More than Anyone

Four days later, Ben was driving the car he had rented from the airport through the congested streets of London, cursing at both the traffic and at the tumultuous downpour of rain pounding down from the sky. It had been raining since they arrived and he was grateful that Olivia had been smart enough to pack a raincoat. She sat in the front passenger side to his left, one of the heat vents turned towards her as she tried her best to dry the locks of hair that had gotten wet from beneath her hood. Her hair gained a bit of waves to it when wet and she scrunched the hair in her hands, both to keep it waved and to keep the water dripping off of her.

He felt guilty for not having warned her more about the weather of Britain. It was cool and wet in the spring and though she had packed a rain coat, she had only tee-shirts, skirts, and flip-flops with her. He had offered to buy her more comfortable clothes but she had adamantly refused, saying that these were her comfortable clothes and since they had arrived, he hadn’t heard one word of complaint from her of how cold she more than likely was as he showed her around the city, taking her to the sights she had desired to see the most. He had never seen a person take more pictures but it amused him. She took pictures everywhere they went and even begrudgingly agreed to be in a few. He had been surprised when she got someone to take a picture of him and her outside London Tower. She had even put her arms around his waist though he was certain that it was to keep her warm and sheltered from the rain as they waited in line. They smiled happily nonetheless. He had been having fun, acting like a tourist with her, and she must have been having fun as well for as many times as she smiled or laughed.

They were making their way towards Jamie and Violet’s house, located in a small quiet neighborhood about twenty minutes outside the city. It seemed to be taking forever to get there though and both were far too anxious to see their best friends to be dealing with traffic at the moment. Olivia sighed softly and turned down the heat, giving up on her hair. It would only get wet again once they stepped outside. Ben glanced at her from the corner of his eye but she was too busy staring out the window. He had yet to tell her that he was planning on going to Scotland the next day. It would take a little over five hours to get to his mother’s house leaving from the hotel but he had promised that he would come and it seemed foolish to be on the same island and not pay her a visit. He had missed her and didn’t get to see her as nearly as both of them would have liked. He wasn’t sure whether or not Olivia would want to come with him or explore London some more, either by herself or perhaps with Violet. He was almost afraid of what answer she gave him, he not being entirely sure which one he wanted her to give him.

Neither spoke. Ben leaned forward in his seat to try to see the addresses of the homes they were passing. It was raining so hard, visibility was almost non-existent but he managed to find Jamie’s home from the address he had scrawled on a piece of paper in his hand. He turned the car into the driveway belonging to a small two-story cottage with a waist-high brick wall surrounding both the front and back yards. Lights glowed from the inside and smoke rose from the chimney. It definitely looked cozy, warm, and most importantly dry.

“Is this it?” Olivia asked, looking out the windshield and up at the house. “It must be. It’s just as Violet described it to me.”

“It’s small,” Ben observed though he had expected as much. Property values in Britain, particularly in the cities, were exceptionally high while the houses were all smaller, especially when Americans compared it to their homes back in the states.

Olivia smiled. “Well, just because it’s smaller than the penthouse room in a hotel...” she trailed off and Ben smirked, shaking his head slightly. He had delivered, just as he had promised that he would. As soon as they had arrived at The North Star in London, Ben had gone up to the front desk and told the concierge who he was. Less than five minutes later, he and Olivia had the two finest rooms in the hotel, the two penthouses on the top floor. He had practically had to throw Olivia inside of hers for her to accept it. “Let’s go.”

They both threw open their doors and bolted through the rain up to the front door, it not mattering how fast they rushed. They were both already soaked. Ben knocked on the door and never thought he’d be so happy to hear Selby’s bark on the other side. The door opened and Ben and Olivia tumbled into the house, instantly embraced in a bone-crushing hug.

“Holy shit! You guys are sopping!” Jamie declared, releasing them from his embrace. He took a step back to look them over then laughed, shaking his head. “You look like drowned rats.” He wore blue jeans and a long sleeve tee-shirt with Chicago Bears printed across it, now wet from hugging them.

Ben laughed shortly. “Fuck you,” he said before pulling Jamie back into a tight hug.

Jamie grinned, slapping his back. “I missed you, too, Ben,” he said then looked at Olivia, still standing there and shivering from the rain. “Holy shit, I’m horrible. Here, Livi. Give me your coat.” He spun her around and peeled the rain coat from her then turned and hung it up in the miniscule hall closet. “You, too,” he told Ben, taking his coat from him. “I don’t need you catching pneumonia in my house and dealing with you bitching about it for the rest of our lives.”

“You know me too well,” Ben grinned. “Hey, Selby,” he greeted, finally kneeling down and bestowing attention and affection upon the excited Bloodhound, the dog wagging his tail back and forth and whipping it against Olivia’s legs. She hardly noticed though as she looked around the house. It seemed a bit bigger than it did from the outside but it certainly was small and with all of Jamie and Violet’s possessions and furniture, it was almost bordering on cramped. But Olivia loved it immediately. It was the quintessential English cottage she always envisioned. The kitchen was down the short hallway across from the front door and the living room was to the right. She stepped across the threshold, her shin coming in contact with a stack of books piled in front of her. They tumbled over and gasping, she kneeled down and began picking them up.

Jamie laughed, crouching down beside her and helping her. “Don’t worry, Olivia. That happens more than I can count,” he reassured her though she still felt horribly guilty as she stood up again.

“I’m so sorry, Jamie,” she apologized. “I wasn’t looking where I was going.”

Ben snickered, brushing past her and after side-stepping several more stacks of books on the floor, he collapsed onto the couch, trying to warm-up by the fire roaring in the hearth. Selby hopped up next to him, not wanting to be away from Ben’s hands. Ben instantly began rubbing him behind one of his ears. “Shut up, Olivia. It’s Jamie’s fault for having so many fucking books lying about. Have you ever heard of a bookshelf?” Ben questioned his best friend but his only response was Jamie’s middle finger directed towards him. Ben laughed, shaking his head.

Olivia stood in the middle of the room, careful not to move, and instead, continued to look around the living room. Jamie’s desk was shoved in one corner of the room near the front window. It was piled high with papers and more books, his laptop resting on top of it all. The other furniture included the couch Ben was sitting on, a worn armchair, a television, two bookshelves- crammed to the hilt with more books- lining the wall opposite the windows and a coffee table, drowning in even more books. The fireplace, on the wall opposite of the living room door, was made of brick and the mantel was adorned with framed photographs. Olivia hesitantly moved to Jamie’s desk, looking at the papers there. A vase of fresh lavenders, more than likely picked from the garden Violet had out back, was balanced perfectly on an unsteady pile of books.

“What are you working on, Jamie?” She asked curiously.

“Oh. That,” Jamie sighed, rubbing his hands over his face as if the sheer topic of it all exhausted him. He sank into the armchair. “I’m studying and examining the multiple versions of fairy tales, ‘Sleeping Beauty’ in particular since almost every single culture has one version or another of it.” He shrugged. “Some have claimed that there is political propaganda behind it.”

“Behind ‘Sleeping Beauty’?” Olivia asked, looking at him with raised eyebrows.

He nodded his head, sitting up and resting his arms on his knees. Ben groaned.

“Now you did it, Olivia,” Ben said, closing his eyes. “He’s getting himself geared up.”

Both ignored him and Jamie stood up, going to his desk. “The story of a dashing man battling his way against terrible odds to reawaken a sleeping princess and set all wrongs aright can easily be used to support nationalist claims, particularly for fascist-type movements with a central popular figure.”

“Oh, Jamie! Not again!” Violet groaned as she entered the room and heard the tail-end of what her husband was speaking of. “You’ve already ruined my favorite fairy tale for me with that fascist talk!”

Jamie smirked. “Sorry, baby.”

Olivia looked at her best friend, beautiful as ever, standing there, the pregnancy making her almost seem to glow. She was only four months along and her stomach was just beginning to protrude into a small bump but it was becoming most obvious that she was pregnant. She wore blue jeans and a purple hooded sweatshirt. Her blond hair was as long as it was before, curling and waving down past her shoulder blades, nearing the small of her back and it was held back from her face with a black headband.

“Get your beautiful butt over here, Olivia Grange,” Violet beckoned, opening her arms for her. “It’s cruel to expect a pregnant woman to chase you about.” Olivia smiled, almost bursting into tears, but rushed to her and hugged her best friend, holding her tightly and noticed that Violet had actually begun to cry first. “I’ve missed you so much.”

“Oh, my God,” Ben muttered. “Jamie, please tell me that this is the work of hormones.”

“Shut up, Ben,” Violet ordered, pulling away and wiping at her eyes. “And are you too good to hug me now?”

“Definitely,” he grinned cheekily but stood up and engulfed her in a tight embrace. Violet kissed his cheek and Olivia almost laughed when she noticed Ben’s face becoming flushed but she thought better of it. She shouldn’t tease him. He was, after all, basically her savior of the trip though she would tell him no such thing. He already had a large ego problem without gushing over him and thanking him for practically salvaging her vacation before it could completely fall apart.

“Come on, Olivia,” Violet said, tugging on her hand. “Your flip-flops are drenched and I have these great wool socks that will keep your feet warm.”

Without waiting for any type of response, Violet pulled on her hand and yanked Olivia up the narrow step stairs to the second floor. She led her to the second door on the left, the first being the bathroom, and closed the door behind her though it didn’t catch and remained open just a crack. It was hers and Jamie’s bedroom and Olivia looked around as Violet dug through the drawer of the dresser in earnest, searching for socks so her friend wouldn’t be chilled all afternoon. The bedroom, like the rest of the house, was small but in Olivia’s opinion, it was positively heavenly. To no surprise, there was more of Jamie’s book collection scattered about, both on the floor and on top of the dresser and Olivia wondered if it ever bothered Violet. Knowing her best friend though, she probably only bought her husband even more books.

“I am so glad that you and Ben didn’t kill each other on the flight over,” Violet said. “I was almost certain that one of you wouldn’t make it over once Jamie told me that you were going to be traveling together.”

“No,” Olivia said with a shake of her head. She sat down on the edge of the bed and took the pair of black wool socks Violet finally located and handed to her. She slipped them over her frozen feet, wiggling her toes. “He’s actually been... we’ve gotten along. He’s been taking me to all the places I wanted to see for the past couple days.”

“That’s nice of him,” Violet said, sitting down next to her. “I’m sorry about Toby,” she said barely above a whisper. “He called her last week with the news and... I’m so sorry.”

Olivia shook her head, surprised that she honestly had not thought of Toby for the past few days or his wedding. “I’m supposed to meet his fiancée when I get back.”

Violet nodded. “Toby said something about you and me being in the wedding party. God,” she snorted. “He has always been such an idiot. Why would he ask you to do something like that for him?”

Olivia shrugged. “It’s okay, Vi. Really. And I’m okay.” Violet gave her a doubtful look. “I am. I swear. This trip has helped me a lot. I just... It’s a sign. I know it is. I was never supposed to be with Toby,” she concluded with a shake of her head. “I know that now.”

Outside, lightning crashed down from the sky and thunder rumbled and shook throughout the house. The lights flickered for a moment before deciding to stay on, for the moment anyway. Violet sighed and stood up to go look out the window. The rain was only falling harder, making it almost impossible to see anything.

She sighed softly. “I’m glad you’re here, Livi,” she spoke quietly. “I’ve missed you.”

Olivia stood up to stand beside her. “I’ve missed you, too. But you have Jamie here.”

Violet nodded her head frantically, tears brimming her eyes. “I know. And I love him more than anything but...” she trailed off. “I don’t have friends here like I did in Chicago and sometimes, I just get lonely.”

“Oh,” she said then fell silent. Instead of responding, Olivia wrapped her arms around her friend and hugged her tightly. “You know that will change, Violet. You can’t help but make friends wherever you are. It’s just your personality.” She paused. “Are you happy?”

She didn’t hesitate. “I’ve never been happier.”

There was a knock on the door and Jamie pushed it open, standing in the doorway. Violet pulled away, smiling shakily at her husband despite tears pouring down her cheeks. Jamie didn’t seen to be too alarmed though. She had been crying often in the past weeks from the sudden changes her body was being put through.

“Sorry,” he apologized. “I just wanted to see what became of my beautiful wife.” Violet smiled a watery smile and he came to her, putting his hands on her cheeks and wiping the tears away from her.

“I’ll go check and see what Ben’s up to,” Olivia said, excusing herself and closing the door behind her. Running her fingers through her slightly damp hair, she padded down the hallway then down the stairs, gripping the banister. Goodness, it was quite steep! It wasn’t hard to find Ben. He was standing in the kitchen, sneaking a taste of the beef stew Violet was making for dinner. “Ben!” She exclaimed, making him jump in surprise and causing him to drop his fork to the floor. Selby was instantly on it, licking at it greedily.

He sighed heavily. “Thanks, Olivia. Next time, just fire off a gun to let me know you’re behind me,” he said dryly and she rolled her eyes.

She crossed her arms over her chest. “You can’t even wait until dinner?”

“It’s not that I can’t. It’s that I won’t. I’m starving,” he explained, grabbing another fork.

She snatched it from his hand. “Ben, stop it!” She ordered.

“What?” He grabbed the fork back. “Violet made enough to feed a dozen of us. She won’t miss a few forkfuls.” And with that, he turned back to the stove and dove back into the simmering pot filling the kitchen with such appetizing scents, Olivia’s stomach growled. Ben snickered but she glared at him. “Suit yourself,” he shrugged. “Is everything okay up there?” He asked.

Olivia nodded her head. “I just hope I don’t turn into Niagara Falls when I’m pregnant.”

“You will,” he said simply. “Making women cry constantly during pregnancy is just another form of birth control. Men can’t handle emotional women.”

She couldn’t help but smile and at down at the table they managed to squeeze into the kitchen. “Thank God you’re not a dad.”

“I think I’d be a fine dad,” Ben retorted tensely.

Her face fell ever so slightly. “Oh, no. I didn’t mean that you wouldn’t. I just...” she stopped, clearing embarrassed.

He shrugged. “It’s fine. You were just teasing.” He shoved one more helping of stew into his mouth then plopped down across from her. He noticed immediately that she was avoiding his eyes. “I’ve been meaning to tell you. I’m going to Scotland tomorrow.”

That got her attention and she proceeded to gape at him. “You’re going to Scotland?”

“Yeah. My mom’s staying at our family house a bit outside Edinburgh and I’m going to drive up to visit her for a couple days.” He watched her closely for a reaction. Her eyes seemed to have a hint of sadness to them but he was certain that he was imagining that emotion entirely. She couldn’t possibly be sad that he was leaving. He cleared his throat. “I don’t know what your plans are. If you want to see more of London or... Well, if you want, you can come to Scotland with me. I can show you some sights there. If you want to, that is.”

Olivia stared at him for a few moments that made him shift in his chair uncomfortably. She opened her mouth to speak but nothing came out. She tried again. “You wouldn’t mind if I came?” She asked unsurely. “I’ve always heard that Scotland is beautiful and I’ve only ever seen pictures, obviously, and I... I don’t want to impose though.”

“You wouldn’t be,” he insisted and then wondered why he was practically demanding it of her that she come with him the next day. “It’s about a five hour drive so we could go and my mom would fawn over you as she usually does with guests and I could show you the moors and highlands. And there are some castle ruins nearby and we have horses. Do you ride? I can teach you and we could ride. There’s actually a forest on our property and...” he stopped suddenly, realizing that he had been speaking far too eagerly.

She caught his excitement though and it made her smile. “You miss living there, don’t you?” She asked and he tried to shrug, non-committed. “It sounds absolutely wonderful.”

“It is,” he responded. He couldn’t exactly argue with that. “I mean, I love Chicago but, I don’t know. I always pictured myself getting married and moving back there to have my family and raise my kids.”

That made her smile, pleasantly surprised by his confession. “And you really won’t mind if I come with you?”

He stared at her. He honestly wouldn’t mind. He actually found himself wanting her to come with him. He didn’t say that though. He just smiled faintly. “I wouldn’t mind.”