"But now she's gone
And I don't worry
Because I'm sittin' on top of the world "

The air was hot and stuffy, and Brian felt like suffocating all over again.

Carefully he opened his heavy eyes and was immediately greeted by bright sunlight. He blinked and sheltered his eyes from the light to ease the burning sensation... It helped, but his weariness stayed. Apparently he had fallen asleep after all yesterday, he realised. Brian hadn't thought it possible after everything that happened... Blimey in a day he had not only lost 11 years of his life, but everything that had meant so much to him as well... Everything he thought he had ever wanted in his life had been gone- taken away from him in a blink of an eye. It had nearly something ironic about it, how ridiculous his worries about Anita abandoning him seemed now... He had been such a mess then (though it had only happened yesterday in his mind it seemed to have passed so much time since then... but it had, hadn't it?) He snorted at the thought, it had been stupid of him to think of it as the end of the world, life obviously had gone on- maybe not for the better, but as long as he was alive, he still had a chance to set things right.... and maybe it really was just as easy as Vivi had made it out to be and he only needed to take a step back and figure out where he had lost himself and start over from there... Play the Blues once more and take everything else as it came his way. 

It was, but a small spark of hope, but it was enough to lighten a fire in Brian's heart that he had nearly fully given up on. Lighter than he felt in years he got out of bed and opened the thin white curtains of his bedroom, which he couldn't remember closing, but maybe Vivi had closed them after he had fallen asleep. He needed to thank her later...Not only for looking out for him or the curtains, but for everything and well Brian still had no clue about 1978, he needed her to guide him as well.  Maybe he had lost his memories, but deep down he knew he could trust her... and most importantly he had a feeling that she wouldn't let him down... or maybe he's only been down so long that it started to look like up to him. No, Brian shock his head, Vivi was different. 

He took a deep breath of the fresh air of the now open window, but it died soon in his throat and turned into an ugly cough... The suffocating feeling had returned stronger than before, but that was his least worry as of now.

He trembled. Maybe because of the lack of air or simply out of shock, Brian couldn't tell, but doubted it mattered anyway. His knees gave in and though the hard floor must have hurt, he hardly felt a thing. What a cruel world this was, he thought, as he starred at the scenery right before his eyes. Though he had no idea, what 1978 was supposed to look like outside his bedroom window Brian immediately recognised the view. He was back where he had started from...

His hotel room in Morroko.

He wanted to scream and yell, but instead only a broken laugh left his throat, which soon turned into sobs. "It was only a dream..."he whispered over and over again. Relieved. Overjoyed. Hopeful. He had a chance, a real one... nothing was lost yet. Brian was about to jump up when he halted. If 1978 was nothing but a lucid dream... Vivi was only an illusion too and his hope faltered for a second. What if he lost himself again? He needed her as insane as it sounded... She could help him.

Trembling Brian got up nonetheless and noticed the tea service on his nightstand, which made his heart skip a beat. She couldn't have been only been a stupid fantasy. There had to be a real hotel maid too and as fast as his feet could carry him, Brian run to the lobby.  

"Somebody brought tea to my room last night!" he exclaimed while trying to catch his breath. Brian held on to the desk, desperately.   

"Excuse me?"The man behind the desk exclaimed while starring at Brian incomprehensible.

"Who? A maid! Vivi!" The man frowned even more. Obviously not knowing who Brian was referring to, but the look on the man's face told him at least that the receptionist had realised who he was. It hardly was a surprise, the was famous after all and considering after the scene he had pulled yesterday they had to remember him. "Look just get me the maid who brought tea to my room yesterday and I'll be gone," Brian added urgently. 

"We were advised to leave you alone, sir." the man told him with a strong accent. "No one entered your room since you arrived."

"No!"Brian yelled out. His face had paled and he felt his fingers start to tremble, but he ignored his nerves. "Her name is Vivi and she's- I think half British and Moroccan. I doubt you have a million maids like that! You have to know who I mean!"

Brian was acting hysterical, he knew it, and it was the second time in not even 24 hours. They had to think him crazy and maybe he was a bit, but wasn't it relatable in the slightest? First his friends and girlf- well ex-girlfriend left him without a word, then he met a mysterious maid and woke up in 1978, only to be back in 1967  the next moment? If there ever was a moment to act insane it was this one or one exactly like this... At least if he found the maid, he had proof he hadn't completely made everything up.

"Please, I just need to speak to her for a minute," Brian nearly begged. 

The man shock his head. "We have none."

"You're lying!" Brian exclaimed enraged. "You're lying..! I've met her, we talked... Where is she? I-I... You're lying. She has to be somewhere... Please." 

"I'm sorry."

His heart sunk. Brian knew in his mind it would be a waste to continue, even if he wanted nothing more than to talk to her one last time and just find out what had happened. Even if she just told him that it had only been a dream, it would have been enough. Brian sighed and turned his back to the receptionist, who yelled a "sir..!" after him.   

Back in his room he called Brion. The painter wouldn't have the answers Brian was looking for, but he was the first one that came to his mind that might be of some help. The telephone was one of the few rare things Brian hadn't destroyed in his rampage the day before and he was thankful for it. 

A "Hello?" could be heard after the third ring. 

"It's me," Brian told him. He hardly ever introduced himself over the speaker, for some reason he felt stupid to tell his name, and especially when he had other matters on his mind, it seemed pointless. "You need to help me find a hotel maid!" he blurted out and was met with a long silence from the other side. Brian nervously bid his lip. He knew he should have expressed it better, but his mind wasn't working straight... though he was completely sober.  

"What about Anita?"Brion finally asked. 

"She left wirh Keith and the others, but-"

"They left you there on your own?" 

"Yes, but I need your help... There was this girl and then I was in 1978 and Keith was dead... the Stones no longer existed and I-I- I need to speak to her," Brian rambled and for a second time since he called his friend the line went dead silent for a long while, until a reply came that made him sigh out of relief: "I'll be over right away..."

Brian hung up and waited. He sat down on his bed and took the teacup in his hands. It was empty, but a lingering smell still hung in the air. It wasn't familiar, but this at least proofed the existence of the maid... even if nothing else did. Who was she and why and how had she appeared before him if she wasn't a maid? To send him to 1978 and make him feel less miserable about his current life? But why? Why him? Why now? He had a million questions and not a single answer. 

"Maybe she was a Djinn," was Brion's, not that it had helped much.

"A Djinn?" Brian had asked. Of course he had heard of the stories, a magical being that could fulfill wishes, but that wasn't really what had happened, was it? Though she had told him to figure out what he really wanted, she hadn't exactly granted him any wish. Brian told the painter his thoughts.

"Some Djinn's are evil- they trick people. They'll grant you your wish, but there's a catch... One that usually costs you your life."

But Vivi had helped him, hadn't she? Brian wondered. She had given him an advice and had made him feel better... or maybe Brion was right and it had only been a cruel trick. Brian shock his head, that was insane.

"She helped me..." he had insisted.

"They're demons, Brian. They fool people in need with false help. Feed them lies, poison their mind and then kill them."

Brian had bit his lip."Djinns don't exist. They're a fairy tale and Vivi... she was real."

"Are you sure?"

He didn't have a reply, and his silence spoke louder than words anyway. 

"Maybe you just imagined it..."

"Yeah maybe..." Brian mumbled with a heavy heart. He didn't care if Vivi was real or not, and maybe Brion was right and she had fooled him and his death waited indeed around the next corner, but he wanted to believe she had tried to help him by giving him something back he had lost a while ago: Hope and himself.

*

Thank you for reading, voting and commenting!<3