Page 56 of The Life Experiment

As she lay her head on Angus’s chest, Layla took the advice her dad had once given her.

She closed her eyes and paid attention to the way Angus’s breathing mirrored her own.

Noticed the way her nerve endings fizzed as he toyed with her hair.

Took a mental picture of this moment so she could carry this sense of peace with her always.

Sighing contentedly, Layla snuggled deeper into the crook of Angus’s arm.

The pair had been coiled together on Layla’s sofa ever since returning from Hull two hours ago.

Stillness was needed after the last four days.

Post-funeral life had been taxing in ways both good and bad.

There was joy in watching her family bond with Angus, but it was shadowed by the sadness that David wasn’t there to meet him too.

As if sensing Layla’s thoughts had wandered to grief, Angus pressed a kiss to the top of her head. ‘You’re amazing, do you know that?’ he whispered.

‘I do. You keep reminding me,’ she teased, her cheeks lifting as she smiled.

Tightening her grip around Angus, Layla made herself a promise – every day, she would fight for this feeling. However big, however small, she would take a moment to stop. To breathe. To revel in the love she felt.

Layla was about to tell Angus this vow when the intercom to her apartment buzzed.

‘No,’ she groaned, burrowing into his chest. ‘I don’t want to get up. I’m too cosy.’

‘Let me,’ Angus replied, pressing another kiss to her head and shimmying off the sofa. At the intercom, he held the answer button and called, ‘Hello?’

‘Is Layla there? Layla Cannon?’ a voice called back.

Shock forced Layla upright as she registered the voice, but what shocked her more than Saira’s appearance was Angus’s reaction to it. The instant he heard her, all colour drained from his face.

Layla didn’t give herself long to process that, though. Scrambling to her feet, she ran and joined Angus at the intercom. ‘Don’t let her in,’ she commanded.

For a moment, the pair simply stared at each other, but then Angus broke the silence. His gaze traced over the fierce blush in Layla’s cheeks. ‘How do you know Saira?’ he asked tightly.

Blinking, Layla studied the man before her. Slack-jawed, as surprised as she was. ‘You… you know Saira too?’

Before Angus could answer, the intercom buzzed once more.

Watching Angus flinch at the sound, an indignant frown took over Layla’s features. ‘How do you know Saira?’ she demanded.

‘I… I’m not sure I should say.’

‘Well, I’m not sure you should stay silent either,’ Layla snapped, folding her arms across her chest as if doing so could quash the panic rising inside her.

When Layla’s interrogative stare became too pressing to ignore, Angus cracked. ‘I don’t know what I’m allowed to say,’ he cried, in time for the intercom to ring again. Before Layla could refuse Saira entry, Angus reached out and buzzed her into the building.

‘What are you doing?!’

‘Getting an answer to your question,’ Angus replied. His measured tone stoked Layla’s fury, but her anger wobbled as she watched him chew the corner of his lip.

He’s nervous, she realised. Drawing back, Layla wrapped her arms around her trembling body.

‘Don’t look at me like that. Please,’ Angus begged, but Layla couldn’t help it. The idea that Angus was somehow connected to Saira was overwhelming. Layla had already forgiven him for lying once. She couldn’t do it again.

Side-by-side and locked a tense silence, Layla and Angus waited for Saira.

When her knock came, Layla opened the door. Saira stood on the other side, meeker than Layla had ever seen her before. ‘Hello, Layla,’ she said softly. ‘It’s good to see you.’

‘Good’ was not the word Layla would use to describe that moment. Before she could respond, though, Saira gasped.

‘Angus!’ she cried. ‘I was hoping you’d be here. I’ve been reading your updates in the questionnaires.’

Layla’s head snapped to Angus. ‘The questionnaires? Were you part of the experiment too?’

If Layla was surprised, then Angus was well and truly shocked. ‘Wait, what?’ he said, his eyes darting from Layla to Saira and back again. ‘Are we… Are we okay to talk about this?’

As Layla drew a sharp intake of breath, Saira smiled. ‘Angus, I think the only thing we can do is talk,’ she said. ‘Shall we sit?’

Robotically, Layla stepped back from the door and allowed Saira inside.

Accepting the invitation, Saira moved about the space like she knew it well.

The day Saira first came to the apartment flashed in Layla’s mind.

So much had happened since then. Looking back, that day felt like another life, another Layla.

Stumbling to her sofa, Layla was vaguely aware of Angus following her. ‘I don’t understand,’ she said, collapsing into her seat. ‘What’s going on?’

‘I think I’m the best person to answer that,’ Saira said, settling into Layla’s armchair. ‘What you suspect is true. Unbeknown to each other, you and Angus were both participants in The Life Experiment.’

Layla’s jaw dropped. She didn’t have to look at Angus to know his face mirrored hers.

‘From your counselling sessions and questionnaires, I’ve followed what’s been going on between the two of you from the start.

Every meet-up, every interaction… It’s been beautiful to witness.

Secretly, I’ve been championing a moment like this for weeks.

I’m so happy you found your way back to each other. ’

With an unsteady hand, Angus reached for Layla, but his touch woke the rage within her.

‘That’s not all Saira’s been doing,’ she snapped. ‘Have you told Angus the truth about the experiment yet, or is he still caught in your web of lies?’

‘Lies? What lies?’ Angus echoed, turning to Saira.

The happiness lighting Saira’s features dimmed.

‘Angus, when you signed up for The Life Experiment, you were only told a partial truth. Yes, the work we are doing has incredible implications, but not in the way you think. OPM Discoveries can do many wonderful things, but we cannot tell you when you’re going to die.

The death date you were given isn’t real. ’

Bowled over, Angus sat back in his seat. ‘I… I don’t understand. You lied about my death date?’

When Saira nodded, Angus’s head drew further back.

‘Why would you do that?’

‘There are many good reasons, let me assure you,’ Saira replied.

‘We live in a world where people are crippled by struggles and where comparison is the thief of joy. We wanted to evaluate what would it take for people to separate themselves from those pressures. Our aim was to assess how people respond to being confronted by death, and whether it would trigger them to appreciate their lives more. We wanted to study their reactions and the changes they made. Participants were always going to be told the truth as soon as the experiment ended.’

‘Like that makes it okay,’ Layla muttered.

‘You convinced me you knew when I was going to die,’ Angus said quietly. ‘Why put me through that if it wasn’t real?’

A flicker of sadness undermined Saira’s usual self-assurance. ‘It was necessary in order for the experiment to yield accurate results, Angus. I’m sorry we couldn’t be truthful from the outset. Really, we were hoping you’d find the experience inspiring.’

‘Yeah, because telling someone they’ll die in two years is so inspiring,’ Layla couldn’t help snapping.

Angus whipped around to face her. ‘Two years? That’s how long they said you had left to live?’

‘That’s why I said we could only be friends,’ Layla replied, fighting the urge to cry. ‘I didn’t want us to become more and then have to say goodbye. I couldn’t do that to you.’

Layla watched Angus piece everything together.

His face crumpled. ‘This whole time we’ve known each other, you thought you were inching closer to death?

’ he whispered. When Layla nodded, Angus breathed her name.

Letting go of her hand, Angus drew Layla into his side, hugging her tightly.

‘I am so sorry you were dealing with that on your own.’

‘That’s your response?’ Layla replied, mouth agape. ‘You find out the last ten weeks of your life have been a lie and all you can think of is me?’

‘Layla, you’re all I ever think of.’

A startled laugh escaped Layla. She pulled back from the hug to smile at the man she loved, but then her eyes narrowed. ‘Wait, how long were you given to live?’

She heard Angus gulp. ‘Sixty years.’

‘Your worst fear was living for another sixty years ?’ Layla cried, but Angus’s sombre expression made her chest hurt. ‘Oh, Angus. I had no idea you were in so much pain.’

‘I was,’ Angus admitted. ‘I was lost, confused, full of self-loathing… just despondent, to be honest. But all that changed when I met you.’

Layla’s face flickered with a smile, but then her eyes widened. ‘The day we met… that cafe… I wasn’t in Birmingham because of work. I was there because of the experiment.’

‘I was there because of the experiment too.’ Angus replied. ‘I was a mess the day we met, Layla. I’d just learned my death date. I needed to sit and process having a long life and no idea what to do with it.’

Layla’s lips twitched. ‘Me too, only my life wasn’t quite so long.’

‘No wonder you were so sad,’ Angus said, his face dropping. ‘I wish I’d known what you were going through. I wish I could have made it better.’

‘You did. Strangely, somehow, you did. If I hadn’t met you… if you hadn’t shown me a glimmer of happiness… well, my thoughts were so dark, I don’t know what would have happened.’

A juddery breath rattled in Angus’s chest. ‘Thank goodness for cafes in Birmingham, I guess.’

It was only when Saira let out a gentle laugh that Layla remembered they weren’t alone.

Turning to Saira, Layla was surprised to see there were tears in her eyes.

‘I know you might think little of me,’ Saira said thickly, ‘but you need to know that the aim of the experiment was pure. I only wanted to help.’

‘By making us think we were going to die?’ Layla asked, but even she could hear that there was less anger in her voice.

‘By helping you realise how precious life is,’ Saira replied.

‘Think about your life over the last few weeks, Layla. You reconnected with your family. You put in place building blocks to make a better work-life for yourself. And, looking at you and Angus, it’s clear that you opened your heart to love. ’

Glancing at Angus, Layla’s lip quivered. He loved her. That was all that mattered.

‘The woman I met back in September was as lost as the man sitting beside her,’ Saira continued, ‘but you both worked and fought and found yourselves. You built futures to be proud of, and you’ve begun crafting a solid relationship. My methods might not be conventional, but—’

‘But they work,’ Layla interrupted, finishing Saira’s sentence for her.

Deep down, she knew there would come a day where there would be no anger in her heart for Saira, only gratitude. The Life Experiment had made Layla brave. It had given her permission to rest as much as it had pushed her to go for what she wanted.

And, most importantly, thanks to the experiment, Layla had found Angus.

She would sign up all over again if it meant there was even a 1 per cent chance of finding him.

So there could be no anger. No fear, no regret, just excitement and hope for a future Layla prayed she would share with Angus for a long time to come.