3. Chapter Three
Chapter Three
E vie closed her eyes, willing herself to not be drawn back ten years but Grace was having none of it. ‘No, you can’t ignore me. I’m here whether you have your eyes open or closed. What was that atmosphere about? Do you know him? Oh, wait,’ Evie could hear a level of excitement in Grace’s voice, ‘was he one of your awful dates?’
‘I wish,’ Evie groaned and slumped forward, ‘it’s so much worse than that.’
‘Now you’re just being ridiculous. Come on, what is it? It can’t be that bad,’ Grace drained the last dregs of her coffee and slapped the cup on the coffee table between them. ‘You need to tell me fast, I’ve had a coffee so I’ll need to go to the bathroom in around eight minutes.’
It had been a running joke how often Grace had to make bathroom dashes, but today Evie couldn’t crack a smile. ‘He wasn’t one of my awful dates,’ she said quietly, looking up to see Grace’s concerned face, ‘he was a lot of fantastic dates. He was my boyfriend at school.’
Grace’s face broke into a confused frown. ‘Okay,’ she said slowly, ‘but if you two dated and it was as amazing as you suggest it was, why were you as cold to each other as I am to Joan in accounts? Did he slight your hair too?’ she subconsciously touched her glossy ebony coils. Evie had once been privy to Grace’s incredibly complex curly hair routine and the amount of work that went into making it look as stunning as it did blew her mind. Her own straight hair needed no more than a wash, and it practically dried itself straight.
‘No he didn’t say anything about my hair,’ she smiled, remembering how James used to wind locks of her hair through his fingers when they watched movies together. She would be snuggled into his chest. It had been one of the many things Evie had loved about being with him. He made her feel special all the time.
‘Spill. I can feel my bladder filling up as we speak.’
‘That’s called oversharing,’ Evie breathed out. ‘I’ll tell you, but this isn’t something I want leaving this office. I’ve spent ten years putting it behind me.’
Grace mimed zipping her lips and throwing away the key. Satisfied her friend wouldn’t share her most embarrassing moment, Evie took in a deep shaky breath. ‘We were together a year, he was my boyfriend at school, we were due to go to prom together. Then, on the night of prom he didn’t turn up,’ she looked down at the ground, willing the tears that were beginning to brim to go away, ‘he didn’t text or explain. And I never heard from him again. Until today.’
‘He…stood you up on prom night?’ Grace’s mouth was agape with shock.
‘I didn’t know what I’d done wrong. It was so embarrassing. I was wearing this dress my parents had spent a fortune on, he was meant to be collecting me – his dad was going to drive us as he had a cool car. Can’t remember what it was, but it was going to be a fun way of arriving. We’d been planning it all for months. Everyone had.’ A tear splashed as Evie remembered the whole evening. ‘But I had to go alone. Well, apart from Dad coming with me. Everyone knew.’
‘I can’t believe it,’ Grace pulled herself from the sofa and grabbed a tissue from her desk, coming to sit next to Evie. Her perfume, a warm herby blend, brought a little comfort to Evie who leant against her friend as she put her arm around her.
Evie shook her head. ‘I just don’t know why he’d do that. Was I really so awful that he couldn’t face prom night with me? He didn’t even have the courtesy to break up with me, we were just…over. My parents were understanding to a point, but they didn’t believe we’d been in love. They always said sixteen year olds couldn’t feel that way, so they dismissed my heartbreak as being dramatic. I was expected to feel fine and stop dwelling. By the time I started college in the autumn I’d perfected pretending I was okay.’ She shrugged. ‘But I always wanted to know why. What I did. Or what was wrong with me.’
‘Use this,’ Grace gave her another tissue. ‘I’m so sorry, it sounds like an awful thing to have happen. I can’t imagine it. Your prom is meant to be a fun night to say goodbye to your schooldays, not give you issues for the rest of your life. You must know it’s not your fault though? Whatever he did, or why he did it. That’s on him. It’s not for you to worry about.’
Evie sniffed. ‘I s’pose. I’ve managed to spend the last decade moving on. Sometimes I’ve even convinced myself I have, but every time I get close to someone I can feel the fear creeping in that they’ll do the same. They’ll leave me. So I push them away and eventually they end things. So it’s a self-fulfilling prophecy.’
‘I had no idea what a hot mess you were. You’ve kept it very quiet,’ Grace admitted, ‘though it would explain why all those relationships haven’t lasted more than five minutes.’
‘And then, here he is, in my place of work. The one place I know I’m settled. I know I’m good at my job, I don’t want to leave. I don’t want him ruining this too.’
Grace slapped Evie’s knee slightly. ‘No. We’re not doing that. You’re not leaving, and you’re not allowed to wallow either. He’s the one in the wrong, not you. He’ll be feeling pretty embarrassed I bet. No, all you need to do is get on with your work, continue to be your spectacular self and then, when there’s an appropriate moment you make sure you talk to him. Like grown-ups. You’re not at school anymore. You’re 26, you need to meet this head on or it’ll seep into everything.’
Evie gripped her friend’s hand. ‘You’re so wise, what will I do without you?’
‘I’m not going anywhere for ages, this baby has another eight weeks before they’re due – we’ve got plenty of time to fix your terrible love life and get Mr Frosty to explain what happened.’ She manoeuvred herself off the sofa, ‘and now the bathroom is calling.’
Grace left the office, leaving Evie with her thoughts. It was easy for her friend to suggest she just got on with things but she had no idea what her relationship with James had been like. Evie closed her eyes, allowing the memories of walks on the beach, picnics in fields and kissing in darkened rooms to envelop her. She smiled.
Alert to a sound outside her office, Evie opened her eyes just quickly enough to see the back of James disappearing down the hallway.
How long had he been standing there?