One Perfect Summer
‘Who’s for one last Christmas tipple before I bugger off to the snow?’
‘Me!’ Emily and I both say in unison.
‘Wait a sec,’ I add, retrieving two Christmas presents from my wardrobe: a bottle of Baileys for Emily – she loves the stuff – and a bottle of Advocaat for Jessie. He recently told me that he and his parents always drank Advocaat at Christmas, and as they’re not here . . .
He laughs when he unwraps it. ‘Woo-hoo! Let’s get this party started . . .’
‘I’ll be right with you,’ I tell them. First I need to call Lukas.
When he answers the phone I know instantly that he expects me to be gracious about his gift, and anything less he’d find discourteous and possibly even offensive. So, in the end, I don’t tell him I can’t accept the necklace. But I don’t feel entirely at ease about keeping it.
I turn in early that night – earlier than Jessie and Emily. I go to the mirror and stare at my reflection. My eyes fall to the glinting diamond, but my thoughts are of Joe, not of Lukas. I undo the necklace and put it away in its box, gently closing the lid. I rest my hand on the black velvet and close my eyes, and then I’m transported back to Dorset. I gasp for air and put the box on the bed before brushing away my tears. I can’t deny that I fancy Lukas, but I can’t honestly say that I love him, not like I loved Joe. Like I still love Joe. I suddenly miss him so much that my heart aches.
In the middle of the night I wake up and can’t work out why. I lie there for a moment, listening, but I can’t hear anything. I get up and go to the window, pulling back the curtains and staring out into the darkness. Then I hear a creak on the floorboards outside my bedroom. I tiptoe to the door and peek out, just in time to see Emily – wearing nothing more than an oversized black T-shirt – creeping into her room and gently closing the door.
What the . . . ?
Emily and Jessie? Noooooo! I feel a strange mix of emotions. Since when has this been going on? Has it only just begun? Have they been hiding it from me for a while?
My mind continues to tick over, and even though at one point it occurs to me to wonder if this might mean true love and everlasting happiness for them both, my negativity won’t let me dwell on that thought. I can’t get back to sleep for a long time afterwards, and when I finally wake up again at ten o’clock in the morning, Emily’s shell has clamped shut, and Jessie has already left for the airport. As for me, I have other things on my mind. It’s time for me to go back to London.
My mum is wearing a Santa hat when she comes to collect me from King’s Cross. ‘HO HO HO!’ she shouts and I nearly jump out of my skin, before guffawing loudly.
I’m so relieved that I don’t have to pack up all my belongings and bring them home again for the holidays, like I had to do when I lived in halls. Today I have only a small suitcase with me, but Dad has brought the car instead of making me catch the tube.
‘Hi, Dad,’ I say warmly as I climb in the back.
‘Hello!’ He beams with delight and reaches around to pat my knee with great affection.
‘Come on, love,’ Mum urges him.
He faces forward and pulls away from the kerb. I study the side of his face. He looks weary. He looks older.
‘How was your journey?’ he asks perkily.
‘Great! It flew by. How are you? How are you feeling?’
‘I’m fine,’ he replies, brushing me off. ‘I don’t know what all the fuss is about.’
My mum says nothing.
She knocks on my bedroom door later. ‘I’m so pleased you’re home,’ she says, coming in and sitting on the bed next to me.
‘Me too.’ And it’s not even a lie. It’s good to be back, albeit strange. My room seems unfamiliar, yet familiar too. It’s exactly as I left it, apart from the small vase of fresh holly that Mum picked for me from the garden.
‘Have you got any plans for tonight?’ she asks.
‘No, but I want to catch up with Lizzy soon.’
‘She was due to arrive yesterday,’ Mum tells me. ‘I bumped into Susan in the street a couple of days ago.’
‘How is she?’
‘She looked well.’
‘That’s great.’ But my smile quickly fades. ‘How’s Dad?’
She looks down. ‘He’s okay.’
‘Tell me the truth.’
She sighs. ‘His blood pressure is way up. He needs to take it easy.’
‘Has he got much time off over Christmas?’ I ask.
‘A month.’
‘A month!’ I exclaim. ‘Well, that’s
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