One Perfect Summer

Lizzy. She stands up as we approach, and then tries to fend off Dyson.
    ‘Hey,’ she says to Joe, full of concern. ‘Are you okay?’
    Joe nods. ‘Come here, boy.’ He pulls Dyson away from her.
    Lizzy brushes him off. ‘Did you see your brother?’
    I realise that I haven’t even asked that question yet.
    ‘Yes,’ he replies.
    ‘Shall we stay here for a bit?’ I ask. We sit in a line facing the view. Dyson flops down on the grass beside me, while Joe is in the middle. I turn to face him. ‘What was he like?’
    ‘The same.’ Joe stares ahead at the ocean.
    ‘Did he hurt you?’ Lizzy asks with trepidation.
    ‘No.’ Pause. ‘Not yet.’
    A chill goes through me. I take his hand.
    ‘I don’t want you to go back there.’
    ‘It’s okay,’ he says. ‘It’ll be okay for a bit.’
    ‘Did he threaten you?’ Lizzy presses.
    ‘No. It’s not that he said or did anything ,’ Joe explains. ‘It’s just the way he looks at me. It’s . . . I don’t know how to describe it. Menacing . . . He’s such a fucking bully!’ he erupts. ‘And my parents do nothing to stop it! They never have. He’s always been a nasty bastard – evil – but they can’t see it. Or maybe they can. Maybe he appeals to them because they’re evil too.’
    ‘No wonder you want to get away,’ Lizzy murmurs.
    ‘It’s amazing you’ve lasted this long,’ I add.
    ‘That’s only because he’s been in jail for the last four years.’
    ‘That doesn’t seem like long enough for armed robbery . . .’
    ‘He was an accomplice to a hardened criminal. They’ve let him out early for good behaviour.’ He snorts. ‘So he’ll be well and truly ready to let off some steam.’
    ‘I don’t want you to go back there,’ I say again, more urgently this time.
    He looks at me sadly. ‘Where else am I supposed to go?’
    ‘Come and stay with me,’ I say, even though I know my parents would object.
    He smiles and shakes his head. ‘It won’t be for long, Alice. Just over two weeks.’
    ‘Why two weeks?’ Lizzy asks with a frown.
    ‘That’s when Alice is leaving,’ he says simply.
    I squeeze his hand, hard.

 
    Lizzy leaves on Sunday afternoon after a morning at Lulworth Cove. I think she’s secretly pleased to be going home, even though she keeps batting off my apologies with ‘this took my mind off things’ responses.
    I wait on the platform and wave her off. When the train disappears around the corner I’m engulfed with sadness. That was one of the last times I’ll spend with my friend before we go off to university and I messed it up. So much for sunny days at the beach checking out boys. I remember the excitement of getting ready to go to the pub on Friday night and her squealing about how gorgeous Joe was, and I am full of regret. I so wish the weekend had continued like that. Even the weather has turned. It’s cloudy and very windy today and the air feels damp.
    My parents have been wary around me all day. My dad insists on a pep-talk before he sets off back to London.
    ‘Now, Alice,’ he says, and I instantly bristle at his tone as he leans over the island counter in the middle of the kitchen. ‘You’re leaving in two weeks.’
    ‘I know, Dad, everyone keeps reminding me.’
    ‘Who’s reminding you?’ Is that relevant?
    ‘You, Mum, Lizzy, Joe . . .’
    ‘Ah, Joe too.’
    ‘Yes, Dad, and he’s leaving too.’
    ‘Where’s he going?’ he asks with surprise.
    ‘London,’ I reply with a sigh.
    ‘Not Cambridge?’
    Here we go again . . .
    ‘No, Dad.’
    He breathes an actual sigh of relief. I sigh too, but it’s with unhappiness.
    He senses my disheartenment. ‘You might be able to see him when you come home during the holidays.’
    ‘I guess so.’ That seems like an unbearably long time to be apart. ‘Anyway, don’t worry. I’ll get on with some work this week.’
    ‘That would be a good idea. Take your mind off things,’ he says perkily, standing up straight.
    As if . . .
    Mum and I come out onto the driveway to wave him off.
    ‘Bye, love,’ Mum says, giving him a kiss.
    ‘Have a good week,’ he says to her fondly. ‘You’re doing great, Marie. This collection is going to fly.’
    She puts her arms around his neck and they hug. I’m seeing their relationship in a new light. What it must be like to have someone by your side, looking after you and caring for you, forever . . . Joe is always at the forefront of my mind, but now the ache for him intensifies.
    ‘What time is