More Than a Love Song

by Cathy Cole

  She wondered whether to mention her and Polly’s disastrous trip to see Dave Dubois as proof that she knew what she was talking about, but decided against it.

  “Rhi,” her mother said in the patient voice she used when she thought Rhi was being particularly stupid, “this whole thing is clearly a scam. Do you know how many young girls throw away everything on silly dreams like this? You are very naive if you believe this man can give you so-called fame and glory.”

  “I’m not interested in fame and glory,” said Rhi as evenly as she could. “I’m interested in making music. Mr Graves can make it happen for me, Mum. Look him up if you don’t believe me.”

  “Well, I think it’s fantastic,” Rhi’s dad announced before Rhi’s mother could think of anything else to say. He wrapped Rhi in a bear hug. “You clever girl. What was he like? Does he keep a yacht in Heartside harbour? I bet he does, for all his pop-star parties, eh?”

  “That’s just typical of you, Patrick,” said Rhi’s mother with an irritated sigh. “Ever the dreamer.”

  She pulled out her tablet and started tapping busily on to the screen. Rhi held her breath. The only way her mother would back her in this was if she could see for herself that Andy Graves was everything he said he was.

  “Well I can’t say I’ve heard of any of these bands he supposedly produces,” said Rhi’s mother a little stiffly after a few moments. “But I suppose he could be legitimate.” She stared at the tablet with a frown on her face, as if willing the pages of information on Andy Graves, music producer to disappear in smoke and prove her original suspicions correct.

  “So you’ll talk to him?” Rhi said hopefully.

  “I’ll read through the contracts,” she conceded. “But if there’s even the smallest hint that this man is after more than—”

  Rhi rushed round the table to give her mother a hug. “Thank you, oh, thank you!” Her mind whirled with everything she wanted to discuss with her mum. She’d been starting to worry that she was selling out. She wanted to sing her own music, and she wasn’t sure about the whole idea of being in a band…

  Her mother pulled away from the hug, checking her watch. “I have to go. Surgery hours can’t wait.”

  Rhi blinked. “You don’t work at the weekends.”

  “Dr O’Donnell is sick so I said I would do the Saturday clinic.” She took up her briefcase. “We’ll talk about this later.”

  “We can’t talk about it later,” said Rhi a little desperately. “I’m doing another wedding for Mr Gupta, and I need to—”

  “Rhi, I’m sorry,” said her mother with a sigh, “but I don’t have time this morning. Perhaps we can talk about it tomorrow.”

  This was the biggest thing that had ever happened to Rhi, and her mother was leaving for work like it was just an ordinary day? I want to talk about it now! she wanted to shout as the front door banged shut. But it was too late.

  “Your mother is very stressed at the moment,” said her dad into the awkward silence.

  “When isn’t she?” Rhi said bitterly.

  She stood up from the table and headed for her room. She had to get away from her dad’s helpless face. She didn’t want to cry today.

  At two o’clock, Rhi stood on Polly’s doorstep, shivering in the cold wind that was blowing straight in from the sea. No one was answering the door. She checked her watch. Polly had been making Rhi’s outfit for the angels-and-devils-themed wedding tonight, and Rhi was meant to be trying it on this afternoon. Polly had definitely said two o’clock, hadn’t she?

  Suddenly Rhi wasn’t sure.

  Reaching to press the doorbell again, she noticed that the door was on the latch. She pushed it open and peered inside.

  Polly’s house was beautifully decorated, pastel colours on the walls and bright, cheerful travel posters hanging in unusual frames down the hallway. It was much warmer inside than out. Rhi stepped through the door, relieved to escape the chill.

  There was a flash of movement from the kitchen, straight ahead down the hallway from where Rhi was standing. Rhi caught a glimpse of Polly’s mum through the half-closed kitchen door, her head thrown back in laughter. Someone else was in the kitchen with her. From the low murmuring voices, it sounded like a private conversation, and not something Polly’s mum would appreciate being overheard.

  Rhi suddenly felt like an intruder. She didn’t want to go back out into the cold, but she couldn’t stay here. Where was Polly? Maybe they’d said three o’clock, not two. Her head was all over the place at the moment. She wouldn’t be surprised if she’d got it wrong.

  In the kitchen, all sounds of conversation ceased. Rhi realized with horror that Polly’s mother was kissing whoever was with her. She needed to leave before she was seen. She shouldn’t have come inside in the first place.

  She started backing quietly towards the front door again, hoping that no one came out of the kitchen and saw her. Part of her wanted to giggle at the situation. It was great that Polly’s mother had found romance. Polly had said that her mum had been unhappy and lonely since the divorce six years earlier. At least it’s working out for someone, Rhi thought, doing her best not to remember kissing Max in the drama props cupboard.

  As Rhi reached the front door, there was another flash of movement from the kitchen. She paused in surprise as she recognized the person hugging Polly’s mother.

  It was Ms Andrews.

  Rhi had a ridiculous urge to rub her eyes, in case seeing her and Polly’s history teacher kissing Polly’s mum was a mirage. It wasn’t. Ms Andrews’ blonde hair was unmistakable, and so was the red jacket she often wore in class.

  This was… unexpected.

  Rhi of course had no problem with the idea of two women kissing each other. But what would Polly make of it? Rhi knew Polly was still pretty fragile about her parents’ divorce. She imagined with horrible clarity what the school gossips would say if they found out.

  She didn’t want to see any more. Turning, she ducked through the front door and out into the cold again, leaving the front door half-open, just as she had found it.

  THIRTEEN

  “You’re quiet, Rhi,” Polly remarked, straightening the angel wings on her back. “Is everything OK?”

  Rhi had been staring at the devilishly dressed bride and her new husband in his angel toga and gold body paint, and thinking about Polly’s mum and Ms Andrews. She gave a guilty start. “What? Yes, everything’s fine!” she said quickly. “Sorry, I’m a thousand miles away. I’ve got a lot to think about.”

  That was true at least, she thought.

  Polly’s face lost its worried expression. “Of course!” she said. “Your head must be full of that producer guy. Eve’s such a surprise, isn’t she? Who’d have thought she had it in her to be so nice?”

  “Even Eve has a bit of angel about her,” Lila laughed. She was wearing a short, floaty red dress with a set of flashing devil horns on her head completing the picture.

  “This has to be one of the maddest weddings we’ve done yet,” Rhi said, gazing around the angels-and-devils-themed marquee.

  Black and white fabric swathed the walls, and red, white and black balloons floated around the pleated ceiling above the guests’ heads. Tables were laid with a mixture of red, black and white cloths, topped with huge glass vases filled with blood red gerberas, pure white lilies and deep purple roses. A large open-topped barbecue stood in one corner of the marquee, its coals glowing like a cartoon vision of the underworld, and on a table by the door, white twinkling lights were wound around a pure white wedding cake decorated in sugarcraft feathers. “Sympathy for the Devil” played on the sound system, shortly followed by “There Must Be an Angel (Playing With my Heart)”. The DJ, clad half in white and half in black with a painted red face, was having plenty of fun with the theme.

  Rhi smoothed the angel dress Polly had made for her, admiring the glimmery ribbons t
hat Polly had stitched along the hem. Her wings were light and glittery on her back.

  “I love this dress, Polly,” she said gratefully. “I feel properly angelic.”

  “You’d look angelic even without it,” said Polly, smoothing back her newly platinum-blonde hair. The pale shade suited her, making her expressive hazel eyes shine and giving a fresh glow to her skin. She looked fantastic in her floaty white dress and wire-stiffened dragonfly wings.

  “Stop admiring yourselves, girls,” said Mr Gupta, swerving past in his usual grey suit and tie. “We need the canapés now, please. Circulate! Circulate!”

  Rhi obediently scooped up a tray of devils on horseback: small prunes wrapped in bacon. Lila’s tray was full of angel cake, and Polly had devil’s food cake. As Rhi began to move through the crowd, turning sideways occasionally to fit her wings through the small gaps, she marvelled at the chances of two people ever getting together and finding happiness. This wedding had an original theme for sure, and everyone was enjoying themselves. But how did any marriage last? If there was one thing Rhi had learned, it was that nothing was ever certain. A cheating partner. A secret relationship. A drunk driver.

  She felt her phone vibrate in the hidden pocket Polly had stitched into her dress. Hurriedly setting down her tray, Rhi took it out, shielding it from view with her wings. Mr Gupta didn’t like them taking personal calls or texts at work.

  Missing u superstar xxx

  Rhi’s heart sped up. It was Max. She typed a swift reply.

  Don’t text me at work!

  A message came straight back.

  I bet you look gorgeous right now.

  Meet me later? xxx

  Rhi closed her eyes. She pictured meeting Max outside in the dark in her beautiful dress, and kissing him. She only allowed herself the thought for a split second. She wouldn’t do it. She couldn’t go behind Eve’s back, especially now. Squeezing her phone hard, she replied:

  I’m not a cheat!

  The reply took a moment to pop up.

  Meet me. Please.

  I miss you so much.

  I know I don’t deserve you.

  xxx

  Rhi resisted the urge to reply. She turned her phone off, tucked it away in her angel pocket and picked up her tray again, feeling tears at the backs of her eyelids.

  “Hurry, please, Rhi,” Mr Gupta snapped, rushing past in the opposite direction. “There is no food in the far corner of the marquee.”

  Rhi waded back in among the laughing, chattering guests. She smiled, and served, and bit back the urge to sneak into a corner to check her phone one more time. What was she doing? The angels and devils theme was horribly appropriate tonight. It felt like the angels and devils were playing tug of war in her brain.

  For all her good intentions, she was wavering about Max. She still loved him. She didn’t want to, but she did.

  What should I do? she thought in despair.

  Her brain answered in a loud, confused clamour.

  Be with Max.

  Don’t hurt Eve.

  Be a famous pop star in a band.

  Keep writing your own music.

  Stay in school and get a normal career.

  Tell Polly about her mum and Ms Andrews.

  Don’t tell Polly about her mum and Ms Andrews…

  What were the answers to all the terrible dilemmas she was facing?

  “Invisible canapés, are they, love?”

  Rhi realized she was holding out an empty tray towards a quizzical-looking angel.

  “I… sorry,” she stuttered, suddenly aware of Mr Gupta ploughing through the crowd towards her. “I’ll fetch some more.”

  She fled back towards the catering area. In all her confusion, one answer shone out clearly. She didn’t like it, but at least she knew it was the right thing to do. Putting her empty tray down on the first table she passed, she yanked out her phone and turned it on before she lost her nerve.

  As long as you’re with Eve we can only be friends.

  Take it or leave it.

  As soon as she’d sent Max the message, she put her head in her hands and groaned miserably to herself.

  How come the right thing felt so hard?

  FOURTEEN

  “How do I look?” said Polly for the sixteenth time.

  “Great,” Lila said, hopping from side to side as she yanked on her boots. “You looked great the last time you asked too. Repeat after me: going blonde was a good move. Blonde is really fresh. Now can we go? Everyone will have left the Heartbeat by the time we get there!”

  Rhi stroked her angel dress one more time, then folded it and tucked it inside her bag. Her pay packet crinkled in her coat pocket. “I have had enough angels and devils to last me a while,” she sighed. “It’s hot chocolate all the way from now on.”

  “I’m so with you,” Lila said, licking her lips. “The Heartbeat does the best hot chocolate in town.”

  “Frothed right to the top, with caramel and chocolate sprinkles,” added Polly with a sigh.

  “Then what are we waiting for?” said Rhi, smiling.

  The Heartbeat Café was a ten-minute walk from the wedding venue. Huddled up against the cold, talking and laughing with her friends, Rhi started feeling a little less confused by all the problems in her life. She decided the answers would come in their own time, and a Heartbeat hot chocolate might even help.

  “We thought you’d never get here,” Eve moaned as Polly, Rhi and Lila came through the door of the café in a blast of cold air. She was sitting at their usual table with Max and Ollie. “Weekend jobs are seriously inconvenient.”

  “If only I had more money than sense,” said Lila, kissing Ollie and flopping down on the bench. “Like you, Eve.”

  “Whoa,” said Ollie, his eyes widening as he took in Polly’s new hair. “You look like Marilyn Monroe, Pol.”

  Rhi could guess how much Ollie’s opinion would matter to Polly.

  “Thanks,” Polly said, bowing. “You look like Marilyn Monroe too.”

  Ollie put on a breathy voice and started singing “Happy Birthday, Mr President” to general laughter. Rhi put an arm round Eve’s faux-fur shoulders, doing her best to avoid Max’s eye.

  “I’ll buy you a hot chocolate to make up for being so late, Eve,” she said.

  Eve looked mollified. “I suppose I could fit one in,” she said, patting her stomach.

  No sooner had Lila raised her hand to get a waiter’s attention than Ryan was at their table, looking eager and floppy-haired with his notepad in his hand.

  “The usual?”

  “No frappés,” said Lila, tucking her glossy brown hair behind her ears. “We’re going hot tonight.”

  “Right,” repeated Ryan, looking at Lila. “Hot.”

  There was a pause as everyone stared at him. Oops, thought Rhi. She had a sudden urge to hide her head in her hands. Did Ryan realize what he’d said?

  Ollie glared. “That’s my girlfriend you’re drooling over, mate.”

  Ryan blushed and looked back at his notepad. “Sorry, I didn’t mean… I was thinking hot, not hot, but… you know,” he fumbled, losing confidence by the moment.

  “Smooth,” remarked Max, reclining easily with his arm along the top of the bench behind Eve’s shoulders as Lila giggled and pulled a face at Rhi. “I bet you’re a real hit with the ladies, Ryan.”

  Eve had started laughing too. Rhi felt so sorry for Ryan that she reached out her hand and touched his sleeve. “Ignore them,” she said. “Do you want to join us for a bit?”

  Ryan looked at Rhi with a combination of shock and delight. He glanced back at the bar, where his dad was chatting to customers. “I’m supposed to be working, but I guess I could take a little break…”

  Lila kicked Ollie’s shin and made him move up. Ryan squeezed on the end of the bench while R
hi waved a different waiter over to take their orders.

  “So,” Ryan said, clearing his throat as hot chocolates were delivered to the table. “Everyone OK?”

  “We’ve had more exciting evenings,” said Eve pointedly.

  Rhi wanted to kick her. Couldn’t Eve see how awkward Ryan was feeling right now? “What’s your news then, Ryan?” she said, trying her best to get the conversation going.

  “Oh, you know,” said Ryan. “Not much. Just the usual gossip.”

  “Please let it be good,” said Eve, rolling her eyes.

  Ryan shrugged. “Oh, it’s good,” he said. “But you’ve probably heard it already.”

  Ollie stopped glaring. “Heard what?”

  Ryan smiled in delight. “You haven’t heard, have you?”

  “Spit it out,” said Max impatiently.

  Ryan steepled his fingers and appeared to be deep in thought. It was clear that he was enjoying the attention. Suddenly Rhi found herself wishing she hadn’t invited him to join them at all.

  “I’ve got some dirt on a teacher that’ll blow your heads off,” Ryan said, smiling coyly around the table.

  Lila and Polly looked shocked. Max, Ollie and Eve leaned forward with interest. “Who with?” said Ollie. “Mr Morrison?”

  “If this is the one about the PE teacher, the whole school knows about it,” said Max.

  “Let Ryan speak, would you?” said Eve, drumming her manicured fingers on the table.

  Rhi felt cold to her bones. As soon Ryan had mentioned a teacher, she knew what was coming. She shot a glance at Polly, who was quietly holding her hot chocolate, nibbling off the chocolate and caramel sprinkles.

  “It’s about Ms Andrews,” said Ryan exultantly.

  Rhi half-rose from the table as the others murmured with surprise and interest. He wouldn’t say anything in front of Polly, would he? Rhi didn’t want to take that risk. It suddenly felt very important to change the subject.