51. Hours

Genre: Paranormal romance, drama

Type: Series
Characters: Leigh & Jesse
Prompt:76. Hours

Word Count: 923 +

Warning: language

Rating:  M- (coarse language, adult situations, nudity. N.B-Applies to the whole series)

Summary: An old friendships is rekindled

76. Hours

________

Champs Les Sims, present day

For hours Leigh sat at the airport’s arrivals lounge, and watched people drift in and out. She saw long lost relatives greet each other lovingly, and she almost cried at the bittersweet reunions of lovers all around her. 

Everywhere she looked, she saw people kissing, hugging or holding hands. Champs Les Sims really was the land of romance. So what the hell was she doing there alone?

Krisis didn’t love her. Never did. Never will. That’s why she was there.

Leigh closed her eyes, trying her damnedest to ignore the uneasy feeling at the pit of her gut. She didn’t remember purchasing the airline ticket or boarding the plane. But she must have. How else would she have gotten there?

Her memory was foggy; she remembered fragments of the night before. She remembered being at Plasma 501, waiting for Krisis to arrive, and after that her mind was a blank slate. She couldn’t even remember how long the flight was, what she ate on the plane or who she’d sat next to. Her first clear memory was of an elderly man helping her retrieve her luggage bags soon after they landed at Champs Les Sims International, and that was what, two hours ago?

She wanted to go home. Return to Bridgeport. But a small, unfamiliar voice kept reminding her she could never go back.

With tears in her eyes, she stood up from her seat and reached for her cell phone in her handbag to call for a taxi service. She didn’t know where she was going, or where she’d be staying but she figured there had to be a hotel nearby. She just had to get a room, take a shower and sleep. The rest would take care of itself.

She almost burst into tears when she saw she didn’t have her phone. She must have left it in her room, back home. Shit, how was she supposed to navigate this place without a phone? How would she call home to let Devon and Eloise know she was okay?

“Ashleigh Starlington! I can’t believe it’s you!” A low-pitched voice gate crashed her pity party.

Jesse Williams. Her best bisexual friend. In fact he was her only bisexual friend. How long had it been? Eight months? A year? He hadn’t changed at all. 

Seven years earlier, at Twinbrook University, they were roommates. Jesse had studied fashion design, while she’d struggled through a teaching degree, something she didn’t have a passion for. But it was the only thing Devon had been willing to fund since it guaranteed a steady income.

Leigh ran straight into his open arms. She held on to him, grateful to see a familiar face, happy to have a friend in this foreign place. She’d totally forgotten about him and Shaun. She vaguely remembered an e-mail from him a while back informing her, their residence permits were approved and they were moving to Champs Les Sims.

After a few minutes of small talk, Jesse insisted they go for lunch.  His treat. He knew a cozy cafe at the heart of Champs Les Sims.

Jesse wasn’t lying when he had said the cafe served the best French cuisine in the whole of Champs Les Sims. She'd ignored the mock-disgusted look on his face when she'd asked their waiter for a second helping of a cheese plate earlier.

“You’re depressed!” Her friend stated flatly, watching her stuff her face. He knew her very well, more than she liked to admit sometimes.

“I’m not,” she lied, and glanced at her almost empty plate quickly, doing her best to avoid his probing eyes.

“So where’s your vampire rock star?” He asked curiously. He was fascinated with her life. Back in college Leigh always went for the artsy types, and shied away from musicians, so it was a complete shock to him when he’d read in the tabloids she was dating K-Infinity’s drummer.

“I don’t want to talk about it Jesse,” she told him quietly. The tears in her voice made him all the more curious, but he knew she wouldn’t open up if he kept pressing her.

He could tell Leigh was in pain. That much was obvious, and he wished he could help her. She meant the world to him. She was the first person he’d told about his sexual orientation. She never judged him, and her attitude towards him never changed. In fact sharing his little secret had brought them closer. There was nothing he wouldn’t do for her.

“So what brings you to Champs Les Sims, the land of romance?” He asked in a lighthearted tone.

“I don’t know why I’m here,” Leigh replied, her lower lip trembling. He knew any second now she’d burst into tears, and he swiftly moved to her side, but she was too quick for him. She was on her feet, and out of the door before he could reach out to her.

While Jesse settled their dining bill, Leigh wandered around the market and eventually stopped in front of a fountain. Absently she threw in a few coins, but she didn’t make a wish. She knew it wouldn’t come true anyway; it wasn’t a wishing well, and besides, there’s only one thing she wanted in the world at that moment…Krisis’ arms around her, his lips on hers, and his gentle voice telling her it’s all going to be okay.

Jesse joined her moments later and they both stood gazing at the water. Leigh was lost in her miserable thoughts, while Jesse kept wondering what he could do to make her feel better, to make her smile again.

After a while the silence grew loud, her profound pain ran too deep, and he couldn’t take it anymore. He pulled her close to him, his arms tightening around her small waist. For a long time, he held her and let her cry it all out. The smell of Lavender in her hair hit his nostrils, bringing a rush of memories to the surface. Ashleigh was one of the few women he had ever been in love with…And maybe he still was…But he was with Shaun now, her ex-boyfriend Travis’ brother.

“Let’s get you home.” At last he forced himself to let her go. Holding her so closely had disturbed him more than he wanted to admit.

“I haven’t booked a room. I don’t even know where I’m staying,” Leigh explained, her eyes bright with unshed tears.

“It’s okay. You can stay with us for a few days,” Jesse assured her, and planted a lingering kiss on her lips. She didn’t resist. What's a kiss between old friends? It was innocent, and harmless. That’s what they both told themselves…

__________

And the poll results are in...

29 people (80% of the voters), want Krisis to turn Leigh, while only 7 people (20 %) think their human/vampire relationship is perfect as is.

Will Krisis turn Leigh? That is the big question for this season.

Thanks to everyone who voted. You have all sealed Leigh's fate.