~3rd September~

Your POV

I raise my hand and slam it against the dark, wooden door.

I stand on the porch rubbing my shoulders, forgetting that it's much colder in London.

My eyes drift back to the ramp next to the staircase. I feel my legs begin to shake as I begin to think of what I'll see inside.

I'm pulled out of thought when I hear the door open and a soft, "Hello?"

I turn around and stare at the woman in the doorway.

I recognise her pale skin, freckles, round face with a button nose and her beautiful waist-length red hair.

"Marilyn?" I gasp. Her green eyes look me up and down, examining me.

"Yes. And who are you?"

"I'm Y/N. I used to work at the Cereal Killer Cafe. May I see John, please?"

Her pink lips curl into a smile. "Of course you can, dear." She holds the door open and gestures me inside. "Follow me."

As I follow behind her, I notice a ring, similar to mine, on her ring finger on her right hand. I smile as I look up to see a photo of Marilyn in a white dress, John by her side looking smart in a tux.

"John, dear. You have a guest," she says cheerfully as we enter the living room.

I freeze in the doorway at the sight of my old boss, my old friend.

There, sitting in a wheelchair in the middle of his living room, is John. The man I used to go to for all my problems.

His face instantly lights up and his lips form a large grin.

"Y/N! It's so great to see you again. Come sit down. Marilyn, darling, can we please have some tea?"

"Sure, hun," she smiles as she leave the door.

I grin as I sit down on the green lounge. "You got her."

"Yes, I did. And I'm the happiest man on the planet. What about you, any special someone in your life?"

Same old John. Always thirsty for gossip.

I hold out my hand, showing him my ring. "Hopefully soon we'll be married and be a perfect family like you and Marilyn."

"Oh my, that ring is gorgeous. I'm so happy for you."

There's a short silence until I bring up the real reason I'm here.

"I'm really sorry about this." I gesture his wheelchair.

"Hey, don't be sorry. I'd loose my legs any day if it's to protect you."

"So what exactly happened?"

He takes a deep breath, then begins. "He came in and started asking questions about you: where you went, who you were with. After I refused he just got even more demanding. I told him to piss off and walked into the back room. I didn't think he'd follow me. I heard a bang and something hit my lower back. And that's when I knew, if I survived, I'd lost my legs."

I look down to the floor, fiddling my fingers.

I feel my eyes prickle with tears as I bury my face in my hands.

"It's my fault," I sob.

John can never walk again... and it's all my fault.

I feel a warm pair of arms wrap around my shoulders. Sweet perfume tickles my nostrils.

"Don't be so hard on yourself, dear." The soothing voice of Marilyn calms me down just a little bit.

"I should've just stayed in Yorkshire. Everyone would be so much better."

"Oh, be quiet with that," John starts. "I'd be too nervous to even speak to Marilyn without you. And the boys, they're so happy with you around. You've done so much for us all, Y/N. You need to discard the negatives and focus on the positives. That's what's been working for me. It just makes life so much happier."

"Thank you, John. I don't  know what I would do without you."

~Time skip~

"Where have you been?" I come to a halt outside Tess' apartment door. I look up to find myself face to face with Dan, who is standing in Tess's doorway, looking like he's going somewhere.

"Why is it any of your business?" I reply in a sassy tone.

He blushes. "I-I'm just wondering. London is just as dangerous as it was when you left it."

"Yeah, no shit, Sherlock," I snap back, thinking of John in that wheel chair. "I was at John's house, if you must know."

He nods. "I'm really sorry about that, by the way. What happened to him was really fucking horrible."

"Don't say you're sorry," I say in a softer tone. "It was me who brought him to London and it was me who fucked everything up."

I feel Dan's giant hand rest on my shoulder. Although it's a really awkward gesture, it feels right. Unlike when Jase tries to comfort me, Dan's hand feels as if it belongs on my shoulder.

"Don't stay stuff like that. You had no idea that something like this would happen," he says, calmly.

"I did, actually. Maybe that's why I was so afraid of everything." I shrug it off and look up into his warm brown eyes. "Anyway, where are you going? The danisnotonfire isn't leaving the house at his own leisure, is he?"

"I'm going to go get a coffee, and maybe even enjoy a nice pistachio muffin, if you must know-" he mocks me.

"You and those bloody pistachio muffins," I chuckle, cutting him off, thinking back to the time we went to Australia.

"What can I say? They give me great food-orgasms."

"Nice, Daniel," I giggle.

"-And it's not danisnotonfire anymore. I go by Daniel Howell now."

"What?! How dare you! I refuse to accept that."

He chuckles lightly, but soon begins to fiddle his fingers in thought as a silence falls.

"Um, if y-you're not doing anything would you like to... join me?" He speaks up and nervously scratches the back of his neck.

"Yeah, why not. I'm sure Phil and Tess are having yet another romantic movie day and I'll puke if I hear one more cheesy line come out of their mouths."