by LK Chapman
‘It’s my room too,’ Josh said, but only quietly. There was no point in arguing with Toby.
‘What did you say?’ Toby demanded.
‘He said it’s his room,’ Gareth said, getting to his feet. ‘And you can’t really call us wankers. It’s just inaccurate.’
‘Why? Because the two of you are fucking each other?’
‘No. But I’ve had a ton of sex, with this girl who lives on my street. She can’t get enough of it.’
Toby narrowed his eyes at Gareth, who was making his way to the door. As Josh started to follow him, Toby caught his arm. ‘If I catch that fucking weird kid in my room again,’ he hissed, gesturing vaguely at Gareth’s back, ‘I’ll make you wish you were dead.’
Josh’s heart sank. He shook his arm away and scurried after Gareth.
‘That… was that true, what you just said to him?’ Josh asked as they trudged down the stairs.
Gareth shrugged. ‘Doesn’t have to be true, just has to wipe the smile off of Toby’s face.’
Feeling unwelcome in the house, they made their way to a small park down the street. It wasn’t a particularly uplifting place – a tired old set of swings and a slide sat opposite them behind an incongruously cheerful yellow fence, and a toddler was tottering about near the seesaw, the small girl immediately rescued by her mum when she inevitably fell over. Josh smiled slightly. The little girl made him think of his sister Gemma – the one person in his house who didn’t give him a hard time.
The grass where they plonked down was patchy and half made up of dandelions, but it was still one of their preferred hangouts, especially since Josh’s house was getting increasingly unbearable. ‘There really is a girl on my street, though,’ Gareth said at length, interrupting Josh’s musings. ‘And I have had sex with her, but only once.’
Josh’s eyes widened and all of his attention turned back to Gareth. He didn’t want to act too amazed, but his curiosity overcame him. He knew a few people in their year at school had started having sex, but at fourteen it still felt way off for him. Besides, no girl had ever looked at him twice. ‘What was it like?’
‘Yeah, pretty good,’ Gareth said casually.
‘Are you and her, like, together?’
‘Nah. Can’t be arsed with that.’
Josh looked at him closely. Was he really being serious?
Gareth started laughing. ‘Wow, it is so easy to get you to believe shit.’
‘I didn’t believe you,’ Josh groused.
‘I mean, come on. No one wants us, right? We’re just a pair of freaks.’
‘Speak for yourself,’ Josh said, stung that Gareth had lied to him.
‘Hey, look, I was just making a point. You let people in too easy. You let people twist what you think. Don’t let Toby’s mind games get to you. Stand up to him. Don’t believe everything he says. He’s not God, is he? What can he really do to you?’
‘I’d rather not find out.’
Back at home that evening, Josh was startled by a scream from Gemma. His half-sister was only three, and very often a weapon that Toby used to punish him. Whenever Gemma fell over, he’d say Josh did it. Whenever a toy broke, Josh did it. Whenever Gemma was crying, Josh did it. And in the event that none of these mishaps occurred to Gemma naturally, Toby was always on hand to instigate one.
‘Fluffycat!’ Gemma was saying when Josh approached her room. He peeked around the door, where his mum sat on the bed beside Gemma, who had tears streaming down her cheeks. The toy in question, a pink stuffed kitten, was in two pieces, its head having been parted from its body. Josh’s stomach clenched as Toby came down the hallway. He knew what was going to happen.
His mum came out and looked at the two boys. At least ask which of us did it, Josh willed her. Don’t just assume.
‘Josh,’ his mum said. ‘I can’t–’ She shook her head, colour rising in her cheeks. Her eyes were shiny. ‘Look at what you’ve done to your sister,’ she said. Josh peeked around the door again, where Gemma was still crying.
Please, Mum. You used to doubt these things were me. You can’t really believe I did this.
‘I can’t – I can’t even look at you right now,’ she said. She disappeared back into the bedroom to comfort Gemma. In the hall, Toby grinned at him. ‘I told you I don’t like having that creepy friend of yours in my room,’ he said. ‘The two of you should go somewhere else to make out.’
‘We don’t do that!’ Josh shouted. In a fit of rage, he gave Toby a shove, and Toby quickly retaliated by punching him in the arm.
‘Josh! Toby!’ His stepdad’s voice boomed in his ears.
‘Josh just started on me for no reason,’ Toby said. ‘He’s already cut the head off of Gemma’s toy cat. He’s mental. I’m having to share a room with a mental patient.’
Josh shrank back against the wall. There was no point. There was just no point. If he tried to tell the truth nobody ever believed him, and Toby would always make him sorry for trying.
‘Yes, all right, Toby,’ Josh’s stepdad snapped. ‘I saw that you didn’t think twice about hitting him back.’
‘It was self-defence!’
‘And you?’ He turned back to Josh. ‘Do you have anything to say?’
Josh swallowed hard. ‘I’m sorry.’
‘You’re going to buy your sister a new toy, at the very least,’ he said, ‘and me and your mum will decide what else to do with you.’
As Josh turned back towards his room, tears prickling his eyes, Toby smirked at him. ‘Dickhead,’ he hissed, as Josh pushed past him.
Natalie
13
From the moment they stepped out of the car and began walking up the path to Toby’s front door, Josh seemed tense.
‘You okay?’ she whispered to him.
He nodded, though it was clear he wasn’t.
The door opened the second they had rung the bell, and before Natalie had a chance to speak, Toby had grasped her hand in both of his, exclaiming, ‘It’s so wonderful to finally meet you, Natalie. And congratulations. Welcome to the family!’
‘Thank you,’ she said, a little taken aback by Toby’s enthusiasm. ‘Although we’re not married just yet.’
Toby gave a booming laugh. ‘Did you hear that, Josh? Not having second thoughts already, are you?’ To her surprise, Toby ruffled Josh’s hair like he was a child and said, ‘He might be a bit weird, but he grows on you.’
She laughed uncomfortably. ‘Yes. I – he’s certainly grown on me.’ She looked at Josh, who was clearly mortified by the whole thing. Toby, however, was apparently unaware of how awkward he was making them feel and gestured for them to come inside. Natalie stepped into the hall, while Toby watched her, a bit too closely for her liking. A large man – he’d filled most of the doorway when he’d greeted them – Toby was smartly dressed in black trousers and a tight lilac shirt, his hair cropped short. He had the air of somebody who was used to being in charge. She met his gaze, and, realising he had been staring, he quickly said, ‘Sorry, I just… wow. I can’t believe Josh waited this long to show you off.’
Natalie tried to exchange a look with Josh, but he seemed to be trying to look anywhere except at her and Toby.
‘Uh … thank you,’ she said.
‘I heard about the car accident,’ Toby continued, ‘and that you had a scar. But you can barely see it, honestly. I’m not sure I would even have realised.’ He turned to Josh and clapped him enthusiastically on the arm, while Natalie stood motionless for a moment, dumbfounded. He was about as subtle as a foghorn, and as loud as one too.
‘Well done,’ Toby said to Josh. ‘For the first girlfriend of yours I’ve ever met, I’ve got to hand it to you, you really pulled it out of the bag.’
Natalie took a breath and let it out slowly. This was going to be a long night.
***
‘I’m so sorry,’ Josh whispered to her as they followed Toby down into a modern kitchen diner, ‘he’s a bit–’
She squeezed his arm. ‘I’ve dea
lt with worse,’ she whispered back.
Inside the kitchen, a woman stood with her back to them, stirring a large saucepan. She turned as she heard their footsteps, sweeping her long, thick brown hair over her shoulder, and adjusting a pair of glasses with pink and black frames. Dressed in jeans and a striped jumper, she looked very casual and laid-back. She greeted them both warmly. ‘I hope this is okay,’ she said. ‘It’s a vegetable chilli. I don’t cook vegetarian things very often; you know what Toby’s like, Josh, he doesn’t think it’s a proper meal if something hasn’t died.’
‘That’s not true,’ Toby said, ‘and you should have seen the fuss he used to make about eating anything green–’
‘I’m Jodie, by the way,’ she said, cutting across Toby’s teasing. ‘We’ve already heard loads about you. I’ve watched some of your videos. Actually, Toby has too. I caught him watching one about what you should buy for the autumn–’
‘My Autumn Must-Haves,’ Natalie said. ‘You’re into fashion, are you, Toby?’
‘What, you mean that isn’t obvious just by looking at me?’
Natalie raised an eyebrow, and he laughed. ‘I preferred your one where you said the three best and three worst things about modelling,’ he said. ‘It was fascinating.’
‘I’m glad you enjoyed it.’
‘You’ve got a real talent, hasn’t she, Jodie?’
‘You should be on TV,’ Jodie said. ‘Seriously.’
‘I’ve been on TV. In adverts, anyway, back when I was modelling.’
‘You should have your own show,’ Toby said. ‘I’d watch it.’
‘Natalie’s a wedding planner,’ Josh said. ‘She works with her sister-in-law.’
‘We can expect big things for your wedding then?’
‘Nothing too crazy,’ she said. Then she added mischievously, ‘Maybe a little surprise or two.’
‘Oh, please tell us!’ Jodie said.
Natalie shook her head. ‘You’ll have to wait and see,’ she said, mostly because she had no idea what her surprise or two would entail. Verity would help her come up with something, though. She was great at things like that.
‘Are Finn and Katy in bed?’ Josh asked. There was no sign of the children anywhere.
‘Yeah,’ Jodie said. ‘Only just, but I think we got away with it. We’re looking forward to having a nice, grown-up, civilised evening. Though Finn has taken to getting up about four times a night, so, we’ll see how it goes.’
‘How old are your children?’ Natalie asked.
‘Finn is three and a half. Katy had her first birthday a couple of months ago.’
‘Aww, that’s lovely,’ Natalie said. ‘I have two nieces, they’re six and four. I love them to bits, they’re brilliant.’
‘Do you think you two will…’ Toby gestured vaguely at them both.
Natalie smiled at Josh. ‘It’s a bit early for that–’
‘Ah, well, we’ll see,’ Toby said.
Jodie gave him a playful shove. ‘You’re embarrassing them,’ she said, ‘leave them alone. Let them enjoy a bit of time without nappies and five a.m. wakeups. I’m kind of jealous.’ She turned back to the hob. ‘Right. I think this is ready. Sort some drinks out, will you, Toby?’
Toby ushered them over to the dining table, and once they sat down Josh whispered, ‘He’s even more full-on than I remember.’
‘I’m enjoying myself,’ Natalie said, surprised to find that she actually was. Yes, Toby was a bit loud, a bit tactless, and a bit too fond of teasing Josh, but there wasn’t any malice behind it, not as far as she could tell. Toby and Jodie were a fun couple. Maybe it wouldn’t be such a long night after all.
14
The meal passed pleasantly enough. Sat around the large rectangular dining table, lit from above by a glamorous cascade of glass pendant lights, they listened to Toby talk about his and Josh’s childhood. Though Josh chipped in from time to time, and occasionally managed to force a smile at some of Toby’s anecdotes, the way he pushed his food around his plate made it obvious he wasn’t enjoying the conversation. Natalie was on the verge of changing the subject, when Toby abruptly did it for her.
‘So how long have you been a wedding planner?’ he asked.
‘A few years. It’s really my sister-in-law, Verity, who’s the planner; I just help out. She has a little shop, so I look after that sometimes while she’s out visiting venues and arranging things, and I help set up the events with her and make sure they run smoothly. After my accident I had to stop modelling, and helping V has been really good for me. I only did a few hours here and there to start with, but as her business grew and I recovered I could take on a bit more.’
Toby sat back in his chair as if considering something carefully. ‘You know I work at Hartbury Hotel? We just got our licence to carry out civil marriages on the premises. In fact, I can’t believe the previous manager didn’t get one years ago, but then he was an incompetent old buffoon from what I can understand – I’ve had to spend enough time sorting out the bloody mess he made of the rest of the place.’ He paused to take a large swig of wine. ‘Anyway, we had to jump through all sorts of hoops. Took the council ages, of course, you know how it is.’
Natalie didn’t, but nodded anyway.
‘Long story short,’ he concluded, ‘Hartbury Hotel is open for wedding business. Should be a nice little earner.’
‘Oh, brilliant,’ she said, trying to rise above her distaste at him describing the biggest day of people’s lives as a nice little earner. ‘That’s great news.’
‘Perhaps you could come and look round? See the two room options we’ve got for the ceremony? I can give you a tour of the whole place, the bedrooms, the function rooms.’ Toby was talking animatedly now, clearly excited at the idea. ‘It would be great for us to work together. I can recommend your sister-in-law’s place for planning the events, and you could send some of your couples in our direction, too.’
‘I…’ Natalie sipped some wine, her head spinning with Toby’s enthusiasm. ‘Well, yeah, I can certainly tell Verity about it.’
‘Come and see it yourself! Why not? I’m sure Verity won’t mind you taking a look?’
‘I – yes, okay.’
‘Great. When would be a good time for you?’
‘Give her a chance to catch her breath!’ Jodie scolded him.
‘I can’t think off the top of my head,’ she said. ‘Maybe in a week or two? We’re pretty busy at the moment. I’ll let you know.’
‘Make sure you do,’ Toby said, ‘or I’ll be bugging you and Josh about it.’
‘I will,’ she said, ‘I won’t forget. In the meantime, could I ask where your bathroom is?’
‘In the hall, on the right.’
‘Thanks.’
Out in the hall, Natalie was grateful to have a chance to take a breath. It would be good to have a new place to recommend, but Toby was an exhausting person to spend a lot of time with – by the end of the tour she’d need a lie down.
As she made her way down the hall, a huge array of photos caught her attention and she paused. Had Jodie or Toby taken all of these? There were so many, one of the pair must be a keen photographer. The ones that caught her attention particularly were family photos; there was one of Jodie with a small boy, only a toddler, who must be her son Finn, along with a young woman Natalie didn’t recognise and a middle-aged couple. Josh’s family – it had to be. The young woman must be Gemma, and the couple Josh’s mum and stepdad. Was the photographer Toby, then, since he didn’t feature in the picture? From the bright sunshine and the summer clothes, it must have been a visit to Australia. She felt a pang. Had Josh ever been to one of these family get-togethers? She doubted it. There were others, beautiful pictures of Australian landscapes, and then many that looked like they were from decidedly closer to home: misty woodland, moody coastline. Whenever Toby’s family went on a holiday or a day out, taking this amount of images must keep him pretty busy. But then, with the way he goes on, they’re probably glad of s
omething to shut him up for a few minutes, she thought to herself.
As she came out of the downstairs toilet, she was startled to spot a small child making his way down the stairs. But the child got even more of a shock, his eyes widening in surprise.
‘Are you Finn?’ Natalie asked. ‘Come with me; we’ll find Mummy and Daddy.’ She held out a hand for him to take, but he simply stared at her.
‘He was on his way down the stairs,’ she said, as she brought the small boy into the dining room. ‘I think he got a bit of a fright when he saw a stranger in the house!’
Jodie smiled and came over to give Finn a cuddle.
‘Who’s responsible for all the beautiful photos in the hall?’ Natalie asked, glancing at Toby.
‘Guilty,’ he said.
‘They’re lovely. I really enjoyed looking at them.’
‘I’ve got loads more upstairs,’ he said. ‘Some of them are from way back. I can show you if you want?’
‘You know,’ she said, as she caught Josh’s eye, ‘we should probably get going. Give you a chance to get Finn settled again. So perhaps another time.’
‘You don’t need to do that,’ Toby said. ‘Have another drink. Seriously, you’d love to see some of the others. I’ve got all sorts from round here. Hagney heath, before they built all those houses along the edge of it, loads of the river – some great wildlife down there sometimes – Chedford Lake…’ He paused. ‘Maybe not those.’
‘Natalie’s right,’ Josh said. ‘It’s getting late and you need to settle Finn. I think we’d better…’
Toby looked like he was about to carry on pushing them, but Jodie discreetly shook her head at him.
‘It was so great to see you both,’ Toby said as they made their way towards the door. ‘We won’t leave it so long next time.’
‘No,’ Josh said, without much enthusiasm.
‘And Nat, let me know about the tour, okay?’
‘Yeah, of course.’
Toby gave them an appraising look as they stepped outside, and his face broke into a grin as he turned to Josh. ‘Make sure you treat her right,’ he said. ‘You’ve struck gold with Natalie.’