by Liz Bankes
‘What?’ I call down from my ladder room as I am getting changed out of the clothes I wore at the party. ‘Why?’
‘There’s a note. She’s gone with a friend,’ Rosie replies.
‘How has she found another old person who likes running? I didn’t even know Granny liked running. Or had friends. She only moved here a few months ago. I can’t find my stupid sock!’
‘He doesn’t look old,’ calls up Nish.
I stop looking for my sock and come over to the balcony, which overlooks the living room. They are looking out of the window. I jump down the ladder and run over. Granny is waving at someone who I only glimpse as he disappears behind a hedge – there is a hedge between this house and next door, he’s not hiding. I didn’t see much, but I did see black curly hair, tanned skin and a vest.
Rosie smiles at me and I return it. I remember when she also brought cupcakes round to my house when my grandpa died. I wish she wasn’t so nice. It makes me feel awful for suspecting her last night. And still now.
Granny sees us all lined up at the window as she turns back from the gate. She waves and grins at us, apparently not questioning what we are doing. The others scatter and look busy with breakfast and I open the door for her.
‘Goodness! I am shagged!’ she says, sitting on the sofa to undo her trainers.
I feel my mouth drop open. The other two are trying to look interested in their mugs of tea, but Rosie snorts.
Soon we are standing on the platform at Waterloo and getting ready to wave them off.
They might have stayed another night, but Rosie has some family thing and Nish is going on some luxurious Istanbul trip with her dad and his girlfriend. Since Nish’s dad left her mum, he always takes her somewhere awesome and she’s allowed to bring Effie along, all expenses paid. It’s balanced out by them having to hang out with her dad’s girlfriend’s evil twin twelve-year-old boys, Jupiter and Jacobi. When he took them to Florida, Nish was majorly annoyed when they didn’t go to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter because the twins said it was a ‘stupid children’s book’.
I didn’t tell her that I haven’t technically read them either – I listened to the audiobooks with Max but I kept falling asleep and never found out who the monster was or where they hid the thing. It definitely would have been much better if her dad had just given her the money and she’d taken us instead, though he didn’t agree when I told him that.
Me and Granny hug them both and I wish Nish luck on her holiday. Rosie catches my eye like she’s going to say something, but then she doesn’t and steps onto the train behind Nish.
We were watching one of my teen drama box sets, which Max was really scornful of when his mates were around, but he secretly really loved. It was probably Dawson’s Creek that we got from Han’s older sister – that was one of our faves.
I was supposed to be doing my English homework – a piece of creative writing – but every time the credits came up I kept saying, ‘One more episode!’ Mum, Dad and Millie were out at parents’ evening anyway so no one would check up on me. Then Max took control.
‘Babe, I won’t be allowed to stay round any more if you don’t do your work.’ He pushed my notepad towards me and handed me a pen.
I rolled my eyes. ‘Fine!’ I went over to my laptop. ‘I’m just going to do some research . . .’ I checked Max couldn’t see my screen and went to open up Facebook, but the browser was blank. ‘Hey!’
‘I turned the router off,’ he said without even looking up. He was scribbling in his rap lyric book. ‘Can I call you Gaybie? I can’t think of anything that rhymes with Gabi except scabby.’
‘Or stabby,’ I muttered darkly. ‘I don’t even know what to write about.’
He gave me a look like it was obvious. ‘Do something like Dawson’s – like a couple or a love triangle or something.’
‘It’s meant to be literaturey. I’m supposed to do all long words and write about death or describe some leaves in a way that is actually talking about death.’
‘Lots of literature is about love. Romeo and Juliet. Pride and Prejudice. The Notebook.’
I definitely heard Max’s voice break a bit when he said The Notebook. He cried for a whole hour more than I did when we watched it.
He slid over to me on the sofa and put his arms around me. ‘Come on, babe. You’ve got loads of ideas.’
So I started writing my story.
Before English about a week later, Miss Gregg came up to me. She said my story was ‘very funny and very real’ and she was going to use it as one of the examples we would mark as a class.
‘OMFG!’
Miss Gregg frowned at this.
‘This has literally never happened to me ever,’ I told her.
She smiled back at me then, but I could see loads of pink pen marks and comments (they don’t write in red – it’s too aggressive) over the pages she held.
‘My spelling isn’t great,’ I admitted.
She said that could be worked on so I didn’t get marked down in the exams. And that the creative spark was the main thing.
But when she put it on the projector and it was so big that it took up a wall of the classroom, all I could see were the pink pen marks.
‘It’s really hard to read with all the mistakes,’ said Tina, whose story had been the first one to go up – all perfectly spelt and about someone dying.
‘It’s massive. Maybe you need your eyes testing,’ said Mia.
‘Maybe Gabi needs a special needs test,’ muttered Tina, too quietly for Miss Gregg to hear.
‘On task, please!’ said Miss Gregg brightly, but you could tell it wasn’t going how she’d planned. She tried to get everyone to talk about the observational comedy and the message about friendship – it was about a guy who tries it on with two best friends, but when the friends find out they decide to humiliate him in front of everyone. But the whole way through Tina and her squeaky little friend Melly (which isn’t even a proper name) kept pointing out all the mistakes.
Miss Gregg tried to talk to me at the end, but I just left and didn’t even take my story with me.
Chapter 15
When my alarm goes off at five in the morning, I briefly consider quitting my job, but then I have an exciting thought. Filming starts today. I actually get to see some of The Halls being filmed.
And I’ll see Spencer.
Which isn’t important because I’ve decided I won’t be kissing him again.
Not that I was thinking of kissing him.
When I arrive at the university a line of white trailers are lined up along one side of the big park at the front of the campus. They use some rooms inside the university building for storing props, but the make-up and dressing rooms and catering are all done from the trailers. Only I got a text this morning to say that the hot water in the catering van isn’t working, so I have to go and find some urn in the university canteen to use for making coffee.
The morning air is still really crisp. I walk round one of the make-up trailers and it’s quite chilly in the shadow, but I come out the other side into soft, warming sunlight. Spencer is a metre or so away, next to some people who are setting up a camera on a crane. He’s chatting to some girls on the crew and their laughter keeps breaking out over the dull murmur of everything else. It feels like it’s at a higher volume and I keep looking over.
It’s a good thing that he’s chatting up other girls. If it was just me that might make us a thing. And that could be the first step towards something big and scary.
As I’m telling myself that I stop and watch Spencer talking. I feel like I’ve only just started really looking at all the details of his face. The sharp angle of his cheeks when he smiles. And the way his lips are always slightly parted.
Which are all irrelevant. I’m about to creep off in the other direction, so he won’t know I was here, when he turns round and catches me staring.
‘Hello, hello.’ He arches an eyebrow in amusement. It feels a bit like everything focuses in
a close-up and we are the only two people here.
Then one of the cameramen says, ‘I said, “White, two sugars”,’ and I accidentally shush him. I do a pretend sneeze to cover it up when I realise what he’s said.
‘Yup,’ I say and turn to the others for their coffee orders. My heart is pounding and I wish I hadn’t noticed how nicely Spencer’s T-shirt fits and his stupidly perfect jawline. But I can’t stop the buzz that goes through me when I see to him.
I head into the uni building to find the hot water urn, waving at people in the crew I’ve already got to know. The location manager, Nina, and her assistants are all really nice.
I take ages to find my pass in my bag and the security guy – Ron – does the joke he’s done every morning where he pretends to not know who I am.
I’m in such a happy, skippy mood when I start doing the coffee that I turn the knob with a bit too much enthusiasm and hot water spills out onto the floor. Just at that moment, Spencer appears at the door of the canteen.
‘People are wondering where their coffee is— Whoa!’
He comes strolling in and is now looking at the massive puddle by his feet.
I look up from my search for a mop. ‘Do not tell anyone about this.’
‘Oh, don’t worry, it’s my fault. I must have startled you.’ He barely suppresses a grin.
But he starts making coffees from my list while I find a mop and start clearing up the water. It is possible I am just sweeping it to the sides of the room so we’ll just have to hope that no one hangs out by the wall.
Then someone else pops their head through the door.
‘I think they pay people to do that, Spence?’
It’s Heidi, who plays geeky Jas. She’s wearing little shorts and braces with a band T-shirt and definitely looks cool, even though she’s described as a misfit in her profile on the website. She’s holding her glasses between her finger and thumb, looking intently at him.
All I can think is, Why she is calling him Spence? I’ll Spence her.
‘I’ve just been called,’ she continues. ‘Do you want to see my scene?’
He turns quickly towards her just as he puts a cup down and the coffee spills over his fingers. ‘Sure!’ he says, his voice catching slightly as he must have scalded himself a bit. He sucks the hot coffee off his fingers. ‘Are you all right here, Gabi?’ His words are muffled by his hand.
‘Oh yeah, fine!’ I say, jamming my mop into the bucket a little bit too forcefully.
‘Tell you what, I’ll take some of the drinks out.’
I smile my thanks, and as we catch each other’s eye, it feels like the air crackles between us.
Heidi is inspecting her nails and breathes out impatiently.
‘So I’ll see you later?’ he says to me, a smile still at the corners of his mouth.
I hand out the rest of the coffees, and end up back at the make-up trailers in time to see the second scene of the day. About a million people touch up Johnny Green’s hair before his first appearance, even though he’s going to be riding a bike so it will get messed up anyway. They are filming the opening of episode two, because episode one is set in the Christmas holidays and they all go off to Paris for New Year’s. They are shooting that at the end of the summer after getting all the uni scenes filmed. I won’t get to go as my internship will have finished by then, but I have already been to Paris.
Paris was awesome.
I yawn, then realise that one of the sound guys is watching me.
‘You’ll have to get used to this!’ he laughs. He explains that because series two is set in the second term of uni, which starts in January, all the outside scenes have to be filmed really early in the morning so it doesn’t look too sunny.
Harry’s bike ride is filmed once by the camera on the crane, and then again with a camera next to him on a scooter, and then again with a camera fixed to his handlebars. It’s so weird seeing him when they aren’t filming and he’s just standing around with his arms folded and looking at his feet. Then, when the cameras roll, he’s all full of energy and confidence and Harryness. The scene is supposed to be Harry racing to get to a hearing at uni where they are deciding whether to throw him out for plagiarising in one of his essays. He’s turned into a total waster since Jen rejected him in the finale of series one.
Then after that, Jas finds him getting drunk after the hearing and she offers to help him with the essay he has to do to avoid getting thrown off the course. It’s the start of a thing between them, which is going to be majorly controversial because Jas is supposed to be best friends with Jen, Harry’s ex, which happened after Jen was there for her when her dad died and Jen showed she wasn’t so mean after all. And because Jas is supposed to be all good and have morals and stuff. And you’re just not meant to go out with your friend’s ex.
Even if the break-up was your friend’s fault.
Chapter 16
When I walk through the door at the end of the day, Granny says, ‘You look knackered.’
‘I am! And I’m grumpy. I miss Mia,’ I say. ‘I wish she hadn’t gone to France to farm grapes or whatever it is.’
And I wish I could stop thinking about kissing Spencer in his room.
‘Of course you do, love. Sit down and tell me. Have some sangria.’
‘Okay, thank— What?’
‘Sangriiia!’ she trills. ‘And I made tapas. My running buddy, Alejandro, has inspired me.’
I hope that’s all he did to her.
She has made the tapas only in the sense of taking things out of the packets and putting them in the oven, but it is still progress from takeaways. It turns out that Sangria tastes like cold mulled wine.
‘I have something for you.’ She points at me and then rubs her hands in excitement. I hope it isn’t anything weird. Granny’s been getting weirder lately.
She comes out of her bedroom holding a little box. She opens it to reveal a smaller blue box, fastened with a little gold clasp. Inside is a ring, with three tiny sapphires going across and then two diamonds either side of the middle sapphire.
I look up at her. ‘Are you asking me to marry you? Because I would say yes with this ring.’
Granny laughs. ‘That’s pretty much what I said when it was given to me. Charlie squirrelled away money for months to get it. But I want to give it to you. And then one day, you can give it to your granddaughter.’
I am choked up. Like there is a small rock sitting in my throat. I try to say thank you, but I can’t get any words out. It feels like my throat is too closed up to speak. Then Granny makes it worse.
‘I know this break-up is sad at the moment,’ she says, ‘but you’re going to have so many adventures and meet plenty of new people who will understand how wonderful you are.’
I try to say thank you again, but when my voice still doesn’t work, I hug her.
Gabi has joined the conversation.
Gabi: Argh! So sorry I’m late, guys – work is mental and my phone keeps freezing! What a mare!
Rosie: No worries.
Nish: Sorting out Rosie’s birthday shenanigans – you need to get involved!
Gabi: YES. Lads reunited!
Mia: Except me.
Gabi: That’s what you get, froggy!
Rosie: So next Sat, out for a pizza, then Spanky’s?
Gabi: Uh.May.Zing. Just have to check my work dates. I am dressing up as a giant condom next weekend. Argh, have to go now – they are filming a bonfire scene where Harry plays Jas a song he wrote and they nearly kiss.
Mia: You’re doing WHAT?
Gabi: Not supposed to tell you storylines. FORGET IT ALL.
Nish: Lol.
Gabi: Bye! xoxoxox
Gabi has left the conversation.
Chapter 17
The networking event is about a million floors up a massive tower. Apparently – according to my London tour guide – this is ‘the City’. Large buildings loom over us, most of them made entirely out of windows, so you can see parties going on. Spenc
er points to the floor we are heading for. It looks very, very high up.
To distract myself in the lift, I twist the ring round my finger. It’s a bit too big for me, so I put it on my middle finger, but I might move it to my thumb. I would die if I lost it.
Spencer is looking annoyingly gorgeous in a shirt and smart trousers with slightly less messy hair than usual. He brushes it away from his eyes and fiddles with his collar.
‘Well, this feels wrong.’ He wrinkles his nose.
‘It was your idea!’ I reply, hoping that he’s changed his mind.
He’s making out like I dragged him here. He was the one who spotted the poster for the Friday evening television-industry event on a notice board in the Student Union. Then we talked about how awful the idea of networking was. He told me how Heidi Adams had told him he should ‘totally’ go tonight, because he could ‘totally’ get an agent and ‘totally’ get some advert work. I told him that if he wanted to take the advice of a total knob that was up to him.
He thought it over for a moment. ‘We could go and laugh at people being dicks. And there’s free food.’
So here we are.
We haven’t talked about the kiss. Or sleeping in his bed.
I’m wearing my green skater dress, jazzed up with my gold heels. It’s a dress that keeps the boobs under control. They went a bit wild the other day when I was wearing a strappy top and had to run around and find some extras who had gone missing. One of the cameramen kept making comments it.
I take a breath and try to look more awake. To be honest the last thing I wanted to do was come out after spending all day doing things like making lots of half-eaten Pot Noodles – so that a scene with Tom and Priya arguing while he eats one could be shot lots of times – and holding a branch out of shot for an hour.
I emailed Mia to ask if she thought it would be a good idea to make up a fake name for the evening, but she said not to. I said it would be good in case I did anything awful and then they’d be looking for someone else, but she pointed out that there would probably be people from my work there who would know me anyway. She does spoil my fun sometimes.