***Ella***
Stepping off the train at Waterloo feels strangely surreal, especially with Austin here beside me. London had always been a world of its own—bustling, towering, alive—but now, with him, it felt different. Almost unfamiliar.
"I haven't been here in years," Austin mutters as we walk hand in hand into the main station, his eyes scanning the crowd.
"I used to think London was the best place in the world," I say with a smirk, "until I found my real home."
He glances down at me, his expression softening as he squeezes my hand.
We weave through the station and descend into the underground, catching the tube toward Oxford Circus.
"Where are your parents meeting us?" he asks as we settle into our seats.
"Lunchtime, at a restaurant not too far from the shops," I reply, checking my
