It was nearly midnight by the time we arrived back at my house. With a quick cast of my senses, Alex and Mum were asleep. My red eyes turned to Leo.

“Will you stay?” I sniffed, catching my thumb between my teeth.

“Of course,” he said.

He pulled the hand away from my face and held onto it as he ushered me into the house. My mind continued with its onslaught of thoughts. It felt like whiplash as the thoughts flitted from one topic to the next. I had been sucked into my head.

The Fae knew about our past? What else did they know? There was no way I’d be able to get answers without selling something valuable.

I let myself be led to my bed, and Leo poked my forehead, snapping me back to him.

“Out of your head.”

He was referring to my anxiety; my breathing was unsteady, my heart fluttering and pins and needles in my back and legs. I felt a sense of doom and panic.

“Five things,” he reminded.

I took a shaky breath and sat on the bed.

----------------------------------------

“Soona,” he whispered, holding my hands.

Finally, my mind was calm, and my eyes and head ached. I was emotionally drained. The panic attack subsided.

“I’m sorry,” I muttered.

“What for?”

I was silent, unable to think, and resorted to shrugging my shoulders. He chuckled lightly and kissed my head.

“Bed,” he gestured, yawning.

I gladly laid, snuggled in and quickly fell asleep while Leo scrolled on his phone.

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I blinked at the harsh sunlight piercing through the trees.

“Here we go again,” I muttered, sitting upright.

The tall trees swayed as the wind whistled through them. I looked around; this time, bluebells surrounded me rather than green vegetation.

Caw!

My blood ran cold looking up; I saw a large black bird sitting… staring. Its call was high-pitched, almost nasal.

I dared not move as it hopped from branch to branch closer to me.

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“Lexi?”

Leo’s voice echoed through the empty woods. The bird took flight, moving in the opposite direction of his voice. I decided not to follow it.

“Leo,” I said, knowing he could hear me easily, no matter how far away. In the Astral, we could hear each other perfectly well.

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Walking toward the red string, we met at the old dirt road and encountered the scene we knew all too well.

“ANNA!”

Leo’s sadness erupted through me. I approached him and gently took his hand.

Caw, Caw!

We both looked up to see three large black birds. Crows.

Their insistent cawing drowned out the sobs from Edward as he held Anna.

The sound began to change, and I could hear more voices… no… It was music.

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“Do you hear that?”

Leo stayed silent and looked at me with confusion.

“The music…” I trailed, looking into the tree line behind the three crows. Why was it familiar?

Edward's scream made the crows scatter, and the music became more evident.

“Sounds like the tune John whistled,” Leo mulled, “It’s Jazz…Shall we?”

His head tilted to the tree line, and I took the lead, pulling him behind me. Curiosity burned my soul. Are we meeting a different lifetime? Or being tricked by the Fae?

I prepared myself for the inevitable death.

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The trees slowly thinned, and we exited the woods; the scene blurred before I could understand it. The change caused my stomach to drop and lurch like travel sickness.

Tinkling laughter and music filled my ears. Much louder than before.

It took a moment for my eyes to just, and I squeezed Leo’s hand, ensuring he was there.

“Looks like a casino,” he murmured, inspecting the new surroundings.

I nodded in agreement, trying to repress the nausea. Taking a deep breath, I heard the tinkering of coins, cards and shouting. Looking up, we’re surrounded by tables. Blackjack, roulette, poker, sevens, and it was bustling.

People were walking into us… Through us. We were like ghosts.

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Young men dressed in black ties and women in backless chemise dresses, lowered skirts, and hemlines. Many had bobbed hair in finger curls.

“Flapper dresses,” I murmured, “I think we are in the 1920s. Look at the finery.”

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

It was styled art deco, long smoking pipes with cigarettes on the end, drinking to the heart's content. The music fit the decade, too.

“I am done, boys. You win!” I heard a voice behind me, a lower and older voice with an American accent.

Intuition made me turn around, and I tugged Leo’s sleeve.

“I think… that’s you,” I pointed.

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I watched the gentleman leave the poker table and walk confidently to the bar. His blonde hair was slicked back with gel; he was wearing a tuxedo. His eyes were as blue as the ocean. His soul was unmistakable; It was Leo.

Leo tugged me along to follow the man.

The music changed to another unfamiliar tune as a woman sang low and slow to the beat. The man turned with a drink to look around the dance floor. I also could not help but look around at the people and faces.

“Woah. It’s strange to see some resemblance…” Leo trailed off as he inspected the man's face.

“I know… It’s the same as Edward and you… You all look similar.”

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After a few moments, the song shifted upbeat, and a man took over.

That’s when the wind shifted through the casino. The side doors opened, and two women walked in, giggling at each other.

One of them looked at the bar, and I gasped.

The necklace.

It sat around her neck like a choker. It stood out against her dark attire like a centrepiece. Her hair was black and bobbed, while her dress was black; it matched her cloche hat and white fluffy feather protruding from the headdress. Her make-up was dark. But it suited her well.

I heard a cough from behind me and turned to see the man, Leo’s old self, putting down his drink and staring at the woman while coughing.

Leo chuckled, “A dork in this lifetime, too.”

“A dork…?” I asked in disbelief.

He shrugged as the two women took a table, “I felt like a stumbling idiot when I saw you.”

I noticed her eyes never left his. Even when talking to her friend, her eyes kept meeting his. They just stared, almost like daring the other one to move.

The man on the small stage continued his melody and got louder in his rendition, “Goodbye Tootsie, goodbye!”

He put fingers in his mouth as if to whistle and sang like a canary bird.

A shiver went down my spine. John’s whistle. It was this tune. I felt Leo’s posture stiffen.

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I watched apprehensively as Leo’s past life made the first move, abandoning his drink as the short bird whistle ended and the song ended. Without saying a word or a greeting, he held a hand to her.

Glancing at her friend, she took it with a smile.

He led her to the middle of the dance floor, taking her waist; they swayed to a slower instrumental beat.

Neither one’s mouth moved. They didn’t have to talk.

Leo tugged my hand, “I remember our first dance.”

I rolled my eyes and turned to him, “You mean the nightclub in Whitby? I hardly call that dancing,” I smirked.

I noted the music getting slower, turning, Everything. The musicians, drinks being poured, and the people all slowed down to a stop. We looked at each other in confusion. What was going on?

Buzz, Buzz, Buzz, Buzz.

Leo’s alarm on his phone woke us both. I was feeling refreshed this time.

However, this trip left me with more questions.

Most importantly, what did the Fae know?

Getting up from Leo’s warm embrace, I noted the newer couple. We had yet to find out their names. What did John mean by calling me Rose? Was that her name? or another life?

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Leo’s arms wrapped around my waist, and his head peered over my writing. He kissed my shoulder before speaking.

“We haven’t been to the astral since my mother’s letter,” he murmured; his voice was gruff, and the Scottish timbre came through, making me shiver in delight.

“John and Fred seem to know your mother… and our past lives more than we anticipated,”

He was silently thinking, watching my pen scratch words into the book.

“I don’t like this,” he uttered into my skin.

I touched his head, brushing his hair, “Neither do I.”

‘Why us? Which deity did we piss off to deserve this?’

I sighed and rested my head back on his. Dropping the pen and holding his arms.

He kissed my shoulder again, “How about breakfast before I leave?”

I gave a sweet smile, “Please!”

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Opening the front door, I was pounced into a hug by Quinn and Seri. We decided a girlie day was long overdue. Quinn instantly started swaying left to right, pulling us around in a circle like dancing maidens.

“Hello,” I sang, returning the hug to them both.

“Yeah… I’m out,” Alex said, pulling on his shoes, “Going to Brandt’s!”

“Okay!” I said, smiling still, “Let me know if you want to be picked up!”

“Yeah, yeah,” he said, side-stepping the three of us and hurried out the door.

When the door shut, Quinn finally stopped and picked up the bag she had abandoned at the side of the door.

“So, Mean Girls or Devil Wear’s Prada?”

“Devil,” Seri and I said at the same time.

“Good choice,” Quinn said, moving to the TV.

“And… I have snacks and face masks!” she added.

Seri went ahead and pulled out the face masks.

“Let’s get comfy!” Seri exclaimed.

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Hair up, messy and pyjamas on a Sunday afternoon. The film was playing in the background, face masks on and under a large blanket; we put the world to rights.

“I have a bone to pick with you.” Seri pointed to me.

“Me? Why?” I asked, putting a crisp in my mouth.

“I thought you were not going to replace me.”

I looked at her like she grew an extra head; what are you talking about?

“Leo hasn’t left you alone. You’ve replaced me!” She said dramatically, putting an arm over her eyes.

Quinn and I laughed at her joke.

“Although, things have been… Strange? Difficult?” I looked away to find the right word.

I sighed instead and continued, “He’s kept me grounded.”

With a slight smile, Seri softly stated, “He’s looking after your well-being. You gave him quite a scare.”

“All of us a scare,” Quinn added, poking my knee under the blanket.

I gave an apologetic smile, “Sorry,” I continued, “I have been relying on him a lot lately. Too much, it seems.”

“Don’t be silly,” Quinn said, picking up her drink, “It’s like Devan and me. We rely on each other. You’re fated; you seek each other out in need or distress. You are working through your past lives; it will bring up trauma but make you closer.”

Quinn’s wise words rang true. The lock was gone, and our connection was more vital than ever. I found myself thinking about him and ensuring he was okay as much as he was checking on me.

Seri’s eyes caught mine, “You like him,” she stated softly.

I felt my heart skip slightly and heat rising to my cheeks.

“It’s more than a like.”

Quinn gave a knowing smile.

“Fallen or Falling?” she asked.

I looked up at the ceiling and contemplated.

Leo shows me nothing but compassion, patience, and respect. He makes my life brighter than the previous day. He is kind. He is my comfort. I did not just like him. I love him.

Home is where the heart is. My heart is with him.

I still learned things about him, but I was confident.

“Fallen,” I admitted.

“When it’s the one. It feels so easy.” Quinn smiled.

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I looked at Seri, who had picked up her phone, “And you?”

“Hm?” She did a double-take when she realised I was smirking, “What about me?”

“How’s the Coffee boy?” I ribbed.

Quinn swiped her phone and read the screen aloud.

Seri scrambled to reach the phone held in the air with a panicked look, “Quinn!”

“Hey Seri, Are you free tomorrow?”

Seri hissed, “Don’t you dare!”

I grabbed Seri, holding her down as Quinn replied, “I am free after half 3; where and when?”

Quinn said out loud, typing the message and quickly hitting send. Seri’s face rivalled Quinn's red hair.

“Quinn! I wanted to do that!” she admitted and gave up with a huff.

“Really? Because it looks like you’ve been busy,” she said, scrolling up to previous messages, “Oh la la! The flirty banter in this! Lexi, come look!”

Seri screeched, mortified, “All right! You win… I am scared!” she whined.

“About what?”

“This will be my first proper date… I feel like I am going to embarrass myself!”

“Aw, Seri,” I cooed, “If he doesn’t find you adorable, I will kick his ass.”

“… I don’t want to be adorable,” she murmured.

“Oh la la!” Quinn repeated, “She wants some action!”

“Quinn!”

We both laughed as we gave her the phone back.

“Seri, you know Quinn is the biggest cockblock of them all. Not to mention my payback for Leo and I’s first date…”

Seri went even quieter.

“Also, what I am scared of. Don’t tease me!”

“Reap what you sow,” I hinted.

Seri’s phone buzzed and flustered; she looked at her screen.

“I have a date…”

We squealed and rejoiced.