I've seen your flag on the marble arch
Love is not a victory march
It's a cold and it's a broken Hallelujah
"Fucking hell. Do we really need to go out tonight?" you moan while trying to wiggle skinny jeans over your hips.
"Naomi, hurry up. We're already late." Effy doesn't so much as look in your direction, preferring to finish her cigarette at your window seat uninterrupted.
You roll your eyes as you slip on your heels and swing open the front door. "Well, we better get to it then, yeah?" Effy flicks her cigarette out the window and struts passed you out the door, not bothering to wait for you to lock up. You rush down the steps, muttering to yourself as you try to shove the damn keys into your purse. As you turn the corner of the stairwell, you crash into someone's grocery bags, fruits and vegetables flying through the air.
"Shit! I'm so sorry! I'm such a tit; I didn't see you!" You frantically apologize while getting down on your knees to pick the items off the ground.
"Naomi?" You freeze at the sound of the rasp you know all too well. The voice that, even after years apart, still makes your hairs stand on end. You chance looking up at her, only to find her face inches from your own. Your breath hitches, and you are completely frozen, just left staring at the face you've tried so hard to forget. She holds your eyes, and you no longer can tell if the shallow breaths are coming from you or her.
Effy's curious tone breaks your haze. "Emily!" You both stand, Emily giving her a hug.
"Effy! I didn't even see you! Shit… it's been ages! How are you? What are you doing here?!"
"Could ask the same of you." Effy says, her eyes dancing between you and Emily.
"I… I actually just moved here." She gestures her head towards the door behind you. You vision starts spinning, and you lean against the wall to keep from falling over.
"Interesting." Effy smirks, looking straight at you. "Naomi lives in the flat on the second floor," she looks back at Emily, clearly avoiding the daggers you are shooting at her.
Emily looks at you as she exhales, "Christ, small world." Too small, you think. She continues to look at you, and you look at anything but her. You feel too exposed, so you cross your arms and start gnawing on your bottom lip. Emily notices, picks up her bags and looks back at you as she says, "I should get these inside. Let's get together some time and… catch up. Yeah?"
"Definitely," Effy responds as you both watch Emily open the door to her flat.
As soon as the door closes behind her, Effy spins and walks out of the building. It takes your brain a moment to catch up, and you turn and run after her.
"What the actually fuck was that, Eff?!"
"Welcoming your new neighbor." You don't have to look at her face because you can hear her smirk.
"Why the fuck did you tell her I live here?!"
"Don't you?"
"Fucking hell, Effy! I can't believe you!" Your hands cover your face as you try to process whatever the hell just happened.
"Thought you'd be happy that your soulmate's back in town." This stops you immediately, and you grab her arm to face you.
"She's not my fucking soulmate. She fucking left me. Remember that?"
"Yeah. And she's back." Sometimes you wonder why you don't have a more empathetic best mate, just the one who states the obvious. That is, if she speaks at all. Your head rolls back and your close your eyes with a big exhale. "Fuck, Eff. She's back," you whisper. You glance over at her with glassy eyes, fighting back the tears you didn't know you had left.
She slinks her arm around your waist and gives you a squeeze. "Let's get majorly fucked up, yeah?" You give her a small smile and rest your head on her shoulder as you stroll into the night.
You stay the night at Eff's, obviously. Don't want to chance another run-in while completely off your tits. The next morning, you treat Effy to brunch and she, in turn, does not talk about the redheaded ghost you encountered the night prior. But by half five, when you are sitting on her couch offering to order take-away and watch a movie, Effy is no longer interested in playing along.
"Can't avoid her forever."
"I'm not!" you yell with complete exasperation. She looks at you pointedly. "I thought I was spending time with my best mate!" To that, she just quirks an eyebrow, and you're infuriated that she assumes to know your intentions better than you.
"Fine! You know what, I'll go home and order a pizza the way I want it, without having to worry about your damn olives contaminating my half. And have a glass of wine, by myself. And watch a movie. By. Myself." You grab your bag and storm towards the door.
"You could ring your new neighbor," she throws over her shoulder.
"Oh, fuck off," you mutter as you close the door behind you.
Your anger carries you home quickly, but as soon as you reach your block, your pace slows. You wonder if you will run into her tonight. If you'll see her while she is out for a jog, or checking the post. You hope you don't have to see her without having Effy as a buffer. Even then, a part of you wants to see her anyway. That scares you the most.
You take a breath before opening the door into the foyer. It's empty, but you can hear faint sounds coming from the flat by the steps—Emily's flat. For a moment, you're tempted to lean in closer to the sound, to know more—or anything, really—about her now. You stand next to the door, your fist hovering while you consider knocking. You close your eyes, take a deep breath, and walk up the steps to your flat without looking back.