Chapter 18
18
Is it a secret garden if everyone knows where it is?
Just off the main outdoor area is a walled garden, hidden away behind a gate, but the fact that it’s listed as a feature of the place kind of kills the idea of it being hidden. Plus, with there being eight of us here, and all of us knowing about it, it’s not much of an escape. Still, it feels like the only place to wander off for a breather right now, without leaving the villa grounds. Well, I’m always in my bedroom (or one of the other, identical bedrooms) or out in the pool area. The not-so-secret garden feels like the only place I can get some time to myself, without staring at the same four walls. Plus, you know, there’s a chance there might be signal here.
Hedges, flowers, trees – this place somehow looks completely wild, and yet perfectly manicured. I don’t know enough about flowers (so I won’t be choosing anything to do with that as a round for the competition) but I feel like I can smell each one as I stroll by. I lightly brush the petals with my hands, unable to resist touching them for some reason.
As I walk further, the main path splits, one side curving back towards the villa while the other dips into a shadowy archway of trees. I choose the shadows, the air is so much cooler and quieter here, the light filtering through the canopy of the trees in scattered golden patches. It’s a welcome break from the heat, that’s for sure.
My footsteps crunch softly on the gravel, until I find a shadowy clearing, with a bench right in the middle of it, the perfect place for some time alone.
‘Molly, have you got a minute,’ a voice calls after me.
So much for time on my own.
I turn around and see that it’s Travis. I feel weirdly pleased to see him, in a way that I can’t quite put my finger on. I suppose I’d just rather it was him than any of the others. Well, I’m on a flirting ban with Owen, Harry seems like a bit of a dick, and I’m not sure how much I have to talk to Nolan about – seeing as though I know nothing about football, or Football Manager.
Travis, who is much taller than me, ducks under a branch to join me. His hair is still damp, and a little messy, like he’s just rolled out of a nap or broke free from a headlock one of the other boys had him in. There’s a casual energy about him that always makes him look so at ease, like he’s just sort of wandered into his life and decided he’ll stay.
‘I wanted to pull you for a chat,’ he says, flashing me a cheeky smile.
‘Did you just make a Love Island reference?’ I ask in disbelief.
‘Yeah, the villa pool area kind of reminds me of it,’ he says. ‘Plus, with us being sort of boys together, girls together – from what I’ve seen, it’s just like it.’
‘From what you’ve seen?’ I reply through a knowing smile.
‘Bits and bobs,’ he says. ‘Anyway, I found you.’
‘In the middle of a secret garden – I want my money back,’ I reply.
‘You have your money back,’ he points out, sitting down on the bench next to me. ‘Anyway, I saw you heading through the gate, so I followed you.’
‘That’s kind of creepy,’ I tell him, powerless to stop myself mirroring his smile.
‘So creepy,’ he jokes.
‘Well, it’s like a maze in here, so you’re lucky you found me,’ I point out.
‘I figured you would be where the chaos wasn’t,’ he replies.
‘And I figured you’d be hosing your friends down, ahead of your big night out,’ I joke. ‘I’m sure there’s one here somewhere.’
Travis laughs.
‘I didn’t know this was here, you know,’ he says. ‘I assumed the gate just went out of the garden, into the countryside around us.’
My eyebrows shoot up.
‘So, it really is a secret garden,’ I say. ‘Well, it was until you stalked me into it. I guess the secret is out now.’
‘Nah, your secret is safe with me, I won’t tell the others you’re in here,’ he replies. ‘You need somewhere to retreat to.’
‘Good to know, I wouldn’t want this being the area for your next wrestling match,’ I say, laughing it off, but that is actually very good of him.
‘Not a chance – the plants would get in the way,’ he replies with a smile.
‘So, you’re the ringleader of your lot, hmm?’ I say.
‘I do my best,’ he replies. ‘I try to wrangle them, where I can. I’ve noticed you’re a bit of a peacekeeper too – what’s your secret?’
‘Oh, I don’t know, keeping everyone calm, putting things into perspective – bribery as a last resort.’
‘You have a very calming vibe,’ he says. There’s something warm in his voice that makes me feel relaxed and, I don’t know, noticed maybe? ‘That’s why I wanted to talk to you, actually.’
From relaxed to nervous again. Travis wants to talk to me about something? It’s ironic, that he says I have a calming vibe, because while I’m okay at calming other people, I’m generally always quite stressed myself. And, come on, who doesn’t panic when they learn someone wants to talk to them?
He turns his head to look me in the eye for a moment. God, his eyes are gorgeous. Deep, dreamy – the kind of eyelashes that make you mad, because you’d pay a fortune to have them, and it turns out boys were at the front of the queue when they were being handed out.
‘You’re pretty quiet when everyone’s scrapping,’ he points out, his tone light but observant. ‘It makes me wonder if you think this whole competition thing is as daft as I think it is…’
I glance at him, a little caught off guard by the honesty.
‘Well, yeah, I don’t think it’s the best idea anyone has ever had,’ I reply. ‘But mostly I just worry about it all spiralling out of control. It’s not that I don’t think it will be fun, it’s just…’
‘Sort of dangerous?’ he replies, finishing my sentence for me.
‘Exactly,’ I reply. ‘It’s all fun and games, until someone gets hurt.’
‘I thought this holiday was going to be a chilled one – lord knows I need one – so I wasn’t exactly down for…’ He gestures vaguely, like he can’t even find the right words for this particular brand of chaos. ‘…but now I’m thinking all I can do is roll with it.’
‘Exactly!’ I reply, a little overexcited because he just gets it. ‘I don’t think we have any choice but to play along.’
‘Which is why I thought I’d come to you, to say look, let’s do our best to keep things vaguely amicable,’ he replies.
‘I thought I was going to have a nice, chilled-out break too,’ I confess. ‘I didn’t think I’d be wrangling my friends but, you’re right, if we do our best, this might be okay. It might even be fun.’
‘So we keep things from blowing up,’ he says simply. ‘You keep an eye on the girls, I’ll handle the lads.’
‘I mean, that sounds good to me,’ I tell him. ‘But… I thought we were supposed to be enemies?’
I raise an eyebrow suspiciously, only semi-serious, but I’m not wrong, we are supposed to be enemies right now.
‘Oh, no, we are,’ he says, his smile turning mischievous. ‘And just because I want to keep the peace, make no mistake about it, I’m Team Lads. We’re still rivals, and we’re still all playing to win. So, don’t get too comfortable. I’d still keep sleeping with one eye open if I were you. You never know what’s coming next.’
I laugh, shaking my head.
‘Well, I’ll be keeping an extra-close eye on you, then,’ I tell him. ‘Your boys are playing checkers, but I think you might be playing chess.’
He purses his lips and smiles with his eyes.
‘You’re definitely not playing poker,’ I point out with a laugh.
‘Or I’ve always had a good poker face,’ he replies. ‘I’ll be keeping you on your toes.’
There’s something in his voice, something playful but charged, that lingers in the air.
‘And I’ll be putting you on your back,’ I tell him, but trying to match his vibe makes what was supposed to be playfully violent come across as aggressively sexual.
Thankfully he laughs it off.
‘Well, I’ll leave you to your secret garden, and go get ready to go out,’ he tells me. ‘You sure we can’t use your bathroom?’
‘What do you think?’ I reply with a smile. ‘You want me to keep the peace. If I tell Nita you said that, it’ll be blood that needs cleaning up, not chlorine.’
‘Well, luckily there are period products everywhere,’ he jokes. ‘You know we’ve all had girlfriends, some of us have sisters, mums – you’re not going to freak us out with stuff like that.’
‘And we’ve all had boyfriends, dads, brothers,’ I reply.
‘You’ve had dads and brothers?’ he replies with a grin designed to tease me over my wording. ‘Anyway, see you later.’
‘Not if I see you first,’ I call after him, because of course I do.
I watch him go, feeling a little better than I did before we spoke. This competition might be a bit mad, and I know I just talked to Travis about keeping the peace but, I don’t know, it feels like there’s something between us now, a one-on-one rivalry, something to play for…
Maybe a week at odds with the boys might not be so bad after all.