Chasing Daisy

check in the bathroom, but she’s nowhere to be seen. The glowing red display on the alarm clock tells me it’s half twelve. Where the hell has she gone? Is she having it off with Pete? Or maybe she is shagging Luis! Something’s up, and first thing tomorrow, I’m finding out what.
    I wake up the next morning to find her back in bed, sleeping soundly. ‘Where did you go last night?’ I ask loudly. She moans. ‘Holly! Holly!’ I reach over and give her body a push.
    ‘What?’ she snaps. ‘What time is it?’
    ‘Time you told me what’s going on.’
    ‘Hey? Daisy, what are you on about?’
    ‘Where did you go last night?’
    ‘Last night?’
    ‘Yes! Holly, for God’s sake, just tell me. Are you doing the dirty with Pete?’
    ‘No!’ she snaps.
    ‘Luis?’
    ‘ No! ’
    ‘Just tell me!’
    ‘No, Daisy, no! I’m not shagging either of them!’
    ‘Well, where did you go, then?’
    ‘I couldn’t sleep, so I went for a wander around the hotel. And then—’ She sits up straighter, her eyes lighting up. ‘Then I went into the media centre and wrote a few emails. I haven’t chatted to any of my pals back home in ages, so I had some catching up to do.’
    I can tell she’s lying. But I can’t accuse her of it, because she’s given me a perfectly good explanation. I just know that something’s going on, and if she’s not going to come clean about it, then maybe I won’t be so forthright about my feelings for Will from now on, either.
    The sun is shining on the day of the race, but it’s chilly when we arrive at the track, ready to set up breakfast at five a.m. I don’t say much to Holly in the car on the way over there. I’m still disappointed she’s not opening up to me. I don’t know if she can sense my mood, but she doesn’t say much to me, either.
    It’s eight o’clock when Luis and his family bustle in.
    ‘Would you like some breakfast?’ I ask them.
    ‘Yes, please,’ Mrs Castro replies keenly.
    ‘Don’t have the muesli,’ Luis interjects. ‘It’s awful. Daisy does the best bacon and eggs.’
    ‘Is that your excuse?’ I ask wryly, looking past him to see Will appear. My heart does its usual somersault. I try to focus on serving Luis’s family as I see Will stop to talk to Simon at a nearby table. Simon gets up and Will follows him up the stairs. He nods at me as he passes. ‘Morning.’
    ‘Hi.’ I smile after him and glance back to find Luis giving me a disapproving look. I avert my gaze before he can catch me blushing again.
    ‘Mãe, grab that table, there. I’ll be over in a moment,’ Luis says. He looks back at me when they’ve gone.
    ‘Still hanging out for him?’
    ‘No,’ I say hotly, plonking a piece of bacon on the plate he’s holding out for me. ‘Want another?’
    ‘Of course. He’s never going to leave her, you know.’
    ‘Shut up, Luis.’ I roll my eyes in a huff.
    ‘I saw them together at team HQ the other week. Did I tell you?’
    ‘No?’ I look up at him, a familiar sick feeling swirling around inside me.
    ‘She came in for lunch with Will and Simon.’
    ‘What was she like?’ I hate myself for being interested, especially in front of Luis.
    He shrugs. ‘She was alright, actually. Seemed like a nice girl.’
    ‘Have you got enough, there?’ I bluntly nod at his plate.
    ‘Yeah, that’ll do.’
    ‘Good.’ I wipe my hands and stalk off in the direction of the kitchen, leaving him standing alone at the serving table.
    Holly and I go to the pits to watch the start of the race, but I’m distracted. I’m standing in Will’s garage, but Mrs Castro beckons me into Luis’s. Not wanting to seem impolite, I tug on Holly’s arm and we go to join the Castros. The cars are already on the grid and we watch as they set off on their warm-up lap. As they pull around the last corner and take their starting positions, my throat starts to feel constricted and my whole body tenses up. The red lights go out to denote the start and, even though Will gets away without any trouble, I can practically hear my heart thumping in my chest.
    ‘Are you okay?’ Holly asks me after a few laps. ‘You’re as white as a sheet.’
    I can’t look at her. My eyes are glued to the television screen at the front of the garage.
    ‘Daisy?’
    I shake my head. I can’t speak. Will attempts an overtaking manoeuvre and suddenly I get palpitations and clutch my hands to my chest.
    ‘Bloody hell, Daisy, what’s going on?’ Holly grabs my arm. Pete sees us and