Once

Fifteen

David was waiting at the corner of the street, exactly where Elle had told him to. He looked very neatly put-together this morning in a crisp white T-shirt, jeans and a navy hoodie. There was something unusually smart and clean-looking about him. Most boys his age, even those verging on the more attractive side, rarely looked clean.

He turned as she came trotting down the street and his face broke into a wide smile.

"Hey!" he called.

She found herself smiling too. There was something about him that seemed remarkably genuine. It was easy to believe that he really was happy to see her, in spite of the overwhelming evidence telling her he probably wasn't.

"Morning," she said. She tried to wipe the dumb smile off her face but it wouldn't budge. Maybe it was something to do with the freshness of the morning, the intense heat of the sun, the promise that comes at the start of any gloriously beautiful day with no real plans or obligations to distract you. There was a sweet smell in the air of mown lawns and sickly-sweet flowers baking in the morning sun.

Maybe Elle was just glad to be out of the house. After all that weirdness at school yesterday, and then to end the day on that dream that still kept playing over and over in her head, it was nice to have a full day of just hanging out with her friends.

Her friends and David, that is. But it wasn't exactly a chore to be hanging out with him.

They began to walk. The gardens everywhere were full of people - people chatting over fences, people sunbathing, people clipping their hedges. Everyone was outside and enjoying themselves today. Elle still had a week of school and one more exam to worry about, but it felt like the first proper day of summer.

David, hands deep in his pockets as he walked, said:

"So. Where exactly are we going?"

"Into town. But don't get too excited - that's just what we call it, but it's not really like a town at all. There isn't, like, a cinema or a shopping centre, or anything like that. There's a few little shops and cafes. That's about it."

"Sounds fun," said David with a shrug. Strange, but he didn't sound sarcastic at all.

"I'm just saying. However low your expectations are, they need to be lower."

He laughed, and they walked on in silence for a while. It was a comfortable silence; neither of them felt the need to speak, just happy to be walking along next to each other on such a bright, sunny day. Elle wasn't used to those sorts of silences. She was used to feeling uncomfortable just about every minute of the day.

They were just turning onto the High Street when Elle said:

"What sort of things are you into?"

He looked at her.

"What am I into?"

"Yeah. Hobbies, I mean." She added, with just a shade of snarkiness, "I'm assuming you're into some sort of... sport?"

A funny smile crossed his face.

"Not really, no. I mean, I used to swim a lot. My old school had a swimming pool. I'm guessing there isn't anything like that in Farway?"

"What do you think? No, nothing like a swimming pool. There's a gym in Elkington - that's got a pool, I think."

"Elkington?"

"The nearest proper town, about twenty minutes away. It's where the college is." She frowned. "I thought you said you were going to Elkington College with the rest of us in September?"