Until We Met Again ( Rowan and Johnson )
Chapter 37

Chapter 37

Karla had a dream.

In it, 12–year–old Rowan sat on the floor, embracing his knees, his gaze fixed unblinkingly on the closet door as if awaiting something.

She watched as Burk entered calling for him, but Rowan remained unmoved, forsaking food and drink. Meals turned cold and were taken away. He sat like that for two days until Burk came over and patted his shoulder, only then realizing his eyes were red from crying.

Karla saw him, disheartened and desolate, murmur, “She’s gone. She doesn’t want me anymore.”

“Am I really so horrible? Is that why she doesn’t want me either?”

“She doesn’t want me anymore.”

The young boy buried his face in his knees, his voice hoarse and choked as he repeated those hurtful phrase, over and over.

He allowed himself to fall into a dark abyss, plummeting endlessly, without even the desire to struggle because the only person who could reach down and pull him up had let

1. go.

When Karla awoke, she found tears at the corners of her eyes. She washed her face, staring at her own worried reflection in the mirror, and sighed deeply, “He can’t really believe I don’t want him, can he?”

She wanted to convince herself it was just a dream, not real, and not to overthink it. Yet, that dream was so vivid. And sitting stubbornly in front of a closet, waiting for her without eating or drinking, was exactly what he would do.

A wave of guilt and self–reproach engulfed her, making Karla want to rush over and tell him it wasn’t at all as he imagined.

The more she thought, the more agitated she became, until she let out a groan, “Ah! This is driving me crazy! He’s always jumping to the worst conclusions. Who said I don’t want. him?”

In the end, her worries coalesced into a single sigh.

Karla left the house at seven sharp, with just a backpack. Not wanting to inconvenience her dad with a drive to the airport so early, she stepped out of her place, ready to hail a ride through an app, when a taxi pulled up right in front of her.

Just as Karla was admiring the driver’s keen eye, the rear window rolled down and there was Henry, casually dressed, greeting her with a cheery, “Good morning, Karla.”

Raising an eyebrow, she got into the car and learned that Henry had already booked his ticket to accompany her to Fox Hollow. “Karla, didn’t we agree you’re not supposed to go off on your own? I wouldn’t have known you were off to see my aunt If I hadn’t asked Una, Henry complained with a hint of annoyance.

Karla, puzzled, asked, “You aunt?”

Yeah, you were going to see Professor Polly and Professor Wayne in Fox Hollow, right? Professor Polly is my aunt. As for how we’re related, it’s a bit complicated.”

This was a surprise to Karla; she hadn’t expected Henry to have such a connection to the person she was looking for.

“Look, Karla, you can relax. I know Fox Hollow like the back of my hand. After we land, let’s skip the hotel. I spoke to an uncle of mine, and he’s got plenty of space–a whole empty apartment downtown that we can use,” Henry assured her, thumping his chest.

Karla was taken aback. The guy seemed so average on the surface, but behind the scenes, he was well–connected? What kind of high rollers were in his family?

Henry was completely unaware of how he sounded, and boasted, “We’ve got a lot of relatives, and we’re all really close. Whenever we travel, we never have to worry about a place to stay.”

“Alright, alright, I get it. You’re making me jealous, so zip it.” Karla thought to herself.

The flight from where they were to Fox Hollow took a little over two hours, plus the usual flight delays. By the time they arrived in Fox Hollow, it was already 11 AM.

Henry hailed a taxi and gave the driver an address, heading for his uncle’s vacant apartment downtown.

Karla didn’t want to cause any trouble and planned to meet Professors Polly and Wayne and then catch a return flight the same day. But Henry insisted on making a big deal. about it, claiming that visiting Polly wasn’t that easy. One needed an appointment and her agreement, which meant staying in Fox Hollow for at least two days. Considering his connections, Karla relented and went along with his plan.

“We’re almost there, Karla. Just beyond this alley.” Henry announced, hurrying ahead to show her the way. Karla looked up just in time to see Henry dart around the corner.