“And when you said no and he spread that rumour?” He deadpans as we draw to a stop in the corridor.
You punched him. I remember, but keep the thought to myself.
“Whatever.” I kick my shoe against the brick wall as we wait outside my class. “Okay, so tell me oh wise one… what’s wrong with Dean?” I question, placing my hand on my hip.
“Well, last weekend he was at Adrian’s party and he had Tasha pinned against the wall, not sure how far that went.”
I groan and drop my head backwards. “Why is every guy that’s interested in me an arsehole?”
Isaac doesn’t say anything, just shrugs his shoulders.
“And why wasn’t I invited to Adrian’s party?” I stomp my foot.
“I’ll see you later, Via.” He ignores my question, smiles at my frown, then walks away. Almost from nowhere, Charlotte, Isaac’s latest girlfriend, appears and latches onto his arm.
LIV
(Aged Sixteen and a Half)
“He’s leaving.”
“What do you mean he’s leaving?” my best friend, Victoria, screeches down the phone.
“What I said, Tori, he’s leaving. He’s going into the Army.”
“Well, can’t you… I don’t know, ask him if he wants a last fling? You know, because he won’t be able to for a while?”
“Of course he’ll be able to Tori. This isn’t the nineteen forties, women are allowed in the Army these days you know,” I tell her with a grin on my face because it seems like the right thing to do, when in truth, I feel like I’m being ripped apart at the seams. “Anyway, he has his career now, and I have dance to focus on.”
“Pfft, whatever. You may not be able to see it Livvy, but I’ve told you for ages that he has a thing for you. God! Every time you attempt to date someone he cockblocks you!” I can almost see her face becoming red with annoyance.
“I’m not sure cockblock is the right term in this situation, Tori.” I grin again, and it’s genuine this time.
“Right, well he has a cock, and he blocks you from seeing other guys… that is the very definition of cockblock, Liv. Don’t question me on this,” she states.
I giggle, but only in my head and not out loud. I know she’s touchy about this subject. There has been many a party or social event when she has wanted to double date, but something has always gotten in the way of me being able to join in.
Once we were all set to meet some boys at the local bowling alley, and ten minutes before I was leaving to meet Tori, my hamster Elmo got out of his cage. It was the first and last time he ever escaped. Isaac was on the games console in my room. I’d gone into my sister Eleanor’s bedroom because, although she had moved out, half of her makeup stash remained. I grabbed the extra-length mascara and rushed back to my room before my mum noticed me. I had just sat down at my dressing table, eyes wide, mouth hanging open and about to apply a coat of mascara to my top lashes when in the mirror, I spotted something moving. Screeching with worry, I spun around and bolted across the room shouting for Elmo. I glanced at his home and saw the metal cage had come unclipped from the plastic bottom. That night I spent over an hour getting the bloody hamster back in his cage. Isaac was no use, telling me he couldn’t help because he was playing video games.
Then there was the time I was supposed to be going to the swimming pool with Tori, and my swimsuit went missing that very morning. It turned up three days later in my junk cupboard. That particular day Tori came to the rescue with one of her spare bikinis. We got to the pool, met the boys, and ten minutes later Isaac, Tobias, and their friends all turned up at the same pool. Five minutes after that, the boys we went there to meet had to leave unexpectedly. I didn’t think anything of it at the time.
Isaac—both the pain in my arse and the ache in my heart.
“No, you’re right Tori, but that doesn’t change anything. He doesn’t feel any way about me. I think he’s just always figured it was his job to watch out for me. You know, like a big brother.”
Tori gripes down the line, but because she’s such a good friend, she knows the conversation isn’t going any further, so she wisely remains silent.
LIV
(Eighteen Today - Happy Birthday to Me)
“Via.”
That voice, it hits every part of me and I spin around looking at a not too much older—but judging by the look in his eyes—a much wiser and more experienced Isaac.
“Isaac,” I brokenly whisper. My eyes instantly fill with tears.
He’s been in the Army for eighteen months now and apart from two flying visits, he’s stayed away. I thought he wasn’t due home for another two weeks and never expected him to be back for my birthday.
“Missed you,” he exhales the words into my hair as he wraps me up in his now very muscular six-foot-two body.
I can’t reply as the tears choke me, and a sob becomes a hiccup.
“Hey, I’m home,” he whispers, leaning back and placing a finger under my chin until I’m staring back at his big, deep, blue eyes again. It’s been too long.
“Yeah Isaac, you are… but for how long?” I push the question out through my wet, salty lips.
His gaze moves away from mine and hits the floor. “Not long enough,” he tells me so quietly that I wonder if I was supposed to hear.
“Hey baby, so this is the famous Isaac, huh? How you doing, brother?” Charlie
