Chapter 14
Three years ago
AvaMatthews_xo:
I still prefer sending messages via pigeon.
AvaMatthews_xo:
Come on, it’s not that bad Grandad!
AvaMatthews_xo:
Just think about it like leaving notes in the treehouse.
JacobThorogood7:
I just clicked on something on this computer and it flashed up with a shirtless photo of my brother.
AvaMatthews_xo:
oh…
AvaMatthews_xo:
which brother?
JacobThorogood7:
William.
AvaMatthews_xo:
Gross.
JacobThorogood7:
You’re not the one scarred from having seen it.
AvaMatthews_xo:
I wonder who he’s been sending that to.
JacobThorogood7:
I don’t wanna know.
‘Oscar’s here,’ Freya hissed at me from across the lunch table, a sly grin on her face.
Shoving my phone back into my pocket, I shushed her quickly as he neared the table, though my face was already flushed, and her warning did little but ruffle me.
Swiping my tongue across my teeth, I checked for bits of left-over sandwich or prawn cocktail crisp before turning around to greet him with the most nonchalant smile I could muster.
Oscar Simons transferred to our school last term and ended up in our friendship group.
Freya and Ash had been loved up since what felt like the beginning of time, and so, it seemed, had everyone else, so naturally she had made it her mission to make me and Oscar the hot new thing.
We were quite literally the only two single people she knew.
But Oscar played the guitar, and he drew beautiful portraits in my art class, so I didn’t resist her matchmaking as much as I probably should have.
‘Hi.’ He smiled, slinging his legs over the bench to sit beside me, Freya raised her eyebrows indiscreetly and I tried my best to not even look in her direction.
‘You alright?’ I focused so hard on my packed lunch that I was surprised it hadn’t combusted right in front of me.
‘How come you weren’t around over the holidays?’ Oscar asked me, a little disappointment etched in his voice that only made my blush deepen. ‘I thought I’d get to see you at Michael’s Halloween party?’
Freya answered for me. ‘Ava spends most of the holidays on her Granny and Grandad’s farm.
What do you think of sheep, Oscar? Ava helps raise lambs in the spring.
’ I wished for nothing more than to bury my head into my rucksack until the bell went and we could all be saved from this awkward conversation.
‘Oh cool, yeah, they’re cool.’ Oscar swept a hand through his long fringe.
‘It’s not just sheep,’ I said, attempting to salvage the talking points. ‘There’s other animals too, but it’s mostly an arable farm. We like to spend Halloween down there because my friends on the next farm over throw the best parties.’
‘Really?’ he replied, almost genuinely interested.
‘Yeah, there’s all your traditional stuff, like the apple bobbing, the costumes, the bonfire, but each year we all tell each other stories, sometimes scary, sometimes not.
But because it is so rural, there’s not even any streetlights, so you can’t see further than the flames of the fire.
So no matter what anyone is saying, it gets terrifying. ’
‘Don’t tell him, but Michael’s Halloween party was nowhere near as good as that sounds.’ Oscar smiled broadly and it matched my own. Freya was fed up of hearing about the farms, so it felt good to have someone new to tell.
‘Maybe she can take you one holiday, Oscar,’ Freya butted in again.
‘I’d like that,’ he replied, and I nodded politely.
What would Jacob think of Oscar? He was so pristine, his shirts were always neatly ironed, his hair was perfectly combed – so much so that he carried one in his rucksack to touch up the loose strands throughout the day.
I couldn’t imagine them having a conversation.
Well, I could imagine Oscar trying, but Jacob …
no, he was too unsociable. Any new faces and he was silent as a mouse and slipped off any chance he got.
‘I was just wanting to ask you,’ Oscar started with a slight cough to clear his throat.
‘Mrs Dean has asked us to find a partner for the art show that’s happening in spring next year.
Now I know our art styles are different, but you’re so good and I’d be an idiot not to ask the best artist in class to work with me.
So, if you haven’t already found someone?
Would you … you know, like to pair up with me? ’
I could feel Freya bubbling under the table. Her legs rattled the whole thing until it felt like we were on the set of Jurrasic Park and I quickly thrust my hand over her mouth before she could let out an animal-like squeal.
‘I would love that. Thank you,’ I replied calmly, while still side-eyeing my best friend to try and get her to control herself.
The next few weeks passed quickly, with almost all of my free time spent in the art room with Oscar.
Sometimes, we could just sit together in silence, him drawing, me sewing or designing, but it was nice to have the company.
When we weren’t working together, we were out and about with the whole of friend group, him with the guys, me with the girls.
We never had much to say to one another outside of the art room, but he often stole a glance at me across the pavement when we all walked together.
‘Ava.’ Oscar turned to me one afternoon as we fell a little behind the group. I looked up at him, urging him to continue. ‘I was just wondering …’ he trailed off, his cheeks reddening.
His silence ran slightly past comfortable.
‘Yes … ?’ I encouraged, very aware that we were losing sight of the group up ahead.
‘Well, I’ve really enjoyed hanging out with you these past few weeks. I don’t think I could have got through this whole art show project without you.’ He coughed, but it was clear he had nothing in his throat to clear, except his nerves.
‘Me too!’ I smiled and he started to breathe again. ‘We make a good team.’
‘Well, I was just thinking if you’d like to keep hanging out, you know, like after the show is done?’ A bead of sweat emerged from his hairline and he swept it away quickly.
‘Of course.’ He sighed in relief, and I continued, ‘You’re my friend, of course I’m not just going to ditch you just because I’m using your skills to get me an A+.’
Oscar’s face twisted painfully. ‘No, Ava, I mean—’
The sound of my phone pinging in my pocket startled us both, and without thinking, I hurried to get it out of my pocket to check if he had replied.
JacobThorogood7:
How long is it until you’re home next?
The photo was of Hope attached, snuggled up in the passenger seat of his tractor, in my seat.
I melted, there and then. Hope, home, Jacob – my heart couldn’t take it all and for several seconds I stood there, staring at the message, wondering if this was his way of saying he missed me.
I tingled at the fact he had messaged me first, the fact that he had thought of me, hundreds of miles away.
‘Ava?’ Oscar reminded me of his presence with a nudge.
I whipped my phone around to show him the picture, but his smile wasn’t genuine. ‘Jacob, my friend from home – from Granny and Grandad’s, I mean – just sent this,’ I rushed to explain. ‘It’s our cat, Hope.’
‘Oh, that’s nice.’ His tone was deflated, and looking back now, after Freya had told me he had been planning to ask me out, this interaction keeps me up at night.
‘Maybe I could invite him to come and see the art show? It’s still a while until I get to go back again …’ I started thinking out loud before hurrying to catch up with Freya to tell her of my plans.
I was so blinded, so wrapped up in Jacob, that I really had no idea.