Glimpses

Chapter 70

April 23rd, 2022

"Is it weird that I'm going?" Logan asked, thoughtfully, after a lenghty silence, as he was packing up his small suitcase. He was leaving for London the next morning to help his sister out with a few projects she seemed to be struggling with and had wanted a second opinion on. Technically he was just a volunteer advisory at this point, but it didn't feel like it.

Rory was just brushing her teeth, at the same time using her other hand to gather up any dirty items of clothing to put into the laundry basket that she hadn't had the time to put away earlier that day. She wasn't a prime example of a tidy person, but thankfully she liked the process of decluttering before going to bed just the same, which felt like a good compromize for Logan, who was used to much neater settings.

"Is it weird for you?" Rory asked in return, taking the toothbrush from her mouth for a moment. Had it been anywhere else than London, it wouldn't have been weird at all. But London was the epicenter of pain for him, and truthfully Rory was worried.

"A little," Logan said, placing his packing cube of socks, t-shirts and underwear into the gray Delsey Turenne suitcase he'd recently purchased. He was mentally trying to go in as fresh as possible, which meant different clothes, several notches down from the uptight suit and dress-shirt combination his father used to require at the office usually. He knew there was no real rule other than his word, and he wanted to show another type of atmosphere and attitude, even if it wasn't under his or the company's control anymore. But as a consultant he had that freedom to make a statement that he didn't necessarily belong. He was also a little concerned about what the other employees would think. Did they consider him the traitor who'd abandoned ship? Was his return something to give them the wrong kind of hope?

Rory headed for the bathroom to rinse her mouth and as she returned, she approached from behind him and wrapped her arms around his torso, holding him, her chin resting on his shoulder for a minute.

"I do wish I could come," Rory sighed. She had a similarly negative connotation with London even if not as severe. She hadn't been there since that one last time late spring 2016. It almost would've felt like they were doing something forbidden had she went along. It took a lot of mental assurance to make sure she remembered that they no longer had anything to be ashamed of, that sort of guilt, along with self-loathing, didn't just go away.

While she wanted to join him, support him, she knew she had Em to take care of, especially since Jess was going to Philadelphia next week as well, and there was her work too, naturally, though it was likely nobody would've even batted an eye if she took out a few of her sick days. But with Em still giving her the silent treatment on the topic of the baby, despite her efforts - watching topical movies, getting her some new books - she knew the girl needed her around right now, assuring that she'd always love her.

"Yeah, me too," Logan sighed, understandingly.

"I worry," Rory admitted with a sigh.

"Well what's the worst that can happen?" Logan added, lightly, wanting to remain optimistic.

Rory cast him a look of warning, being able to imagine a number of things that could happen.

"Are you going to see her?" Rory asked a moment later, after she'd just sat down on her bed and observed Logan finish packing. This was what she worried about the most. She believed Honor to be very capable in keeping Logan in check under work conditions - noticing the red flags if there were any, and in that sense she loved that Logan was just going in unofficially, not with actual obligation.

"I haven't planned to. I doubt I'll just run into her...," Logan replied, speaking of was a big city. For a while he'd been thinking about it - that perhaps she needed to talk to her to bury the hatchet, but nobody had really supported this idea besides Birdie even if Rory was understanding about it. He wasn't sure if he wanted to anymore, almost feeling like now he was protecting Rory and their child if he didn't touch the topic again. But it did feel unfinished. He didn't want to rub his happiness in, and he feared the toxicity of that interaction, unsure if he was strong enough for it.