Maddison and Oliver were my normal.
“Are you busy at the weekend? If it’s not raining, we could go for a bike ride?”
“Sure. Will you ask Maddison?”
“Yes.”
“Great. I hope it doesn’t rain. We can go to our tree and see if any more Bobs are looking for a home.” The idea brought a genuine smile to my face and chased the grey of my thoughts away.
“It’s a plan. We’ll call on you Saturday morning then?”
I nod with an eagerness that I hadn't felt in a while and prayed for the sun.
Saturday morning took forever to arrive, but at least the sun played along and shone brightly. It was hot for early autumn, and the leaves were already turning to rust and gold.
I watched vigilantly from my window for Oliver and Maddison until they eventually showed—their bikes and backpacks with them. My bike was already out the front, and I’d packed a drink and snacks, together with a few plasters and antiseptic cream just in case.
They didn’t have a chance to knock on the door; I was out waiting for them before they were off their bikes. This was what I’d longed for, and I couldn’t express how happy I was at getting to spend this time all together.
“Don’t be gone all day, Grace.” Mum’s warning dampened my excitement, but considering how protective she used to be, being let out for the day was still an improvement. I decided to agree and apologise later if needed.
“Fine.”
“Got everything?” Oliver called as I did up my helmet.
“Come on, Grace.” Maddison was impatient and riding up and down the drive as I turned my bike around and climbed on. He tore off in the direction of his house, and I followed, excited to keep up with him, or at least try.
The wind blew through my hair, fluttering the wisps I hadn’t caught in my long plait, and I couldn’t keep the smile from my face. This was what I wanted. I looked back for a second to see Oliver just to my side.
Suffice to say my bike-ability had improved since those first wobbly endeavours. We made it down the small track and the uneven surface to the gate where we found Bob and the oak tree we spent so much time at. We all stopped, abandoning our bikes and climbed over the gate towards the shade of the tree. Our feet crunched through the leaves that had started to drop, and Maddison began to climb the tree. I listened for more kittens, cursing the noise he was making.
“You can’t have another one,” Maddison declared from the branch above us.
“I know. But maybe if there’s more, we can call the local shelter or something.” The thought of leaving kittens to fend for themselves didn’t sit well, but we’d never seen any more cats since Bob.
“There are no new kittens,” Oliver declared as he tossed the stick he’d found into the undergrowth. It’d grown so thick that you could barely see the old caravan there anymore like the land had claimed it for its own.
“Come on, then.” Maddison jumped from the tree. “I thought we were exploring today?” he asked, heading for the gate and our bikes.
He was right. We came here often—but we were older now, and there was plenty more to do today. I wanted the boys to remember how much fun we could have together, and if that meant going farther, I was in.
“You don’t have to race, Grace,” Oliver said as I pushed off, heading for the cloud of dust that Maddison had left.
“I know. Thank you.” I looked at him, and we smiled. It was the first day in a while where I remembered all of us being truly happy.
Keeping up with Maddison was a lot harder than I thought, but I managed it until I thought I was going to pass out from the heat. The sun was beating down as if it was the middle of summer.
“Hold up, Mads,” Oliver called as we pulled off the track to find some shade and rest for a while. I drank down half of my water as Maddison rode back to us. We’d been riding for a while and already had gone farther than we’d been in the past.
“Hey, what’s in there?” Before I had a chance to look, Maddison was over the gate, and down the mud track we’d stopped by. The road we were on wasn’t even a proper road. It was dusty and covered in rocks, and we’d seen about two cars all morning. There was nobody down here.
Oliver and I passed each other cautious glances as Maddison walked out of sight.
“Should we go after him?” I asked.
“Let’s move the bikes off the path first.”
After making sure they weren’t left as they’d fallen, Oliver and I hopped over the gate and went in the general direction of Maddison. A few minutes’ walk, and we caught up with him in what looked like an abandoned greenhouse—a really big one like you see at a garden centre. There were overgrown plants and weeds everywhere.
“What is this place?” I asked, looking around and feeling a little uneasy about being somewhere we shouldn’t. This wasn’t like the wooden fence with the old sign we happily ignored to play in our tree. The gate wasn’t rusty or falling down, and we were out of sight from the road.
“Relax. Nobody’s here. Come on, Grace.” Maddison snatched my hand and pulled me into one of the structures. Only a few panes of glass remained, all the others were missing or broken, and it made the place feel eerie. I looked back to see Oliver following a few steps behind. Rows and rows of plants covered the tabletops, growing out of control. At the far end stood a wooden shed that was rotting and falling apart like the rest of the place.
“Are we allowed to be here?” I muttered.
“There’s no one here, Grace. We’ll take a quick look, that’s all.”
Maddison dropped my hand as he opened the wooden shed. My heart raced faster and faster the greater the distance from the path we ventured. The air turned deathly still; the heat beating down on us.
Then a horrible, ear-piercing squawking noise broke the peace as I watched Maddison stumble back out of the shed. “Run!” he shouted as he flapped his arms about in defence. Oliver and I both turned and darted in the other direction. Oliver led the way through the long grasses around the greenhouse structures until we were clear. We stopped, panting and puffing from the sprint.
Maddison chased after us, but Oliver started to laugh at the frightened look on his face.
“What was that?” I spluttered, trying to keep my laughter under wraps.
“Enough exploring for the day, Mads?” Oliver giggled.
“Shut up, would ya. It was just a bird.”
I stifled my own giggle behind my hand, now seeing the funny side.
“It wasn’t funny. It scared me to death.”
“Time to head back,” Oliver announced.
We retraced our steps back the way we’d fled but kept a wide berth of the shed. I stubbed my foot and nearly tripped on an old hose running around one part of the rickety structure.
“Ow!” I moaned and hopped a few feet.
“Do you think these still work?” Maddison picked up what looked like a sprinkler attached to the other end of the hose.
“Leave it, Mads. Come on.”
But he ignored Oliver and started searching for where they connected. “Found it.”
The next moment, spouts of water were bursting up from all around us, drenching us in frigid water.
“Maddison, turn it off,” I squealed as we ran through the water trying to escape. I could hear Oliver laughing behind me. “Maddison.” I caught him laughing at both of us trapped in the downpour.
He turned the water off, and we all ran from the abandoned place back to the bikes. The icy water dripped from my t-shirt and hair, and I made an attempt to wring it out.
“At least you’re not hot anymore,” Maddison offered with a giant smirk on his face.
“Evil.” It was the only comeback I’d offered, but then I tipped the small puddle of water from my hands down his top and watched him dance around in shock.
We all laughed, happy to be here together and having fun, the three of us, for the first time in what felt like weeks. This—the feeling of contentment—was what I wanted to
have all the time, with nothing to get in the way or divide us.
“What time did you say you had to be home?” Oliver asked as he picked up his bike.
“I didn’t.” My smile spread over my face. I wasn’t prepared to give this day up just yet.
“Come on then,” Maddison said and led the way farther away from home.
I wanted to freeze this day and protect it like in a magical snow globe that I could treasure. Even as young as I was, I knew there was something magical about it. And I didn’t want it to end. It had been hard-fought to get this back, and I wanted to make the most of every second I could.
It was the last time we’d spend a day like this together, carefree, and happy.
But despite how hard things got, I still wished for days when the worst thing to worry about was a scary bird flying at Maddison or being drenched in cold water.
Chapter 7
Grace Thirteen Years Old
There were times when the world faded away to nothing more than Oliver and Maddison. I didn’t need anything or anyone else when I had both of them at my side.
But those times became scarce, and the joy we all felt became overshadowed by school, friends, and feelings. As we grew older, my emotions became tougher to ignore and interrupted our normal. Being together became harder and harder. And for the first time since I met them, I began to wonder if what I felt for both brothers was normal. I’d never had close friends, so my sphere of reference was out. And so, I did what any other thirteen-year-old girl would do—I buried it, ignoring it as best I could.
“Are you coming to watch Mads?” I asked Oliver as I peered into his room. He was sitting at his desk in the gloom, a desk lamp the only source of light.
“No, I’ve got to study.” His attention was pulled back to the books in front of him.
“Okay. Want me to come by after?”
“Sure. I should have finished by then.”
“What are you working on?”
“Biology revision.”
I nodded and felt awkward for a moment as if I were intruding.
Oliver studied a lot. But he also got good grades. He’d always been smart, and I often asked him to help me when something in school didn’t make sense. I left him to it and waited in the kitchen while Vivien rushed about getting washing from the dryer and calling to Maddison.
“Be ready in just a minute. Or Maddison will be late.” She shouted the last part towards the stairs.
“Give it a rest. I’m here,” Maddison replied as he trudged in carrying a sports bag. “We’ve got plenty of time.”
“All right.” She looked at me and raised her eyes. “Grab some breakfast at least.”
He picked a slice of toast from the table and shoved it in his mouth. “Come on then,” he mumbled.
The whole journey, Mads bounced his leg or his foot in the backseat. A sure sign he was nervous about the cup game he was facing.
“Hey, you’ll be great.” I put my hand on his thigh to stop him fidgeting. For a moment, our gaze locked, and he gave me a tight smile. I could see in his eyes how nervous he was, and I smiled back, trying to provide him with some sense of confidence. As the captain, a lot of pressure was on him to lead the team to victory, even at our age.
As soon as we pulled up to the rugby grounds, Mads was out of the car and rushing off without a backward glance to where his teammates had gathered. It was always the same. He’d developed this front, like a mask, when he was at school or around his mates. It had grown over the last year, and I often wondered if he’d be brave enough to hold my hand and walk into the gates of school now.
Maddison always wanted me to watch him play, and I’d always loved to support him. But today, there was a gaggle of other girls from our year, all lined up next to the pitch ready to cheer. They’d never been to a match before. Perhaps they were here to support one of the other teams’ players? A loud call to Maddison interrupted my internal question all too soon, which told me just who the girls were here to see, and to my frustration, he happily trotted over to them.
An unwelcome tightening in my stomach made me turn away, and I went to stand on the other side of Vivien.
“You okay, love?”
“Sure. Just hope they win.”
“I know. I’m sure they’ll be just fine. I know Maddison appreciates you coming to watch.” She leaned a little closer to me. “Even if he doesn’t tell you.” She squeezed my shoulder, and a part of me wanted to hug her in return.
We wandered up the side of the pitch and picked our spot to cheer.
“It’s a shame that Oliver couldn’t make it.”
“He’s got to study,” I defended.
“Life isn’t all about study, sweetheart.”
We both stood and watched the team warm up, throwing the ball around in a circle back and forth. I’d gotten used to the drill, as I was a regular at these games. I pulled out my phone and sent a quick message to Oliver.
Game’s starting.
As soon as the whistle blew, I became invested in every move Mads made. My eyes followed him through every tackle and every pass. He seemed to fight for every foot of ground on the pitch, and it paid off as they were up by one try at half-time.
I cheered and clapped when they scored, just like his mum, but I didn’t call out his name or signal to any of the other players like the other girls who had decided to come and watch today—it took everything in me not to yell at them for distracting the guys on the pitch. Of course, I had nowhere near enough courage to do that. I recognised a few of the girls, but not all of them, and it wasn’t like I had any claim over being their only supporter.
Maddison scored a try in the second half, extending the lead and ensuring the cup. It was the first time he’d looked over at us for the whole game. My smile was wide, and I’m sure I looked goofy, but I didn’t care. I was just glad that his team would win the cup.
Mads scored. They won the game.
I made sure to keep Oliver updated.
Vivien and I headed over to meet the boys off the pitch. Both teams trudged off after doing the tunnel thing to show their respect. One of the other players stopped next to us and smiled. “Hi, I’m James.”
I froze. I didn’t know what to say to the muddy boy standing in front of me, but everything in my brain stopped functioning.
Suddenly, someone shoved James from my field of vision. The movement shocked me into action, and I watched as Mads walked after James, giving him no option but to move in the opposite direction to me.
“Maddison!” Vivien admonished, but it was swallowed up by the rest of the team piling in on each other. My feet stepped away from the scuffle, and I went to wait next to the car, pulling my coat closer around me.
“Sorry about that.” Vivien came over and unlocked the car for us. We jumped in, out of the chill and waited for Mads. I looked out the window, feeling stupid and deflated when I should be happy about Maddison winning. And I was confused about why I was feeling like this. Was it because he’d shown interest in other girls over me, or his reaction when another boy tried to talk to me?
Nearly twenty minutes later, the car door finally opened.
“Hey,” Mads muttered as he climbed in the back seat.
“Good job, sweetheart. Congratulations,” Vivien exclaimed.
“Thanks.”
“Well done,” I offered and tried to catch his eye, but Mads seemed to be more interested in staring out the window. From this angle, I could see his jaw tensed like he was grinding his teeth together in frustration, and I wondered if he was avoiding me. He should have been happy—he’d just won.
I hated it when he was like this. Sometimes he made it so hard to be his friend.
We travelled home in silence, but the bouncing of his leg didn’t stop. My hand itched to rest on his thigh again—to still him and tell him that whatever it was, it was okay. But I was too mad. Or at least that’s what I felt inside: hot and bad-tempered.
Vivien dropped me off at my house, and
I waved lamely to Mads in the car. You’d never think he’d just won the game.
“Is that you, Grace?”
“Yeah.”
“Did they win?”
“Yep. Cup winners, whatever that means.”
“You don’t look so happy?” Mum came and rubbed my arm, scrutinising me.
“I’m fine. Maddison wasn’t in the best mood. I’m just going to go to my room.”
“Okay, then. Dinner will be at six.”
I ran upstairs and into my room, scooping Bob up and letting him get comfy on my lap as I stroked his softness.
My phone chirped, and I had to shift to reach it from my pocket.
Are you coming over? I want a break from revision.
I read the message from Oliver.
Can you come over here?
I didn’t want to face Mads again. And that was annoying in itself because I didn’t know why.
Less than ten minutes later, my mum had answered the knock at the door, and Oliver was at my bedroom door. Bob immediately picked himself up and went to investigate Oliver before he decided his spot on my lap couldn’t be beaten.
“Hey,” he offered.
“Hey.”
“What happened at the match? It’s like they lost.”
I shrugged, not sure what to say.
He took a seat at my desk and spun on the chair. He looked bored already, and I felt bad. This was meant to be his break from study, not a fast track to boredom.
The Two Halves of my Heart: A Friends-to-Lovers Romance Page 6