Hi guys! This is my first Jessa story. I hope you like it as much as I do. Please read, enjoy and review! :)

1. Return to London

James Carstairs took a deep breath as he pulled open the door to the room that was once his at the London Institute. The solid four-poster bed was still there, though the mattress, sheets and bed curtains were different. Of course they would be, he thought to himself. After all, it had been more than a century since he had lived in that room.

The rest of the furniture was new to him. Old heavy wooden cabinets and desk were replaced by light, modern-looking ones. The fireplace was bricked up and an electric radiator was placed in front of it. Instead of old leather armchairs, there were newer upholstered ones. An electric light hung from the ceiling to provide illumination.

The drapes were pulled back from the windows, whose glass had been changed after the Blitz blew them out. The windows were open now and a light breeze wafted in. Even the air smelt different these days – cleaner and less damp.

Jem shut the door and stood by the bed, gently touching one of the posts. He closed his eyes. In his mind's eye, he saw his younger self enter the room for the first time – a young boy alone in a strange land, clutching his violin as though it were a life buoy. The voice of his violin was one of the few things that had helped him get through those early days. He recalled the wonderful moments spent with Will in the room, just messing about and having fun as young boys would; he could almost hear Will's merry laugh.

Then there were the desperate days – far too many of those – that he spent ill in this room, wondering whether his next breath would be his last, worrying about those he would leave behind when he died. He saw himself lying pale and helpless in the bed, and Will slumped on a chair nearby, exhausted and anxious but ready to jump up and offer any kind of help. Dear, dear Will, now long dead and gone.

How many nights had he spent in this room? Jem wondered. This room that was now so familiar and yet also strange. He went and stood by the window where he had spent many a night playing his violin. He hummed some old melodies to himself. He was certain he could hear the strains of violin music now, perhaps imprinted in the walls, a phantom of the past evoked by his memories and recollections.

But no; the music had a more earthly origin. Jem smiled and walked over to the door. Opening it, the music grew louder. It originated from room across the hall, where the door was ajar. He made his way across, his smile getting wider with each step.

He gently pushed open the door. Inside, Tessa was unpacking from a suitcase on the bed, her back to him. There were a few pairs of shoes scattered about on the floor. Jem also caught sight of a swatch of pale gold cloth from a dress that hung nearly out of sight on the inside of an open cupboard door. The music was pouring out of her portable music player – her iPhone, as she called it – which was placed on the dresser.

He said nothing and stood quietly watching her for a moment. She must have sensed his presence for she stood still and, without turning round, asked: "Jem? Is that you, Jem?"

"It is," he replied, going to her and putting his arms around her waist. "I heard the music."

Tessa smiled up at him. "You could never resist violin music. Do you know this piece?"

"Dvorak. Romance in F minor," Jem answered. "I remember it well. It was a new piece then. I played it once. All I could think about was you, how I loved you and thought you would never know, would never return my feelings."

"There is a kind of sadness to the piece," Tessa commented. She raised a hand to touch Jem's face. "Are you alright? You look miles away."

Jem gave a watery smile. "Just having a trip down memory lane. There are so many memories in this place."

Just as his room had changed, so too had Tessa's. But he could still recall one event here that had changed his life. It had been after Nathaniel Gray's death. Jem had been distraught, torn with worry and fear over Will and Tessa, among the myriad other problems the Institute had faced then. Seeing Tessa laying unconscious in the infirmary bed made him truly realise, for the first time, that someone he loved could die before he did. He was afraid he would lose her and that she would never know how he felt about her.

So, when he heard Sophie helping her back to her room, he immediately rushed to retrieve the circular jade pendant that belonged to his mother, slipped it into his pocket and reached for the doorknob. There, however, he hesitated, his hand on the handle but struggling with whether to open it or not. It was not proper, this thing he wanted to do. But he wanted it so badly that it was like a physical ache in his chest.

His heart won the day and he had gone to Tessa's room, awkwardly knelt before her and, blushing hard, asked her to marry him. He was terrified that she would reject him and that his hopes would be crushed in an instant. But she had not. Instead, she accepted him. That had been the most wondrous moment of his life up to that point. Here, in this room, as Tessa sat on the bed, he had laid his head in her lap and felt like he had finally returned home.

Now, in the present, he held Tessa's hand, looked into her eyes, and saw that she too was recalling that day. She lifted a hand and touched the pendant that she still wore around her neck. "A 130-year engagement," she joked.

Jem laughed, breaking the spell of memory. "Better late than never, as they say," he replied, kissing her. "I'll leave you to your unpacking."

"And I will see you tomorrow, at the end of the aisle," she said, a merry twinkle in her eye.

Jem grinned and left her room, pulling the door closed as he did so. He returned to his own room and stood by the window. He smiled again as he recalled the second time Tessa had made his world stop spinning.

It was shortly after the wedding of Jocelyn Fray and Luke Garroway. He and Tessa had gone on a road trip from New York to Los Angeles. She had spent the day trying to teach him how to drive her car. He had been struggling with the clutch and somehow managed to veer off the road into a field. He then panicked when the engine started making funny popping sounds and smoke emerged from the hood.

Tessa was trying and failing to stay calm. She was shouting out instructions to him, most of which he did not understand as they included a lot of new words he did not know, and anyway, Church's yowling from the backseat in protest against the bumpy ride was drowning out a lot of what she was saying.

The car finally came to a stop after the front right wheel sank down into something and the whole vehicle seemed to exhale in a death rattle. Jem sat in shock with his hands still clutched tightly on the steering wheel. Tessa gingerly climbed out and walked around to examine the damage.

"I should have known you, James Carstairs, would find the only pothole in the area and put the car into it," Tessa had scolded him, her hands on her hips in mock annoyance. "Come on! Get out here and see your handiwork."

Jem slowly uncurled his fingers from the steering wheel and came out of the car. Tessa lifted the hood of the car, revealing the twisted chunk of metal she said was the engine. It was smoking rather alarmingly. "Well, that doesn't look good. Looks like we're stuck here. You were driving in the wrong gear. I tried to tell you," she said.

"I'm sorry," Jem apologised. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

Tessa gestured at the engine. "It's beyond my skill to fix it. And I have no idea where we are so I can't call anyone for help. We'll just have to grab the bags and start walking."

Thankfully, they had packed light and there was just one small suitcase and one backpack between them. Church was a different matter. He allowed only Jem to carry him, and only for a short while. Eventually, they tied a piece of string to his collar. After a few minutes of dragging him, he gave in with bad grace and walked properly.

They walked in silence for hours; Tessa in the lead, Jem following and pulling Church along behind. The light was going and Tessa called a halt. "We should stop for the night. I don't want us wandering around aimlessly in the fields in the dark," she said. So they had made a rudimentary camp for the night, spreading out some of Tessa's scarves as groundsheets and using the luggage as pillows. They ate some candy that they had, though it was far from filling.

Everything was quiet as the stars began to appear in the sky. Tessa sat across from Jem, not saying anything. Jem, feeling extremely guilty about the whole fiasco, took her hand. "Tessa, are you very angry with me?" he asked. "I'm truly sorry. I didn't mean to cause any trouble."

Tessa said nothing but squeezed his hand. He could barely see her expression in the dark, but he heard her breathing quickly, which transformed quickly into giggles and soon, full blown laughter. He wondered what was so funny.

"Oh Jem, Jem, Jem," she finally said, "Why would I be angry with you? It was I who was a poor teacher. You should be the one berating me for not giving you proper instruction. I shouldn't be laughing. It's really not funny. But, oh, your face when you went off the road. And Church completely freaking out. The whole situation is just hilarious."

Jem still did not get it but he let out a few laughs anyway, just to be polite. Tessa calmed down and wiped her eyes with her fingers. "No matter what the situation, though, I'm glad you're here with me. I didn't think I would ever laugh like this again. It's just you." She took both his hands in hers. "Just you. Only you," she said softly.

"Tessa," Jem whispered. He leaned forward, his head gently leaning against hers, their fingers laced together. "Tessa, will you marry me?" the question slipped out with no planning or thought. But he asked it with all his heart.

"Yes," she replied. Their faces were so close that he felt her breath against his cheek as she spoke. "Of course, I will marry you."

He inclined his head so their lips touched. Even in the dark, they found each other and kissed passionately, and for a moment, there was nothing else in the universe that mattered. When they broke apart, Jem found the laughter bubbling up inside him, joyous laughter that was born of sheer happiness and could not be expressed any other way. They had held each other as they laughed together till they cried.