Chance Encounters

The moment she clocked out, Blaire couldn’t wait another second to just get out of there. After taking off the green apron and cap, she made her way out through the back door. As soon as she was outside, the cool air hit her face as the wind blew lightly. She let out a sigh. Today was hectic to say the least. Probably it’s because the weather today was nice and the sunlight was peeking lightly through the clouds in the sky, providing nice heat. And that’s why many Londoners decided that it’s a good idea to go out and about. But that also meant there were more customers coming into the Starbuck she was working at because the place was located near a busy area. The sun was already set when her shift ended, the street lit by streetlights and the tall buildings around it, the area still buzzing with people.

She stopped at a magazine stall to buy her favourite Dairy Milk chocolate bar before walking off towards the nearest tube station. As she was waiting for the next tube, she felt her phone vibrated in the pocket of her dark jeans. Pulling it out, she hesitated to answer for a moment when she glanced at the caller ID. It was her mother. After a few more seconds, she slid the thumb over the screen of her phone and brought the device to her right ear. “Hey, mum,” she greeted.

“Hello, Blaire. How are you doing?”

“I’m fine. How are you and dad?”

“We’re doing alright. We haven’t seen you in a while, honey.” Blaire bit her bottom lip at her mother’s words. Yeah, it’s been a while since she last saw them. It’s been a few years, to be precise. She didn’t even come home for Christmas. She couldn’t bring herself to go back there. It brought up too many memories that she couldn’t face just yet.

“I’ve been busy,” she replied, swallowing a lump that had formed in her throat.

“We miss you.”

“I miss you too, mum.” She fought the tears that were threatening to pool in her eyes. She’s not going to cry. She wouldn’t cry. Not now. Not ever. She took a deep breath and let it out, and repeated the action a few times. “I have to go, mum. Talk to you later?” The line was silent for a moment and Blaire wondered if her mother was hurt. She had to be.

“Come home, honey.”

“I… we’ll see,” she finally replied, there’s no real promise in her tone. And both of them knew that she didn’t mean it but neither said anything about it. After saying another good bye, she hung up the phone, taking another deep breath and held it, counting to ten before exhaling. She did this a couple more times. She always did this to hold in her tears. Shoving the electronic device back into the pocket of her jeans, she unwrapped the chocolate bar she bought earlier and took a bite as the tube arrived and she piled into the public transport along the other commuters. Blaire stared out the window, watching the scenery blurring due to the high speed of the vehicle as she let her mind wandered to nothing in particular.

By the time she reached the flat she shared with her cousin, Amber, her phone vibrated again. This time, it was Harry calling her. He had been her best friend ever since she moved to London all those years ago. A fond smile curled on her lips as she answered without hesitation. “The person you are calling is currently unavailable. Leave your message after the beep,” she said, faking the phone operator’s voice. “Beep,” she finished, drawing out the syllable a few more seconds longer than necessary. She could already imagine Harry rolling his eyes on the other line.

“Let’s go out,” Harry said. It wasn’t a request, Blaire could tell from the tone. She knew he wouldn’t take no as an answer and it’s not like she would ever say no anyway. She loved hanging out with her curly haired friend.

“Where?” she asked, taking out her keys and opening the door to her flat. The place was dark and empty, indicating that Amber was probably out at the moment. She hung her keys on the key hanger next to the door and closed the door after turning on the light.

“I heard there’s a cool new pub. Let’s check it out.” After Harry had told her where the pub was, she decided that she could just walk there as it was just a couple of blocks away.

“Meet me there in an hour.”

“That means we’ll meet there in two,” Harry replied dryly.

“I’m a girl. Get over it,” she retorted dismissively. Harry chuckled and promised to meet at the pub in an hour. After hanging up, the blonde girl made her way further into the flat and into her room to get ready. It took almost an hour for her to get fully ready. She had showered, put on her casual outfit for a fun night out with her best mate and applied a thin layer of make up; making sure to pay extra attention to her eyes because someone once told her that her eyes were beautiful.

She almost felt guilty to Harry when she realized that she’s going to be late but didn’t let herself to dwell too much on it. The man had known her for years so he should’ve expected it. As she walked out of her building, she wrapped her double-breasted coat tighter around her body and made her way towards the address Harry had given her earlier in the chilly night air. The walk took approximately twenty minutes and by the time she arrived, she could already see the familiar tall, lanky man with a mop of curly hair waiting impatiently in front of the building. He scowled when he saw her approaching, shoving both his hands in the pockets of his jacket.

“You’re late,” he said accusingly but Blaire waved him off dismissively. He got over it quickly though and pulled her into a side hug. “Let’s go inside. It’s freezing out here.” The girl nodded at that, the tip of her nose was already red from the chill air. She tilted her head up and read the sign: Four Leaf Tavern

A frown formed on her face as the name brought back a memory from the past into her mind. “I want to open me own pub some day and call it Four Leaf Tavern." The boy’s Irish accent and voice was still clear in her mind as if it was only yesterday. She shook her head off the thoughts and linked her arm with Harry’s as they made their way inside.

As soon as they were inside, Blaire wasn’t shocked to see the interior of the pub resembled the typical Irish pub. She could already imagine the owner being an Irish from the name. There were about four sitting booths at the right side of the room and tables at the centre. The bar was located further inside, collection of alcohols displayed on the shelves. There were not so many people at the time, probably because the night was still early. Blaire was glad for this. That meant she didn’t have to wait too long to get her drink. But she could tell that the place would be packed in a few more hours. Something about the place brought a familiar feeling into her system but she ignored it.

Harry dragged her towards the bar and they took their seats on the stools in front of the counter. “This place is nice,” Harry commented, eyeing the surrounding appreciatively.

“Yeah… I can see us coming here regularly from now on,” she replied, nodding. “If we can afford it,” she added, grinning. Harry grinned back and called for the dark-haired bartender.

“What can I get you?” the bartender asked in a friendly tone, smiling wide. Harry ordered a beer while Blaire was still contemplating on what drink she should order. As she was still thinking, someone came out from the door behind the bar and made his way towards the bartender. He had dirty blonde hair and a warm and easy smile on his face.

“Louis, the new stock had just come in. Take it to the store later, yeah?” he ordered in a thick Irish accent as the bartender just nodded. Blaire found herself becoming breathless as she realized who the man was. She kept staring, not believing her eyes. As if sensing that he was being watched, the man turned and he froze when he saw her.

“Niall…”

“Blaire…”

They said at the same time and both of them just stared at each other in what seemed like eternity, the world dissolving around them.