Chapter 6
Nate
Home is roughly eight hours ahead of Vegas. I check my phone on the bedside table. It’s almost midnight, meaning it will be morning back home. The noise here is constant. There’s always someone walking the corridors or singing drunk.
When I can’t sleep, like tonight, I look out of the window at a city that rarely sleeps, not that they’d be able to with the constant ringing of slot machines and bright lights attacking all of your senses when you’re down there, it makes me feel homesick.
But I’m glad the rooms are quiet from the chaos down below.
I grab my phone and go to the group chat with my brothers, because even though they moan about it, I secretly love that they're there for me if I need them.
Me
Cole, how is Lacey doing? Is she any better?
I wait for a moment, and three dots bounce on my screen.
Cole
She’s okay. Hope you’re all enjoying Vegas. Archie, don’t forget your sunscreen.
Archie’s phone dings through the open doors, followed by a snort.
Arch
Yes dad! Although I needed more than sunscreen today!
Cole
Do I even want to know what that means?
Ethan
What have you two been up to again?
Arch
Nate wanted some ‘alone’ time with Hayleigh, so he pulled a prank to make sure I couldn’t follow! But Life360 bitch HA
Rafe
Life360? I don’t have that? Why haven’t we been invited to it?
Ethan
Could you not give him ideas, idiot? I don’t need to be tracked every moment of my day.
Cas
Wait a minute…did you say alone time with Hayleigh? Nate! What was the one thing we said? You had ONE job! Emmy is going to flip her lid.
I roll my eyes. These guys are so melodramatic.
Me
Relax, it isn’t like I’ve had my wicked way with her. We’re friends, and we did a friend thing
Although that stunt I pulled in the bathroom wasn’t a very friendly thing to do, that’s neither here nor there.
Cas
Emmy said if you boink her, she’s never forgiving you
Me
Tell Emmy there will be no boinking of any kind.
Arch
*replying to Rafe* You were invited to Life360, but neither of you accepted my invitation, so I took matters into my own hands.
Ethan
What does that mean? Archie, what does that mean?
Arch
*evil grin emoji*
I close out of the chat and leave the rest of my brothers to it, and there is no doubt in my mind that Archie has somehow installed the tracking app on all of our brothers.
In a way, it’s nice; it means he knows they’re safe, and that’s a big thing for him.
I throw the blanket over my head and burrow into it, and the last thing I think of is the list with Hayleigh and how I can make sure she completes it.
**********
Morning rolls around, and Archie bangs about the apartment. God forbid he lets a man get some sleep around here. I run through my morning routine, and when I’m done, I swipe my phone off the bed and notice there’s a message.
Shortcake
Botanical Garden
Well, that’s a weird message.
Me
Is this a crossword puzzle clue?
The three dots appear immediately.
Shortcake
No, dingbat. That’s another thing for my list. I’ve always wanted to go to a Botanical Garden! My grandad used to spend a lot of his time in the garden.
I smile, loving the small nuggets of information that she gives me.
Me
Added *smiley face emoji* breakfast?
Shortcake
Sure, meet you down there in ten.
I close the message and open my phone's web browser; botanical gardens near me. The search brings back one not too far away that opens its doors at 9 am; it’s only 7:30 am now, so we have time.
When I walk out into the living area, Archie is lying on the couch with his nose in a book. I tilt my head to read the spine, ‘My Sexy Alien Next Door’, I look over the top of the book, and he rolls his eyes.
“I’m not apologising for this. People should be allowed to enjoy their smutty books in peace.”
I fold my arms. “No judgment here, in fact, I downloaded an audiobook app last night. Is that something all smutty book readers enjoy?” I nod to the book now lying face down on his stomach.
He shrugs. “From what I’ve gathered from the bookish community, people like all sorts…” He trails off and looks away.
“Is there something on your mind, Arch?” I know my brother all too well.
His cheeks tinge red. “If I tell you something, are you going to laugh at me?”
I sit. “No, when have I ever laughed at you?” My chest tightens ever so slightly.
He throws a glare my way. “Oh, how about yesterday when you decided that it would be hilariously funny to offer me shorts that disappear when they get wet?”
I burst out laughing. “Sorry. I won't laugh this time. Promise.”
He sighs and hides his face behind a cushion. “I want to open a bookstore.”
I don’t know why he would think I would laugh at that. “Archie, that’s amazing! Why would I laugh at you for that?”
He sits up, shrugging. “I don’t know, everyone else has a proper job, and I’ve been floating about, but this is something I really want to do. Do you think I should?”
“A hundred per cent, you should do it. I can make you some bookshelves and a counter. We’ll all pitch in and help. Have you spoken to mum and dad?”
He shakes his head. “No, not yet, but I will.” He picks up his book and starts to read again.
“Hey, Archie, are you going to be okay if I take Hayleigh out today?”
He closes his book again and looks at me. “I’ll be fine, Nate, and I promise I won’t gatecrash the date this time.”
I wave him off. “You didn’t gatecrash, and this isn’t a date. It’s a non-date to help a friend.”
The look he gives me is smug, like he doesn’t believe a word I’m saying.
I don’t think I believe me either.
**********
Everything is ready for our non-date with some help from Archie, and now I’m waiting for Hayleigh in the lobby with my bag and the list in my back pocket.
I’m busy watching people go by when a flash of soft pink catches my eye, and my jaw drops because walking towards me is Hayleigh, looking like perfection.
Her hair is swept up in a high ponytail away from her face, showing off her rosy cheeks and glazed, plump lips. My eyes drop to her pink sundress, which stops just above her knee; the top half hangs off her shoulders and cuts across her chest. She looks beautiful
She reaches me, and I realise I’m still gawping. “You look beautiful, Hayleigh.”
A blush tinges her cheeks. “Thanks. So, where are we going?”
I hold my arm out, and she links hers with mine. “That’s a surprise.” She throws me a smile, it feels incredible, and I realise that I’d do anything to make her smile like that every day.
**********
“Oh, wow. This is beautiful, Nate.” Hayleigh’s voice is full of awe as she spins around in circles before darting from plant to plant, smelling the flowers and closing her eyes as a smile blooms across her face. I could watch her like this all day.
I have no clue about plants. Archie bought us a cactus once for the house, and we managed to kill it off, but I don’t say that; instead, I nod and smile. “Yeah, it’s all very…green.”
Hayleigh bursts out laughing. “Man of so many words. Come on, I want to see the butterfly enclosure they have.” She grabs my hand and pulls me along, and I can’t help but puff my chest out slightly when she doesn’t let go.
The butterfly enclosure is humid, and it’s not easy to breathe in here, but even I’m surprised at the sheer amount of butterflies in here, floating through the air without a care in the world.
One lands on Hayleigh’s nose, and her eyes cross over as she looks down at it.
So very gently, I lift my phone and snap a picture of her.
Her eyes are so alive and happy, and I secretly high-five myself with this idea.
We spend a few hours walking around the gardens when Hayleigh floats over to some deep pink flowers that look like they could be dyed daisies.
Her eyes fall closed as she takes in the smell of the flower.
“These are Coneflowers. My granddad would get them for my grandma because she loved the colour pink. Every weekend, without fail, even when she left us, he kept getting them for her. My mother would tell him it was a waste of money, but he never did care for what she thought.”
“I don’t like your mother, by the way.”
Hayleigh’s laugh bursts out of her so loud she scares a couple walking by, and I can’t help but join in. She wipes underneath her eyes. “Oh, wow. That was funny. Ah, not many people like Morgana Wallcroft; they tolerate her for what she can do for them.”
She slumps her shoulders as she talks about her mother.
“Yeah, well, I don’t like her, and I won’t be tolerating her.
Especially not if she speaks to you as she did over the phone in front of me.
” Her eyes go glassy, and I don’t want her to cry, so I tap my bag and opt for distracting her instead. “I brought us lunch.”
Her eyes light up at the mention of food. “I know the perfect place we can have it, come on, I saw it on the map earlier when we walked in.”
She grabs hold of my hand, and we walk through rows and rows of differently looking and smelling flowers before she takes a sharp left toward a wall covered in ivy. I tug on her hand gently. “Erm, hate to break it to you, Shortcake, but this is a wall.”
Her eyes sparkle. “Oh, it’s a wall, alright, but it’s what’s behind it that we want. Look.” She grabs the hanging ivy and pulls it back, revealing an old, worn-looking door behind it; it must have been at least a few hundred years old. A brass key sticks out of the lock, and she turns it.
I put a hand on hers to still it. “Wait. Are we even supposed to go back here?” Usually, I’m the first one breaking rules.
She rolls her eyes. “Stop being a baby. If they didn’t want people to find this place, then why put it on the map and why have the key hanging out of the door?” I shrug; she has me there.
She turns the key and then pushes the door inwards, and it swings open with ease.
When we walk through the door, it’s like being transported to another world.
Bright sprays of flowers burst out of every surface, and it’s only when the sun's rays shine brightly overhead that I realise we’re in some huge greenhouse and right down at the other end is a seating area of benches.
We pick our way through an overgrown path to the seats, and when we get there, we see beautiful carved statues of mythical creatures all around us. Hayleigh drops down onto a bench and sighs. “If only a mythical Fae King wandered through here to claim me as his high lady.”
I give her a pointed look. “Mythical Fae King?” I take out our lunch and plate it up on the plastic ones Archie stole from the kitchen. “What is it with you and my brother. Did you know he was reading about aliens this morning?”
She bounces her knee and claps her hands together. “Ooh, was it the alien next door or my alien baker?”
“Aliens bake?”
She sticks her tongue out at me. “These do, yes, very well might I add. God, I’d love to learn how to bake bread.”
I pull out her list and the pen I had with it and scribble it down. “Done. My mum can show you. She makes all of her bread.”
Hayleigh shakes her head. “Oh, no, it’s okay. Your mum has so much to do already, she doesn’t want me mithering.”
I put my hand on her knee to still it. “She would love to, it isn’t mithering.”
I hand her the plate of food, and she takes a bite out of her cheese and smoked ham sandwich. “But, I don’t have anything to do for her in return.”
I could throttle her mother. “Shortcake, not everyone wants something in return. There are people out there who only want to help you.”
“Sorry.” Her eyes fall into her lap, and I hate that she’s so conditioned to say sorry or make herself smaller. It’s something she’s done more and more this past year.
“Hey, look at me.” When she doesn’t, I put my plate down and kneel in front of her. “Hayleigh.” Her eyes meet mine. “Don’t ever apologise for being you, okay?”
I think she’s going to push me away, to tell me that she’s fine, like she has this past year, but nothing surprises me more when she asks. “Do people hate me, Nate, for what happened?”
My blood boils because that fucker Pete is still firmly digging his claws into Hayleigh. She’s doubting herself because of him, and for some reason, she thinks everyone hates her when that’s so far from the truth.
It’s time I start showing Shortcake here exactly how much she's loved.