Disclaimer: I don't own House of Anubis, nor do I own any of the characters used.
Pairing: Fabian Rutter/Nina Martin
Warning: Few curse words and other things.
Dedication: slcswimmer14, because she's amazing and is one of the only Fabina shippers left. And to likestarlight, because I love her and she needs some reassurance that with the tough time she's going through, that everything is going to be all right. This goes out to those two amazing girls.
Note: The movie is in 2 days and I honestly don't think I can do this. I've been with these characters since I was 11; I'm 14 now and they remain my favorite. This is by far the longest one-shot I've ever posted; having almost 13,000 words. On June 17th, I'm going to be an absolute mess, crumpled on the floor, sobbing. I figured I'd better have a relic of the times before I completely lost my sanity.
There's lots of season 1 and season 2 references in here, so I hope you watched all three seasons, because if you didn't, this probably won't make a lot of sense as it should; then again, you're talking to the girl who still remembers the exact day she started watching the show (January 29th, 2011). This one shot took over my life, because I should have been working on Lost & Found or Don't Be Afraid, but instead you get a one shot that's longer than some multichapters combined.
.
.
gone for good
.
.
I know you're somewhere out there, somewhere far away—
At night, when the stars light up my room, I sit by myself — talking to the moon, trying to get to you — in hopes you're on the other side, talking to me too.
...
Somewhere on Earth, there is a huge pit of despair. Many people enter the pit every day, because they're disappointed or depressed. Somewhere above this pit, there is a rope. The rope is thin, frail, and could break any second. Holding on to this thin strip of hope was Fabian Rutter.
He held on to that thin strip for nine months now, hoping that his best friend and first ever girlfriend would return; hoping that Jerome and Alfie were just playing a prank on him and she'd run through the front door any second.
Then came the letter, which explained her absence, but Fabian continued to hold. She was the only one who ever actually understood him, and knew that he just needed a push to do the brave thing. She wasn't gone for good; she was just taking a break from the House of Anubis and would return shortly. She wouldn't say goodbye before Fabian left for a different continent to attend college.
She'd return. Fabian knew she would. She'd surprise the Anubis residents suddenly, and Fabian would hug her, lift her off her feet, and kiss her because he missed her that much, even though it had only been a short period of time since they had been separated.
It was nine months later and she still hadn't returned. But Fabian Rutter, despite being pessimistic and a push-over, knew she wouldn't leave forever without saying goodbye, much less to her own boyfriend. He still hung on to the thin strip of hope above the endless pit of disappointment, even when the strip was being weathered away.
Somewhere in the United States, she was sitting in a classroom like his, only five hours in the past. She would be waiting for school to be let out so she could go wherever she wanted. Fabian, however, only had five minutes left before he never saw any of his classmates ever again.
There was a little tear in the rope.
Four minutes.
Somewhere in the United States, she was talking to her friends. She must have had friends there — why would she even want to stay there if she didn't have any?
She'd stated in her note that she left to protect all of them. That must mean that they were the closest she had — if she was saying goodbye to Anubis House for them — but there hadn't been a word out of her since Amber's birthday. She must have been having fun with her old friends, not giving a thought about the Brits in the House of Anubis.
But he still believed that she was coming back. The rope was hanging still, but every moment without contact weathered away more of the string.
"Four more minutes," KT whispered in his ear. "Four more minutes until we're done with high school."
"Yeah," Fabian responded, a smile on his face, "No more Victor."
"No more Denby!" KT cheered too loudly; the teacher shushed her. She flashed Mr. Sweet a quick grin and turned back to the boy sitting next to her. "No more bitchy teacher trying to stop us from saving the world."
"No more creepy old Anubis House," Fabian continued the list. KT grinned wider and nodded.
"No more evil reincarnations of RFS and making people evil," she remembered, and they both chuckled.
"Or tunnels, Crypts, keys and eclipses," Fabian listed
"No more disappearances," KT stated. "I mean, just this year, my evil great-grandfather had taken a lot of people and made them evil...Patricia...Alfie...Victor...Sweetie...YOU.. .and that girl, who never came back in the beginning of the year. What was her name again?"
Fabian had just felt like KT had kicked him upside the head.
The rope weathered a little further.
Three minutes.
Somewhere in the United States, she wasn't thinking about Anubis House. She couldn't be less preoccupied with them; the school year was almost over, and she'd be out of that hellhole in three minutes, the same time as Fabian.
She couldn't be bothered with thinking about them, because she'd be out partying with her friends and thinking about the fun she'd have at her college. Fabian didn't know where her college was, but he knew his college was in Australia.
Australia, the land of vast kangaroos and friendly people and P. Sherman, 42 Wallaby Way, Sydney, Australia. The same continent where Mick lived, but of course he had to be going back to England after the school year ended.
Patricia was moving to America, attending culinary school with Eddie; they were aiming to become Chefs. Fabian knew that Eddie was planning to propose to Patricia when the time was right; he'd already decided on the ring he would buy her.
Mara, now single after her breakup with Jerome, was staying in England to become a Scientist. Alfie was also staying, going for Technology; Willow for Botany; Jerome for Gemology and Joy for Drama. KT was moving back to America to become an archaeologist; the same thing she wanted to become.
Fabian lived his with family in London, as did everyone else, other than the three Americans who, obviously, lived in America. All of the Brits who attended Frobisher Academy lived in London.
He'd calculated.
He'd be ten thousand, five hundred and seventy-six miles away from home. 10,576, in numbers. More than halfway around the world, and even farther from her, the person he really wanted to see. Time would be messed up once he moved there to attend a school for Science, so he'd probably never get to see his friends again.
He'd be all alone.
Again.
No sign of her. No brown hair flying through the window, or bobby pin sightings outside in the halls. Still no messages, but Fabian eliminated that possibility ages ago.
Because, after all, why should she think about them? Nothing lasts forever, after all.
But Fabian couldn't stop thinking about her.
The rope had decided to cut even further, making it sway the slightest bit.
Two minutes.
Somewhere in the United States, she was looking at a similar clock, waiting for the larger hand to hit 12. Then, she would hop on a plane and meet Fabian in the common room, where Anubis House was going to have a 'going-away' party for everyone.
"Only two minutes!" Jerome cried. "Two minutes until we're out of this hellhole!"
"Mr. Clarke," Mr. Sweet chided, "Please sit down and we shall continue the lesson."
Fabian wondered what she was learning about.
"But there's only two minutes left!" Some girl from another House exclaimed. "Some of us are leaving right after the school day ends. Can't we at least stop the lesson for a few seconds to say a quick goodbye?"
Mr. Sweet eyed the clock. One minute and forty-three seconds to go.
"Oh, very well," he sighed. "You all may stand up and say what you need to say."
Suddenly, the class jumped up out of their seats and started to converse. The people from Isis House brought themselves together in a big group hug; they even brought Willow over from Anubis. The others were saying their quick goodbyes, trying not to become emotional, but Anubis House was a big bucket of emotions.
Fabian couldn't tell whether they were being obnoxious or true, but Jerome and Alfie were hugging, and they almost looked like they were about to cry. Patricia and Joy, meanwhile, were openly sobbing in each other's arms. Then the two groups separated and Alfie hugged Patricia while Jerome hugged Joy.
KT walked over and attacked Fabian. He was shocked for a moment — he'd been thinking about when she would come in to say her goodbyes. But he embraced Kara Tattiana until she puled back and hugged Patricia.
Eddie and Patricia, after she let go of KT, was a mess of emotions. After breaking up about four million, seven hundred and eighty-three times this year, they were hugging and sobbing in each other's arms.
Fabian was holding no one — after all, his girlfriend was five thousand, two hundred and seventy-six thousand miles away.
He'd calculated. That was, if she even lived in Los Angeles — he'd never bothered to ask. Fabian never thought that he'd lose touch with her.
Oh, how ironic that was.
KT smiled sadly at her friend and told him, "This is insane. I don't want to say goodbye just yet...oh, Fabian, I'm gonna miss you so much." Her voice became muffled as she stuffed her face in the hug.
KT embraced him in another hug, but he couldn't help himself to look out the window to see if he saw a girl with light brown hair rush through the halls. Even after KT released him, the hallways remained empty. Time was running out, and there was no sighting, much less any kind of contact with her. When you go nine months with no contact, you kind of start to think.
She could have been dead, for all Fabian knew. He wouldn't even know; there were so many possibilities. She stated in her letter that her grandmother had become ill again, but she could have died, and since she was the only family she had left, she could have killed herself to be with her — or one of the many enemies Sibuna had made in the past three years could have came back and murdered her — or she was riding
One minute and seven seconds to go.
Eddie suddenly stumbled out of his girlfriend's grasp and shook his hand. "I'm gonna miss you, dude. It's been great."
Fabian smiled sadly and gripped his hand. "You too. Hope we keep in touch." But that wasn't all he was thinking. Only for a mere millisecond, he hesitated, but then asked, "Have you been in touch with her lately?"
Eddie knew who he was talking about. Quickly, he shook his head, bid a quick goodbye to his roommate and went back to talk with Patricia.
The son of the headmaster of Frobisher Academy had just torn his hopes out. Mr. Sweet told the entire class to sit down, and Fabian did so without arguments. He'd be all alone in Australia, with no friends and wacked up contact, so he figured he better get used to the weird time zones and no contact from his friends. Which wouldn't be so hard, considering he's lost contact with three of them.
The rope received a cut from Eddison Miller, the protector of the damn girl. Fabian's guilt and worries made it sway even more than it should, making him grip it tighter than before.
One minute.
Somewhere in the United States, she was cheering with her friends to go home.
Then again, he wouldn't know if she had any friends, since she had never really told him about her life in America. He knew barely anything about the life she had in the place she was from, other than her parents died and she lived with her grandmother.
But, judging from how hard she tried to be friends with everyone in the beginning of her first year, Fabian presumed she had friends. Anyone who didn't have friends probably would have shied away from their housemates. She probably had lots of friends.
She probably wasn't even giving a thought to the Anubis residents. She probably never even gave a thought about how distressed he was during in the beginning of this term.
He'd apologized to Eddie later after lashing out at him, but Fabian never really had a friend before she came along. Sure, he had Patricia and Joy, but they mostly stayed around each other than around him. He was around himself more than others, but he was okay with that. It wasn't until September of 2010 that he was showed how things were never as they seemed.
Because after all, no one in the House of Anubis ever thought that Robert and Luisa Frobisher-Smythe hid seven ancient relics from the Cup of Ankh around the House — or that Robert had secret tunnels under the House to protect the fake mask while the real one was in the library — or that Robert would rise as an evil being and try to make the residents sinners so he could Ammit, the Devourer of Souls in Egyptian Mythology come back to Earth.
She showed him all that. She showed him how life can be exciting and not as boring as he believed it to be. They were kind of like Jack and Rose in that way — how Jack stopped Rose from throwing herself off the ship by showing herself that in order to live her life the way she wanted to, she had to make the best out of everything and appreciate the good things in life, like Irish parties in third class or singing songs that made no sense. Jack set Rose fre
Fabian never realized how different she and him actually were.
But maybe that's what brought them together.
Fabian eyed the clock once Mr. Sweet told everyone to sit down. Fifty-five seconds left.
Mr. Sweet exclaimed, "Silence, class! Now, if you'll watch me closely..."
Patricia and Eddie, still holding hands, locked eyes with Fabian. They didn't say anything — they couldn't, with Eddie's father being so strict — but their eyes gave it all away. Just like Patricia was scared of her feelings, she was also scared of the future. Fabian could still remember the conversation they had a few weeks before today involving what was going to happen after school.
Eddie, however, was wearing his normal expression of anticipation and happiness. Fabian would never admit it, but he'd always been jealous of his roommate and how he could get anything he wanted because he could ask for it. However different Patricia and Eddie were, they helped each other with their personalities and pretty much everything they ever did. They made a perfect couple...they'd do fine in college together...
Fifty seconds left.
The clock seemed to be mocking him; the hands were moving slower. Mr. Sweet, persistent Mr. Sweet, who decided to teach a lesson with only fifty seconds of school left, didn't know that most of the class was taking in whispers amongst themselves. The Anubis kids were all eyeing each other; after three years of constantly depending on each other — between maniacs needing immortality, psychopaths who hid the real mask in plain sight, and lovesick teachers who wanted to bring dead people back to life, they'd always counted on each other.
Fabian didn't know if he'd see them that often, with him being ten thousand miles away from London, but he'd always need them. He sent a smile back to Eddie and Patricia, and they went back to discussing culinary school.
Forty seconds left.
And still no contact. His phone, safe in his pocket, was waiting to vibrate, and then he'd take it out and read 'New message', and then he'd open the message with a wide grin and would be so content after no contact from her in nine months. Forty-seven...forty-six...
"Mr. Rutter, what are you doing?" Mr. Sweet snapped, as Fabian was starting to drift.
"Oh, nothing, Mr. Sweet," he responded politely, and Mr. Sweet returned to the lesson. Alfie sent him a look; Fabian could read it almost immediately.
He remembered one thing she said before they left for summer last year. She said that she thought the two boys were the bravest in Sibuna; the girls were brave, of course, but they weren't afraid to take a risk. Even Amber would sometimes go out of her way to save her friends, even if it meant ruining her new high heels.
She believed that the boys were the bravest — Alfie, because he was always played off as the joke and everyone acted like he couldn't do it, but then he'd always end up showing that he could — and then Fabian, because he didn't believe in himself. But with a push from the girls, he'd shown that with confidence, he could do anything.
Usually, stories ended up telling of how the girl always needed a boy to save her; this time, Fabian supposed, with the story of Sibuna, it was the opposite.
Thirty seconds left.
He'd always think of it that way — the story of Sibuna. That was something to tell his grandkids. They'd think Grandpa was amazing, with the stories of how he narrowly escaped from Rufus Zeno and the murderous flies — or the time where he maneuvered through sharp pendulums and could have cut to shreds — or even when he was fighting against Robert Frobisher Smythe, trying not to become evil and have his soul taken out.
Even when they were older, the story of Sibuna would live on forever. Fabian was finishing high school in less than thirty seconds, but he'd still remember the time when he met that girl who showed him a world where anything was possible; at least, anything that involved Egyptian Mythology. He'd return to Anubis House sometime in his mid-life and all the memories would come rushing back to him.
Then it hit him; he was leaving. Leaving. For Australia. The land of vast kangaroos and boomerangs and friendly people and P. Sherman, 42 Wallaby Way, Sydney, Australia. This was the last time he'd see this school for a while.
Twenty seconds left.
Oh, God.
He'd survived seven years in that boarding school, being there since he was ten. He'd been through thick and thin; fights with Joy, disagreements with Patricia, breakups with his first girlfriend. Arguments over which side of the room to take with Eddie, yells between him, Jerome, and Alfie. He'd met so many people, and they were all about to go.
"It'll be okay," KT whispered so Mr. Sweet wouldn't hear her. Her voice was barely inaudible, but Fabian could hear her clearly. "We're not going to forget about you, Fabian. Don't you forget about us, either. You're one of my best friends."
He sent her a reassuring smile, but he was freaking out. The only person he really wanted to be seated next to him was his favorite American. She'd assure him that everything would be alright...she always did.
Ten seconds left.
"Dad, come on!" Eddie complained. He had finally came to terms with who his father was and was now comfortable with saying 'dad' in public, and it seemed that Mr. Sweet couldn't be happier.
Nine... / "Now, now, Eddie. Let me just write this down and we'll finish this lesson up."
Three... / Silence. No one was watching the board; instead, they were watching the hands on the clock turn toward the big '12'.
Two...
One...
The bell rung.
School was out.
Screams echoed from all around the school.
They officially finished school. That was it? No confetti rained from the sky? Fabian knew that graduation was different in America; Eddie had explained it to him. Was she having the 'ceremony' that Eddie spoke about? Was she 'walking down the stage to receive a diploma'? It seemed like Fabian would never know.
He checked his phone: no new messages. His heart plummeted to the bottom of his stomach.
The rope, holding Fabian up from the pit of disappointment and despair, was already broken, but now it was a tiny shred of rope. Still, Fabian held on. He still believed she would call.
Right after.
Somewhere in the United States, she was out celebrating.
The school year was over, after all. Officially over. She wouldn't see her school, teachers, or blackboards ever again. And, at this rate, she wouldn't see her friends from England ever again, either.
KT pulled him up from his chair and pulled him out of the classroom by the arm. He truly believed she would make an appearance, or at least call. School was now officially finished for both of them...she must have forgotten about them...
The hallway, filled with girls and boys of all ages, were all screaming and running out of the school and back to the Houses to collect their bags and catch taxis to ride back to their homes all over Europe. Fabian, however, would be catching a plane to Australia in only a few hours, while the rest of the Anubis students would either be staying in England or travelling to America.
Maybe Patricia, Eddie, or KT would find the girl Fabian had been worried over for the past nine months. It wouldn't surprise him if the power couple of the school did — the male part of the couple was the girl's protector.
Fabian was jealous of Eddie in many ways; the spirit/ghost thing in their second year, named Senkhara, had once considered Fabian as her protector, but then turned to Eddie, as he was the true Osirian. Sometimes, even if was completely irrational, he wanted to be her protector.
That came with bad and good aspects. He'd be destined to protect her; he would probably be talking to her right now, since he was born to protect her. But then came the realization that the Chosen One and the Osirian would have to be apart for eternity. He would never, ever see her in person. At least he would be talking to her.
Then again, maybe she wouldn't. Not at the rate this was going.
While everyone in Anubis House (Mara, Joy, Jerome, Alfie, Willow, Patricia, Eddie and KT) ran ahead, racing to the House of Anubis, Fabian trailed behind. He'd honestly, completely believed that today, he'd be able to speak to her again. She cared about them...she had to, or else she never would have tried to keep Patricia and Alfie ignorant to what happened in her second term.
Maybe she wasn't ignoring them. Maybe Rufus Zeno had come back from the Underworld and was keeping her captive, threatening her with murderous flies — or Senkhara had found a human body and telling her to stop talking to the Anubis students because she failed to give her the mask — or that Robert had decided to travel to the United States on his travels and found the Chosen One and kidnapped her or something. Maybe she wasn't ignoring them after all.
Fabian would probably never know because he hadn't freaking heard from her in over two hundred and seventy days. That's longer than some people wait for a new Rick Riordan book. No word — no emails — no texts — no phone calls — not even a fucking letter — no contact at all. Fabian was losing hope, but he didn't want to lose it; so he held on.
School was over. School was over forever. No more Mr. Sweet, or Mr. Winkler, Mrs. Andrews, Mrs. Robinson, or Ms. Denby. No more Victor or Vera or Trudy. No more Secret Societies aching for immortality or bugs in secret pathways or gatehouses storing asleep dead men. It was all gone.
KT broke Fabian out of his thoughts by gripping his wrist again and running with him to the House. Fabian couldn't help but smile as he watched KT's dark, wavy hair bounce on the back of her head. KT lead him to the front door of the House, where everyone else was waiting for him. Eddie placed his hand on Fabian's shoulder before the girls pushed open the front door and Trudy came into the front room, crying.
"What's wrong, Trudy?" Joy cried, running up to the housemother and embracing her in a huge hug.
"Oh," she started, showing she'd obviously been crying for a while. "I...I just can't do this. I've been with most of you for so many years — I've known Jerome since he was five! FIVE!"
Jerome smiled sadly and joined Joy in hugging Trudy. His family was messed up; Fabian knew that Trudy was the closest thing he had to a mother. Trudy, her eyes blood-red and puffy, released her grip on Jerome and Joy and opened her arms, motioning for everyone else to jump into her arms.
Patricia — strong-willed Patricia who doesn't let anyone cross her path without a bruise — cried out and ran into Trudy's arms, looking like she was about to start sobbing. Everyone else, teary-eyed, walked up to their housemother, combining into one huge hug.
"You're graduates!" Trudy cried out, her voice cracking. "I'm so damn proud of all of you! Oh, you've come so far...Jerome isn't the closed up boy he was all those years ago...oh, I wish Mick, Nina, and Amber were here to see this."
Oh.
She mentioned her.
The rope was close to giving in by now; Fabian was holding on for dear life, trying not to fall into the pit.
Twenty minutes after.
Somewhere in the United States, she wasn't alone.
She was out with her friends — that was, if she had any friends — and she wasn't alone, like Fabian was. After all, Fabian had never really been that much of a 'people-person'. His 'people skills' were 'rusty'.
After Trudy had calmed her sobs, KT, being the happy girl she is, decided to throw a small party, with just the Anubis kids. They'd play some music and hang out while enjoying each other's presence, as most were leaving in a few hours to go home or to depart to the college of their choice. They only had a few hours to be with each other, but Fabian was locked in his room.
Trudy was right. Mick, Nina, and Amber should be here to see this. But none of them were. Fabian's first real friend, his first roommate, departed to leave for Austalia and he'd only seen him once since. Amber was one of his best friends and she'd left suddenly because 'daddy' wanted to ship her off to Fashion School. Then, Nina — well...
He'd really counted on her to be there. Maybe some sort of contact at all — but he was left without word of her. The last time Fabian had heard from her was on Amber's birthday, when she told him to ask Eddie about her disappearance. Fabian had tried to start a conversation with her after 'ask Eddie...' but then she logged off and hadn't heard from her since. Maybe Eddie bribed her into silence during the summer — or he was the one who kidnapped her and she was hidden in a shed in the woods — maybe Patricia was even involved in the scandal too —
That's when he realized he was being paranoid. Nice, sweet, kind-hearted Eddie would never kidnap and abuse the girl he was born to protect.
Fabian heard the music blasting from the common room, but he sat on his bed, strumming his guitar. He had nothing better to do, since the school year was over and there was no more homework or projects to do two weeks early. Fabian didn't feel like participating in the fun — all of his real friends were gone.
One by one, his fingers plucked the strings, the notes becoming higher and higher. He still remembered the time when he was writing a song for Nina in her first year.
He was so in love with her in that first year — he was pretty sure everyone noticed, as everyone always teased him about it. Fabian was sure even Trudy knew about his massive crush on the American. She amazed him to no lengths; she had a bossy attitude but always seemed supportive in the end, especially of Fabian. She'd known that Fabian could do the impossible if he was pushed to do it; and her bossy 'tude helped him. Maybe that was what made him fall for her, in the end.
He'd held on to his phone every moment of every day for the past few days, wishing that she'd contact him in any way possible. Anything would do — anything ranging from a text saying "hey, i'm alive" or a long, thought out message that explained why she hadn't spoken to him in nine months, making him think she was dead.
Fabian had tried to get in touch with her more than a thousand times. Maybe even a million. Possibly even a billion. He'd tried every single way: Email, phone calls, texts, letters, messaging, ChumChatter — he'd even resorted to Skyping the damn girl — but with no luck. She obviously wanted to be alone, because if she wasn't kidnapped by Rufus Zeno and threatened by murderous flies or held hostage by the boy who was supposed to protect her, well...
Because, if she wanted to be alone and without the Anubis residents, Fabian could be alone too.
The rope, now ripped and almost ruined, was swaying. Fabian slid down the rope the slightest bit, making his way into the pit of hopelessness.
Forty minutes after.
Somewhere in the United States, she wasn't thinking about Anubis House.
Eddie and KT had found Fabian alone in his room a while ago and dragged him into the party. Everyone had laughed when Eddie explained what he was doing, and they playfully teased Fabian, knowing he was sulking over his lost best friend slash girlfriend.
But Fabian wasn't really in a party mood. He knew that he was leaving for Australia in a few hours, straight from the House, so he didn't have that long before he was ten thousand miles away from his family and friends. He dreaded the hour when everyone would gather around the front of the Anubis House to hug him and say goodbye.
They'd forget about him. If Amber, who was Nina's best friend, forgot to mention her before she left for fashion school, then the Anubis residents would forget about Fabian in the four years he was staying in Australia. He was an eighteen years old now, so he could take care of himself and not need anyone else, but he needed a friend, and he wasn't so sure his roommate-to-be would be so exciting — then again, neither was Fabian himself, but Nina had found him endearing.
Fabian had escaped from the dancing teenagers and was now in the kitchen, where Trudy had made some juice. Fabian was leaning against the counter, watching Patricia and Eddie slow-dance to "Talking to the Moon" by Bruno Mars. Alfie and Willow were also dancing to the music, but they were jumping around goofily, annoying Jerome and Joy, who were promptly kissing on the couch, while the other single people (KT and Mara; apparently, the residents of Anubis House liked being in relationships) sat in the corner, watching the others dance.
Fabian sadly scooped up another glass of juice and took a sip. He wished Nina was here; she would dance with him. She was never ashamed of him. She'd always been proud of him.
He was about to have another sip when Eddie suddenly walked up to him. Not even noticing that he had broken away from Patricia's grasp, Fabian turned to face his former roommate. "What's wrong?" he questioned, and Eddie tilted his head.
"That's the right question, but it's supposed to be aimed to you — even though I already know what's wrong." Eddie stated simply. Fabian sighed, and met Eddie's gaze. Eddie chuckled. "I'm right, aren't I?"
"Yeah," Fabian responded, and didn't say anything else. Eddie took the liberty to continue the conversation.
"I know you miss Nina, dude," he consoled, "but have some fun right now. It's your last day here before your shipped off the G'day, mate! and the land of infinite kangaroos and boomerangs. I know you don't think we will, but we'll miss more than ever. Come on, have some fun."
For a moment, while Eddie was pointing into the common room, where Patricia was standing alone without a partner, Fabian hesitated. He opened his mouth — then closed it — then opened it again. Eddie took this as a movement that he wanted to speak, so he waited for Fabian to get the words out.
Fabian took a deep breath and admitted, "I just really thought she would get in touch with me. Something — anything — it's been nine months without a single word out of my girlfriend — or ex-girlfriend, maybe, I don't even know — but it's nine months without any kind of contact and I'm sort of thinking she's dead."
At his statement, Eddie promptly released a loud chuckle and held his hand to his stomach. When Fabian narrowed his eyes, Eddie explained, "Dude, if Nina were dead, you'd know. Even though we have to be kept apart, I'm still her Osirian and I think I'll have to be her protector forever. So if the girl I was literally born to protect passed away, I'm like one hundred percent sure I'd be punished by the gods for that."
Fabian waited.
"And I'm fine, so Nina must be fine," Eddie finished. While Fabian stood, he walked up the punch bowl and made himself a glass of it; he walked back up in front of his roommate and laughed at his expression.
"Have you spoken to her since the summer?" Fabian asked. He silently hoped that Eddie hadn't heard from Nina, because if he had, then that meant that she was ignoring her boyfriend. But if he hadn't heard from her, then she must be dead or busy or kidnapped by Rufus Zeno with murderous flies —
Eddie shook his head. "Nope," he said, popping the p. "No word from her since she gave me the letter to give to you."
Fabian tried to hide his relief. He was jealous of Eddie in so many ways; if he had to be jealous of him because his girlfriend was talking to someone else, then Fabian was acting pretty pathetic.
"Look, Fabian," Eddie said, after he motioned to Patricia that he'd be another minute. "I was there when she wrote the letter. The first draft was fifteen pages; I told her to toss it because I could never fit fifteen pages in my boot. The second draft was too short; it literally only said 'I'm sorry, but I'm not coming back. Love you.' so I told her to toss it because I knew how much you'd hate me even though I didn't write it, and I didn't want you to think she didn't care. Then, the third draft was so tear-soaked that it barely legible; the fourth and final draft was the version you read, and it was the best she could do while she was crying. She loves you, Fabian. I don't know why she won't talk to us, but she isn't dead and I know you're thinking that Robert Frobisher-Smythe might have found her on his travels and kidnapped her, but it's not true."
Fabian snorted. "Yeah, I guess you're right."
Eddie leaned over the counter and arched his neck to look at the couch where his girlfriend was sitting. Fabian motioned with his hand to say he could go back, but Eddie waved the suggestion aside. Turning back to face his roommate, Eddie said, "I don't know when it will be, and I don't know why Nina hasn't been in touch, but she'll get back to you. I know she will."
"I've probably tried to talk to her a billion times," Fabian admitted sadly. "The last time I heard from her was on Amber's birthday, and the only thing she said was involving her sudden disappearance and 'Ask Eddie'. Why would she only say that? Why didn't she specify more? She had to have been alive then, because she messaged me..."
Eddie chuckled as Fabian seemed to have come to a realization. "Maybe you are working with Robert Frobisher-Smythe! Maybe he corrupted you, turning you evil before any of us ever knew about him coming back —"
"Fabian, that makes no sense. Try again."
"...yeah, I have nothing."
"See?" Eddie explained, moving his arms apart. "You're just being paranoid. There might be this whole big, smacked-up reason why the damn girl has been ignoring you, or maybe it's just that she loves you so much she can't bear with the pain of talking to you and being five thousand miles away from you. And in only a few hours, she'll be more than double that distance."
"Right...I forgot...I'm going to Australia..." Fabian mused, scratching the back of his head. "I won't see her for four years...I won't see any of you, either. It's going to be so lonely."
"Nonsense, you'll have your new roommate," Eddie reasoned, but only seconds after he had made his statement, Patricia walked into the kitchen.
"What's up, dorks?" she greeted, and Eddie rolled his eyes at her. She sent a questioning look to her boyfriend, and he explained: "Fabian's upset because his girlfriend isn't here to see him finish school."
As soon as Fabian began to protest, Patricia began to laugh. Fabian quickly silenced himself before Patricia caught her breath and continued. "Fabian, really, there's no need to worry about Nina. I know she hasn't been in touch since the beginning of this term, but I have no doubt in my mind that she loved you. Remember two years ago, when Amber and Mara were organizing that prom and you got so nervous about asking Nina that you accidentally seemed like you were asking me?"
Fabian nodded, not entirely sure where Patricia was going with this.
"When you oh-so-smoothly lied and said you were going to go brush your teeth, Nina said, and I quote, 'I can't believe I thought he liked me.' She looked almost on the verge of tears. I don't understand this whole Osirian/Chosen One thing Eddie and Nina have going on, but I still have no doubt in my mind that Nina loves you, Fabian."
But there was still no word from her. School had ended for people in America months before Fabian and the others had ended. If she wasn't dead...she must have been ignoring him...
The rope was almost about to give way. Fabian, who was only inches above the pit, was holding on by his pinkie finger.
Sixty minutes after.
Somewhere in the United States, she was having fun with her friends.
Not Sibuna.
Fabian had to admit that it felt weird at first, with no Nina or Amber. Two of the original founders were gone. Fabian was the only one left...sometimes he missed those times — when they were figuring out how to use the tunnels without becoming blind or hiding up in the attic, searching for recordings by Sarah.
"Amber, what's with the cloves of garlic? This isn't Twilight!"
"The bible says 'always be prepared'."
"Amber, that's the boy scouts."
"Oh..."
That was only the beginning of their adventures...there was no mysterious disappearance of Nina since the Chosen One and Osirian couldn't be kept apart; there was no gatehouse for Amber to get locked in, leading to her being shipped off to Fashion School; and KT and Eddie were complete newbies to Sibuna. The only original members left were Fabian, Patricia, and Alfie.
Everyone was different; Eddie was born to be a leader — KT always knew how to pick someone's mood up when the going got rough — Amber always acted like a ditzy blonde but always seemed to prove herself in the end, whether it be about conquering her fear of bugs or sacrificing her scholarship for the safety of everyone else in Sibuna — and everytime, Alfie sent himself off as the jokestar, but everyone always thought he was the bravest in Sibuna. Then there was Patricia, who convinced everyone to the brave thing, and Fabian had five million facts stored inside his head.
But somehow, Sibuna felt lost without the Chosen One.
Sighing, Fabian took his phone out of pocket. Even though he knew that she wouldn't pick up, Fabian dialed Nina's number. When he finally pressed the 'call' button, he waited.
He waited until the seventh ring before he heard her voice. "Hey! This is Nina. I'm probably not here right now, so leave a message and I'll get back to you as soon as I can! Bye!"
Her voicemail.
She hadn't been there for nine months. Fabian had called her voicemail two times each day — the total missed calls equaled up to 6,040.
Six thousand and forty calls. Six thousand a forty missed calls. Who goes nine months without charging their phone? Who ignores their boyfriend slash best friend for three hundred and three straight days? Who can't see "six thousand and forty missed calls from Fabian Rutter"?
Nina had been one of the original founders of Sibuna, but right now she was probably out and about with her American friends, doing American things, not even giving a thought to the House of Anubis and its residents. She probably forgot about the Cup of Ankh or the Mask of Anubis — forgot about the times she and her boyfriend had shared.
Like that time when they were snooping in the attic and they'd heard Victor come up — they'd locked themselves in the secret room — and Nina had been shivering so Fabian lent her his jacket; or the time when Fabian lost the puzzle piece and Nina was so distraught — Fabian had said, and he could still remember his exact words: 'I will not give up on Sarah, the quest, and certainly not on you." — Nina looked so happy; or maybe even the time when Rufus Zeno locked them in Mr. Winkler's classroom, and Rufus, intent on gaining immortality for himself, tried to take Nina away and Fabian had tackled Rufus in an attempt to get Nina away from him.
Was all of that gone? Did she forget all the awkward moments, like when they had accidentally bonked heads in the fireplace? Or when Fabian was trying to solve the latest clue and saw Nina smiling at him, so he asked what she was smiling at and she answered, "That little frown you get when you concentrate."? Or when Fabian announced that he had given Rufus the fake elixir, not the real one, so she had jumped up and screamed: "Fabian, you're a genius! I love you!" Had she forgotten about all that?
Fabian certainly hadn't. He had made a promise in her first year to never give up on her, and that's what he would do. Even though there was a possibility that Rufus had arisen again and kidnapped the Chosen One, threatening her with deadly flies so he could get ahold of the Cup or that Robert Frobisher-Smythe had become evil again at the hand of Caroline Denby and decided to kill her off — they were probably just figments of his imagination.
He'd been a little worried that she had been in touch with Eddie all this time and she was ignoring him, but since Eddie had confirmed he hadn't heard word of the girl since she gave him the letter, he felt a little bit better.
"Hey," Fabian breathed into the phone, his six thousand and fortieth phone call since September. "Yeah, I know that you're probably not going to listen to this, but I just want confirmation that you're alive and not taken captive by Rufus or Frobisher, haha. Um...so...call me back?" Fabian pressed the 'end' button, hoping that he'd get a call back.
He never would.
Stuffing the phone back in his pocket, Fabian took a deep breath. He'd moved out of the kitchen and was now sitting on the couch; most of everyone was dancing. The only person who wasn't dancing was Alfie, and that was because he was getting refreshments for Willow. Even Mara and KT, the only other single people in the house, were dancing.
It wasn't a slow song like it had been previously; KT had requested a song that was popular in America, so everyone was dancing to that. Eddie seemed to be embarrassing Patricia, but her face was so red, whether from laughter or embarrassment Fabian didn't know. Jerome and Joy were swaying back and forth from each other, and Willow and Alfie were standing by the refreshments table. KT and Mara were dancing with each other.
Suddenly, Fabian's phone rang. His heart rate picked up miles, and he fumbled with trying to get the device out of his back pocket, as he was sitting on, hoping, hoping with every fibre of his being that the phone would say—
Oh.
The front of the phone read Mum.
His mother was calling him. Knowing the reason for it, Fabian picked up the phone, said "Hello?" and his mother started crying.
"Oh, Fabian!" she cried, holding the receiver so close that Fabian could hear her breathing. "You finally finished school! I'm so proud of you! Oh, my baby...Dad and I are so proud..."
"Thanks, Mum," Fabian laughed weakly, happy that he was speaking to his parents, but still a bit disappointed that the caller wasn't who he wanted it to be.
Fabian's mother continued: "I'm so upset that we can't be there to send you off, but we have to bring your sister overseas — Fabian Thomas Rutter, I am commanding you to call me once you land in Australia, do you hear? If you don't, I will fly there and drag you back over to England by the ear myself!"
"Yes, Mum, I'll make sure of it," Fabian teased, but his mother caught the hint of sadness in his voice because she asked, "What's wrong?"
He sighed, and ran his hand through his hair. "Nothing. Just a little sad about finishing school is all."
"Oh, okay," his mother breathed, and there was a pause; then he heard his mum's voice again: "I'm sorry, baby, but we have to go drop your sister off. I'll try to call as soon as I can."
Fabian bid her a goodbye and clicked the phone call off. He was contemplating dialing the American number again, but before he could bring up the keyboard—
"Come on, Fabian!" he heard a female voice complain. "Put your phone away and dance!"
He knew that voice. He looked up and saw KT Rush, towering above him, standing with her arms crossed. Her brown eyes were as stubborn as ever; before Fabian could even protest, he was being picked up off the couch and dragged to the common room.
"I don't want to dance," Fabian complained, while KT was grabbing his arms and swaying them back and forth to the music.
KT laughed without humor. "Oh, well," she stated, "you'll have to dance because I want you to dance. You can't stay around moping forever. I understand that you're sad and disappointed, but Fabian, we finished school! We're done! We leave for college in a few days! You won't ever, ever, ever see the House of Anubis again. Now, come on and dance with me before you leave for the land of infinite kangaroos and boomerangs."
He released a smile and grabbed KT's hand. From the corner of his eye, Fabian saw Eddie crank the music up to maximum volume; the music was blasting so loud that Fabian was sure the people in Isis House and the others could hear it.
One thing he learned that night: KT was a horrible dancer. She swayed and dipped and spun and jumped, but with every minute that passed she wasn't getting better. Fabian was sure that the only reason he was laughing so hard was KT's bad dancing.
"Come on, KT!" he mocked her. "Stop dancing before I lose a foot."
Her eyes shone as she let go of her friend's hand and motioned for him to follow her. Fabian wasn't sure where they were headed, but once he saw KT picking the lock to the cellar, he knew they were going to go someplace where they had during the whole "RFS" fiasco. He tried to contain his sentimental feeling as she led him into the cellar, then into the tunnels.
Fabian still remembered the times they [original Sibuna] spent down in the cellar. How Amber, Nina and himself were investigating the potions that Victor had; or when they saw the stuffed cat; all the puzzle pieces they found down in the cellar — then when the tunnels mystery came around, they traveled down to the cellar every single day to go down to the tunnels and RFS's secret hideaway.
But the original Sibuna wasn't there anymore. Amber left to go to fashion school because of Sibuna, and Nina left to protect her friends because she figured out she was the Chosen One; which was also because of Sibuna. It was weird being down here with two of the literally original Sibuna's being gone...Fabian was the one of the three to be initiated at the old Elm Tree...
"I, Nina Martin, being of sound mind — well, semi-sound mind — promise to protect the secrets of Anubis House and stand by my fellow club members: Amber Millington, and Fabian Rutter."
She had sacrificed her lucky charm, not wanting to give away her precious stuffed animal — Fabian had never learned what the significance behind it was.
"I, Amber Millington, being of sound mind, promise to protect the secrets of Anubis House, and stand by my fellow club members: Fabian Rutter, and Nina Martin."
She had sacrificed a picture of herself — which was pretty much expected out of Amber Millington.
"I, Fabian Rutter, being of sound mind, promise to protect the secrets of Anubis House, and stand by my fellow club members: Nina Martin, and Amber Millington."
He had to sacrifice The Solar System is Your Friend — Fabian had to sacrifice a lot for Sibuna, after giving away his calcuator watch so Alfie could demonstrate his prank.
The first ever Sibuna initiation seemed like so long ago. Time goes by so quickly, Fabian learns — because in a measly second, you could lose your American girlfriend because she learns that her counterpart has to kept away from her. Still, Fabian thought that she just might wish him good luck in college or congrtulate him on finishing school. They were still best friends, depsite being girlfriend and boyfriend.
The rope was about to break; Fabian was now hanging on the edge, only a few feet from the pit. He still believed that he wouldn't fall, but he was to be proved wrong in only a few hours.
Three hundred and sixty minutes after.
Somewhere in the United States, she forgot about Fabian Rutter.
It was the only explanation; if she wasn't dead, she must have forgotten him. Fabian didn't know how, with all the times they shared; when Amber forgot to bring a blanket for her when they were watching Jason's initiation into Victor's society so Fabian had volunteered to share his with her — or when they escaped from Rufus in the classroom and Nina ran straight into Fabian's arms — or when they were walking hand-in-hand to the library for the first time and Fabian had never thought she looked so beautiful — or the two times they danced and kissed to "My Perfect Day" by Mark Johns.
He still had the song on his phone. He was sure that Nina didn't know the significance of that song, since she had forgotten him.
After all, what kind of girlfriend would forget to say goodbye to her boyfriend, who was now saying goodbye to all his housemates as the taxi approached the house to take him to airport, where he would board a plane to ride to the land of infinite kangaroos and boomerangs and "Shrimp on the Barbies"?
Unless she was dead. Maybe Eddie was lying about the Chosen One-Osirian connection and it was broken when she died or something. Maybe Rufus' evil flies killed her — or Senkhara finally got her revenge by taking her into the afterlife — or Robert Frobisher-Smythe became evil again and turned her into a sinner so she had no soul, therefore not being able to care about her boyfriend.
Yeah, maybe.
Fabian walked straight up to Trudy and hugged her; Trudy was already a mess, so saying goodbye to the boy she had known since he was ten must have been hard on her.
"I'm going to miss you so much, Trudy," he muttered into her shoulder. When he finally picked it up, he saw tears streaming freely down her face. Trudy gently touched his cheek.
"Fabian, you're like a son to me. I'm so proud of you for getting into that college you wanted." Fabian blushed and Trudy continued, "Please take care of yourself. I don't want you to come back to Liverpool after four years and see you with a cigarette in your mouth and you shouting curse words every other step."
Fabian laughed weakly and hugged Trudy again. He had never really thought about how much of a mother figure she was; after he got the scholarship to attend the school, he was there for ten months a year. He saw his real mother for two months, meanwhile he saw Trudy for the ten months he was there. True, Vera had taken over for Trudy that one year, but he still saw her and before she lost her memory, she was always there to give him a hug or bake him a cake (and don't even mention Vera's Chocolate Nightmare cake).
"Good luck in Australia, dearie," she said finally, and took his head in her hands for the last time. "Why don't you say goodbye to everyone else? They're all waiting outside."
Fabian nodded and walked out the door, waving goodbye to his favorite housemother. When he closed the front door behind him, he saw Eddie, Patricia, KT, Mara, Willow, Alfie, Jerome, and Joy standing side-by-side by the black taxi that was waiting to take him to the airport. Dragging his suitcase behind him, he walked up to his group of friends.
"Well, I guess this is goodbye," he deadpanned, and he saw a lot of people nod. The taxi driver took his luggage and stored it in the back seat. Fabian walked up to his roommate.
"It's been great, dude," Eddie smiled, and Fabian returned the gesture. "I heard you're going for the sciences; that's great. You'll do amazing! You'll blow everyone away. You were the smart one in our group, and you're going to be the smartest one in Australia." Eddie put emphasis on the word group, so Fabian knew he was talking about Sibuna. They shook hands for the last time.
"Thanks, mate," Fabian said in return. "I have to admit, I didn't like sharing with you at first, but you've turned out to be my best mate." Eddie nodded with a smile, but Patricia, holding hands with Fabian's roommate, intercepted with, "That's because both of your best mates left."
Fabian, with a smirk on his face that was most unlike him, turned to face the snarky redhead. "Thanks for that, Patricia," he replied sarcastically, but she knew that Fabian was only joking, as his smile had never left.
"Just promise you won't forget about everything that happened, all right?" Patricia broke away from Eddie's grasp and enveloped Fabian in a hug. He e knew that everyone in Sibuna was going to talk about Sibuna, but in a secret way, as four of the people standing in the group had no idea what they were going on about.
"I won't," Fabian promised, letting go of Patricia. She smiled sadly. Sure, Patricia could be rude, and snarky, and bitchy, and obnoxious, and somehow Eddie found her appealing, but she was a good, loyal friend when it came down to it. If Joy was in mortal peril, Patricia would gladly sacrifice her own life to safe Joy's. Patricia was something else...something different. Fabian sure as hell knew that Patricia was one of the Anubis students that would stay glued to Fabian's mind for eternity; and that was a bad thing.
He moved to KT next. A huge smile crossed over her face and she attacked him in a hug; Fabian returned it gratefully. At first, Fabian had been a little skeptical about the new American scholarship student — then again, the same thing went for Nina — but now she was one of his best friends.
"Man, Fabian, you're so great," KT said simply, letting go of the hug. "I wish I could be more like you. You're so smart and so kind. You better not forget about us because if you do, when I see you again in four years, I will literally slap you into the middle of next week."
KT sounded so evil and demanding there that it even scared Fabian out of his wits. "Yeah, I'll make sure of that," he said carefully, making his way over to Mara, but KT caught him before he moved and gave him one last hug before Fabian moved to the smartest girl in his class.
"Mara," Fabian smiled, and Mara smiled wider. Ever since the fireworks, they'd been growing closer and closer, but Fabian couldn't give up on the theory of Rufus kidnapping Nina with murderous flies — but Eddie had promised him that was just his paranoi; but one could never be so sure. He just wasn't ready to give up on Nina just yet. Fabian and Mara shared a quick hug before Mara pulled away and said, "Knock 'em dead, Rutter, like I know you can."
Willow was next on the list. She waved him a quick goodbye, and Fabian returned the gesture, seeming as they had never really been good friends. Then he moved to Alfie; the jokester, the prankster, the bravest in Sibuna according to everyone else. They shook hands, trying to hold in a laugh; they were probably thinking of all the funny times they shared during the last three years.
Before Sibuna, Fabian had always thought of Alfie as plain-old annoying. He never gave one thought to how brave he could be when it came down to his friends or family. Fabian realized that Sibuna had changed a lot of them; Fabian had gained confidence — Patricia now knew when to tone it down a bit — Amber learned that there's more in the world than herself — Eddie had learned that even the person who thinks he's so great has his flaws — KT learned that she didn't have to be alone when figuring something out — and finally, thanks to Joy, Nina had learned to not be so jealous and understand that life came with hardships and to not be so bitchy to people she didn't like.
After Alfie started laughing, they quickly 'man-hugged' as KT put it, and then turned to the man who'd given Fabian a hard time since he was ten.
Jerome's grin stretched from ear to ear as he did the same 'man-hug' to Fabian. Despite all the hardships, they'd always pulled through; in the first year, Jerome had survived Rufus's many attempts to get a hold of the Cup of Ankh — then he'd thwarted Rufus again in the second year with Jasper — and finally he'd helped, most unknowingly, in the fight against RFS. He and Sibuna had been through Hell, and if they couldn't agree after all that, well...
The goodbye with Jerome was over quickly as he moved to Joy. They embraced in a long, tight hug — even though she'd disappeared, then became obsessed with trying to get Fabian to herself; and finally moved on to Jerome Clarke — they had finally made peace, even with the mystery raging on beside them, and became as good as friends as they were before she went missing.
"I'm gonna miss you," Joy mumbled, tears evident in her voice. Fabian pulled her closer, trying not to cry himself; he couldn't believe that after he let go of Joy, he'd have to get in the taxi and leave forever. So he didn't pull away; he kept Joy locked in his grip, not wanting to fly away.
It took him a while to finally wriggle out of Joy's hug. By the time she muttered, "Fabian, what was that for?" he was crying. Fabian didn't want to let the others see how distraught he was over leaving Anubis House, so he waved quickly, raised his voice to say "Bye, everyone!" and quickly got in the car.
He rolled up the tinted window to dry his eyes before anyone could see him. The House of Anubis was his home; he loved spending time there even before Nina showed him how exciting it could be. It was killing him four days ago that he had to leave, and he could feel his soul dying inside now that he was really leaving.
Once the tears were on his sleeve, not on his cheeks, he rolled down the windows, hoped that no one could see how red his eyes were, and waved goodbye to everyone as he taxi rolled away. He could hear Joy choking back tears; it was no wonder now why he couldn't stop the tears from rolling down his face again.
Hoping to stop this flow of tears, he picked out his phone and clicked the "on" button, hoping with all his might that it would say "new message from Nina"...she had to say hello...or good luck...or how much she would miss him...or that she would keep in touch...
Still no messages.
It finally hit Fabian that she wasn't responding. Maybe there was a reason — maybe she was kidnapped with murderous flies or with no soul — but it finally hit him that there would be no new messages from Nina ever again. He would never again see "New message from Nina" on his phone. All this time, he was really, really hoping that she would talk to him. One simple word would do. Anything. He just needed to see her face or hear her voice.
The rope had now broken; Fabian was falling into the pit.
Falling—
Falling—
Falling—
Four hundred and twenty minutes after.
Somewhere in the United States, she wasn't feeling empty or guilty.
"Flight six-one-two to Sydney now boarding. I repeat, flight six-one-two to Sydney now boarding."
Fabian pushed himself off of the cold metal seat, grabbed his bags from under the seat, and followed the rush of passengers onto the plane. His headphones were planted in his ears, softly playing a song by one of the popular artists from America; he never really did understand American music.
The tunnel was long, drab, and boring, but eventually he made his way into the white plane and sat down in one of the seats. The view outside the window showed the runway and some grass; not really one of the more interesting sights of London.
Fabian knew, obviously, that he couldn't use his phone on the plane ride when they were up in the air, so he checked it one more time, wondering if anyone had messaged him while he waited in the airport.
He turned his phone on and saw: New message from Eddie (1); New message from Mick (2); New message from Joy (5); New message from Trudy (8); New message from Mum (16); New message from Amber (31).
He laughed; he'd kept in contact with Amber since she left for fashion school many months ago. He responded to every message; leaving Amber's to last:
Message (1): Happy graduation! :) {10:28 PM}
Message (2): I know you didn't have a ceremony, but people in America do. {10:28 PM}
Message (3): I had one last month! {10:29 PM}
Message (4): Did I ever send you a picture of the cap and gown I wore? {10:29 PM}
Message (5): [download picture] Here I am! Don't I look beautiful? {10:30 PM}
Message (6): Are you in Australia yet? {10:40 PM}
Message (7): Mick told me btw. {10:40 PM}
Message (8): It's 3 PM in California right now. What time is it where you live? {10:40 PM}
Message (9): I just looked it up and it says England is seven hours ahead of California. {10:42 PM}
Message (10): Buuuut if you're in Australia then it's seventeen hours ahead. {10:43 PM}
Message (11): HOLY SHIT YOU'RE 17 HOURS AHEAD OF ME?! {10:43 PM}
Message (12): How in all hell are we going to communicate? {10:43 PM}
Message (13): If I was to text you at 8 AM it would already be 12 AM the next day! :o {10:45 PM}
Message (14): This isn't going to work, is it? {10:45 PM}
Message (15): I miss you so much, Fabian! I miss everyone! Tell everyone I miss and love them! Alfie especially! {10:45 PM}
Message (16): Trudy told me you were boarding the plane at 11 PM & I calculated & England's at 10 PM. You should still be on the ground. Why aren't you responding? {10:47 PM}
Message (19): Faaaaaabiiiiiiaaaaaaan! :( {10:48 PM}
Message (18): Fabian Thomas Rutter! This is a happy day! You finished high school! Text back! {10:48 PM}
Message (19): You aren't texting back because Alfie got another girlfriend, didn't he? Oh, I am going to KILL that man...after everything we've been through... {10:49 PM}
Message (21): OH MY GOD HE /DID/ GET ANOTHER GIRLFRIEND DIDN'T HE? WHAT'S HER NAME? {10:50 PM}
Message (22): Okay, sorry. But did he? Man, what weird couples got together this year? Jerome and Joy? I could NOT see that one happening... {10:50 PM}
Message (23): ...You haven't responded since I sent the first message. Was it something I said? Or just my personality? (I'm not peeeeerfeeeeeectttttt but I keep tryiiiiiiing) {10:52 PM}
Message (24): Man, I never realized how much I'll miss you, Fabian. You were one of my first real friends other than Mara, but me and Mara had a big fight two years ago so we fell out and that's partially why i created Sibuna (Anubis. Backwards. DUH!) so I will miss you. {10:52 PM}
Message (25): I've missed Nina since she suddenly disappeared in the beginning of this year so that doesn't count right now. {10:53 PM}
Message (26): Have you heard from her? Eddie told me she lives in Cali and that's where I am right now but I don't know where she lives; CA is a big state. {10:53 PM}
Message (27): You were her gf, Fabes. You'd know. What part of CA does Nina live? {10:53 PM}
Message (28): ...this is me waiting for an answer... {10:54 PM}
Message (29): Doopy do, doopy doopy doo... {10:55 PM}
Message (30): Fabian Rutter is so full of himself that he lets Amber Millington, one of the most popular girls in class, hang on the computer. Or telephone. Or whatever. {10:56 PM}
Message (31): Whatever, Fabes. We'll talk later. I think you're getting on the plane right now, so promise you'll text me back when you get to Aussie, the land of infinite kangaroos and boomerangs? I haven't heard anything from Nina btw so don't ask. I'll try to find her but California is a big state Fabian. TTYL. {10:59 PM}
Fabian laughed. He still had a taste of Amber, but he didn't have a taste of Nina.
He really, really, really wanted Nina with him. He always felt braver when Nina was with him. Maybe he wouldn't be so stressed about going to Australia and meeting his roommate. Maybe he wouldn't be so nervous about the plane running out of fuel and tumbling into the woods. She'd assure him that everything would be alright.
Now it was time for Fabian to do it himself. If Amber, not to mention Eddie, the damn girl's protector, hadn't had word from her, Fabian shouldn't worry. She wasn't being held hostage by Rufus Zeno or Senkhara or Robert Frobisher-Smythe. She wasn't being threatened with murderous flies or the idea of being taken into the afterlife or having her soul sucked out of her. She was safe, wherever she was.
According to Amber, it was California. But she couldn't be sure. Eddie lived in Los Angeles, of course...maybe that's where he got the letter...
Fabian turned his attention to the screens in front of him. The plane ride to Australia from London would take twenty-two hours; he'd have to get up and walk around, use the loo, watch movies. The plane ride was currently playing Titanic, Nina's favorite movie. They had watched it one night before she'd left forever.
Fabian had played his music for most of the movie, but it wasn't until he saw from the corner of his eye that Rose was being lowered off the ship that he took out his headphones and watched that part. He remembered that when they had watched it, Nina had described why that specific part was the best.
She'd said it was the most powerful scene because they were in love. Rose had finally found a man she loved, and he was telling her to leave on the lifeboat; but she knew that Cal would follow and she'd just go back to her old life, the life she wanted to leave so desperately that she was about to throw herself off the ship (but Jack ended up noticing and saving her). Rose knew that Jack was a Third Class passenger; he wouldn't make it out alive. He would be dead by morning. She couldn't go, so she jumped back on the ship to be with her love again.
"You jump, I jump, right?" Fabian heard Rose cry from the screen.
He was already lifting the earbud to put back in his ear when Jack, looking so relieved and happy, said, "Right..."
He still compared Nina and him to Jack and Rose.
The time on the clock read sometime around 2 AM. Fabian closed his eyes and fell asleep — he woke up for the stop in Singapore but once he had gotten back on the plane, he distracted himself by reading his book, listening to music, and watching the dumb movies they played.
He finally landed in Australia and walked off the plane. He was terrified, he could admit that much; he still wished he had Nina by his side. Once he had stepped off the plane, he checked his phone again...no new messages from her...
Fabian had fallen into the pit a while before this; he was now tumbling into endless darkness of disappointment with plenty of other people.
Falling—
Falling—
Falling—
...
Somewhere in the United States, she was ignoring his messages.
Texts.
Phone calls.
Emails.
Letters.
Skyping.
It was like she didn't even exist anymore. Fabian wouldn't know; he hadn't heard a peep out of her since she told him about Eddie knowing about why she left in the first week of school. After that, she just fell off the face of the planet.
She could have died. Again, Fabian wouldn't know, since the last time anyone had heard from her was on Amber's birthday. Fabian's birthday was coming: August 21st. He'd turn 18, a legal adult. He wouldn't have to worry about teenage stereotypes and shit. He could travel the world once he finished college, if he really wanted to.
Fabian's roommate's name was Justin. They were the same age, majoring in the same thing, but they were completely different in personality. Fabian knew from the moment he saw him that they'd never get along like he got along with the Anubis students.
He checked the time; England was nine hours behind Australia. While it was 11 PM here in Sydney, it was only 2 for the rest of the Anubis residents. He knew they couldn't forget him this early; but Nina could. He still hadn't spoken to Nina. No "how's Australia?" or "Did you have a nice last day of high school?" and especially no "I miss you, Fabian. Can we chat?"
Because Fabian certainly missed Nina. He'd sent her more than six thousand missed phone calls and over seven thousand text messages that were probably not even being delivered. She was either kidnapped with RZ, RFS, or Senkhara, dead, or ignoring his messages. Neither choice was a good choice.
All he really wanted in life was to see her again. He'd really, honestly loved her, but Fabian couldn't be sure whether she returned the feeling because she hadn't contacted him in nine months.
He'd kind of sort of really really hoped that Nina was going to surprise him when he got off the plane to Australia or maybe text him. Maybe Amber was the villain here and instead of Rufus or Senkhara or RFS it was Amber who kidnapped her and threatened her with murderous flies or the afterlife or no soul — and there Fabian was again with the crazy theories. Amber would never kidnap her own friend.
He checked his phone again. No new message. Fabian sighed and threw his phone across the bed, resting his head on the Australian pillow and tried to fall asleep with his new roommate in the bed next to his. He would start school in a few days, with no contact from anybody; not Eddie, not his Mum, not Amber, and especially not Nina.
No, there'd be no Nina. Not anymore. But he would always think that one day or another he'd get a text from her explaining her absence and everything would go back to normal. Yeah, maybe.
The rope had broken long, long ago. Fabian was way down there by now and there was no coming back up. He'd faced the truth.
She was gone.
Never to be seen again.
Nina Martin was gone for good.