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Soulmate: Chapter 1

Page 7 of 7

Thankfully she hadn't seen me yet. For a moment, I stood and just watched her. No-one else was approaching these doors, nor was anyone leaving the station, so they stayed shut, a transparent, but safe, barrier between us. She was in her world and I was standing on its threshold.

Lizzie looked more petite than I remembered her, probably because her personality towered over mine so much as we grew up. She was decked out in apricot linen - flowing trousers and fitted top - that set off her long, curly strawberry hair. She had a tan shoulder bag and a carry-on bag at her feet. Her hands were neatly folded in front of her. She looked like an elegant jet setter waiting for a limo.

I noticed my ghostlike reflection in the glass. I saw a tall woman whose only curves were rather-too-generous hips. I stared at the plain face that stared back at me, defying me to find a redeeming quality. What, for instance, had Nigel seen in me? Had he actually seen anything? Or was I a safe flirt, like I'd been for so many guys, who'd thought of me as no more than a good friend. Someone they could perfect their pick-up lines on, because I'd know they weren't serious. Rarely had it happened for real.

I could still see Lizzie beyond my glass reflection. My image was superimposed over hers. Her head rose as high as my inconsequential chest. I dwarfed her, yet it gave me no sense of power. I felt big and sloppy. I should have put on some decent clothes.

Anyone seeing our parents could trace our genetic ancestry, but when it came to the pick and mix of our makeup, we'd somehow ended up at totally opposite ends of the spectrum. Visually, there appeared to be no common ground between us. In reality, there was loads; far too much of it, in fact. And most of it had been mine until she'd taken it away.

The train station's sliding doors flew open. I jumped. A man brushed past me. Lizzie head snapped round, as though she too had been jerked out of some sort of reverie. For an unguarded second, I saw her eyes widen and dart with fear.