Without waiting for a response, I handed her the shower gel and a facecloth, then rose and escaped from the bathroom.
It was only after I’d shut the door, I could finally breathe again.
Eighteen
sadie
“My phone’s dead,” I said from my reclined position on the couch. I’d been out of it for days, so it shouldn’t have surprised me, but I still hadn’t wrapped my mind around losing that much time. “Is my charger here?”
“No,” Theo said as he approached, “but it wouldn’t have made a difference, anyway.”
I tucked my phone beside me and shimmied into an upright position, taking the fork and steaming bowl of pasta he handed to me. “Thanks,” I said, frowning. “Why? What happened?”
“Phone lines are down.” He sank into the armchair facing me and relaxed against the backrest. “Coverage has been dropping in and out, staying off for longer each time,” he said. “Electricity, too. The power only came back on an hour before you woke up.”
When Theo was cooking, the aromas filling his apartment had my stomach growling, but my appetite hadn’t returned yet, and I had to force myself to take a bite. “I don’t know what to do,” I said, my pulse quickening as I swallowed. “My sister's supposedto be on a flight in a couple of days. She might've found out where she's touching down by now, but—” I drew a long breath, releasing it slowly. It wouldn’t help anyone if I started spiralling. “I can’t find out where or when without my phone.”
Theo rubbed the back of his neck and looked away. “Sydney,” he said, his voice low.
I licked a smear of sauce from my lip. “Sorry?”
“She's landing in Sydney in two days,” he said. “A message came through, I saw it was her and unlocked your phone with Face ID.”
My fork froze in the process of scooping up more pasta. “Wait—you talked to her? With my face?”
He’d seen me naked and bathed me, and this was the part that bothered me.
Theo ran a hand through his hair and exhaled. “More texted than talked,” he said. “I wasn’t sure you’d get another chance, so I took it while I could. I didn’t look at anything. Just texted enough to get the details you needed.”
Relief warred with unease. In normal times, having him access my phone with my sleeping face would have been cause for alarm, but none of the old rules applied anymore—and if he hadn’t done it, I’d never have known Ava’s location.
After a long silence, I rolled my shoulders and loosened the tension vibrating through me. “Thanks. At least I know she’s alive, and where she'll end up.”
She’d be an eight-hour drive from home, though. Domestic flights were reserved for government officials, and I doubted rental cars were an option anymore. I couldn’t begin to think how she’d make it back here.
“How did she sound in her messages?” I asked. “Was she stressed?”
“Hard to tell. We didn’t text for long.”
“Did you mention I was sick?”
He nodded, keeping close watch on me.
“Did you tell her I was getting better? Please tell me she's not going to board a flight thinking I'm dying.”
Theo paused and stared at the rain-drenched living room window. “I didn’t want to lie to her,” he said, locking eyes with me again. “I just told her you were hanging in there.”
I nibbled on my lower lip, torn between wishing he’d lied and being thankful he hadn’t given her false hope.
My fingers clutched the fork handle tight, and I heard my mum’s voice telling me to breathe and reset.
I’d made it through the illness. My sister would be back in the country soon, and we’d be reunited in a matter of days. If anyone could find their way home when options were limited, it was Ava—especially if she thought I was on the verge of dying.
“It’s okay,” I said, my voice breaking. I dropped the fork and steadied the bowl with both hands. “You’ve done so much for me. I’m just… this is hard. I don’t feel like myself, and I think I should just go home.”
“Here, I’ll take that.” Theo pushed off the armchair and relieved me of my food, setting it on the coffee table out of danger. He crouched beside me, resting his hand on my forearm. “Do you want to go home?”
The pressure of his hand anchored me, his warmth penetrating my sleeve. My attention bounced from his eyes to his mouth and back again. His presence brought me comfort, and I’d grown so used to his company that the idea of solitude had lost its appeal.
