Chapter Two
June had the appearance of an energetic woman in her late teens: her hair went down to chin length and spiked out sideways, and her deep hazel eyes were keen and curious. When she walked she had a small bounce in her step and wore an automatic smile on her face; ready to greet any passerbys.
But as soon as you took a closer look, you could sense a sinking sadness, which gave her a cause to wear black clothes and cheer herself up with all the company she could grasp. She seemed almost... desperate. Her smiles were a little strained, like she had forced them to become a natural feature. Something had happened; something which had matured her in a way nothing else could.
"Bloody rain," she muttered, jiggling her keys in the lock. The door swung open with the force of the wind. She hurried in, shutting it behind her. She was beginning to look forward to moving into an apartment, where she wouldn't be held victim to the weather at the front door. She sighed, remembering she still had yet to finish her packing - deciding what to pack on a one-way trip was becoming trickier than what she first thought.
She removed her coat and sank onto the sofa. As if in protest to her moment of rest, the phone rang loudly on the table next to her. She grabbed it reluctantly, recognising Dick's number.
"Missing me already?" She said sarcastically.
"Totally. Sorry. I just realized, we didn't plan our next date." Sure enough, Grayson answered on the other side. June sighed again.
"You sound reluctant." He said melodramatically. She laughed.
"Anything but. It's just... I'm leaving soon."
"How soon?"
"In a week." She bit her lip. There was a pause.
"How far?"
"Doncaster. In England." This time the pause was even longer.
"Oh." He said.
"Sorry. We can Skype, or-"
"I'll come." She has misheard him. She must have.
"Pardon?"
"You're alone, and you could do with someone to keep an eye for you. If it's okay." She had heard right after all.
"But it's... It's in a week!" She searched desperately for an excuse; she hardly knew this guy, unless you counted the dreams.
"I don't have much stuff to pack-"
"No," she shook her head firmly. "I'm sorry. I can't... This is something I need to do alone." Looking back on it, the sentence sounded suspicious. But it was out of her mouth before she could stop herself. It was Dick's turn to sigh; she didn't understand. He would find a way. Heroes always do.
"Fine. I can see why you would say that." He tried to not sound patronising - despite everything, he didn't want to overstep his bounderies. She smiled with relief.
"Thank you for understanding. We can still go on a date if you want." June felt she had to make up for lost time.
"A date every night?" They both chuckled.
"Sure. Why not?" June said surprisingly. Wow. She was actually buying into this.
"Um... okay. Can I come to your place, say, tomorrow?" He suggested. She sucked the air between her teeth: that's not a lot of time to tidy and clean up. Oh well. She would find a way.
"Er, yeah. I... I'll manage that." She said.
"Okay. See you then." Dick ended the call. June put her head in her hands. She took a few deep breaths, then looked to the ceiling. She had approximately twenty four hours to get everything packed and ready. Plenty of time, really. She just had to muster up the motivation...