Chapter 19
19
It’s so nice out here, without the boys. Things are just so peaceful, without the distractions they bring to the table, and I find myself noticing and appreciating so much more about where we are and what’s around us.
The afternoon sun hangs perfectly in the sky – it’s almost like a stock photo of the sun because it just looks and feels exactly as you would hope on holiday. I know, it’s the same sun we see back in Leeds, but I’ll bet it’s hiding behind a cloud over Chapel Allerton today.
The pool is sparkling, looking so inviting, but it would almost be a shame to disturb the water. It’s moving slightly in the breeze, causing these little twinkles that keep catching my eye, like someone has scattered the surface with diamonds.
I’m just lying here, taking it all in, watching the world go by (or not go by, as the case may be), listening to the gentle wind rustling through the trees. It’s a glimpse of what it would be like if we were here alone (like we were supposed to be!), and it’s heaven.
Nita is settled on her lounger, her face buried in a glossy magazine that occasionally gets suspiciously close to her face. You can’t see, because of her oversized sunglasses, but I think she might be snoozing on and off.
Lou is next to her, reading a book, and then there’s Willow who is sitting on the edge of the pool. She dips her foot into the water, destroying the stillness, and moves her leg from side to side. The ripples and gentle splashing sound almost like white noise, the kind of perfect ambience you usually get from an app, which just adds to the rustling of the wind and the occasional chirp from a bird. It’s pure paradise.
Lou sets her book down and lies back on her cushioned lounger, cradling a can of lukewarm lemonade, its citrusy scent wafting through the air as she takes slow, thoughtful sips. Everything is so delicious here, even though we’re limited, but it would be so nice to have an actually cold drink for once. Maybe we should take another trip to the shop tomorrow, get some more hot street food, and a drink from the fridge. I swear, I appreciate them all the more, for not having such easy access to them. I never thought I took things for granted, but I have a whole new level of appreciation for hot food and cold drinks.
As is always the case when you find yourself beginning to relax, I notice Harry and Nolan stride out from the villa, out of the corner of my eye, with an exaggerated casualness that just pisses me off for some reason. They’re always all so easy breezy.
They’re still in their trunks – and Harry is wearing that trademark cocky smile of his. I thought they were supposed to be going out. Then again, how much getting ready can you even do without a bathroom? I wouldn’t be surprised if they just threw on T-shirts and shoes.
‘Ladies,’ Harry starts, his tone light as a feather as the two of them pitch up in front of us. ‘Can we have a quick chat?’
‘You’re already having it,’ Nita replies flatly, flipping a page in her magazine without so much as a glance in their direction. The sound of the page-turning feels more defiant than dismissive.
Harry is unfazed, his smile still plastered on his face.
‘Right. Well, look. We’ve been thinking – not just us, the other lads too – and we just wanted to say… wouldn’t it make more sense for you guys to bow out now? Save yourselves the time, the effort. We’re already in the lead. We all know how this competition is going to end.’
Willow snorts, twisting her body around to shoot them a dirty look.
‘You have one point out of a possible one point,’ she reminds them.
‘And how exactly is it going to end?’ Nita asks.
‘Well, with us winning, obviously,’ Nolan says bravely, nodding as if he’d just explained the most obvious thing in the world.
‘There is absolutely no shame in bowing out,’ Harry adds. ‘We won’t think any less of you – we couldn’t. We don’t want any trouble.’
Lou raises an eyebrow, her arms crossed tightly in front of her.
‘What trouble?’ she asks, looking back and forth between them.
‘Trouble for you,’ Harry says.
This is… I don’t know, weird?
‘Girls are supposed to be the mature ones, right?’ Harry continues. ‘Graceful, practical, poised – you could just sack it off and enjoy the rest of the week. No need to drag this whole competition out.’
Nita finally lowers her sunglasses, clearly wanting them to see something in her eyes.
‘Harry, are you allergic to reading the room, or are you doing this on purpose?’ she asks him. ‘Because you’re coming across as chauvinistic. You think our collective poise means we should let you win the competition?’
‘All right, take it easy, Nita. Don’t cancel me,’ Harry replies with mock innocence, feigning a wounded expression. He’s so obnoxious. ‘We’re just trying to be helpful.’
I exchange a glance with Lou, who rolls her eyes so hard I’m surprised they find their way back.
‘Try being quiet instead,’ Nita suggests.
‘The competition is figured out, we’re happy to do it,’ I tell them, trying to keep my voice steady, though a hint of agitation creeps in. ‘Let’s just leave it at that.’
‘We just figured it was worth asking,’ Nolan interjects, a hint of defensiveness creeping into his voice. ‘You know, in case you wanted to avoid the embarrassment later.’
‘Thanks for the concern,’ Willow says dryly, crossing her arms as if to shield herself from their insufferable smugness. ‘But we’ll take our chances.’
Harry grins again, clearly enjoying himself, taking pleasure in pushing our buttons. ‘Okay, okay. Just thought we’d offer. But don’t say we didn’t warn you.’
‘Noted,’ Nita replies, her voice cool and dismissive. ‘Are we done here? I thought you were going out…’
‘We are,’ Harry tells her. ‘Have fun while we’re gone. We’d better go get ready. Big night ahead.’
As they walk away, Nita mutters something under her breath that I can’t quite catch, but it sounds a lot like a four-letter word that springs to my mind too.
I take a sip of my drink. Ugh, it’s even warmer now, and suddenly it’s annoying me all the more. Who do these boys think they are? They’re seriously underestimating us. Well, fine, let them. Let them think we’re pushovers – they’re in for an unpleasant surprise. The lingering tension hangs in the air, heavier than the humidity around us. Why did they have to come out here and whip us up before going out? We were actually having a nice time for once, making the most of what we’ve got.
I can see Nita’s jaw tense, a sign that she’s not willing to take this lying down.
‘They really think they can just waltz out here and say whatever they want,’ she says, her voice edged with disbelief. ‘No one tells me what to do.’
‘We didn’t come all this way to back down now. We’re not giving them the satisfaction,’ Willow tells her.
‘They’ve got another thing coming,’ Lou agrees. ‘But you sure put them in their place, Nita. I don’t think they’ll come out here and try that again.’
Right on cue, Owen and Travis walk out of the villa, pitching up in front of us like a couple of Dragon’s Den hopefuls. Their business? Pissing people off, clearly.
The two of them look dressed to impress – they’ve scrubbed up well, given their limited facilities, and it annoys me because I know how much I’d be struggling to look half decent in their situation.
Owen’s shirt is crisp, his hair perfectly styled, while Travis somehow makes casual look effortlessly cool with his rolled-up sleeves and easy confidence to pull it off.
The late-afternoon sun casts a warm glow over them, illuminating them, giving them a glow and a tan – and even more reason to piss us off.
‘Ladies,’ Owen pipes up, his tone smoother than it has any right to be. ‘Mind if we interrupt for a moment?’
‘Depends,’ Nita says, squinting up at them with a hint of suspicion. ‘Is this going to be as pointless as the last interruption?’
Travis smiles, casually tucking his hands into his pockets.
‘You mean Harry and Nolan didn’t soften you up for us?’ he dares to joke.
‘Is that what that was?’ I reply.
‘Obviously they’re not as charming as us,’ Travis points out.
Infuriatingly he is really fucking charming, but I’m not about to let him know that.
‘If this is another pitch for us to leave, save your breath,’ Nita says, cutting to the chase. ‘We’ve just been through this with your minions.’
You can tell the boys want to laugh. I think they like the idea of Harry and Nolan being their minions. Still, they’re obviously here for something, so they’re not about to let their masks slip.
‘Look,’ Owen says, raising his hands peacefully, as if he’s trying to calm a pack of wolves. ‘We’re just saying what we said from the start – why put yourselves through all of this? Why not just call it now? You’re supposed to be on holiday, relaxing. It’ll save a lot of time and trouble…’
I can’t help but laugh. What on earth are they playing at? Do they really think they can pester us into backing down?
‘You do realise we’ve just been through this with the other two, right?’ I point out. ‘Seconds ago. The answer is still no. It’s not going to change because you guys dressed up nice to ask.’
Travis chuckles, his grin widening.
‘You think we look nice?’ he asks, teasing me.
‘That’s not what I said,’ I protest.
‘You did,’ Owen points out.
‘Then it’s not what I meant,’ I say firmly.
‘I think we’ll take the compliment anyway, if you don’t mind,’ Travis says.
‘I mind,’ I insist.
‘Look, we just thought we’d try asking too,’ Owen says. ‘You can’t blame us for trying, can you?’
‘I think I could blame you for anything,’ Nita points out. ‘Definitely wasting our time. Run along now.’
‘Okay, well, we tried,’ Owen says.
‘You tried our patience,’ Nita adds.
‘We’re reasonable people,’ Owen tells us.
‘Oh yeah?’ Nita replies. She has a smile on her face that I know is not her smile, so it’s kind of unnerving. ‘So, how about you let us use the kitchen while you’re out?’
‘You didn’t offer to let us use your bathrooms,’ he replies. ‘Luckily, it’s an old door, it has this metal key in it, so we thought we’d best lock it while we’re out, for safety.’
It did cross my mind that we might be able to sneak in there, and use the kitchen, while they were out. I don’t know why I thought it would be that easy.
‘You said it’s an old door,’ Lou replies. ‘What if the key doesn’t work? What if it breaks? You’ll be locked out too.’
‘That’s a risk we’re willing to take,’ Owen says. ‘We like to live dangerously.’
‘I hear drinking and driving is fun for that,’ Nita jokes. She would never normally make such a dark joke, they must be really pushing her buttons.
They just laugh.
‘Don’t wait up,’ Owen tells us. ‘Although, I guess your bedrooms are the only place you have to go so…’
He lets his voice trail off as he heads back to the house.
‘What do you think that’s in aid of?’ I ask the others.
‘I’m not sure,’ Nita says. ‘Odd though.’
‘Maybe it was just an excuse to rub it in, to tell us to stay out of the kitchen, or to psych us out for tomorrow,’ Lou suggests.
‘Yeah, maybe,’ Willow says. ‘Still really bloody weird though.’
‘I hope they do lock themselves out of the kitchen too, the idiots,’ Lou says. ‘It’s no skin off our nose.’
We all laugh together for a moment. That’s a really good point – in fact, if we were more like them, we’d probably go and mess with the lock.
‘So, are we going to try to break into the kitchen?’ Willow asks.
‘Nah,’ Nita replies, putting her sunglasses on, lying back on her lounger. ‘Let’s just enjoy the peace and quiet without them.’
That’s not a bad idea at all, because it really is quiet without them, and they’ll be back before we know it.