Chapter Seventeen:

"Ria texted me last night. She asked me to come over today. Is she not home?" Indiya enquired as she stood bemused in front of the man she was still hopelessly in love with.

"You just missed her. She's just gone with Blaine to pick up some of his stuff. I'll call her now. Let her know you're here?" Reid offered, stepping to the side as he gestured for Indiya to enter the house.

She didn't move. The five-foot-one woman stood perfectly still at the door; her shoulder-length ebony-coloured hair tightened into a silky braid which trembled with the harsh blows of the wind. She contemplated her following words. "No. No, it's okay. I'll text her later. I can meet up with her any time." She took a step backwards, preparing to walk away.

"Anyone would think you're avoiding me." Reid murmured, "you can come in, you know. You can wait for her here. She shouldn't be too long."

I am avoiding you; she wanted to scream. She detested how normal Reid was acting. She detested how normal she was expected to behave. It was funny, she thought. We spend the entirety of a relationship learning everything about our lover. All their imperfections, quirks, and the things that make them happy and sad. And then, when it ends, we channel all our energy into unlearning those things in preparation for the next relationship.

She hesitated for a moment. "Okay. I'll wait."

Indiya strolled past him, careful not to get too close, directly into the kitchen and sat on one of the stools next to the breakfast bar. "What stuff were you talking about?" She asked, "You said Ria went with Blaine to get some stuff?"

"Oh." He replied as he followed her into the kitchen. "Blaine's moving in. Just for a bit. He's having some rent troubles. She's just gone to help him with packing."

Indiya raised her brow. "And, Ria's okay with that? With him moving in? She's actually helping him move in?"

"Yeah." He laughed. "I was surprised too, but I think me being away did them a world of good. They still argue all the time but it's not the way it was before."

"I'm surprised you're so okay with them being alone together. I'm surprised you asked Blaine to be the one to check on her daily whilst you were going, after...after, well, you know."

He visibly stiffened, his nostrils flaring slightly. "Indiya, we don't talk about that. You know, we don't talk about that. She doesn't know." He turned away from the girl, grabbing the nearest cereal box on top of the fridge. "Anyway, I think she only went with him because she's annoyed with me. They both are. About the Ayia Napa thing." He mumbled before swivelling around and shaking the box in front of her. "Breakfast?"

"I'm good, thanks." She responded, "Yeah, Lydia texted me about that...I didn't think you'd want to go all out like that. At least that's what you always told me." She added carefully.

His movements visibly slowed as he poured the milk over the cereal. He remembered it clearly. They had planned to elope, not believing in all the faff of a big wedding to simply appease their families. It was a waste of money. It was money that they could invest in the future – their future. "It was Lydia's idea. I thought it would be nice. You know, everybody together, help iron out any tensions before the big day." He glanced up at her, making eye contact with the almond-shaped, mahogany eyes for the first time that morning. "It'd be great if you came, Indiya."

"Are you being serious?" She stammered, "You're asking me to go on a holiday where I have to watch you and Lydia play happy families?"

"Oh, come on, Indiya, we're passed this now."

"No, Reid. You're passed that. That doesn't mean I have to be too."

"Okay, fine. You don't have to come if you don't want to. But Ria and Hazel won't come unless you do." He postulated.

Indiya sighed in disbelief at him. She watched him spooning the cereal into his mouth, eyes firmly focussed on the bowl. His square jaw contracted with each movement. Her eyes were immediately drawn to a dark beauty spot located at the curve of his jaw. It hadn't been there seven months ago - definitely not, for she had memorised every inch of his body. And the very image vehemently refused to leave her mind. She recalled the area being her favourite to kiss; he'd always squirm in response before bursting into fits of laughter. And now, the area was permanently etched with the reminder of Indiya's kisses.

"I'm quitting." Indiya mumbled, "I'm quitting med school. That's why Ria asked me to come here. She wanted to talk about it, probably thinks she can convince me not to."

As he cleared his throat, he met her eyes again. "Don't. Don't quit. I didn't mean it; I was angry when I told you to quit."

"You meant it. And you were right."

"No, I really wasn't. It's your dream. It always was. Your number one priority." He added, a bitter taste on his tongue with the last statement. "I – erm...I got you something. From Bali." He muttered, standing up and heading to the lounge to grab it from the suitcase.

"It's nothing, really. It's silly. But it made me think of you when I saw it and..," He mumbled as he re-entered the kitchen, almost inarticulately.

He held a fluffy toy in his hands – a green frog with a white stethoscope around its neck. Indiya stood up and strolled towards him, only mere inches between them. It was the story of their first date, the so-called frog story. She knew the story was annoying and tedious to anyone but them, but it hadn't stopped her from re-telling it. They'd gone to an arcade for their first date, inspired by their mutual love of games. As the date had concluded and Reid reached down to kiss her, she'd jumped, startled by the chirping creature behind him, leading to her head-butting the boy resulting in a nosebleed.

They'd spent the evening of the date in the emergency department.

"Why did you get me this, Reid?" She whispered, a flicker of hope within her eyes.

"I don't know. I thought...friends can get friends gifts, right?" He murmured. As she glanced up at him, straining her neck, his vision dropped to her neck; the fourteen-karat gold chain with the familiar sun-shaped pendant falling into his view.

Indiya had brought them matching necklaces for their first anniversary. Hers had a sun pendant, and he had a matching moon. It was a promise of the connection they'd always have. He'd laughed at how cringe it was but the next day; he'd worn it tucked under his white tee.

"You're still wearing it." He whispered, his hand reaching for the necklace, hesitating before touching it. "You should take it off. It's a reminder you don't need... it's hard to move on with that...constant reminder."

"I'll take it off when I'm dead, Reid."

-------------------------------------------------------

They couldn't keep their hands off each other.

Three achingly painful days had passed since they'd last been intimate, so every kiss was nothing short of longing and desire. Ria gasped as his tongue prised her lips apart, plunging in and out of her mouth teasingly. His stubble grazed against her skin, and she hoped it left a small imprint on her skin, a reminder that he'd been there.

Her hands advanced to his belt, not caring that they hadn't yet entered his flat and that anybody could see them in their highly-aroused state.

"Ria." Blaine chuckled against her lips, his hand reaching into his pocket for the keys, clumsily using them to open the door, as he remained attached to the girl.

"Yes, Blaine?" She grabbed his collar, pulling him back onto her as they stumbled into the flat. They hadn't been drinking – of course, not, but she still felt intoxicated. Intoxicated off of him.

"We can't."

"Why not?" Ria mewled, her lips finally pulling away from his if only to pout.

"Because I have to go and get Ben in fifteen minutes. I need to tell him that I'm going to be going away. He needs time to process it."

Of course, Ria remembered. They had told Reid that they would be going to Blaine's flat to pack, but also Blaine would collect Ben for the afternoon. With only ten days left for the encroaching holiday, he didn't have long to prepare the boy.

"You're leaving at twelve to collect him though, right? We have fifteen minutes. That's all we need." She postulated, placing a wet kiss against his neck.

He wrapped a tight arm around her waist, pressing the whisper into her ear. "I need more than fifteen minutes for everything I want to do to you."

"Okay, can't you tell him you'll be like fifteen minutes late?" Ria suggested, gazing up at the older boy with longing.

"I can't."

"Why not?"

Blaine exhaled deeply as he perched on the end of his bed. "He...has this thing with time. He's really stringent with it. It's one of his...quirks, I guess. I always have to get there at nine p.m. everyday or not at all, and if we plan something, it has to be at a specific time. Otherwise, he panics. His mind goes into overdrive."

She sat beside him on the bed. "So, that's the reason for always being seven-thirty." She allowed herself to tumble back onto the bed, before gazing up at him. "So Ayia Napa, you're going?"

Blaine glanced back at her. "Ria, we don't have a choice. It's all booked."

Ria released an almost tortured scream. "She has him on a literal leash. She's sucking the life out of him day-by-day."

"And, probably not sucking it out in the way he wants."

"Blaine, not you as well!" She almost gagged, recalling Lydia's comment about her brother's sex life only days before. "With any luck, she'll develop a deep vein thrombosis from all the trips back and forth. I mean, really? They've just come back from Bali."

He glanced down at the girl who was lying on his bed, hands playing with the duvet. "Do you think he loves her? And maybe we're being harsh?"

"I don't know. Maybe? He must feel something strong towards her to tolerate everything."

They sat in silence, mulling over the treacherous relationship between Lydia and Reid and probably both wondering whether the dreaded wedding would actually happen. Until the blaring of Blaine's alarm disturbed them. "Right. It's twelve. I've gotta go."

"Do you think...do you think Ben will be okay with me being here?" She nibbled at her lip.

"Yes. Ben really likes you. He says you were kind to him."

"Really? He said that?" She jumped up on the bed, unable to hide her contentment at hearing those words. She didn't know why it should matter to her that Ben liked her, but it did. It mattered more than Ria would've cared to admit.

He scratched his chin. "I mean, that's what he says, but I think being pretty is what really won him over," He joked.

"You think I'm pretty?" She replied, half-teasing him. He chuckled in return, not answering with his words, but his fingers gently tracing the curve of her jaw. "Hey, you know he said the only thing you've said about me is that I'm annoying. I find that to be incredibly rude." She jested.

"I mean, it's not the only thing, but it is the main thing." He bent down, placing a gentle peck on her forehead, reigniting the warmth within her core, before he headed out.

"I'll make a start on packing then," she yelled, a gigantic grin plastered across her face as the door slammed close behind him.

He really doesn't have much stuff, Ria thought to herself, taking in the minimalistic appearance of the room. The walls were painted magnolia, matching the nude shade of the carpet. It almost looked like nobody lived there except for the covers that showed evidence of life with them bunched up at the foot of the bed. Blaine evidently hadn't bothered to make the bed again.

She wondered if Blaine would mind her starting with his wardrobe, but her phone began ringing before she could even open the drawer.

Rocco is calling...

She considered declining the call but realised it might be something to do with her father's case.

"Hey."

"Hey." She replied curtly.

"How are you, Ria?"

"Just spit it out, Rocco. I don't have the energy to exchange pleasantries with you today."

"Fine. I managed to retrieve some of the files from the case. And, I found something interesting...something that you might want to know."

"What is it?" She rushed the words out, desperate to know but also a part of her dreading his following words.

"Rayhan's body was found on Shernwell Street."

"I know that, Rocco. That was published in the papers. Don't make me regret picking up this bloody call."

"It's not confirmed, but the police think he was moved. It wasn't where he died...they don't think it's where the hit-and-run actually happened."

She sucked in a breath shakily, "do they know...where it happened?"

"Not the exact location. But roughly twenty to thirty miles south. In the town of Heathfield. Blood was found that matched Rayhan's DNA on one of the roads."

Ria was trembling, and the phone rattled in her shaking hands. She was sure someone was in the room with her for a second. She could hear deep gasping breaths echoing around her, before she realised it was her, struggling to contain her own breaths. Heathfield was the town they lived in. Why did the police never disclose that their father could have died miles away from home?

"Ria, are you okay? Look, it was such a small amount of blood that they thought it might be unrelated. And, it could be. But it was likely from that same day." He waited for a reply that didn't come, "look if you've changed your mind and you don't want to know -"

"No, tell me." She didn't recognise the voice from her vocal cords, "what road?"

"Didham Road." He replied.

She thought she might collapse for a second. It was the road right, adjacent to the Pennsylvania Road - the road they lived on.

"There's something else. It could...mean nothing, but I think it's worth telling you. Rayhan's eyes were...not closed when he died. There was evidence from the post-mortem that they had been closed for him. His arms were crossed over his chest, and the tears on his clothing from the impact were patted down as if...the person was trying to preserve his dignity."

She could feel her head swaying with the words, "That's unusual in a hit-and-run, isn't it? To show care and respect for someone."

"It suggests...that maybe the person responsible likely knew him. And possibly quite well."

And with that, the phone tumbled out of her hands.
_________________________
Authors Note:

Okay, so there's quite a lot to unpack in this chapter!

We see more about Indiya and Reid here - what do you think of them?
Blaine and Ria are continuing their secret sexual relationship but are growing closer and closer by the day - will they get caught soon?
And, what do you think of the shocking revelation about Rayhan's death? What could it mean? 👀

As always, please do vote and comment if you enjoyed the chapter ❤️