Changes of heart

"Come on, all you need to do is knock." Joe muttered to himself as he stood in front of the bright blue door in the darkened stairwell. The hustle and bustle of the busy London road whirling behind him as the bitter chill of October air attacked him from all sides. Prompting him to snuggle a little further in the soft collars of his blue sweatshirt.

Readjusting the glasses he had haphazardly thrown on, Joe cleared his throat before raising his hand to knock on the door he had only stood outside of once before. But a door he had envisioned himself stood in front of hundreds of times over.

He wasn't sure what he wanted to say to the redhead when he ordered himself an Uber to her doorstep.

He wasn't sure if he was making the journey across London late on a Wednesday night to shout at her, to kiss her, or even to just look at her for a little while.

But the one thing that the young man from the West Country was certain of as he stood outside the door ominously, was that he had to make this right. He had to make a decision. Either to make the jump and go for it with the gorgeous redheaded Aussie who had tormented his mind all month, or listen to Byron's words of wisdom and clear the air - make it official that she was not the one for him.

Standing on tenterhooks, Joe took in his surroundings. The dimly lit stairwell that he had spent the past 10 minutes walking up and down in confidence and regret of his decision to come, seeming to close in on him. The brass knocker tacked onto the front of the ocean blue door calling his name. And the faint sound of an American accent on the other side of the wooden panel suggesting that Dianne had once again retorted to her coping mechanism of watching friends whenever she felt low. A habit which Joe had learnt was something she had done since the early 2000's.

Deciding that enough was enough, Joe took in a breath. His hand raising and grasping a hold of the metal knocker. Tapping it three times against the blue wood, and waiting patiently for the redhead to open the door.

Only to find the blue mass which seemed so solid, to suddenly throw itself open, revealing a body behind it.

"Oh, hi." He mumbled in surprise as he took in the figure which had opened the door. As rather than the petite, teary eyed redhead he was expecting, stood a taller woman with a soft smile and stern eyes. Her dark hair and skin seeming almost shadow like as she bore into him.

"Umm, hi." She repeated back in her formidably South African accent. Her surprise to see him stood there clearly as evident as his to see her.

"Is... Is Dianne in?" Joe questioned somewhat sheepishly.

"Yeah, she's just through here." She returned before stepping aside of the entrance. Her arm gesturing out into the room as Joe took a step into the somewhat familiar apartment.

"Thanks Oti." Joe whispered as he took a second step into the room. His heart in his mouth as he gave a polite smile to the professional, who nodded in return.

Taking in the room, Joe felt a grip on his throat so tight that the idea of breathing became almost obsolete. The once clean, sprightly room now dark and cold. The happy-go-lucky redhead he had hoped to see sat on her sofa eating dinner with a smile on her face now cuddled under the protective arm of one Janette Manrara, with a tissue clamped in her palm and the familiar sight of reflective tears falling down her cheeks.

"Hey Di." He spoke, just loud enough for her to hear.

Staring back at him blankly, Dianne took in the figure stood awkwardly in her living room. His hair neat as a pin, a pair of thick rimmed - black glasses on his face, and a soft jumper clung to his body. An overall attractive, heart thumping sight which seemed to do nothing but make the Australian freeze. Tears openly sliding down her face as she looked at him with an intent that the YouTuber had never seen before.