Rainbow connection

What she would have wanted

Its a bit short and sad, but I hope you like it! X

It was with a heavy heart when Joe stepped out of Perth airport and felt the Australian sun penetrate his skin. He wasn't really sad anymore, to be honest he wasn't really anything, just numb. Numb and heavy.

He got into a taxi, gave the address he'd given so many times before and silently stared out of the window for the next two hours. Australia hadn't physically changed; the coast was still beautiful with a strong contrast between the light sand and electric blue sea. They drove through areas of forest that was thriving, and areas that were still charcoal as a result of the summers bushfires. Despite the comforting familiarity of his surroundings, to Joe, Western Australia was different. He no longer had anyone to chuckle at the birds with, or gape at the sunrise which was starting to take hold as the new day started.

As the taxi approached Bunbury, Joe began to notice the places that had meant so much to his Girlfriend her entire life. He remembered how when he first visited Bunbury, her face lit up when she saw her school, or her dance studio, or even the park where she'd had her first kiss. Joe now observed these places and swallowed thickly, he still wasn't upset, not anymore.

The taxi pulled up outside the house where Joe had shared so many memories with her, and he steadily forced himself out. Despite the jet lag, the YouTuber didn't feel tired, just nervous comprehending the discussion he was about to have. He was also confused, hence why he'd come out here on his own.

As Rina pulled Joe into a loving hug, kissing his head softly and wiping a tear from her own face and breaking Joe's heart. This conversation was going to be tougher than he thought.

"How are you?" He asked hoarsely, having not used his voice properly for 24 hours.

"I'm alright, come on inside we've set up your room." Rina smiled genuinely, picking up half of the YouTuber bags as he slowly dragged himself up the path.

"Mark, nice to see you." Joe said, as the man sat on the sofa came into view, he shook his hand tightly and nodded at the Australian he admired so much.

When everything and gone wrong, Dianne's parents had been there for him, her whole family had come to England for the funeral and stayed in Joe's house for weeks until they felt he was strong enough to leave alone. Joe supposed it also went the other way, Joe and tried to support her parents as much as he possible could when he saw no reason to get up everyday, no reason to smile.

"So I wanted to tell you in person." Joe said softly, a few hours later with a tea in his violently shaking hand. "I know it's coming up to 3 years and I still love Dot more than anything in the world." Joe swallowed, trying to hold back the tears that were threatening to spill. He needed to speak to Mark and Rina without upsetting them too much. "But erm.. gosh this is tough... I've found someone, and it's going well, and I was going to announce it in the next few weeks but I won't if you don't want me to." Joe said softly, his voice breaking at the end. The living room was bringing back more memories than he could've ever anticipated and instantly he felt a wave of guilt that he'd even looked at another woman.

"Oh Joe that's wonderful!" Rina exclaimed, pulling the Brit into a tight hug as she noticed soft sobs escape his lips. "It's what she would've wanted Joseph." She whispered.

"It's what she definitely wanted," Mark added, "She always wanted you to be happy and she'd have hated the idea of you spending the rest of your life alone.

"Thankyou, I feel so dirty and guilty and it's so confusing but I think you're right?" Joe asked, weakly rubbing his eyes.

"Of course," Rina comforted, "Thank you so much for telling us Joe, it's really appreciated."

"No thank you for letting me stay here, I've missed it here." Joe sighed, looking out of the window at the beach he'd loved visiting.