Avalon

by Lana Davison

  I took my hair out of the ponytail and this time he felt my long hair. “Holly, you seriously drive me crazy. I never thought I would find someone like you and you have no idea how much of a contradiction you are to my life.”

  What did that mean? More puzzles.

  The bell went. Where had the last half an hour gone? How appropriate the cliche how time flies when you’re having fun was right now. I pulled my hair back into a ponytail and walked out of the assembly hall with Leo.

  “Remember yesterday I told you, you could have me anyway you wanted me? Even if that means we have to sneak around, so that you feel like you’re not hurting anyone’s feelings? Do you want me?”

  “What do you think?” I stopped, amazed that he had to ask. “Did you just see the person who was in the assembly hall with you?”

  “Yes, that was you,” he laughed “A fascinating girl who’s got me thinking about her all the time.”

  He had this way with words that made me feel like I was the most important person to ever walk the earth. He made me feel like he would do anything for me. I felt strangely protected in his company, as if he would never let anyone hurt me.

  “What are you thinking, Holly? “

  “I’m thinking how much you rock my world. Where did you come from, Leo? You have well and truly bowled me over, I feel like a different person when I’m with you.”

  “A better person?”

  “Of course, you bring out fire and passion deep in my soul. I never thought I would feel like this about anyone.”

  “Holly listen. If it’s any consolation, this is all new to me too.”

  “I doubt it. You’re very confident.” I raised my brow.

  “Don’t doubt me. When I say something I mean it.” He stopped and looked at me, as if to reinforce that he could be trusted.”

  “Well I’m thinking about you and Henry, I mean you share a room with him. Isn’t it going to be awkward?”

  “I don’t care. I want what you want.”

  “I want you, but don’t you think I’m being a bit harsh, I just broke up with Henry and now I’m… Well I guess, I’m going out with you?”

  “OK, so start hanging around me, come and sit with me, we’re in almost all the same classes anyway.” He grinned.

  I grinned back at him. I released my hand from his as we entered the quadrant surrounded by classrooms and we walked straight to the science lab for a double science lesson. Leo opened the door for me and let me enter before him. Henry noticed I entered the room with Leo and looked upset, possibly cross even and glanced back down to his open book on the science table and huffed. He was disappointed and I hated that he felt that way.

  Leo sat next to me undeterred by anything or anyone. I wished it could be some other way, but Henry would just have to learn that I had a new friend, and that he didn’t have any ownership rights. I would try my best not to flaunt my obvious feelings for Leo.

  When our lesson finished the bell went for lunch and Leo and I walked over to the cafeteria, just like everyone else.

  “Leo, can I have a word,” Henry said pulling Leo by the arm.

  “Sure,” he said. “Excuse me, Holly. I’ll join you when I’m done.” I watched them as they stopped by one of the benches close to the quad and began to have a heated discussion, about me no doubt.

  I found my friends gathered at one of the dining tables and walked over to join them. They stopped talking when I sat down with my plate of food.

  “We heard what happened. Well done,” Jess said.

  “What do you mean?” Were they talking about Leo.

  “You know, Shona choking in the common room.”

  “Oh that. I didn’t really do anything.”

  “You have a habit of helping people,” Emily said lifting her eyebrows as if to remind me of the horse riding incident at her house.

  “I just have a way of calming people down, that’s all.”

  “Well whatever it is, you’re good at it. Maybe you have some freaky supernatural power.” Emily laughed and the others joined in.

  I breathed through a fake smile and let the topic go.

  “Where’s Henry and Leo?” Rach asked.

  I turned around to look at the back of the room and caught Leo walking towards the food counter. He caught my eye and winked. Rach saw what happened and her eyes darted over to me.

  “Oh, no way,” she said.

  I said nothing at first. What could I say?

  “Holly, have you and Leo got a thing going? I thought I said I liked him.”

  Leo joined the table, finding a place right next to me. He came at just the right time, so I didn’t have to answer Rachael’s question. The others heard her comments and looked over, noticing that we were spending lunch together. Rachael did not look happy, in fact her face showed annoyance and I knew she would confront me as soon as she got a moment.

  “Are you all right?” Leo asked me as he took a huge bite of his sandwich.

  “Me?” I whispered, “What about you? What did Henry want with you?”

  Leo shrugged as if it was no big deal. “He said he has asked to change rooms he doesn’t want me as his room-mate.”

  “Because of me?”

  “Probably. That’s his problem.”

  “Did he say anything else?”

  “Yes he told me I was out of order going after you.”

  “What did you say?”

  “I told him, you were a free agent.”

  I nodded understanding his words and thinking I could probably use the same speech on Rachel.

  Leo and I spent the rest of lunch bent over the table in a private huddle, talking about everything. He told me about his uncle Ryan, the guy he lives with when he goes home.

  “Are you staying at school on the weekend?” I asked, knowing his decision would reflect my own to stay at school or go home.

  “I was going to. Are you?”

  I smiled. “Well I might if you do.”

  “If you do, I might.” He laughed.

  “So stay at school and I will too,” I said playfully pushing his shoulder.

  “I will.”

  “Well good.” I laughed.

  I placed my arms by my side and Leo took the opportunity to hold my hand under the table. We grinned like two little mischievous children. Despite my best effort to mix with my friends at lunch and look inconspicuous with Leo, it hadn’t worked. My attention was on Leo and him alone.

  “I want to get you alone so bad,” he said bumping my shoulder. “What about tonight if you can get out of dorm?”

  “Are you serious?”

  “I’ll come and get you tonight.”

  “You will not,” I said thinking he was joking.

  “I will. I’ll put my alarm on for midnight and I’ll come for you.”

  “OK,” I said thinking about how to plan my escape. I had never broken the school rules before, and even though I knew if we got caught sneaking out from our dorms in the middle of the night, we would get into so much trouble – suspension, possibly expulsion – it all seemed worth it. I yearned to have time with Leo away from prying eyes.

  *****

  “Are you and Leo a ‘thing’?” Simone asked me during our Design and Technology lesson. I was surprised by her question given we had never really talked to each other.

  “I don’t know what you mean.”

  “I mean, you keep looking at each other.”

  She had noticed it too. In the space of two days I couldn’t stop the pull of some mysterious force. Our attraction was too intense, like moth to a flame, and it wasn’t going to go away.

  “Look at you?” she continued.

  “Pardon, I don’t get what you mean.”

  “You have not listened to a word I just said. You’re besotted with the new guy and he can’t keep his eyes off you either.”

  “I’m just looking at what they are making, that’s all.”

  “OK whatever you say,” she said dismissively.

 
When our class ended Leo left first, and my heart skipped a beat. How could I miss someone who had just left the space we were both occupying? I left the classroom feeling slightly deflated that he had gone, but he was waiting for me a couple of metres from the classroom door. My demeanour changed completely, as soon as I saw him.

  “Did you think I would leave you?” he said perhaps sensing my anguish, brushing my cheek.

  I held his hand at my cheek for a moment, closed my eyes and took in his touch. “I.... I don’t know what I thought, but I’m glad you waited.”

  “Ah... but Holly, I have been waiting for you for so long.”

  “You know what? I feel like I’ve been waiting for you too. Correction, I never thought I’d meet someone like you.” I said.

  “Have you got anything on now?” Leo asked.

  “I‘ve signed up to do horse-riding with my friends this term, so I can’t stay here long.” Damn horse-riding... “I’ll see you later,” I said pulling away from him, our hands still touching.

  “Until tonight,” he said kissing my hand.

  I giggled. Leo released me and watched me as I ran off. “Until tonight,” I shouted down the hall.

  I went to my sports locker and changed into my horse riding clothes; jodhpurs, boots, hat. I hurried to the bus, thinking I was probably late. Scrambling aboard the bus, I sat next to Emily with Jess and Rach sitting in the two seats in front of us as we made our way to the equestrian centre.

  “So what’s going on with you and Leo?” Jess said bumping shoulders with Rachael. Had Rach asked Jess to question me?

  “Nothing juicy.” Well not if I didn’t tell them. “We like each other.”

  “And I told you I liked him.” Rach turned around narrowing her eyes at me.

  “Are we really going to have this conversation?” I said dismissively.

  “Yes we are! You know, Holly, I didn’t think you were the type of girl to steal a guy away from one of your friends.”

  This time I narrowed my eyes. “You know what Rachael? I don’t need to explain myself to you, and let’s get the facts right. I didn’t steal anyone away from you, because first they must belong to you and, as far as I can tell, you don’t hold the title deeds to Leo. You do not dibs someone, and you most certainly do not get to decide who I am allowed to like and who I am not. I like Leo, we get on really well, OK.”

  She turned back around and huffed like a spoilt child.

  Emily patted my shoulder as if to make me feel better about my confrontation with Rachael. “You’re right,” she said softly.

  “I know,” I whispered.

  For the rest of the journey Emily and I talked about some music she had recently downloaded. She gave me one of the ear pieces to her head phones and put on some music on her ipod and asked me what I thought of her newest playlist. Emily was a marvellous friend and I was grateful that she hadn’t asked too many questions about Leo. I’m sure the questions will come soon enough, just not on the school bus and not in front of other people.

  As usual we brushed our horses and saddled up. I was riding Western today, named because he looked like he could be the horse of a cowboy, but don’t all horses look like they could be in a western? Western, was a dirty white colour with grey markings dotted all over him, he was mild in spirit; a nice gentle character. I often rode him because he was predictable, not like Spit Fire, as the name might suggest, many of the girls had fallen off him over the years.

  When we returned to school, still in our horse riding clothes, we showered and changed. I twisted my damp hair into a loose messy bun and put on my blue fitted jeans and a loose tank paired with a summer weight scarf wrapped casually around my neck with the ends flopping over my chest. I put my ankle boots on and went to the dining hall for dinner. Unconscious of my actions, I looked for Leo and found him. He spotted me immediately and gave me a wink and nodded that I come over and join him. I took a tray and a plate and put a slab of lasagne on it and teamed that with some salad, and navigated my way over to him.

  “You look amazing.”

  “In this?” I squinted.

  “Yes, in that, but then again, you look amazing in anything.”

  “Stop.” I rejected his praise.

  “It’s true Holly, you better get used to accepting compliments because while you’re with me I’ll shower you with them.”

  Sitting across from me I noticed Leo was wearing a black and blue striped polo shirt. “And you look good in everything, I love the shirt you are wearing, and the grey one you wore yesterday looked incredible on you.”

  “So you noticed it? That means you noticed me.”

  “How could I not notice you?”

  “That’s what I like to hear,” he winked. “I thought you might have gone to sit with your friends.”

  “I didn’t even notice they were here.”

  “Because you only have eyes for me.”

  “Something like that.”

  “I’m glad.”

  “So? No Henry tonight.”

  “Nope, and I think he can change rooms tomorrow too, so I’ll have my own room until someone else decides to board.”

  “How do you feel about that?”

  “I don’t mind, actually I’m used to being on my own. I don’t mind my own company.”

  I nodded understanding. “I mean who else will put up with you?” I joked.

  “I think you might,” he retaliated playfully. “What are you going to do after dinner?”

  “I’m going to make a start on my English book. You know, the Einstein one you have already read.”

  “Oh, yes.”

  “You were amazing when you told the teacher all about it.”

  “Ha, he was pretty taken aback that someone had actually read it.”

  We finished eating but stayed with our trays and empty plates until the dining room cleared. It was time to go our own separate ways, at least for a few hours. Ever the gentlemen, Leo got up and then came around to my side of the table and took my hand to help me out of the bench seat.

  “Thank you.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  He kissed my hands. “Go,” he told me. “I’ll see you very soon.”

  When I got back to my dorm I went straight to my room. Emily was out with Hugh or in the common room. I took my boots off and dug my novel out of my bag and curled up on my bed. I opened my book to read but remembered to set my alarm. I chose to set my stopwatch alarm because it wasn’t as loud as my bedside alarm clock, and I didn’t want to wake Emily. I curled up to read again but found it harder than ever to concentrate, with my mind continuing to dart at my watch or thinking about Leo. My God he made me feel so wonderful. I smiled at myself and tried to read some more, then eventually gave up given nothing was going in.

  When Emily returned she talked about Hugh constantly, Hugh this and Hugh that, Hugh is amazing, Hugh and I did this.... and so on. I turned off but nodded as if I was listening.

  “OK enough about me,” she said finally. “What the hell is going on with you and this new kid, Leo?”

  “I like him. I like him a lot.”

  “Woohoo!” Emily said, making me laugh. “Don’t worry what anyone says, you just go for it, OK?”

  “I am.” I nodded.

  Em washed her face and got into bed. I changed too, so that she wouldn’t ask why I still had my clothes on. The lights went out in our dorm and I lay on my bed in silence, looking at the ceiling and frequently rolling over to look at my bedside clock. I tossed and turned and wished the time away, until eventually I fell asleep and woke up to the sound of my alarm. I had put it on for fifteen minutes before midnight, so that I could change back into my jeans. I got out of my bed and fixed it back up with two puffed up pillows, loosely shaped as a body, then placed the duvet cover on top to look like there was someone sleeping in there. I changed and took my zip-up hoodie with me to the window. I turned around to check Emily and then slowly opened the window carefully. I saw Leo waiting, he took one of my ha
nds to help me outside and held the window with his other as I hurdled my way out.

  “Put it down almost all the way, but leave it slightly open so I can get back in,” I said to Leo.

  He did exactly that and took my hand and I followed him. We were careful to not be seen, sprinting a little, then jogging when necessary hiding behind corners and classrooms.

  “Where are we going?” I whispered.

  “Back to my room.”

  “But you’re on the first floor. How will we get up?”

  “Don’t worry, I’ve got it covered.”

  We reached the boys’ dorm and Leo moved a commercial size recycle bin next to the dorm block underneath his window. We would have to jump up on top of it and then climb through the window.

  I pushed the bin to check for sturdiness, it wasn’t going to move. I opened the lid slightly and looked inside. There were numerous broken bricks and tiles layering the inside almost to the top of the bin. No wonder it was so heavy. “That’s got to weigh a ton,” I stated.

  “It’s not as heavy as you think.”

  “Yes it is. Have you seen the contents?” I whispered with emphasis. “When did you move it?”

  “A couple of hours ago. There wasn’t anything in it when I moved it,” he said. Although that sounded implausible I couldn’t be bothered to argue.

  “OK. Let me lift you,” he said, picking me up with ease and placing me on top of the bin. He pushed his body up with his arms, as if he were doing a standing push up and joined me as I waited for our next move. Leo lifted me up to his window and I climbed in.

  “Are you all right?” he asked when he joined me.

  “I’m fine. I’ve never ever snuck out before, but that’s because I never had a reason too.” I did now. “So this is your room?” I said as I landed on the floor next to the window.