My tensed muscles relaxed as quickly as you can say Apple Pie. There, her face illuminated by the faint moonlight stood my closest friend, my soul sister.  The elaborate rings glinted in the light, making me mentally face palm repeatedly. I let go of the handles of my baggage and I hugged her tight. The warmth in her smile reminded me of all that she'd ever done for me.  Stepping back, she stared straight into my eyes, probing for clues. Cheeks flaming, I averted my gaze shamefully. How could I leave like this? Without telling her?

Firmly but gently, Ami made me sit on the kerb and clutched my hand in hers. Taking a deep breath, she kicked off with "I'm not who you think I am." She paused apprehensively, trying to gauge my reaction. To her utter shock, I smiled wearily, "Carry on' I told her. After all, what could surprise me more? My daily shock quota had been sapped in under 20 minutes. Not bothering to try and dissuade  me at this ungodly hour, she continued with her  explanation.

---- 5 MINUTES LATER ----

She visibly tensed as I stared at her for a bit. I smiled and nodded at her to relax. She sighed in relief and stood up, extending out a hand to help me. I accepted it, brushing the accumulated dust off of my skinny jeans. I raised my eyebrow in confusion. What now? Where was her stuff? She grinned widely, all her despair forgotten and turned me towards the void straight ahead. Switching on her torch, she illuminated the area of focus. As my eyes began to adjust I gasped in awe. There stood her car, the luggage stood beside it, just in front of the pavement. "W-What? H-How is this even?". Laying a hand on my shoulder, she said "As I've said many  times before, I am always fully prepared. " Both of us laughed lightly. No actual reason though, just to dispel the tense atmosphere. 

Aiden clapped lightly, gearing our small group of travelers into action. "Right. Me and Jen will travel in my car. Skye and Ami will use your vehicle. Meeting point: The Johnson Dental Clinic bus stop. There, we'll meet James, my brother. Everything else will be explained on the way to Cornwall. Understood? Any questions?"I raised my hand tentatively, hesitating to speak my mind. "No questions" he ignored my on purpose. The cheeky glint in his eyes betrayed him. I rolled my eyes, muttering what I hoped was inaudible to our little group. I felt a sharp jab at waist and winced, glaring at. She glared at me jokingly as I slapped her playfully. "Careful" she whispered menacingly, a joking undertone in her voice.

Following Aiden's instructions, me and began piling our stuff into the boot and took our respective seats at the front of the vehicle, chucking our backpacks onto the backseat. Taking a break from our silly sides, we both fell quiet from our catch-up up chatter. Mo gripped the steering wheel, her knuckles pale due to the strength of her hold. Taking a deep breath in, she said only one word, "Ready?". She glanced at me, eyes of steel. I knew she expected no answer. I nodded and with a push of a button, she kicked off the ignition and the engine began to whir in the otherwise silent night, a sound of comfort.

We'd met up with James briefly and quickly agreed on our final meeting point. As the journey progressed, so did the skyline. Gradually, the sky became vibrant with beautiful shades of amber, casting a warm glow over the long road ahead of us. Cornwall, here we come. What would it be like? Well only the end of the road and a wastage of fuel will tell, I guess.

--- A FEW HOURS LATER ---

We came to a halt at the Heston Services on the M4 to pick up some breakfast ( aka Subway). Getting out of the car, I stretched leisurely, feeling the tension dispel from my aching joints and muscles. I opened the rear door and picked up my backpack, opened it and rooted around for my purse and hand sanitizer. Lifting them out I slipped them into my side bag and slammed the door shut. Oddly enough, I felt an odd prickling sensation crawl down my spine. I whirled around eyes darting around wildly, trying to find out why.  I lightly pinched myself and shook myself out of the illusion. I muttered to Ami to just get inside the building and not to ask me any questions. She looked at me like I'd lost my mind but obeyed and just did what I asked of her. I thanked her silently and we walked towards the subway counter. After paying the bill, we looked around for a vacant table. At 8 AM in the morning, that shouldn't have been difficult. The area was empty but I heard a small sound, the click of a camera shutter. There in the furthest corner of the dining space sat a couple. What was the problem? They had their backs towards us. The tall strangers were both blondes.

Before Ami could have even begun to walk in their direction, I yanked her backwards by her wrist. The grip was harsh, leaving clear prints on her tan skin. She was trembling violently, her forearm tense with already pent up frustration and self-restraint. She spun on her heel, eyes flashing with anger, already annoyed.I glared at her, telling her to stay calm. She simply started storming off in the opposite direction. I could only follow meekly. I genuinely didn't know what had gotten her so riled up, at the time. We came to a halt at the furthest table from the "danger".  In complete silence, we finished our "breakfasts" and hurried out of the building. Even in the short walk to the car, I saw her fidget with her fingers incessantly, crease lines on her forehead indicating her worry.

We reached our meeting point around 4 hours later and there, parked in front of Ami's was Aiden's vehicle, now gleaming in the sunlight. The five of us stood in front of the grand doors, me completely clueless, the others glancing at each other constantly and whispering almost inaudibly. Even Jen knew what was going on. Why was I still in (now not so literal) darkness? Why? There was a muffled shout from the inside of the building and the door was opened by a woman. She was relatively tall, only slightly shorter than me. She had beautiful wavy brown hair, falling perfectly onto her bare shoulder. Beside me, Jen was icily still next to me and a silence ensued.

She finally spoke, but only two words, "Aunt Marissa?"

Marissa sighed. "There certainly is a lot you don't know about us" she whispered. Us? Somehow, this "us" seemed to be much more important than our family, our town. Why was everything so tense and why was everyone involved so cautious, nervous, apprehensive? We had come to an abrupt stop in front of yet another door. The plaque read "ENIGMA SOCIETY".  What ever was I being dragged into?

--------

1200 WORDS!

On which devices do you guys read this book?

Oh and by the way, the attached media is a photo of Ami.

Thanks for your time and have a nice day/ good night :)

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Love ya,

Diya x