Chapter 10
The sound of stuttering drums and thudding bass comes at us from all directions as we walk down a wide path towards the Red camping area, where Elliot & Co are camped.
I look up at the spotlights reaching into the night sky amongst flickering neon blue and green lasers.
Swarms of people run past us at speed and saunter slowly sipping on cans.
As the dark sky turns to total blackness, a fresh atmosphere of anticipation and giddiness grips the air around us.
Shouts of excitement and searching calls of lost party members’ names blare past us as we walk past a gaggle of women smearing glitter across each others’ cheeks.
One laughs so freely that her knees give way under her, but is immediately rescued from hitting the ground by a screaming companion.
It seems like the night is just starting to kick off for some people, but my legs ache desperately.
Elliot pauses next to a large illuminated toilets sign.
He heaves a sigh. ‘Sorry. Same system as before?’ he asks, pointing to the stick.
‘Oh… you mean, I let go?’
He shrugs and shoots me an expectant smile, already sensing my resistance.
‘But you don’t even have a bag to put it in?’ I note desperately. ‘Don’t make me go into how gross that is.’
He sighs again before sliding his hand through his dark locks thoughtfully. I can tell I’m testing his patience. He turns to me again, his features masked with something.
‘Alright,’ he says tightly. ‘How about I just go and you wait here with it?’
I freeze. He’s trusting me with the drumstick alone this early into the agreement? Is he mad?
I must have this question written all over my face as he continues. ‘I get the sense that you’re not the kind of person to play dirty and win something by cheating.’
‘No, of course I’m not,’ I say honestly.
‘Yeah.’ He just nods to himself, looking lost in his thoughts. ‘Thought so.’
‘That’s a pretty risky assumption though,’ I point out.
He presses his lips together and looks down at the drumstick. ‘Hopefully I won’t regret it.’
Without hesitating, he lets go. His eyes meet mine in a collision of bright blue onto green, and they hold me in a cool grip as I feel my chest tighten ever so slightly.
I feel like I should say something reassuring, but he just walks away with surprising nonchalance. The drumstick is left in my hands alone.
I know with an immovable certainty that running away with the stick is not an option.
I hate to admit that he’s right, but I would never run away with it at this stage.
Betraying the trust that he’s inexplicably placed in me feels entirely out of the question – mortifying even.
Imagining him walking back to this spot and seeing it empty is almost painful.
I also have an uneasy guilt creeping over me that he’s going easy on me in our agreement, and I feel like I’m starting to owe him. If this is a give and take situation, I’m the one doing the taking.
So I stand patiently with the drumstick safely in my hands and decide now is the time to let Hennie know where we’re heading.
Sorry, you won’t like this but we’re staying in his tent
It’s MASSIVE though
She replies immediately.
brUTE!!!!!!!
I know his game
wait
WHAT is massive
This is followed by a cartoonish winking gif. Nice, Hen.
His TENT is massive
Makes sense to stay in his rather than my tiny one
Could you grab my pyjamas and bring them over? I’ll owe you my life
Hopefully O&H can guide you to their camp
I know I could detour us to my tent beforehand, but if I’m honest, my sense of direction is horrendous and locating it would probably take all night.
Also Henrietta do you really think I might have seen his dick in the last hour since I saw you
Really
‘So you did stay.’
Elliot’s voice makes me nearly drop my phone. I whip round in alarm, pocketing it speedily.
I turn to see a warm smile illuminating his face as he takes me in. And for a moment I would like to just bask in it.
‘Well,’ I shrug. ‘I had to stick it out to see the enormo-tent.’
He presses his lips together with amusement. ‘Right. Well, I’ll be taking my side of the stick again now.’
‘Interesting choice of words.’
He silently holds out his right hand in response, waiting for me to share the drumstick with him again. With perhaps unnecessary sass, I slap the handle side of it into his palm and I swear a light in his eyes flares.
‘Thank you.’
I hold his gaze. ‘No need to thank me.’
He hums in response but stops himself. ‘Alright, to the enormo-tent we go.’
The Red camping area, unfortunately, consists of absolutely nothing but densely packed tents and pitch darkness.
Darting around gazebos and jumping over strings and pegs with a baffling stranger leading the way isn’t exactly the way I imagined my night ending.
I quietly walk behind Elliot, not wanting to wake anyone sleeping.
‘Careful. This tent has got an invisible string, almost,’ he whispers, pointing to a dark, thin string attached to a small tent.
‘Thanks,’ I murmur, slowly directing my foot over it.
But apparently I didn’t look closely enough at where he pointed, and I realise a moment too late that there’s a resistance at the tip of my right foot.
With my weight already moving directly forward, I start to tumble towards Elliot with an ‘oof’.
I reach my hand out to grasp the edge of his jacket sleeve, feeling my shoulder already start to pummel against a wall of hard muscle.
I hear a sharp intake of breath when two warm hands circle my ribs firmly as he catches me mid-air with ease. The sensation of his hands on me combined with the proximity of his body next to mine make me stutter for air.
He places me carefully down back in front of him and I can’t help the nervous laugh that falls out of me.
‘This evening is turning out to be a series of trust exercises,’ I whisper.
His face is set in a frown. ‘You okay?’
‘Yeah, I’m okay. Sorry.’
He rolls his eyes with a smirk and turns around to keep walking when his body suddenly goes still, and his head whips back to me to stare wide-eyed at the drumstick sitting in my hand.
I look down at it with him.
‘Oh,’ I say quietly. I hadn’t even realised he’d let go of it.
It hits me with a jolt that this means our deal could officially be over. I could use this as an excuse for my win and take the drumstick home. Technically, it would be fair.
He did let go, a distant voice whispers inside me with delight.
His shoulders slump in defeat as he tips his face up to the sky, shaking his head with a grim smile.
It’s almost unbearable to watch. I suppress a frustrated sigh.
This would have been so much easier if he hadn’t let go of the stick to catch me and save me from potentially breaking a leg on a tent peg.
For fuck’s sake.
Knowing I’ll probably regret this later, I thrust out my hand and offer the drumstick toward him. He looks at me with an arched brow.
‘Really? I thought you’d be running with it by now,’ he says disbelievingly.
I guffaw. ‘Oh come on, I’m not a total dick. You just saved me from almost certain death by tent peg. It’s the least I can do.’
I wiggle the stick impatiently. He eyes it with that small smile returning.
‘The offer will expire shortly,’ I say tightly.
He takes his time stepping towards me, his eyes never leaving mine.
He reaches forward and grabs onto the drumstick once again with a smile of – what looks like – victory.
I gasp as he tugs it towards himself, dragging me with it.
He leans across it, his face excruciatingly close to mine, and whispers, ‘How about you watch where you’re going, princess? ’
The air pauses in my lungs as his breath tickles my lips.
He turns away briskly and starts walking with me in tow once again.
‘Stop calling me that,’ I huff in a whisper.