14
Cody
The bottom end of Pepper Lane led to a small shingle beach. There were a few quaint shops, and a pub with white-washed walls and wooden beams. A narrow conduit ran the length on one side, and flowers were dying off in the window boxes and pavement displays. The air held the scent of the calm sea, and the seagulls made more noise than the few humans pottering around.
When Cody was living in London, one of the things he missed most was going to the beach. There was something so refreshing and energetic about Pepper Bay that he never found in the concrete jungle his brother had moved them to.
It was good to be home.
The Ugly Duckling pub always held the friendliest vibe, and Cody was so pleased Willow had suggested lunch there, as he really needed to stop fretting about receiving rejections when he hadn’t even submitted his game to anyone yet.
‘Fish and chips twice, please,’ said Willow to the woman serving behind the long dark bar.
Cody hummed his way over to the back door and out into the beer garden to find an empty table. The autumn weather was holding on to summer, making the light breeze warm. He watched cotton wool ball clouds slowly float into each other whilst Willow brought out two glasses of cola.
‘What a beautiful day,’ she said, sitting opposite him at the table.
He glanced her way as she faffed with serviette-wrapped cutlery. ‘Yeah.’ He sighed deeply, enjoying the warmth on the back of his neck. ‘Let’s not go back to work.’
She chuckled, then looked his way. ‘What do you want to do?’
‘Sit on the beach.’
With you .
‘We can still do that. After we eat, we’ll sell our raffle tickets, then go for a paddle.’ She pointed down. ‘Oh, your foot. Erm, I’ll get a bucket, and you can dip your good foot in it.’
Cody laughed at the visualisation. ‘I look forward to that.’
‘Your toe should be back to normal soon. Gran has you booked in for a follow-up.’
Cody was pretty sure the doctor at the hospital didn’t arrange one. As far as he knew, he just had to lose the boot in another week, keep his toes taped for a week more, then wear comfy footwear for a while. ‘What follow-up?’
‘She wasn’t happy with the hospital letting you just get on with it, so she booked you in with Dr Tully.’
Fran did make him laugh.
‘She didn’t tell me.’
‘No, she does things like that, then surprises you at the last minute. Blame Finn. He never liked the dentist when he was a kid, so Gran wouldn’t tell him where he was going until it was too late for him to freak out. I think the habit stuck. Now she does it with all of us. Welcome to the family.’
Cody laughed into his drink.
‘Hey, you two. How’s it going?’ asked Tessie. ‘I hear you’re selling raffle tickets.’
Willow blew out a laugh. ‘I haven’t even pulled them out my bag yet.’
Back in London, no one knew each other’s news where Cody and Zach lived. Residents would come and go so often they hardly had time to get to know their neighbours. It was so different on the island. Cody’s grandfather once told him, ‘If you sneeze at one end of Pepper Bay, someone at the other end would say bless you.’
‘Small town,’ said Tessie, tying up her red curls. ‘I’ll buy some. My lot could do with an evening out. Not that we weren’t coming anyway, but free is best.’
Willow nodded and sold some tickets as Tessie’s mum, Elaine, came over with their food.
‘Leave them alone, Tess. They’re about to eat.’ Elaine thumbed towards the bar. ‘You’re supposed to be back at the shop.’
Tessie saluted her mother. ‘Yes, boss,’ she mocked, then headed back to her dairy shop, where the famous Pepper Pot Farm cheese could be found.
Elaine turned back to the young couple. ‘She might be in her thirties, but she still needs the occasional push. Shh! Don’t tell her I said that. Enjoy your lunch.’ And with that, she walked off.
Willow tucked in first, splashing her dish with vinegar.
Cody just stared at the lump of battered cod on his plate. ‘Wills, do you ever feel life is speeding up?’
She glanced at him as she grabbed the salt. ‘A little, I guess. It did seem to go slower when I was a kid. I wonder why that is?’
‘I feel I’ve got more going on.’
She laughed, stuffing a hot chip in her mouth. ‘You have.’
‘Jack of all trades, master of none.’
Willow lowered her fork. ‘Aww, don’t say that, Sully. You’re so smart, you can put your hand to anything. Dad reckons you’d make a fine apprentice in his workshop, and everyone’s happy with you being their accountant. Lance told me you’re a natural on the stage, and you create board games. Board. Games.’
He smiled at her enthusiasm. ‘I haven’t sold any yet.’
‘Not the point. And don’t forget you have a degree.’
‘Which isn’t getting much use. And Zach will be on my case full-time once he gets here.’
‘Is that what you’re worried about?’
Cody shrugged. ‘Do you know what, Wills, I don’t actually know what’s wrong with me lately. Ever since I came to live with you, something’s not felt right.’
Willow almost choked on a chip. ‘Oh, thanks!’
He handed her the cola and smiled. ‘I don’t mean it like that. I just feel in a really weird place.’
‘My mum says it’s the place between childhood and adulthood.’
‘Isn’t that your teens?’
Willow shrugged. ‘According to her, they can hang on for a few years after nineteen.’
‘That’s reassuring.’ Cody rubbed over his chin. ‘Should I break out the spot cream?’
Willow scoffed. ‘You hardly had any, lucky moo. Not like me. Goodness, what a mess I was at times.’
‘Only at times?’
‘Oi!’ She tossed a chip his way that landed on his plate. He snaffled it up and grinned. ‘Not enough salt.’
Willow stopped eating and sat back, eyeballing him.
‘What?’ he asked.
‘Would you tell me if you were depressed?’
‘Depressed?’
She nodded, raising one shoulder to her cheek.
‘Is that what you think I’m going through?’
‘I’m not sure. You seem a bit up and down.’
‘I feel up and down, but I’m not depressed. And, yes, I would talk to you about my mental health. You and Humphrey are probably the only ones I would talk to.’
Willow flopped forward, reaching for his hand. ‘In all seriousness. I really do want you to talk to me about anything, because I couldn’t bear it if you were suffering and felt alone.’ She shook her head, and he noticed her eyes well. ‘You, Cody Sullivan, will never be alone all the while I have breath in my body.’ She squeezed his hand and laughed. ‘I’d probably haunt you as well if I die first, so there’s that too.’
Cody was at a loss for words. Every inch of her face told him she meant what she said. He knew how soft she was when it came to her emotions. She never could hide much away, and her tears came easily.
I think I love you, Willow. Really love you .
He smiled gently, then went back to eating his lunch. He definitely wasn’t depressed, but he certainly was a little lovestruck.
Molly Hadley came over to clear their table once they had finished, flashing them a smile and her diamond ring whilst asking for raffle tickets.
‘Oh, you’re engaged,’ cheered Willow, yanking Molly’s hand across the table.
‘Yep. Freddy proposed. Finally.’ Her dark eyes held a twinkle as she picked up the tray.
‘When’s the big day?’ asked Willow.
‘We’re going to wait a couple of years because we’re saving for a house and hope to get that next year, then we’ll concentrate on the wedding.’
Cody watched Willow go full-on soppy, and he bit in his lip to stop himself from grinning. ‘Well, congratulations from us. And compliments to the chef for the food.’
Willow squealed with delight. ‘Ooh, it must be lovely being with a chef.’
‘Yep. Freddy can cook anything. It’s great. Right, best get on before Elaine tells me off for rambling away. But you have to flash your ring about when you get one. You’ll see. It’ll be you one day.’
The flicker of disappointment in Willow’s eyes didn’t go unnoticed to Cody.
‘Come on, Silver. I’ve got an idea.’
Willow perked up immediately, which lifted Cody instantly. ‘Where we going?’
‘Beach. Paddle. Cake at Edith’s Tearoom. But first…’ He left his sentence hanging, knowing it would earn him a nudge in the ribs. But all Willow did was place a hand on his back as he hobbled over to the old-fashioned sweet shop, aptly named Pepper Lane Sweet Shoppe. ‘Ta-dah!’ he announced, gesturing at the vending machine out front filled with small plastic toys.
Willow peered at the large transparent balls inside. ‘What?’
Cody rummaged in his pocket and pulled out a coin, inserted it into the machine, turned the knob, then picked up the plastic ball that dropped down into the tray at the bottom.
Willow laughed as he opened it to reveal a green toy soldier inside. ‘Well, you’ve lost me, Sully.’
He shoved it into her palm. ‘Here, hold this.’ Another coin drop later, and a blue stone keyring was in his possession. ‘Not that either.’
‘What now, Sully?’ She glanced at her hands as he passed over another item.
‘You’ll see.’ Cody was starting to get annoyed with the machine. Six quid later, and finally he got what he came for. Shaking the ball in front of her face, he laughed out a mwah-ha , then opened the container to pull out a plastic silver ring with a pink stone. ‘For you.’
Willow handed the items in her hands to passing kids. ‘Here, you want these?’
The boy and girl happily took the gifts and said their thanks as they skipped off.
She turned back to the toy jewellery. ‘You got me a ring?’
‘Yeah. Now you can flash around your own gem.’ He handed it over, and to his surprise, she slipped it on her wedding finger.
‘Erm, isn’t that supposed to be bad luck?’
Willow shrugged, looking as though she really was wearing the world’s most expensive diamond. ‘I don’t care. I love it.’ She jumped forward into his chest, squeezing the life out of him. ‘Thank you so much.’
Cody was a little taken aback by just how much it meant to her. Sure, at first, it was a daft idea, then a bit of fun, but now it was holding more meaning, and Willow’s grasp on him had him confused in a thousand different ways. He stepped back. ‘Erm, the least I could do after noticing you moved some of my sticky notes and made my game better.’
‘You’ve seen already?’
‘Hmm.’
‘I’m pleased you agreed. I knew you could easily put them back if not.’
Cody smiled as she hugged him again. ‘Shall we hit the beach?’ he asked, removing her hair from his lips.
Willow pulled away, still grinning at her ring. ‘Come on then.’ She helped him wobble his way to the shoreline.
Cody unwrapped his medical boot, then hopped his good foot into the water, trying to keep his balance. Willow caught him when he almost toppled, and they laughed as they got splashed up to their knees, dampening the hem of her skirt and his shorts.
They waved over to Jake Reynolds playing on the beach with his golden retriever, Max, sold him some tickets, congratulated him on the birth of his new son, asked after his wife, Anna, then walked barefoot into Edith’s Tearoom to check out the chocolate fudge cake on display.
Two more glasses of cola later, and Cody held no more weight on his shoulders at all. More than a lunchbreak had passed, and each moment was spent with smiles and laughter. All the shopkeepers had purchased raffle tickets, and Willow was still snatching glances at her toy ring as they headed back to the small car park by the tram stop.
Cody smiled to himself as he clambered into Heath’s truck. He’d had the best time hanging out with his favourite person. Only this time, it felt as though Willow was his girlfriend, and when she leaned over to kiss his cheek before starting up the engine, it almost sealed the deal.
He’d promised he would talk to her about anything bothering him, but could he really have the talk about how his feelings towards her had changed?
Glancing her way as she started to sing, he decided to keep it to himself for now. After all, the last thing he wanted was a rejection from her.
What would you do if I kissed you, Wills?
He blew the thought from his mind, thinking it best to join in with the song instead. His head and life needed sorting first, as right now he didn’t have anything to offer her, and he wanted to be worth more to her than a plastic ring from a sweet shop. Better to concentrate on his future, as the gaming convention was soon. Maybe then he could make something of himself that would be worthy. Suddenly October couldn’t come fast enough.