LOOKING THREE YEARS INTO THE PAST

WHEN GAIA WAS A CHILD HER FATHER USED TO TEACH HER THINGS LIKE ADVANCED CALCULUS, FRENCH AND KUNG FU, WHEREAS HER MOTHER USED TO TEACH HER THAT IT WAS POLITE TO SAY PLEASE AND THANK YOU, AND RUDE TO STARE AND POINT AT PEOPLE. If her mother was right then Gaia was definitely being rude, as she couldn't stop staring at the man who had just walked through the door.

She felt like she was looking three years into the past as she stared at Ed; he looked exactly as she remembered. The only difference was that his hair was vaguely neater and he was wearing a dress shirt, which gave the impression that he was leaning towards a smart-casual look instead of skate-rat these days.

ALL THE AIR IN ED'S LUNGS PUFFED OUT WITH ON LOUD "OOF" AS GAIA JUMPED ON HIM. As Gaia wrapped her arms around him, Ed let a small smile spread across his lips. While having Gaia hug him was unusual, it certainly felt nice. A tingle shot through Ed's skin as Gaia whispered "I missed you" against his neck.

"Did I just step into an alternate universe?" Ed half-joked.

"Excuse me?" Gaia pulled back and stared at Ed with eyes that were glistening with unshed tears.

"The Gaia I knew would never hug me, especially in public. She also would never wear a suit. You're wearing suit." Ed's eyes widened in surprise as he finally let himself look at Gaia. Apart from the blood shot eyes and slightly muzzled hair, she looked incredibly smart.

Gaia shyly pulled on the hem of her shirt. "I know," she said with shrug. "I wish jeans were part of the FBI's dress code. Not only are they more comfortable, it would have saved me a lot of shopping."

Yet again, his lips lifted into a smile. Ed found it reassuring that Gaia hadn't turned into a shoe obsessed Carrie Bradshaw during the past three years. It filled him with hope that apart from the FBI thing she was still the same girl he knew and loved back in New York.

GAIA CRINGED INWARDLY. Her voice warbled stupidly every time she spoke. To make things worse, she had to blink heavily every few seconds to stop herself from crying. Gaia had expected to get emotional over seeing Ed again, but she hadn't bargained on getting this emotional.

For the past twenty minutes, Ed had been telling her all about his time at NYU. She had felt a pang when he mentioned Kai, but quickly pushed the feeling aside and replaced it with a content feeling of knowing that Ed had been happy.

Ed paused to take a swig from his lemonade. "Tell me about your time at university. You said you went to Stanford, right?"

"Yeah, I went to Stanford for three years. I studied Chemistry," Gaia replied, managing to sum up three years in three seconds.

Ed leaned forward slightly on his stool and raised one eyebrow. "And...?"

"And what? That's it."

Ed made a sceptical face as he leaned back, causing Gaia to feel a strange aching in her chest. "That's it? Nothing interesting happened to you?"

Gaia shifted through all her memories of Stanford. Most of them were about studying. "A guy called Kevin tried to blow up the class on graduation day," she replied with a shrug.

Ed choked on his drink.

Wiping lemonade from around his mouth, Ed spluttered "What happened?"

"I threw him off the building and then he was arrested by the FBI."

Ed slammed down his glass on the bar, causing his remaining drink to spill over the wood surface.

"Oh. Never a dull moment in your life, is there?" Ed laughed weakly, his eyes flickering between Gaia and the bar. "I think I need another drink."

Gaia mentally hit herself over the head. She had been around Ed for less than an hour and already she was letting him get sucked into her world of violence and danger. Gaia had promised herself years ago that she would not let anything harm Ed. While telling him about Kevin may not have put him in immediate danger, Gaia worried that by having Ed around she was placing him in the path of all the other Kevins in the world.

Just like with Jake.

Bile rose in Gaia's throat. Thinking about Jake automatically called forward thoughts about Will. Both had died because of her. Because they cared for her and she cared about them.

Enough Gaia. You called Ed here to mend this cycle. Now order him a damn drink!

Gaia motioned for a bartender to come over.

She felt her lips instantly bend into a smile as Kelly's (one of her very few friends) form hoved into view.

"Hello Gaia. I didn't know you were here tonight," Kelly drawled in her Virginia accent. "And who is this fine looking man you have with you?" Kelly's eyes fixed into Ed, who immediately began to blush under her stare.

"Kelly, this is Ed. Ed this is Kelly. She runs this joint."

Ed, who was trying to ignore his bright red cheeks, said, "Your bar is very nice, Kelly," in a cheery and friendly tone.

"Why thank you. Now Ed, I'm guessing you're not a trainee along with Gaia here as I haven't seen you round here before. So tell me, how do you two know each other?"

Wanting to remove Kelly's focus from Ed, Gaia replied to her question. "Ed and I went to high school together."

Kelly raised a questioning and curious eyebrow. "Oh, really?" Before she could say anymore, she was summoned back into the kitchen. Quickly saying goodbye, Kelly rushed off to talk to the chefs.

Gaia considered apologising to Ed for Kelly's keen interest in him, but Ed spoke first.

"Kelly's your friend?"

"Well I let her take me out for a day of shopping and beauty treatments, so yes, I would say she was my friend." Gaia didn't know whether to smile or come over with a sudden case of denial when she remembered that day. She had needed a distraction but Kelly had failed to fully take Gaia's mind of the mess that was her life.

Ed's face split into a grin. "Shopping? You let her take you shopping?" Ed shook his head in mock disgust. "My my Gaia. You have lost your standards. Once upon a time if someone had just mentioned shopping, they would have ended up with a broken nose!"

"What? Like the one you're going to have if you don't shut up?"

Gaia marvelled at the contentness she felt. Bantering with Ed was something she hadn't realised she had missed. Gaia was considering teasing Ed at bit more when a large yawn escaped her mouth.

"Tired?" Ed asked.

"Yeah, I just came from work. You know I finally understand why my father was absent so much during her life: I doubt his bosses ever let have any time off the job. It certainly feels like that working for the FBI. Everything's pretty chaotic," Gaia replied. "Also doesn't help that I haven't been sleeping well recently."

Gaia felt her blood run cold as Ed looked at her questioningly. She couldn't believe she had just said that.

Great. Just great Gaia. Go ahead and tell Ed that you have been having nightmares about Will's death.

But there was no turning back. Besides, Gaia reasoned with herself, maybe it would be a good idea if she talked about it with a friend. Before Ed could say anything, Gaia said, "Let's get out of here."

ED FELT ABUSED. During the last half-hour he had been asked endless questions, had his identity checked in several databases, and had the entire contents of his bag and car examined. The FBI personnel had then taken his fingerprints and a photo of him. There had also been a lot of prodding and poking involved, which had left Ed with the belief that he now had at least five bruises. By the time they had handed him a temporary pass, Ed wanted nothing more than to be a million miles away from their prying eyes and jabbing fingers.

Feeling a strong sense of relief, Ed followed Gaia down the corridor and out through a thick metal door into a courtyard. The courtyard was bordered by blank, multi-storey buildings and dotted with some potted plants. Ed imagined that in the daytime it would look a bit like a university campus.

Gaia - who had already strode across the courtyard at her break neck speed - was waiting for him in front of another heavy looking door. The dim light cast from the building's windows highlighted the gold in Gaia's hair. It was only then that Ed realised that her hair was now shorter than it used to be. Before, it hung half way down her back. Now it fell just below her shoulders. It's new length helped to make her look more sophisticated.

Ed followed Gaia through into the next building. The only sound was his trainers squeaking on the plastic floor and the clip-clop of Gaia's boots. However, Ed was certain that if he listened closely enough, he could also hear the sound of his heart beating.

ALL EYES WERE STARING AT HIM. Earlier Ed had just felt nervous, but now he felt petrified. While the uniform corridors and stairwells had been relatively empty, everyone that Ed had passed had stared at him as if he were a lab rat; just there to be observed. Having Gaia's friend Kelly taking a keen interest in him had been awkward enough - and rather embarrassing - but this was just painful.

Ed briefly wondered if this was how Gaia had felt in high school. Then he realised that the woman walking towards them was staring at Gaia; not him. Obviously she was still getting unwanted attention.

Gaia stopped mid-stride and glanced at the woman up ahead, who promptly sped up and scuttled past. Once the woman had disappeared, Gaia reached into her jacket pocket and pulled out a key. She then took the final few steps to a nearby door and shoved the key into it's lock. Gaia turned the handle, causing the door to click open.

Ed followed Gaia into the room. Once inside he let his eyes take in its contents. There were two beds: one unmade and one covered in stuff. Next to the door was a desk, with a laptop and a selection of books on top. There was also a window with the curtains still drawn across it, a large wardrobe and two chests of drawers.

"Erm, do you have a roommate?" Ed asked, his eyes drifting from the bed that Gaia was now sitting on to the one overflowing with clothes.

"No." Ed saw a muscle twitch in Gaia's jaw. "Not anymore."

Ed didn't know which was worse, the angry look she had been wearing out in the hallway, or the bitter expression she wore at that moment. He tried to think of a way to change the subject and make Gaia smile like she (almost) had done back at the bar. However Gaia beat him too it.

"I hope you don't mind the mess. It seems being tidy is not in my genes."

The memory of each of Gaia's past bedrooms back when she lived in New York flicked through his mind. He clearly remembered that when Gaia had shared a room with her distant cousin Tatania, her side of the room had been a rubbish trip while Tatania's and been clean and neat.

A smirk pulled at his mouth. "You won't be Gaia otherwise."

Gaia gave him a little nod, then fixed him with an unwavering gaze. "No I wouldn't be Gaia," she said slowly. "But right now I'm not so sure I want to be Gaia anymore." Ed stared at her, wondering where Gaia was going with this conversation. She seemed to inwardly collapse under his stare. Ed watched as she briefly looked away from him and sighed. "There's something I need to tell you."