Aisley and Chandra watched him walk away and they exchanged a look.
'He'll come around,' said Chandra. 'He just needs more time.'
Fifteen minutes later and Aisley was stirring the froth on the top of her hot chocolate as her friends bantered about this and that. She followed the conversation, happy to be an on-looker as she gathered her thoughts.
Two months on and she hadn't said a word to any of them about her dream, not even Chandra. She was afraid it would lose its charm spoken aloud but that hadn't stopped her acting on what she'd learned.
The year before, after they'd finished their Humanities presentation on the history of Sheldon's Seat, she had thought about following the Sheldon family tree as far as she could, but with one thing and another, she'd forgotten about it. Chandra had gone off to Costa Rica and a new school year had begun and somehow, Lily had become nothing more than a memory.
But after the dream her curiosity and fascination for anything to do with Lily Sheldon had been reawakened with a vengeance. Imagine the thrill then, when she explored the data available and discovered there really was a Neve! The information was scanty and she couldn't find any phone numbers or email addresses, so she'd written a letter and posted it to the only lead she had … Neve Hobson, aged seventeen, in Manchester, England.
She'd started a ball rolling. She couldn't keep quiet about it anymore so she'd shared what she knew with her parents and brother. Now she wanted to share it with her friends so she waited for a lull in the conversation around the table and spoke up.
'You guys want to hear a story?'
Somewhere in England
The noise echoing up the communal stairwell could be unsettling if you weren't used to it but Neve was well used to it. She'd lived her entire life in council housing. She was accustomed to the din of domestic violence, thumping bass music, babies crying, and the rest of it. At the ripe old age of seventeen, Neve didn't think there was anything left on earth that could unsettle her. She'd seen it all and most of it was crap.
She climbed the last two flights to her flat… or Sammy's flat, rather. Despite it being early summer, a cold wind assaulted her as she rounded the corner and headed along the balcony walkway. She had a bag of groceries in one hand and a six pack of lager in the other. The lager was for Sammy. She owed him for what she was about to do.
Just ahead of her, a hulking giant of a man stepped out of a door and blocked her way. 'Hello darlin',' he grinned, revealing bad teeth. 'Alright then?'
Neve tried to sidle past his massive bulk. She wasn't quite quick enough and he pinched her bottom as she squeezed by. She saw red and swung her bag of groceries so it hit him in his flabby midriff.
'Oof!'
She marched on.
'Come in for a visit later,' he called after her. 'You're feisty. I like that.' Then he laughed. The laugh turned into a smokers cough as he lumbered away towards the stairs.
Neve ignored him. She moved the lager to under one arm as she fumbled in the pocket of her jacket for her key and let herself in to the flat.
It was like a furnace indoors. Sammy had the heat turned right up. He could never get used to the British weather despite ten years in England. He was lounging on the saggy couch watching telly. Neve dumped the lager in his lap and slipped off her coat tossing it over the back of a chair.
'What's this then?' he asked, surprised. 'It's not my birthday, lovie.'
She kissed the top of his head and went into the tiny kitchen. 'Can't I just buy you a present now and then?' she asked, filling the kettle.
Sammy unfolded his big frame from the couch and padded into the kitchen. He put the lager on the bench and watched her unpack the groceries. 'You're up to something,' he said, eyeing her.
She tucked her long blonde hair back behind her ears. 'What makes you think that?' she asked, bending down to put bread in the bread box.
'I can feel it,' he said. He pointed at her. 'I know you, girl. What's up?'
She stood up straight. 'I got a letter,' she said. 'It's from Australia.'
He frowned. 'Who'd you know in Australia then?'
'I don't know her at all, this girl,' Neve admitted. She pulled the much-folded letter from her pocket and handed it to him. 'But she's looking for me. She knows all about my family.'
Sammy unfolded the letter. Before reading it, he looked at the skinny girl in front on him. She was so tough-looking with her tattoos and piercings, but he knew that was all front. He knew the child inside. 'She knows about your mum?' he asked. 'And your loser old man?'
Neve gestured at the letter impatiently. 'Just read it,' she said.
While Sammy read the letter, she made them both a cup of tea. She sipped hers and peered at him over the brim of the cup.
He finished reading and met her eyes. 'This Aisley,' he said. 'She's been digging into your family tree. She lives…'
'In the house my great-grandmother was born in. Yes.'
Sammy scanned the letter again. 'She's not sure it's you,' he said. 'She says she's looking for information.'
Neve nodded. 'But it is me she's searching for. She mentions my dad. Paul Hobson, born 1960, in Manchester.'
'Common enough name, 'innit,' Sammy grunted. He picked up his tea and used it to warm his hands.
'But look.' She pointed to the letter. 'Paul, son of John and Esmeralda Hobson. My grandparents. Esmeralda is not a common name.'
He shook the letter. 'But what of it?' he asked. 'What are you going to do? Write back to her?'
'No.' She looked into his friendly, black face. 'I'm going to go there,' she said.
His eyes got wide. 'To Australia?'
'Yes.'
'Girl, you mad?'
'It feels right, Sammy.'
'But you're settled,' he complained. 'You live 'ere with me n' Darren. All the bad times are behind you now.'
She smiled fondly at him. 'I know.'
'What about me?' he pouted. 'You're leaving me.'
She came around the bench and hugged him. 'You'll be okay. You've got Darren.'
'He's a bitch,' Sammy grumbled. 'I'm going to dump his arse.'
Neve laughed. 'No you're not,' she said. 'You two are mad crazy in love.'
'You've got no money.' He tried a different tack.
'I'm going to London,' she told him. 'I know a girl who says she can get me bar-work. I'll earn the money and then I'll go.'
'Bar-work,' he snorted. 'Probably more like brothel work.'
She shook her head firmly. 'No,' she said. 'This time it's on the level.'
'What about Dillon?' He was talking about the brother she'd lost, all those years ago. Her wishful thinking made her see him on every street corner but in reality, she had no clue where he was.
"I don't know where he is,' she said. 'And for all I know, he may have left the country as well.' She hugged him again. 'Please be happy for me, Sammy. For the first time ever I know this is something I need to do. It's important to me.'
Sammy sighed. He hugged her back, remembering the shivering child he'd saved from the streets a year ago. 'Off you go then,' he said, feeling emotional. 'Off into the big world again. You're a survivor, Neve. Dunno if you know that darlin', but you are. You'll be aw'right, but you have no idea how much I'm going to miss you, little one. No idea at all.'
One of the Nice Guys
One month later
Heathrow, London
Neve shouldered her heavy back pack and stepped up to the departures counter. After weeks of long shifts, living on sandwiches and sleeping rent-free on her work-mate's floor, she'd put together enough cash for a one-way fare. She was finally leaving England.
The woman on the other side of the desk held out her hand and Neve stared at her blankly. 'Ticket?' the woman demanded impatiently.
'Oh. Right.' She fumbled her paperwork across the counter and watched as the woman shuffled and scanned barcodes, her fingers tapping her keyboard at a frantic pace.
Neve's attention wandered. Her gaze drifted around the h
ectically busy Heathrow terminal. The crowds scared her. Everybody was striding with purpose suggesting they knew exactly what they were doing. She felt well out of her depth.
Suddenly she realised the woman was talking to her. 'Pardon?'
The woman rolled her eyes. 'I haven't got all day,' she snapped. 'I said, got any baggage to check?'
Neve shrugged her back pack off. 'Does that mean…' she began.
'To go in the hold of the plane,' the woman said. 'Yes. You want that checked?' She pointed at the backpack.
'Alright.'
'Put it on the belt then.'
'The belt?'
The woman huffed a sigh. She gestured impatiently at the gap between her desk and the next and Neve noticed the conveyor belt. She put her backpack on it. The woman slapped some stickers on to it and the backpack trundled away on the belt. Neve felt bereft. That backpack had been her close companion for years. It was like losing a dear friend.
She showed the woman her canvas shoulder bag. 'Can I take this on the plane?' she asked.
'Carry-on luggage,' the woman said. 'No problem.' She handed Neve her paperwork. 'There's your boarding pass. Gate twenty three. Better hurry. They're boarding now.' She abruptly dismissed her and looked at the next passenger.
'Oh really?' Neve was alarmed. 'Which way do I go?'
But the woman didn't hear her.
Neve clutched her boarding pass in her fist and turned in a slow circle. The terminal went on forever and she had no idea where to go. Voice-overs blared and electronic signs filled her vision. Arrows and directions and advertisements bombarded her senses. She started to feel a bit desperate.
Just then, a young guy walked past. He had red hair and freckles, and his worn backpack and boots suggested a seasoned traveller. He did a classic double-take when he saw her looking and he grinned, casting an appreciative glance at her long legs in her denim shorts. Neve seized the opportunity and smiled her prettiest smile and the young man's grin instantly got wider. He knew a come on when he saw one.
'Hello,' he said, as she came over to him.
'Help!'' She looked pleadingly up at him. 'I'm hopelessly lost.'
The young man blinked at her. Yep. She was definitely coming on to him. He couldn't tear his gaze away from those amazing eyes. And that hair… platinum blonde and falling almost to her waist. 'I'd love to help you,' he assured her.
'Do you know where gate twenty three is?' she asked. 'I'm scared I'm going to miss my plane.'
'This way,' he said, grabbing her hand. She let him drag her along through the crowd. Half-running, they arrived at gate twenty three just in time. The announcement blared overhead …
Heathrow to Sydney, via Dubai… last call
'Oh thanks ever so much!' Neve gasped. She kissed him on the cheek and turned to go.
'Wait!' he called. He was busy scribbling on a piece of paper. He thrust the paper into her hand. 'My name and number,' he said. 'Call me when you get back, alright? Please?'
'Alright,' she smiled. She looked at the note. 'Cheers… Ed.' She dashed for the boarding gate.
'What's your name?' he yelled.
She pretended not to hear and as she followed the queue filing down the boarding ramp, she screwed up the notepaper and tossed it into a nearby bin.
'Thanks Ed,' she murmured. 'You're one of the nice guys. Have a good life.'
The sea breeze on Seamere Surf Beach lifted Aisley's hair from her brow and blew it back. She let her gaze wander from the surf life-saving club on her left, out across the water and to the cliffs Chandra and Wade had been washed around a year ago almost to the day.
As of half an hour before, another term was over and the winter holidays had begun.
Beside her, Chandra lay on the sand with his hands linked behind his head. 'Are we alright?' he asked hopefully. 'I feel like I've totally neglected you lately.'
'We're better than alright,' she reassured him. She gave him a crooked smile. 'Besides, you're not the only one with an enormous workload, you know. Might interest you to hear, I've been pretty busy myself.'
'I don't doubt it.'
'I'm like, ninety nine percent sure I want to go the distance with psychology now.'
'I think you should. You're a natural.'
'Thank you.' She leaned over, resting her forehead against his. 'You look tired,' she said quietly. 'Close your eyes.' He obliged and she let her kisses fall on his eyelids, his cheeks and his lips. 'I adore you, you know?' she told him.
'With this face, babe? How could you not?'
She smiled again. Good to his word, Chandra had really knuckled down this term, throwing himself into his schoolwork with an energy that was almost scary. The up-side, he was surely going to blitz in VCE the following year if he kept this pace up. The down-side, he had to manage his time so strictly they'd barely saw one another.
'I've missed you,' she told him.
'I've missed you too,' He opened his eyes and pulled a face at her. 'Tell me the truth, have I been a jerk?'
'Not at all.' She rubbed her cheek against his. Rough, not smooth. 'I'll tell you the truth about something else as well. You really need a shave.'
He stroked the side of her face. 'And you don't,' he said, making her grin. 'Do you reckon I can come over tonight? After all, we're on holidays now and it's been weeks since we spent any real time together.'
'As if you need to ask,' she said. 'We've got so much to talk about.'
'More than that,' he murmured. 'Talking isn't only thing we haven't done in ages.'
She played dumb. 'Chandra Sarin! Are you asking if you can sleep over? I'm shocked!'
He kissed her slowly. 'Is that a yes?'
She leaned her face against his neck breathing in the smell of him, 'It's just me and mum rattling around in that big house at the moment,' she said. 'Dad and Wade are away. Mum won't mind if you sleep over.'
Shay had grown very fond of Chandra and his presence made Sheldon's Seat a bit less big and empty. Of course he could stay. The three of them shared a fish and chip tea and some cheerful conversation. Night came down outside and the temperature dropped, but the big kitchen was cheery and inviting. Ellette scrambled around under the table. She was an optimistic dog, ever on the lookout for a dropped chip.
'I hope she writes back,' Aisley said. Shay and Chandra both knew who she was talking about. Aisley gazed around the kitchen, peaceful in the warm light from her mother's candles burning on the table. 'I want to bring her here. I like to think she'll feel instantly at home because in a way, this is her home.'
Just after midnight, Aisley woke up to the comforting sound of rain beating against her window. The blustery weather made the glass rattle in its frame and she knew the sound would keep her awake unless she stopped it.
She untangled herself from Chandra's warm body and climbed out of bed. Tiptoeing over to the window seat, she climbed in and gave the window latches a good twist to tighten them. The rattling ceased instantly.
She was about to go back to bed but the view beckoned so she sat on the cushioned seat and rested her elbows on her knees as she watched the night. It had turned stormy while they slept. The rain pelted against the glass and when she laid her hand on it, she could feel the cold seeping through. She shivered in a nice way and goose bumps popped up all over her skin.
She leaned her forehead against the windowpane, watching the rain rivulets make crazy patterns before her. Lightning flashed across the sky, illuminating the ocean and dazzling her eyes.
She sensed movement and then Chandra was climbing in beside her. He'd brought the doona with him and he tucked it cosily around the two of them. They sat face to face and watched the storm together.
'It's like we're rushing towards something huge,' he said softly, sharing his thoughts with her. 'Don't you think? Next year and then school is over. We'll all be separated and things will never be the same again.'
She didn't answer right away. She gazed at him, seeing the surfboard charm she'd given him glimmering dimly
in the moonlight. 'I know we can deal with it,' she finally replied. 'So long as there's us…you and me. It'll be a beginning as well as an end. Change doesn't have to be a bad thing, Chandra. It's just part of our lives.'
The lightning flashed across the ocean again, washing the room in brightness for a nanosecond.
'I know,' he said. 'And I admit I think about this sort of stuff much more these days, you know, since Willa.'
She nodded. 'We all have a different outlook now.'
'I'll go off to med school,' he continued. 'You'll go somewhere else. Then what?' He brushed her hair off her face. 'A gorgeous creature like you, you're sure to meet someone new at uni. A guy who's studying, oh I dunno… let's say archaeology.'
'I seriously doubt it.'
'He'll be blonde,' Chandra went on. 'With blue eyes. Complete opposite to me. And he'll be into jazz music and American football. He'll sweep you off your feet and convince you to go with him to Egypt to excavate some tomb.' He scowled. 'I hate him already.'
Aisley chuckled. 'Who's to say that you won't find someone else? That's the more likely scenario, because you're so hot and sexy.'
'While it's true that I am both hot and sexy,' he said. 'Believe me when I say I won't find anyone else because I won't be looking.'
She pulled her hair back behind her shoulders. 'She'll be European. Maybe Italian, tall, with long black hair and olive skin.' She giggled. 'Complete opposite to me. She'll be into jelly wrestling and pole dancing.'
His eyebrows shot up. 'Now this girl I like the sound of!'
She smacked him and they both laughed.
'Never!' He shook his head emphatically, and leaned over to press his lips to hers.
'Anyway,' she shrugged. 'It's all hypothetical. If losing Willa has taught me anything it's that we can't waste time worrying about tomorrow and miss out on today. You said it yourself once. You said something like, we can't change the past, and there's no point worrying about the future. Do you remember that?'
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