SILVER LINED DOUBT. [JESS MARIANO]

TWENTY-SEVEN.

(heeeeeey. how y'all doin. this is.... a chapter. it is very long. i had to cut it in half because i got carried away and realized it shouldn't be as long as i actually wanted it to be. it's lacking jess, but there's some exciting characters in it that were super fun to write. there's some... ahem... developments for marley. a lot of them actually. i have mixed feelings about it, but i'm hoping y'all like the end. love u all tons! -mags)

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MARLEY SAW THAT she had a text from Jess as soon as she turned on her phone when the plane landed in Heathrow. She grimaced as she saw the notification, praying that her service provider wouldn't slap her with a giant overseas fee for receiving the message. She also prayed that whatever Jess had texted her wouldn't make her want to cry.

text me when you land so i know that you're not floating in the middle of the atlantic.

There was a sudden wave of relief that washed over her as she read his text, seeing that there was at least a little bit of normalcy for them in his words. Marley decided that the fact that he still cared about whether or not she was alive to be a good sign too.

She didn't want to imagine how upset he was with her. If not for running out on him in the midst of a fight without really even saying goodbye, then for flying out to London without an explanation and ditching him for the time being. Marley knew that Logan being the reason for it wouldn't help her case at all.

Marley figured Jess had put two and two together and realized who she'd gone to London for, as she didn't exactly know anyone else who lived there. While Jess had his reservations about Logan, Marley knew that once she explained what happened, he'd understand. Right?

But there wasn't any time to think about that. Marley had already made her move and now she had to deal with the consequences of it like an adult. She had gone to London and left that mess behind her. She would have to return to it and clean it up.

She bit the inside of her cheek as she kept staring at the message Jess had sent. She finally glanced up as she realized the people around her were getting up and grabbing their carry-ons from the overhead bins. Her fingers were shaking as she tried to send her text as quickly as possible. She wasn't sure if it was from her lack of sleep or the slight anxiety she was feeling. Perhaps it was both.

just landed. i'll explain everything later.

Marley threw her phone into her jacket pocket, giving a smile to the man who was waiting for her to leave her seat and grab her things. She struggled to get her carry on out of the bin but managed to do it after a moment. She thanked the flight attendants as she left the plane, the reality of it all finally settling in for her. 

She was in Europe. In London. Marley hadn't ever been out of the U.S before and she'd flown here on a whim to be there for a friend. She nearly laughed at the absurdity of that thought.