Chapter 32
32
KARA
Drea was on the warpath. In the last hour, she’d been up and down so many times, people were starting to think she worked here. This time, she came thundering back to the table like a woman on a mission.
‘Right, folks, we weren’t on the scrubbed list that just got called, and the flight board says we’ve to go to gate 22. I just spoke to one of the stressed-out folks in the high-vis yellow jackets, and he says that now the fog’s lifted, they’ve only got enough slots to get a few planes out before the curfew that stops them disturbing the city’s beauty sleep. Our flight to Heathrow is going, but the later Heathrow flights have been cancelled. So let’s move it move it move it before they change their minds.’
Kara quickly glanced at Ollie to see his reaction, but his face was inscrutable. One of the downsides of having an interaction with a guy who was a brilliant actor.
She could honestly say that tonight he’d surprised her more than any other time in their lives. And that included the time he’d told her he’d meet her in a park for her birthday picnic and then he’d parachuted down from the skies and almost landed on a wee old lady’s shopping trolley. Or the time he’d put live frogs in her lunch box in primary seven.
His words had replayed over and over again in her mind, and still she couldn’t make sense of them.
‘We’ll be in Hawaii for a few days together. Maybe we can… I don’t know. Start slow. Maybe see whether it’s something that could be a possibility for us. You’re always going on about the romcoms. Isn’t it always the good-looking best friend they end up with?’
What was he saying? Actually, she got the gist of what he was saying, but why the hell was he saying it? They had gone through their entire lives together. They had spent days on end alone together. They had talked constantly, sometimes until they were hoarse. When it was just the two of them, their favourite thing to do was eat pizza and watch movies in bed, so they had slept under the same duvet on countless occasions and not once, not a single time , had anything even remotely romantic happened.
And then he drops a bomb like this?
The worst thing was, she hadn’t even been able to discuss it with him because Drea had come back to the table, and then a while later her mum had reappeared from the bar through in the other area of the lounge and proceeded to loudly announce to the lady at the next table that she was with her nephew, Ollie Chiles. Yes, That Ollie Chiles. And oh, wasn’t he brilliant in The Clansman . Those legs in that kilt!
Her mum had then launched into a twenty-minute rant to Ollie about the Sienna video and the breakdown of his marriage, hugging him dramatically, and offering to fly to LA after the wedding and set Sienna straight about in-flight decorum. Apparently, she and Moira had spoken about it, and they were both on the same page of outrage.
The whole time that her mum was ranting, Ollie was giving Kara questioning looks that she didn’t know how to answer. Her heart was aching for him because he looked so miserable and all she wanted to do was hug him, but there were way too many phones with cameras in the immediate vicinity.
‘Kara! In the name of the hurry-the-fuck-up, what is wrong with you? You’re like a fart in a trance. Let’s go. Let’s move. Let’s show some enthusiasm for the fact that we are actually getting out of this goddamn airport.’
Now slightly terrified that her sister was spiralling into hysteria, she pulled on her jacket, threw her bag over her shoulder and began to walk. They were in the furthest corner of the lounge, so it meant that they were behind everyone else who had now been called, either to their gate or to the customer services desk.
‘Jesus, you’d think this was death row. Would you two HURRY UP,’ Drea was shouting over her shoulder.
Ollie was in line with her, but he was facing forward, making no eye contact, and she couldn’t bear the silence or the slump of the shoulders that cost him ￡500 dollars an hour with a martial arts trainer.
Checking that everyone ahead of them was facing the front, and happy that they were mostly concealed by jackets and bags, she slipped her hand through his and then watched as he smiled for the first time since their conversation took a sharp left.
They were almost at the door, and she was still staring at her friend’s face beside her, when she heard the voice.
‘Kara?’
Her. Heart. Stopped.
Stopped.
Right in front of her, blocking the way, so that everyone going in the opposite direction had to walk around him, was…
‘Zac.’
Now her heart had started again, and it was thudding like a drum.
‘Hey,’ he said, smiling.
‘Hey,’ she replied, staring back. And staring. Until she saw his gaze go to Ollie and then down from their shoulders to the hands that were intertwined between them.
The realisation snapped her out of her daze. ‘Sorry! Zac, this is Ollie. I know I told you all about him.’
Zac nodded, but she couldn’t read his face. ‘You did.’
‘Ollie, this is Zac. You know…’ She didn’t want to finish the sentence, so of course, Ollie gazed at her quizzically.
‘I don’t think I do know,’ he said, and she couldn’t miss the familiar grin that told her he was playing with her. Putting her on the spot. As freaking usual.
‘Zac is the guy I was telling you about earlier,’ she said through gritted teeth. ‘We were both on cancelled flights and got put up in a hotel.’
‘Aaaaah, that Zac,’ Ollie said, with just a touch of amusement and drama. Kara wanted the ground to open up and swallow her. Preferably whole so that the end came quicker.
Ollie stuck out his free hand. ‘Pleased to meet you, Zac.’
‘And you.’ Zac returned the handshake.
‘So… going somewhere nice?’ Ollie asked breezily, as if this was a mate he’d just bumped into in the frozen food aisle at Asda.
‘Actually, not going anywhere at all. Our flight’s been cancelled so we’ve been called to the customer service desk. I think lightning’s about to strike twice.’
‘Lightning?’ Ollie repeated, staring at her again, somehow reverted to the twelve-year-old kid who would find out who she fancied and then send them a note with her signature asking to meet. She kicked him on the ankle, and she would never apologise for it.
‘What about you two?’ Zac asked. He was speaking to them in plural, but staring only at Kara.
She had to clear her throat before it would work. ‘Hawaii. Actually, we’re flying to London now, staying there overnight and then flying out to Hawaii tomorrow.’ Do not overshare. Do not overshare. Do not… ‘We’re going for my sister’s wedding.’
‘We’re so looking forward to it, aren’t we?’ Ollie chimed in, hamming up the cuteness. Kara had another jab at his ankle.
They were the only people left in the lounge now, until a blonde head popped back in the door. ‘Kara, would you two hurry up! Your sister is about to have a dose of the vapours if you don’t get to this gate.’
Kara saw Zac’s expression change to puzzlement.
‘Oh, hello again,’ her mother chirped over to him.
‘You’ve met my mother?’ Kara asked, confused.
‘Yeah, when I got here, she was chatting to my dad. I think they met on the way in.’
This was beginning to feel like a parallel universe. ‘Your dad is Cillian? My mum introduced us earlier.’
Zac nodded, still smiling, as if this made him strangely happy. Or maybe his face was just frozen in that expression because he was so uncomfortable his whole body was shutting down.
‘What are the chances?’ he asked, still staring.
‘What are the chances,’ she repeated.
Another pause, then another, ‘Kara!’ from the door. Clearly fearing for his life if he got on the wrong side of Drea, Ollie took over.
‘Well, it’s been great to meet you, but we need to run. Sorry about your flight. Hope you manage to get home tomorrow.’
With that, he gave Zac his best movie star smile, and then, still holding Kara’s hand, swept her along with him as they hurried to catch up with the others. All Kara managed was a quick ‘Bye’ over her shoulder.
‘Hurry, hurry, hurry!’ Jacinta rushed them, until they broke into a sprint – a completely wasted effort because when they got to the gate, they found everyone sitting down. Kara’s heart was still racing, her legs were still shaking and her head was about to explode at any second.
Zac. She’d wanted to speak to him for longer, ask him so many more questions, but had been rushed away before she could even get his number. It didn’t feel illicit now that she was no longer with Josh.
‘Where have you been?’ Drea was indeed murderous. ‘They’re starting boarding in ten minutes.’
Ten minutes and then they’d be out of here.
It was too late to go back and speak to Zac.
But it wasn’t too late to sort things out with the guy who was still holding her hand. Ollie. The man she’d loved her whole life.
‘Come with me,’ she said, turning on her heel and pulling his hand behind her.
‘Kara… Kara! Where are you going?’ That was Drea again, but Kara knew her sister was like animals and children – if Kara showed fear, she’d be toast.
Instead, she went for a fake breezy, ‘Just over there – Ollie and I are going to have a quick chat.’
As soon as she reached the far wall and was sure no one around them could hear, she spun around to face him.
‘Ollie Chiles, we need to talk.’