by Cathy Cole
Max obediently turned round and headed for the street. There was still a puzzled look on his face. Polly breathed a sigh of relief.
“Now what?”
Polly spun round, her hand on her heart. “Ollie! You gave me the fright of my life! What are you doing, sneaking up on me like that?”
“I followed you,” Ollie said. He was looking hurt. “I wanted to know what was so important that it took you away.” He gazed after Max’s disappearing back. “So what were you doing out here talking to Max when you’re supposed to be dancing with me?”
“It was Rhi and Brody,” Polly explained. “I had to get Max out of the way before he saw them together.”
“Rhi and Brody?” Ollie repeated. “Rhi’s going out with Max, Polly. What’s Brody got to do with this?”
“Max isn’t right for Rhi,” Polly said in a rush. “He’s a cheat and a liar. I want her to be happy. She and Brody are perfect for each other.”
Ollie was beginning to frown now. “Max is my friend, Polly,” he said. “I know he’s a handful, but what gives you the right to meddle in his life?”
Polly was determined that Ollie should understand. “I want Rhi to be happy. She’s had too much sadness in her life, Ollie. Doesn’t she deserve someone better than Max?”
His eyes sparked. He looked angry. “First you have to be there for Eve. Then you have to set up Lila and Josh. And now you’re sabotaging Max and Rhi’s relationship?”
It didn’t sound too good when Ollie put it like that, Polly realized. Maybe he wasn’t the only insensitive one.
“They’re my friends,” she said feebly. “I’m just trying to take care of them.”
Ollie’s expression softened. “Someone should take care of you for a change.”
His face was very close out here in the moonlight. Polly felt a little breathless.
“Are you volunteering for the job?” she asked.
Ollie pulled her closer. “If you’ll have me,” he said. “Yes.”
A strain of music floated out of the marquee, into the dark gardens of Heartwell Manor.
“Can we have that dance now?” Ollie said.
Polly laid her head on Ollie’s chest, snuggling into him. He folded his arms around her back. The music was dreamy, almost otherworldly, spilling into the warm night around them. As if it were being played for them alone.
“I always loved this song,” Ollie murmured, his lips close to Polly’s ear.
“Me too,” Polly whispered back.
Ollie’s lips were trailing from her ear across her cheek now. Little warm kisses, one after the other. Polly’s skin tingled all over.
Nothing else matters, she thought. Ollie’s going to kiss me…
There was a clattering sound, the crunch of shoes on gravel. Polly jerked back, her mouth inches from Ollie’s.
“There you are, Polly!” said Eve, putting her hands on her hips. “I’ve been looking everywhere for you.”
TWELVE
“Come on,” said Eve briskly. “You’re needed.”
Polly’s face was aflame. She wanted the ground to swallow her up. Couldn’t Eve see that she’d interrupted a really important moment? Didn’t Eve feel any embarrassment at all?
“Hey,” Ollie said indignantly. “We’re busy here, Eve. Do you mind?”
“Sorry, Ollie, but this can’t wait.” Eve seemed completely unembarrassed. “It’s really important that Polly comes right now. You two can talk later.”
“I’d better go,” Polly muttered to Ollie.
Ollie looked resigned. He kissed her cheek and let go of her hand. “Go on then. But you owe me a date and a moonlit dance now. And I plan to collect very soon.”
“Come on,” said Eve.
She dragged Polly back into the marquee, through the dancing guests, past the half-eaten cake and around the side of the stage until they reached the catering area where Eve finally dropped Polly’s arm.
“Eve, what are you doing?” Polly hissed furiously, rubbing at her wrist. “What is so important that you had to do that?”
“I was saving you from yourself.” Eve spun Polly round and wagged a finger in her face. “What did I tell you about chasing Ollie?”
Polly was struggling to hold it together. This was feeling distinctly surreal. “What? I wasn’t chasing him, Eve. He came after me. He—”
“Was about to kiss you, I know.” Eve looked exasperated. “Haven’t you heard a word I’ve said to you about boys? You have to take things slowly.”
Polly took a very deep breath. “Is anyone bleeding? Or dying? Or crying?”
“Not yet,” said Eve significantly.
That was it? Eve had dragged Polly away from the most romantic moment of her life to save her from Ollie?
You needed saving, said the little voice in Polly’s head. You’re not right together.
But for once, Polly was too frustrated to listen.
“Eve, that was completely out of order! What Ollie and I were about to do is none of your business!”
“But it is my business,” Eve corrected. “You’re my friend. Friends watch out for each other. And you were about to make the biggest mistake of your life. You have to play it cooler than this, Polly. It’s coming across as needy and, frankly, unattractive.”
Polly felt as if she had been punched in the stomach. Was she coming across as needy? Eve had dated far more boys than Polly, so maybe she did know what she was talking about. Polly felt sick at the thought that Ollie might think she was desperate or unattractive.
“I’m telling you this for your own good,” said Eve, linking arms with Polly. “Ollie’s going to be even keener now. I promise you. Let’s go home. You look exhausted. I’m sure waitressing can’t be good for you.”
Polly did feel pretty exhausted, now she came to think about it. It’s good for my bank balance, though, she thought numbly. Not a problem Eve will ever have to worry about.
“Great work,” said Mr Gupta happily, handing Polly a crinkling brown envelope full of banknotes. “This has been a very good event. Not a hitch. The brides look so happy, don’t they?”
Polly glanced at the brides, dancing cheek to cheek on the dance floor in a world of their own.
“This is why I am in the wedding business,” said Mr Gupta. There was a misty look in his eye. “To witness such moments is a privilege. Life would be too hard without love.”
Polly fetched her coat and said goodbye to the others, thinking about what Mr Gupta had said. She couldn’t imagine life without love. Love was the only thing that made it all worthwhile. Would she lose Ollie by doing what Eve told her? She liked Ollie, she always had. And she knew that he liked her too. But it felt like every time they met up something went wrong. It should have been simple but she couldn’t stop the thoughts in her head. She second-guessed him and herself until she didn’t know what to do.
Eve was waiting for her outside the doors of the hotel. So was Paulo, Eve’s driver, the door to the car open and waiting.
I guess there are perks to having a friend like Eve, Polly thought, glad to settle into the plush interior of the car. Even when she insists on ruining my life.
“Some of those girls were getting really flirty with me at the party, don’t you think?” Eve looked pleased with herself as Paulo pulled away from the hotel. She lowered her voice. “Nan in particular. Of course I’m not ready for any of that just yet, but it’s good to know that I haven’t lost my touch just because the scenery has changed.”
Eve chattered on about the wedding as they drove. The dresses, the music, the brides. Polly let it flow over her like water.
At the front door, Polly’s phone buzzed. She took her phone out of her pocket.
Next Friday? No interruptions this time xx
Polly stared at the message. Maybe Eve was right. Pushing Ollie away seemed to be maki
ng him keener.
Her fingers automatically started typing a reply.
Yes! I promise that—
Eve plucked the phone from Polly’s hands before she could finish typing and slipped it into her own handbag.
“Don’t answer him yet,” she said. “Let him stew.”
Polly opened the front door slowly, letting Eve into the house first. These games felt all wrong. They weren’t her at all.
Halfway up the stairs, Eve swung round and clapped her hands. “You know something? All the music and dancing tonight has given me the most fabulous idea. Why don’t we all go away for the weekend?”
“All of us?” said Polly. “The boys too?”
Eve pulled a face. “No way, they would only make trouble. Girls only. With all the awful business with Ryan and the papers, we could really use a break from dreary old Heartside. What about camping at the Funky Fox? It’s on next weekend. I’m sure I can get us tickets.”
Polly felt excited. She’d always wanted to check out the Funky Fox. Great bands always headlined the festival, which came to the hills just outside Heartside every year, and she’d heard the vintage clothes stalls were second to none.
“The Funky Fox sold out months ago!” Polly protested.
Eve waved the problem aside like an irritating fly. “You can always get tickets if you have the money. Leave it to me. We’ll camp out, and have a fire, and eat marshmallows, and dance until we drop. We can go there straight after school on Friday and stay until Sunday night. What do you think?”
Polly wavered. Going to the Funky Fox with the girls on Friday meant that she would have to turn down Ollie’s date. Her stomach lurched with disappointment.
“Don’t give me that moon face, Polly,” Eve said. “You need time to chill out and forget about boys. Just us and the music. Don’t you think it would be great?”
Polly pictured the music, and the atmosphere, and the great views up on Hilltop Farm where the Funky Fox took place. She hadn’t been camping in years. It would be fun, she knew. And her friends needed a break. She should be there for them.
Ollie would have to wait.
THIRTEEN
The next morning Polly lay on her bed, listening to the water run as Eve took her shower. She’d been in there for a good forty minutes now, and Polly was desperate to wash her hair.
She whiled away the wait by thinking of Ollie. His wide shoulders, his heartbreaking smile. The locket she still wore around her neck. She hadn’t taken it off since Ollie had given it to her. It was like a talisman. Proof that everything would work out fine. Somehow.
She just had to break the news to Ollie about Friday. Swinging her legs off the bed, Polly padded over to Eve’s bag and started hunting for her phone. Tissues, lipsticks, a pink leather diary, a purse containing about four credit cards. Polly couldn’t help but whistle as she stared at the gold one. What must it be like, she wondered, not having to worry about money for a single minute?
No phone. Eve had hidden it well. Polly sat down on the bed again. If Eve took much longer, she would have to take a wash downstairs in the kitchen sink.
“That’s better,” said Eve, padding back into the bedroom in a pure white towelling robe. Her auburn hair hung in shiny wet tendrils down her back. “Steaming your pores is so important. I try and do it every day.”
Finally, Polly thought. She sat up.
“Can I go in the bathroom now?”
“What a silly question! It’s your house, Polly,” Eve said generously. “Of course you can. Oh, wait, I need to floss.”
Ten more minutes passed. Polly tried not to feel too irritated when Eve swanned out of the bathroom again, running her tongue over her perfect white teeth.
“So what are we going to do today?” Eve asked brightly. She surveyed her clothes, which lay in tangled heaps all over Polly’s carpet. It had taken every bit of Polly’s self-control not to pick them up and fold them and arrange them in neat piles. “It would be good to know before I get dressed so I can be sure of wearing the right thing.”
“We don’t normally do much on Sundays,” said Polly, tearing her eyes from Eve’s mountain of clothes and eyeing the bathroom longingly.
“I’ll think of something fun,” said Eve. “How about—”
“Going in the bathroom now,” said Polly.
She shut the bathroom door, and looked around in dismay. More mess. The tiny room looked like a bomb had hit it. Dripping shampoo bottles lay on their sides in the tub. The shower curtain was soaked and hanging out of the bath, water dripping and puddling on the bath mat.
Polly found the only dry part of the bathroom floor and stood there, breathing hard.
Stay calm, she instructed herself.
The fact remained that Eve had needed a place to stay and Polly had offered. It was what friends did. Friends shouldn’t get worked up over damp towels, she knew, but she couldn’t help herself. How much longer would Eve be staying? She needed space to think.
Polly located the only dry towel and laid it out on the chair. Then she climbed into the shower and turned on the taps. She closed her eyes, waiting for the familiar soothing, warm whoosh to come out of the shower attachment.
“Aaargh!”
The water was stone cold.
“Is Eve still getting up?” Polly’s mum peered up the stairs at the sound of banging and crashing.
Polly helped herself to a third piece of toast. She needed it, after the coldest shower she’d ever experienced. “It’s not easy, looking like Eve,” she said.
Her mother put her hands on her hips. “Do you know how long she’s going to stay, Polly? I don’t mean to be a bad host, but I’m not sure this house can cope with Eve for much longer.”
“I’m not sure I can cope with Eve for much longer,” Polly sighed.
Her mother regarded her. “Getting a bit much, is she?”
“I like Eve,” Polly said helplessly. “Really, I do. She’s hard work but she’s basically a kind person. She doesn’t mean to be annoying. She just … is.”
“Why don’t I call Beth and take you girls to the shops?”
Polly looked gratefully at her mother. “Would you do that?”
“Of course I would,” said her mother. “I could use a new work jacket. And Beth wants to show me some cushions she’s thinking of getting. Let’s all go down to the high street this morning and have some fun.”
“Did someone say shopping?” said Eve, gliding into the kitchen. Her hair lay in perfect curls on her shoulders, and her white shirt looked as crisp as a layer of freshly fallen snow.
Polly tried to smile. “Mum and Beth are offering to take us into town today. What do you think?”
“That’s so kind, I’d love that.” Eve clapped her hands. “I know! I’ll buy everyone something special. As a way of saying thank you for having me to stay.”
Polly’s mother looked startled. “Really, Eve, there’s no need to—”
“I insist,” said Eve. She sat down at the kitchen table and looked at the teapot with its chipped spout. “How about a new teapot? I’m sure I could find you a lovely one.”
“I quite like the one we’ve got, thanks,” said Polly’s mum. “It’s full of memories.”
And tea, Polly thought.
“You really don’t need to buy anything for us, Eve,” her mum continued. “It’s been a pleasure having you.”
“Well, I will anyway,” said Eve, looking determined. “And I’ll buy you something too, Polly. There is a darling new boutique that’s opened on Marine Parade with the most glorious cashmere. We can go there.”
Polly caught her mother’s eye. Cashmere wasn’t really her thing.
“That’s very kind of you, Eve,” said Polly’s mum with a sigh. “We’d love to accept. I’ll just call Beth and tell her to meet us at the Ciao Café in what, half an hour?”
Polly sat a little further down in her chair. She wished Eve hadn’t chosen the window seat in the café. Everyone walking down Church Road and along the high street could see them all sitting there. Eve and Polly’s mum and Ms Andrews and her. She’d seen at least five people she recognized from school poke each other and whisper at the sight of Polly’s mum and their history teacher with Eve.
“Is everything all right, Polly?” said Polly’s mum, noticing.
“I just dropped my napkin,” Polly mumbled.
She knew it was wrong to feel this embarrassed. So her mum was dating her history teacher. And the whole school was gossiping about Eve’s sexuality. So what? Why did any of it matter?
As Polly straightened up, she was surprised to see tears rolling down Eve’s cheeks. She’d obviously missed something important in the conversation.
“People can be so unkind,” said Polly’s mother with feeling.
Ms Andrews nodded in agreement. “If the world were more open to difference, it would be a much happier place. How have you been coping?”
Two year eleven boys gawped through the window at their table, threw their heads back and roared with laughter. Polly died yet another death.
“It hasn’t been great,” Eve admitted, dabbing at her cheeks with a balled-up napkin. “Coming right after the awful tragedy with Ryan, and Daddy being in the papers, and all those horrible things the journalist said about how irresponsible I was. And then the gay thing at school, and my mum’s awful reaction. It’s been tough.”
Polly’s mother and Ms Andrews murmured sympathetically. Polly sat, frozen with guilt, scolding herself for being so hard on Eve. Had she forgotten all the problems Eve had been dealing with lately? She resolved to be more patient with her. After coffee, they split up. Eve and Polly headed to some of the clothes shops along the front, while Polly’s mum and Ms Andrews went to the homeware store on Church Road to look at cushions.
“This is the place I was talking about this morning,” said Eve, seizing Polly’s hand and dragging her towards a little shop. “Come on, let’s see if I can find you something nice.”