Chapter 39
Theo
“I can’t believe I did it!” Astrid squeals in delight as she curls a piece of hair around the wand.
“I can.” I smile warmly, looking at her animated expression in the mirror.
Her plan had officially worked. Deborah loved her observation and told her that she had earned the right to continue with her role at the school, (well, so long as she doesn’t insult another child again that is, but somehow, I didn’t think that would be a problem anymore). It was imminent, so after Deborah had left the room, she was free to teach as if she’d never left. I hadn’t seen her this happy in ages. She’d already rang me during her lunch break to tell me. I say tell, more like screamed until my eardrums nearly burst, but I didn’t mind. It was just nice to hear her like that, bubbly and excitable like a kid without a care in the world. As soon as she got home, she pounced on me like a cat and immediately started planting kisses all over my forehead. I was fully trapped on the sofa, but it was a feeling that I could definitely get used to.
I’d told her that we should go out to celebrate and she let out a small whine at first, clearly upset that I’d broken free from the kisses to ask her the question. But I thought it was important. I wanted us to start as we meant to go on, and if it meant doing something as simple as leaving the house to celebrate one another’s achievements, then that’s what we were going to do.
“Where do you fancy going?” I’d asked her, moving a stray hair from her face and tucking it behind her ear.
She adjusted herself on my lap and opened her mouth before quickly closing it.
“Come on- where were you going to say?” I asked, my mouth morphing into a smirk as I wrapped my hands tighter around her waist. “Or do I have to get it out of you some other way?”
Raising a playful eyebrow she replied, “well now I definitely don’t want to tell you.”
Playing along, I started kissing her all the way down her neck, stopping just above her cleavage. A tiny moan escapes her mouth at the tease.
“Mean.” she said through a devilish grin. “ Anyway. I was going say…how about Giovanni’s?”
I didn’t miss the way she uncomfortably shifted and couldn’t meet my eyes as she said it. I get why though. I wasn’t 100% sure about the idea either .
“Well, I want you to have what you want. This is meant to celebrate you.” I insist, and I meant it. “Only as long as you’re okay with it though and it doesn’t rehash any negative memories.” I add, tracing a reassuring hand down her cheek.
She sits up, “I want to. It was such a special place for us before and I don’t want it to be overshadowed now by any of that shit. If we never go there again, we’ve let that negativity win, and that’s not in our path.”
I nodded. She was right. That first date was one of the best nights of my life, and admittedly, after the chaos of round two, it was harder to distinguish those good memories from the bad anymore. I liked the idea that we could go there and reclaim the good.
“Then let’s do it.” I smiled, pecking her on the cheek.
And now we were here, getting ready for our second-first date. Drinking rum, listening to some random ‘2000’s love song’ playlist that Astrid had found on her Spotify and dancing round the bedroom like absolute lunatics. It was safe to say, as I watched her shake her hips about, singing ‘ Crazy in Love’ by Beyonce at the top of her lungs and using her curling wand as a microphone, I think I’m in love, love .
◆◆ ◆
After our bedroom-disco, we were somehow still doing good for time, so we decided to take the scenic route to Giovanni’s. It was honestly like the stars had aligned tonight, the weather was perfectly mild with a gentle summer breeze, meaning we got to leisurely walk around the park without fear of having to make a sudden run for shelter. Interlocking our fingers, we chat and giggle as we head down the path. Astrid realised that amongst the buzz of getting her job back, she hadn’t actually asked me how it went back at the office. In honesty, it was quite nice seeing the guys again, even if they all predictably took the piss out of my ‘child’ immune system and accused me of skiving. I actually didn’t mind getting stuck back in with the work I had to do. Astrid’s endless sick days meant that I had a fat list of tasks, but it meant that I could at least keep my head down and look busy in case Nick fancied another sexual heart-to-heart, (spoiler: he did and awkwardly cornered me when we were alone in the staff kitchen to tell me that him and his wife had bought some goodies from Love honey that had done ‘wonders’ for their sex life, and asked whether I needed any ‘recommendations’. I wish I was joking).
As you can imagine, this caused Astrid to absolutely lose it. She was heaved over on the side of the path, laughing that hard I genuinely thought she was about to choke. When I finally managed to calm her down, we stopped in our tracks. We were stood right by the beautiful stone bridge that arched over the river. The moon was full, it’s celestial light reflecting over the steady water. Silence filled the air, with only the very faint sound of water ripples to accompany it. It was just the two of us, and it was perfect .
Not nearly as perfect as the woman standing next to me though. I turn to face her, watching her beautiful face as it’s hypnotized by the scene. Twiddling a strand of her hair between my fingers, I whisper, “ My Astrid.” It clearly breaks the spell, she cranes her neck, cups a hand around my jaw and gently brings her lips to mine before pulling away, filling my heart with warmth as she gazes into my eyes and replies through a gentle murmur, “ My Theo.”
The enchantment of the moment pauses suddenly as our attention is drawn to the sound of footsteps on the bridge. We turn around, praying that the Zodiac Killer hadn’t emerged from hiding and decided that we were the perfect new couple to murder. Instead, however, we see a shadowy figure, it looked like the silhouette of an older woman. On instinct, I pull Astrid closer to me, squeezing her hand tightly. It’s only when the figure steps into the moonlight that we both audibly gasp. Darla. Her silver hair was peeking out from underneath one of those 1920’s cloche hats, and she was wearing a silk gown that grazed the bridge. She looked like an old Hollywood movie star.
We both stand firmly to the spot, gawking at her as if she was a bloody alien who’d just beamed down from the sky. There were so many questions that we had, who was she? Why did she do what she did? Why Astrid and I of all people? Was she even real ?
But in that moment, neither of us knew what to say or do. We were left practically speechless, it’s like someone had temporarily disabled our vocal chords.
Instead, I flash her a gentle smile, hoping that it conveyed everything I had to say. No matter who she was, or how she did it, she allowed me to relearn Astrid, to relearn love , and that was something that could never be taken for granted. Astrid nuzzles her head into my shoulder and it’s in that moment that Darla smiles at us. It’s one of those earthy smiles that reaches your eyes. She looked like a proud mother. Taking a hand to her head, she gently lifts her hat and tips it, before walking away and disappearing back into the shadows.
Astrid and I look at each other with the same wide eyes. What just happened?
It’s a mystery that we’ll likely never know the answer to, but maybe we aren’t supposed to.
I’m just about to suggest that we leave, when suddenly the sky opens up and the rain comes lashing down in thick drops. It’s only been a few seconds and we’re already soaked through. Usually in this situation, one of us would curse the world, but in this moment, we do nothing but… laugh . Roaring, belly-aching, laughter. Her freshly curled hair is stuck limp and damp to her face, my trousers are heavy and seeping, and we just stand there, doubled over and pointing at one another, our tears of joy trickling down our faces and dissolving with the rain.