A/N:
So I probably would have had this up yesterday but I had the worst migraine all evening and I just couldn't finish it so here it is.
It was getting kinda long for my taste so I just found a place to end and did, sorry :P
Did a POV change in this one, just to give a bit of a change since it worked well in the first story.
Read, Enjoy and Please Review. It's hard to update when I feel like no one is reading.
"Okay, so what's on the agenda for today?" Emily asked the next morning as we sat around the table eating breakfast.
"The Tower of London, The London Dungeons and a visit to Trafalgar Square, then out to dinner."
"Hey Spence can we-" Hanna began, and knowing what she would ask I cut her off.
"No."
"Oh come on! One night out won't kill you! Come on! We're legally allowed to drink here so we wouldn't be doing anything wrong!" she said nodding furiously. I paused and looked at her for a moment.
"MAYBE. We'll see okay?" I said, just trying to shut her up.
"Yay!" she said happily, clapping her hands in quick succession.
"Okay come on, let's get going, London isn't gonna wait around!" Aria said, excitedly jumping up from her seat and making her way towards the door.
-XXXX-
"Alright, first stop is the London Dungeons then we'll do the Tower and then head to the Square, does that sound good to everyone?"
"Hey Spence can we go to the art house and see if we can get to a show before we go?" Aria pulled my arm around her shoulders as she smiled up at me as we left the station.
"Sure, we can go before we go to the Square after lunch."
"Thanks." I kissed her forehead and we walked toward the Dungeons.
After buying tickets we made our way inside. Everything quickly became eerie as the main buildings doors and lights left us behind and we were left to our own devices. Our first stop was Descent, which brought us deep into the dungeons. Next we were ushered into Henry's boat and we all held on tightly to each other, hoping wandering fingers and hands were belonging to one of us and not something or someone crawling from the stream beneath us. Shudder.
After the chilling boat ride we were trapped in darkness for what felt like 5 years of my life, with horrible sounds and smells surrounding us, trying our best to get out of there as fast as possible we shuffled along with merit.
Unfortunately the only thing that got us was our encounter with Mrs Lovett and Mr. Todd arrived sooner rather than later. After running away from the Barber and his pie making compadre we headed straight into the den of Jack the Ripper. He was a delight. Mostly on the charming side of creepy. I swear Hanna was even trying to flirt with the guy, and after much persuasion we had to convince her to leave the serial killer labyrinth so we could go to someone else's. She was disappointed.
After we escaped the Drop to signify the end, we hurried the hell out of that place as quickly as possible. Running straight into the gift shop so Hanna could get a T-Shirt with Jack's face enlarged on the front. Aria still hadn't let go of my hand and was deathly gripping onto it like her life depended on it.
"It's okay sweetie, we're outside now." I whispered in her ear as she loosened her grip and linked our arms instead.
After Hanna had purchased all of her Ripper souvenirs, we got on our way to the Tower of London.
On arrival, we got our tickets and were quickly ushered into a waiting room designated for each tour group. Our guide arrived a short while later and took us around the Tower, showing us the Crown Jewels and explaining all the different events in the history of Britain.
About halfway through, I noticed Hanna yawning excessively and knew that she must be hating every minute of this. As we made our way around I kept an eye on her and Emily, seeing Emily keeping her amused for the second half of the tour so she wouldn't start whining.
"Well that was the most boring hour of my life." Hanna said a while later as we found a nice place to sit down and have lunch.
"Well, it's over now so you don't have to go through it again."
"Good. I came to London to have a good time, not get a history lesson. I not even interested in American history nevermind a country I've never been to before." She said before taking a bite from her tub of salad.
"I kind of have to agree with Hanna, it was kind of fun but I'm not much for the history of other countries." Emily said shrugging.
"I actually thought it was really cool." Aria chimed in. "I mean, it's over 10 centuries old and it's been a fortress, a palace AND a prison in that time? What those walls must have seen. I think it's pretty incredible." She said simply.
"I love you so much." I said, pulling her into a sideways cuddle. She laughed and looked at me funny.
"Because I like history and learning interesting things about different countries and their cultures to better my knowledge of the world?" she paused and stared at me. I grinned. "Oh my god, I'm giving you like a brain orgasm right now aren't I?" she said with a laugh.
"Pretty much. I love that you love things like that. I love things like that." I smiled and snuggled into her.
"Well sorry that Emily and I just don't want to be cultured like you two nerds." Hanna said.
"I know you do Spence," Aria continued, ignoring Hanna, "that's one of things I love about you, the fact that you're interested in knowing information that may seem pointless to others." She immediately turned and looked at Hanna with her eyebrows raised and a slight smirk.
"Hey, I like what I like and don't like what I don't like okay. Sorry, jeez." She took another bite of her salad and we all laughed at her munching happily, without remembering a single piece of information she had learned.
-XXXX-
"Okay, everyone ready?" Emily asked as we finished eating our lunch.
"Yup, so you guys are going to the Square and we'll meet you there in a little while." I said, taking Aria's hand in mine.
"How do we know which train to get? What if we get lost?" Hanna asked with concern evident on her face.
"Don't worry Han, Spencer showed me the way to go and all the trains we have to get, we'll be fine." Emily smiled reassuringly.
"Okay, fine… but if I die…" Hanna began
"Yes, yes you'll blame me. I know the procedure." I said rolling my eyes.
She mumbled something and then her and Emily began walking toward the station to catch their train, while Aria and I caught our own to go to the art house and see what kind of shows were on this week.
After we exited the station at Holborn we made our way toward the gallery. We walked up the few stone steps and through the clear glass doors and to the service desk where an attractive woman in her mid-20's sat typing loudly, the sound echoing through the very large, open space surrounding the desk which was completely marble. As we approached the desk the woman looked up from the screen she was staring at and glanced in our direction.
"I'll be with you in 5 minutes, so if you'd like to take a seat over there." She pointed to a large black leather sofa to the side of the room. I nodded curtly and we took a seat.
"This place is huge." I said absently.
"I know. It's fantastic." I noticed Aria looking around with admiration at the mosaic lined across the ceiling and partially on the walls. She noticed the sculptures and displays, and watching her watch the pieces of art work before us was becoming one of my favourite pass-times. Seeing the look in her eyes as she marvelled at the creations she was examining was unlike anything else. It was pure joy and happiness. It was love.
"How may I help you?" the woman had risen from her seat and was now standing in front of us.
"Oh, yes, we were wondering if there are any exhibitions or shows on in the gallery this week?" I asked politely.
"Yes, we had a show on just last night and we also have one on this Wednesday evening at 7pm." She acknowledged Aria with a smile when she saw the glint of happiness in her eye after receiving this news.
"Fantastic! Would it possible for us to perhaps buy some tickets with you?"
"Unfortunately…" she smiled tightly. Too tightly. "This Wednesday evening is the student's exhibition show. There are curators from around Europe coming to see this show and tickets are very limited for the student show every year, I'm afraid they've been sold out for about 2 months."
I could see Aria's heart drop through her eyes. I only saw that look once before, and it was because of me. I won't let that look be because of me again.
"Of course, I understand that, but isn't there any way we could attend? We're only here for a few days and we've really been looking forward to it." I asked her desperately.
"I'm afraid there's nothing I can do." She smiled, slightly sadder this time.
"It's okay Spence, let's just go." Aria said with a sad smile.
"No, not yet."
"Spencer. It's fine." She said. I looked at her and then back at the woman.
"Excuse me for just one moment." I said politely to the woman.
"I'm gonna try and get us some tickets, why don't you go and get us some coffee and by the time you get back, I'll have worked my Hastings magic." I grinned widely. She giggled.
"Okay, fine. Meet me outside on the steps in 20 minutes" she leaned in and gave me a chaste kiss on the lips before disappearing through the door. I turned and walk back toward the desk where the woman had sat back down.
"Is the art director here? Perhaps I could speak with him about the show?"
Let the magic begin.
-XXXX-
Aria's POV
I walked outside into the sunshine; disappointed knowing there was no way in hell Spencer would get tickets for that show. I know how stubborn she is so I decided to just let her fail in her own way, it meant a lot to me and I know that's why she's doing it, so I guess I'll just have to wander around for the next little while.
As I began walking, I spotted a large green area that was bathed in sunshine, with some tall trees offering the only shaded relief. I started walking through, noticing a large red brick building in the heart of park. The sun was situated behind the steeple at the top, while small shards of light were breaking through.
I spotted a bench up ahead and took a seat, pulling the sketch pad from my satchel as well as some 2B, 6B and 8B pencils. What? I have to carry them everywhere in case of an inspiration strike. I need as much as possible for my Portfolio.
I began sketching, outlining the main features of the scene in front of me, before adding some shading and texture. Using the side of my index to rub through the charcoal like pencil on the page, I corrected the light streaming passed the steeple on my page. I was adding the last few details when I felt my phone buzz in my pocket. It was a message from Spencer.
Spencer: Where did you go? Did London eat you? Is it like some sort of giant washing machine, but instead of socks it likes people? O_O
Aria: Sorry, I went to look around and got distracted. I'll be there in 5 minutes.
After I pressed send I felt a shudder go through me and turned to see a young looking guy sitting on the bench beside me and I jumped out of my skin.
"Holy shit!" I yelled, my hand moving to my chest to steady my panicked heart.
"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. I just… I saw you drawing from across the grass and you looked so focused, I wanted to see what you were doing." He said, smiling crookedly at me, his smile showing me the very early signs of crow's feet gracing the sides of his eyes. So I guess he wasn't as young as I first thought. Maybe late 20's, early 30's.
"You scared the hell outta me." I said, breathing deeply.
"Sorry…" he paused and looked at me again. He held out his hand, "I'm Lewis."
I took him in for a moment. Clad in jeans and a shirt, with dirty black converse. His hair was tousled and very dark. His eyes were piercingly blue and pooled like the Caribbean sea, making them very entrancing. He seemed to be genuine and pretty harmless, so I took his hand and shook it.
"I'm Aria."
"Nice to meet you Aria. That's not a very common name you have there."
"Yeah, tell me about it. I used to get teased about it. Quite a bit actually."
"Well I think it's a fantastic name, now you can just tell anyone who says otherwise that you're Aria Stark and you'll kick their butt if they say anything against your name again."
"You like Game of Thrones. We can definitely be friends then." I smiled. He smiled back. I liked this guy.
"So, can I see what you've drawn?" he asked, smiling again, and I looked around for a moment. "I studied art in University, I'm just intrigued to see your style." I handed him my sketch pad and looked at my feet. He paused for a moment before he started to flick through the pages. I found it kind of strange but I didn't say anything.
"These are amazing. Really, all of them are beautiful. Who is this?" he asked, showing me a sketch I had done recently. I smiled at the beautiful brunette displayed on the page before me. The same brunette who was probably arguing with a secretary right now.
"That's my girlfriend, Spencer."
"She's beautiful. You guys clearly aren't from around here…" he trailed.
"Um, no. We're from Philadelphia. We're actually just visiting on Spring Break with our 2 friends, it's our senior year so our parents thought it would be cool to send us on a trip to celebrate."
"That is pretty cool, but… your friends leaving you on your own in a strange country isn't that cool though is it" he laughed. I laughed back.
"Oh no, they didn't leave me. Spencer and I were trying to get tickets to an exhibition this week but it's apparently sold out, so…" I trailed and sighed.
"You mean the student exhibition on in UAL this week?" he asked.
"Yeah, you know it?"
"That's where I studied. I've got some spare tickets, you could have them if you'd like?" he said.
"You did? You do? Oh my god, are you serious right now?" I jumped up from the bench in excitement. I wanted to hug the life out of this guy but I barely knew him and I'm pretty sure the British are against showing emotion in public. Or any kind of emotion at all. Ever.
"Of course, past students get tickets but I have no one to take so I have spares. Is 4 for you and your friends enough?"
"Oh my god, yes! Thank you so much, I don't even know what to say!"
"It's my pleasure. Anyone that is as good an artist as you deserves to see some of the fantastic art that's hot right now." He smiled.
My phone started ringing and I was jolted out of my fantasy. I gave Lewis an apologetic look and answered.
"Hello?"
"Aria? Are you okay? It's been like 10 minutes did you get lost?"
"No, no I'm sorry I got distracted again, I WILL be there in 5 this time. I'll see you soon." I hung up the phone and threw it in my bag.
"I take it that was Spencer?"
"Yeah, I better get back."
"Sure thing. I'll leave the tickets at the reception for you and you can just collect them before you go through into the exhibit."
"That would be amazing, thank you."
"What's your last name?"
"Montgomery. Aria Montgomery." I smiled.
"Well Aria Montgomery from Philadelphia. It was an absolute pleasure to meet you today." He took my hand and shook it gently, smiling widely at me the whole time.
"Thank you so much you don't know how much this means to me."
"You're most welcome. I will see you on Wednesday evening." He said, handing me back my sketch pad.
"See you then." I smiled and skipped along happily making my way toward the gate and out of the park.
I rounded the corner and saw Spencer waiting for me on the steps outside the building.
"There you are, I was about to call the fire brigade." She said jokingly.
"Sorry, I found this park around the corner and just started drawing. I lost track of time."
"As long as you're okay I don't mind. So. Bad news. Bitch in there wouldn't budge an inch and kept on saying that there was no tickets. I asked to see the director and everything and she gave me the usual 'he isn't here' response just to get me out of there. I bat my big brown eyes at her and: nothing. She must be REALLY straight, I mean that usually works for me on everyone."
"It's okay Spence, I got tickets." I said grinning.
"What? How?!" she yelled excited.
I filled her in on what happened in the park and told her how Lewis would be leaving tickets at the reception for us to collect.
"Sounds like he has a crush on you." She said, laughing slightly.
"Oh he does not. He said you were beautiful you know." I said raising my eyebrows at her.
"I like him already."
"Alright cocky, let's go before Hanna starts getting separation anxiety."
I took her hand as we stood up and began walking towards the train station to meet the others.