Chapter 22 #2
Lucas had got through to the next round of Whisked Away .
Still, he felt distinctly unmoored by what had happened after the filming – what Genie had said.
What Clem had said. All the way home on the bus – which was so hot it was stifling, the windows thrown open not making any difference – it was like someone had shaken up a tub of marbles inside of him, tossing around everything he thought he knew.
When he finally arrived at the house with Dwayne and shoved the key in the lock, the marbles were still rolling.
Dwayne insisted they have a drink to celebrate getting through to the next round, and once Reina was settled happily on her scruffy blanket on the sofa, chewing a dog treat, they went into the kitchen and grabbed a couple of cold fruit ciders from the fridge.
It was still bright outside, warm light beaming through the glass of the back doors, splashing across the granite countertops and painting them in yellow. Dwayne cracked open his cider with a hiss, falling into a seat at the kitchen table.
The house was bright and airy, with lots of big windows, everything beautifully decorated with plush carpet and modern furnishings.
It was a step up from Lucas’s old flat, which he’d rented alone for a small fortune – yet had blown windows, ancient carpet, and swollen, scuffed cabinets in the kitchen.
Dwayne had inherited this house – and a lump sum of money – when his father passed away.
They’d opened Muddy Paws Café soon after, and alongside becoming his business partner, Lucas had ended up living here, renting a room from Dwayne.
It worked out pretty well: there was plenty of space for both of them, and they’d already flat-shared at university, so they meshed well.
It came in handy when they needed to talk business, too – they’d created a Muddy Paws office slash meeting room upstairs.
‘Come on, out with it,’ said Dwayne, taking a long glug of cold apple cider and smacking his lips in satisfaction. ‘Why were you acting so weird on the way home? I saw you talking to Clem. What happened?’
Lucas looked at the condensation on his can of cider, dripping down the surface. He should be happy, buzzing. And he was glad he’d got through, of course he was. He couldn’t process what he’d learned about Clem. And Genie, come to think of it.
He sighed, cracked open his drink, and told Dwayne all about it.
‘Georgina’s still hung up on you?’ said Dwayne in disbelief. He snorted. ‘Can’t believe she’s still calling herself Genie.’
‘She used to say she thought it was trendy. I never thought she’d stick with it.’ Leaning against the kitchen counter, Lucas drank some of his cider, the twang of fizzy fruit refreshing. ‘I shouldn’t have invited her to be in the audience.’
‘Why did you?’
‘She kept complaining she was bored and wanted to come. And I did say I’d catch up with her while she was here.’
‘Pfft. Bored. She’s here visiting her family, right? So, she should go do that.’ Dwayne leaned back in his chair. ‘She’s not bored at all, mate. She’s hoping you’ll change your mind about her. She probably heard about the contest, saw the way you were with Clem, the comments.’
‘Well, I know that now. I thought she was over all that – over me .’
‘I don’t think anyone truly gets over that,’ Dwayne said. ‘Not while they’re friends with the person, at least. Did you really think it could work, being friends with her when she wants something more?’
Lucas’s jaw tensed, and he clutched the can of cider so hard a dent appeared in the side.
Georgina had been in his life for such a long time.
They’d grown up together. When his father first began experiencing pain, and things at home became difficult, she was there for him.
He’d go round to her house to escape, or they’d call on their other friends and spend hours at the cinema seeing films back to back, wasting their pocket money in one go.
He couldn’t kick her out of his life, could he? After an entire childhood together?
‘I thought it’d be a natural thing,’ he admitted, moving across to the table and taking a seat opposite Dwayne. ‘That when she moved away, she’d meet someone, or . . .’
‘I don’t think she has. Otherwise, why would she be here?
’ Dwayne gave him a knowing look over the top of his glass.
‘What was it you said before? Family comes first. Women aren’t worth it.
’ Dwayne snorted, taking a swig of cider, throwing his head back to drain the can. ‘You should apply that to Georgina.’
‘You know what I meant. Proper relationships.’
‘Are you really going to stick with that? After what you just learned from Clem? Sounds like you liked her, in the past. That she’s the one that got away.’ He grinned.
It was more complicated than that, but one thing still held true in his mind. ‘Family does come first,’ he said eventually, frowning. ‘Why wouldn’t they? I have to help them.’
‘You’ve been helping them since you were a kid.’
‘They need me.’
‘You can’t fight everyone else’s battles for them, mate,’ Dwayne pointed out.
He looked out through the glass of the patio doors, into the garden, where green trees were swaying in the summer breeze and the sky was a patch of fading blue.
‘You also need to fight your own. D’you think they’d want you giving up opportunities for them?
To give up someone you clearly had – have – a thing for? ’
‘I’m not,’ he said lamely. But the words sounded weak and small.
Dwayne’s words were poking at him. Each one was like a stab to the chest because he knew his friend was right.
And even though he’d always told himself that the people he’d dated didn’t understand – he had responsibilities, commitments, family to help out – deep down, he understood why they left and why he ended up alone.
Because he could never commit to them enough to make them happy.
He was too busy making sure his parents were okay.
Dwayne studied Lucas, his brown eyes almost sad. ‘But the question is, how long are you going to keep putting off your life? Are you going to let Clem get away a second time?’
Lucas didn’t have an answer, because it stabbed far deeper than anything else – so he drained his drink in one go and didn’t reply. Reina padded in to join them, nudging at Lucas, so he scratched the top of her golden head until she wagged her tail.
‘Aren’t you going to talk to her?’ Dwayne asked.
‘We did talk.’
‘Yeah, but you know what I mean.’
‘She thinks I lied to her. And I didn’t . I was trying to think on my feet because my dad was in the hospital, and I got things wrong. Now she thinks I’m trying to sabotage her.’
‘Talk to her again. Tell her what you just told me, that you were stressed out and it was an accident. Tell her how you really feel.’
Lucas watched the trees being blown about by the wind, leaves green and bright, as he patted Reina’s head. He didn’t know if he wanted to open himself up to those feelings, not when he had his family to think about – and when Clem already thought he was a liar.