I can remember when we walked together
Sharing a love I thought would last forever

Moonlight to show the way so we can follow
Waiting inside her eyes was my tomorrow

Then something changed her mind, her kisses told me
I had no loving arms to hold me

Steven's eyes slowly blink open in the flat only illuminated by the wondering street lights and the ever so rising sun. With a sigh, he comes to terms with waking up.

Every day I wake up, then I start to break up
Lonely is a man without love

He sits up in his bed, the finish rubix cube falling down to the floor as the covers move with his body.

Every day I start out, then I cry my heart out
Lonely is a man without love

He gazes around wearily, making sure that he is truly awake and familiar with his surroundings. He flips the covers off to reveal his restrained ankle. He pulls on the restraint, just making sure that is hasn't been tampered with. He removes his restraints and climbs out of bed, his eyes fixating on the floor, staring as if to find a clue. But he finds nothing, and his first step of the day leaves a foot print in the ring of beige sand surrounding his bed.

Every day I wake up, then I start to break up
Knowing that it's cloudy above

Every day I start out, then I cry my heart out
Lonely is a man without love

He goes to the front door and places his finger along the rough fabric of the blue painters tape to make sure that the seal is unbroken. Once satisfied, he peels it off and rolls it into a ball to place into the rubbish bin.

I cannot face this world that's fallen down on me
So if you see my girl, please send her home to me

Tell her about my heart that's slowly dying
Say I can't stop myself from crying

Steven is quick to get dressed for work, opting for a button down with blue patterns and a simple grey coat. His body goes about its routine normally while his mind is off drifting in the clouds about the woman upstairs. He grabs his phone and presses it to his ear as he grabs a bottle of fish food and pours it into the tank.

" Morning, Gus. My little one-finned wonder," He announced happily, " Hello, mum. It's me. Just checkin in. I got your postcard, putting it up on Gus' tank now," the phone now lodged between his ear and shoulder as his hands grab the postcard and a thumbtack to pin up and dawn the tank along with the countless others, " Yeah, it's very nice. He is fuming though. Keeps asking why I don't take him anywhere nice," a chuckle leaves his lips as his nose crinkles, " Maybe one day, right? He'd love to get out there, but it's a bit hard with one fin, innit? Anyway, mum, all's well here. Not too bad. Still wake up every morning still feeling like I got hit by a bus. Cleo's music does help me fall asleep but... I dunno... I-I don't wanna ask too much of her. Don't want her to think I'm a loon."

Steven walks out of his flat and out of the building earlier than he should, all just for a cup of coffee.

" But, mum, she's... Cleo is just... wow," He sighs, " We're not, like, together or anything... at least I don't think so?" he ponders as he walks up to the coffee shop, the barista now seeing him as a regular and putting in his order without him having to speak it, " I-I quite fancy her, though," he pays for the drinks and grabs ahold of the carrier and walks out of the little shop, " I've been thinking about taking her on a proper date, perhaps? Loved the know if you have any advice for that," he gets closer to the front door of the building, " Anyways, sorry I missed you, mum. I'll try you again tomorrow. Laters, gators."

Steven approaches the building with a sigh, the entrance is blocked once more. The same bloke every single day.

" Hey, mate, still selling the old brushes and brooms, right? Right in front of my entrance. It's... got no problem with it. Cheers," He announces as the salesman walks passed the entrance, allowing Steven to buzz himself in.

He enters the lift with a smile on his face and a skip in his step. The doors close and the lift goes up. It slightly shakes as it reaches the top floor, but the doors open none the less. He's quick to walk out and instantly goes to the staircase. He rushes up the stairs and makes it in front of her door right on time. Steven lets out a puff of air, then fixes his curly hair before he places his knuckles against the wood door to knock.

Three knocks later, Cleo opens the door, but just enough to reveal her body, acting as a shield for the rest of her flat. Steven's eyes light up to see her, but they see something more. Her bloodshot eyes with dark rings underneath meet his, and he tilts his head and many questions pop up. Cleo's slightly greasy and unbrushed hair is pulled back into a messy ponytail. She greets him with a smile as his slowly drops.

" You alright, love?" Steven ponders, his eyebrows furrowing to reveal wrinkles on is forehead.

" Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," Cleo says, brushing off the subject as she leans on the door frame to support her weight, only breaking the eye contact to let out a tiresome yawn.

" Oh, um... h-here you go," He stutters, quickly taking her coffee out of the drink tray and handing it to her after noticing how tired she is.

" Thanks," She whispers, taking the coffee with both hands and immediately sipping the warm beverage, sighing as it seeps down her throat.

Steven watches as she consumes the drink her bought for her and can't help but notice that her fingertips are red, almost swollen. Almost as if she's been working tirelessly, and given her under eyes bags and expanding blood vessels in her sclera, all night.

" You sure you're alright?" He asks once more, " If you're too tired I can call out sick and make you a cuppa and we could just stay in--"

" I'm not tired," Cleo declares, interrupting Steven's rambling as she looks him in the eyes, " But could we take the bus today?"

" Yeah! Yeah, sure, sure. That's..." Steven trails, watching as Cleo turns her body to slide out into the hallway and then instantly closes and locks her door as if she's hiding a dead body behind it, "... fine..."

Cleo turns to face him with a patient look on her face, and Steven simply stands there and looks back at her. He's too busy gazing into her beautiful eyes to notice that neither of them are moving. All it takes is a raise of Cleo's brow for Steven's trance to be broken. He shakes his head, a way of bringing himself back to reality. He leads Cleo down the stairs and out of the building. As the vague sunlight hits her, Cleo starts to walk at a slower pace, and soon the distance between them gets longer and longer with each step. Steven looks over his shoulder to see Cleo walking sluggishly down the street, so he turns around to catch her.

" Come on now, you silly goose," He teases as he slides his hand into hers and grips it tightly, " Can't be late."

Steven walks with her to the closest bus stop to their building, and even though it's less than a few blocks, Cleo's body feels the weight of each step she takes and heavily relies on Steven's grasp and pull to keep her going.

They somehow make it to the bus stop, Steven is the first to climb onboard the bright red bus and pays for both of them with his card. His hand still holds onto Cleo tightly as he guides her inside. Unfortunately there's no seats available, so they must stand. Steven doesn't bother to grab onto the railing, he has his coffee in one hand and Cleo in the other and sadly does not have a third limb at his disposal. The bus doors close and the driver presses on the gas pedal, causing the entire bus to shake from the lack of breaks. Steven momentarily loses his balance and is forced to let go of Cleo's hand in order to stop himself from falling. He grabs the yellow pole with a death grip, then looks down at Cleo apologetically. She gives him a half hearted smile before taking another big sip of her caffeine.

The large red bus drives through the greyed streets of London with a few pops of color, acting as a mode of transport for loads of people.

Steven glances down at Cleo once more, his eyes fixating on her hand holding the cup. From far away, it would seem that the vibrations from the bus are moving her, but her hand acts independently, shaking all on their own causing brown drops to spill from the cup and out onto the lid, just daring to fall down on her skin. His eyes draw back to hers, only to find that they're frantically moving and unable to focus on any one thing. Most likely feeling the effects of the caffeine.

Steven feels a spike in his body temperature as Cleo's head begins the tilt towards his chest, her eyes becoming droopy and unable to hold themselves open. Her forehead comes in contact with his collarbone, and Steven swears his heart could explode at any moment. Her breath goes in and out at a seemingly normal pace, her eyes remaining shut as Steven acts as her pillow, and he's more than happy to do so. A dreamy smile dawns his lips at the sight of her. His head tilts up, looking around the bus as if proud of himself, like he's showing off without being egotistical.

The bus finally arrives at his stop, and Steven has to force himself to gently shake Cleo so he doesn't miss it. Her neck moves her head upwards and her eyes open to reveal the expanded red blood vessels once more. Cleo takes a deep breath as she takes Steven's hand into hers, making his heart flutter like a butterfly. He guides her off the bus, and then turns to face her on the side of the road.

" Would you like to take a cab back home? Maybe get some rest?" He offers with gentle eyes, " I-I could pay--"

" I'll walk in with you," She interjects, " I quite miss the museum."

Steven wants to argue, he really does. He can see how tired she is, not just by her outward appearance, but her eyes. Her eyes normally give away so little, but today they give away so much. They show how exhausted and overworked Cleo is, but what exactly she's overworked from remains a mystery. He gives her hand a gentle squeeze and gives her eyes a soft smile before he turns around to walk with her into the British Museum. He's careful to guide her around all the puddles marking the asphalt, not caring if he steps in one himself. They walk up the grand steps, hand in hand, something one of the security guard takes notice of. Steven pauses by one of the exhibits, seeing a little girl on a field trip stick her gum wrapper where it doesn't belong.

" I'll be right back, yeah," Steven says to Cleo, before sauntering on over to the pyramid display," Will you look at that? Looks like somebody mistook the Great Pyramid of Giza for a rubbish dump," he hunches over and gives a curious expression as if he didn't just see her put it in there.

" It's not like there's anything in there," The girl retorts.

" Yeah, maybe not," He says as he scrunches up his nose, " But, in there," he points to the sarcophagus behind a pane of glass, " Something wicked. Check it out," he brings the girl over to a different display so he can remove the trash without her seeing, " They'd take this big metal hook, right? Any they go up the old nozzle up and..." he makes a suction like sound and tops it off with a pop, " All the organs would come out. Except for the heart."

" How come?"

" Because they believed you needed your heart to be judged in the Underworld and only the worthiest would be allowed to pass through the Field of Reeds."

" And did it suck for you? Getting rejected from the Field of Reeds?"

" Well, that don't make sense cause I'm not dead, am I?... am.. I?"

" Stevie," The voice of his boss brings his attention over to the blonde woman carrying boxes, " That better not be you again."

" Sorry, Donna. Yeah, sorry. Got it," Steven says, rushing over to grab the boxes in her hands.

Donna rolls her eyes as she walks in front of him to his spot in the gift shop, leaving Steven trailing behind with the boxes that cover his eyeline.

" There we go," He mutters as he sets the boxes down on the counter.

" Don't know how many times I have to tell you this. You're not the bloody tour guide, Stevie," Donna sneers.

" Steven, actually. I am... Steven," He says as he pulls his name tag out from his pocket and places it on his breast pocket.

" No, you're bloody useless unless you're actually doing what you're paid to do... which is to sell these to children," She says as she picks up a box of snacks and drops it down on the counter in front of him

Cleo finds herself getting lost in the front room of the museum. She's staring at all the artifacts that she brought in. She founds them, she brought them here, she cleaned them, and here they sit on display. All while the museum gets to lavish in all the glory they bring without having to pay Cleo the respect she deserves. She brings the coffee cup to her lips, having to tilt it all the way up to get the remaining liquid. She brings her head back down and her eyes settle on the gift shop where she sees an unfortunately familiar face. With a sigh, she tosses her coffee in the trash and walks over to the gift shop check out with whatever energy she has left.

" Donna," Cleo announces, not at all happy to see her again.

The blonde turns around and greets her with a glare.

" Cleo," Donna says as she pops her gum, " Thought you'd been fired."

" Do I need to be an employee to come to the museum?" Cleo asks as she tilts her head.

Donna doesn't respond. She glares once more before she saunters off to make another employee miserable. Cleo turns to face Steven who still feels the lingering pressure from his boss despite her not even being here. Her eyes glance down to the snacks in front of him and her stomach suddenly grumbles from hunger. She picks up a packet of the snacks to closer examine the contents which Steven sees from the corner of his eye.

" Don't know what this has to do with Egypt really," He ventured as he picks up a packet as well, " Like, they didn't have that back then did they? No. They liked figs and dates..."

" Sugar sells nowadays," Cleo mutters, then brings her gaze back up to his big brown eyes, " Steven... um... just checking... are we still on for tomorrow?"

" Tomorrow?"

" At 7?"

" 7?"

Steven tilts his head like a cat as his mind scratches over her words.

" That's a bit late if I wanna make it for work but..." He mumbles as he tries to piece it together.

" I'm referring to our date, Steven," Cleo explains.

And although her voice is soothing and gentle, it makes Steven's eyes nearly pop out of his head.

" Date?" He exclaims, " We... we're... we have a date?"

Cleo nods slowly, confused about Steven's own confusion. He truly and honestly has absolutely no idea what Cleo is talking about, but he's not about to pass up on the opportunity to take her on a date. A part of him feels a pit in his stomach, for he wanted to ask her himself. He wanted to do it properly, but now this means he'll have to make up for it on the day. Meanwhile, Cleo finds his reactions fascinating. How could he not remember sending a text that came from his own phone?

A yawn crawls up her throat and escapes through her mouth, which she covers with her hand. Her tiredness comes back, serving as a reminder to leave this place at once.

" I think I'm gonna head back to my flat," Cleo says, her eyes meeting his once more, " See you tomorrow?"

" Yeah! Yeah... I'll see you then," Steven sputters with a giant grin.

Even when Cleo walks out of the museum, the smile remains on his face, seemingly permanent until Donna comes back.

" Stevie, you absolute rascal. I didn't know you had taken a crack," She teases with a shit-eating grin as she pops her gum.

" I didn't know either," He comments, almost talking to himself as his head tilts down.

Donna looks at him with disgust lacing her eyes, traveling up and down.

" You're outta your mind if you think a bloody archaeologist is gonna settle for a gift shop employee," She chuckles, " I can't wait to hear about how you crash and burn, Stevie," and she continues to laugh as she turns and walks away.

" It's Steven," He mumbles to himself, then with a sigh forces himself to get back to work even though all his mind can think about is Cleo.

And somehow, Cleo makes her way back home through her half lidded eyes. She drags her body all the way back to her building, trying to open the front door but forgetting that she needs to buzz herself in first. She eventually figures it out and gets onto the lift. She groans when it reaches the 5th floor and groans even more once she reaches the stairs. Each step feels agonizingly large, and the next one feels even larger than the last. By the time she reaches her floor, she finds herself clinging to the walls so she doesn't fall over her own feet. She places the key inside of the lock and opens the dark wooden door, signaling her arrival with the creaking that echoes throughout the flat. She finally closes the door behind her and presses her back against it. Her body begins to slide against the floor and it keeps going until she ends up on the ground with a thud. Her bottom aches from the contact, but she has no energy to do anything about it. She tries to keep her eyes open, if only for a little while longer, but she's fighting a losing battle. Her eyelids soon shut and bring her to a place of slumber, her fatigued body surrounded by countless pieces of paper, all dawning the same drawing. Each paper shows the very amulet Cleo found all those years ago. All of the drawings are of the Eye of Horus. The papers line the floor like a carpet, spanning from the front door trailing through her living room, a few scatter on the couch, some draping the bathroom and wet from the bathtub, and starting from her music room where hundreds of papers are tossed carelessly in every direction, and on the ground beneath the piano lays the cursed golden amulet that nobody was ever brave enough to touch with their bare hands.

Nobody.... but Cleopatra Sa'd Hassan.

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