Freeze

Chapter Nine

Gary lay flat on his back, the soft down of the duvet caressing his bare skin as he fidgeted. It was early. The winter sun not yet over the horizon. The house was still and silent, save for the frequent snores emanating from his father down the hall. Gary closed his eyes in an attempt to get back off to sleep but it was fruitless; he was awake.

Quietly Gary crept out of bed pulling on a pair of grey jogging bottoms and a navy hoodie which he zipped up, feeling the cool metal of the zip against his bare chest. Gary grabbed a pair of socks before he opened his bedroom door and stepped silently on to the landing.

Holly rolled over in her small single bed, mindful of the edge. She sighed heavily as sleep continued to evade her. She couldn't be sure but it felt like she'd been awake all night, staring at the same pattern in the artex ceiling. She felt exhausted. Her mind hadn't stopped ticking over all night; a constant rally worthy of Wimbledon.

Gary. Danny. Gary. Danny. Gary.

Ironically, it was Holly who felt guilty when she thought of Danny. She should be mourning the end of their relationship but instead she was trying to process how she felt about a man she'd just met. A man with a beautiful face and a heart to match. In the dim light cast by the pre dawn Holly could just make out Gary's scarf sat neatly folded on her dresser.

Gary crept down the stairs, careful to avoid the one that always creaked half way down. He grabbed a pair of old trainers that sat by the back door. They were an old pair of his brothers that his Dad had taken to wearing out in the garden. Honey eyed Gary lazily from her bed.

He slipped the off-white trainers on, pleasantly surprised at how well they fitted him.

"D'ya wanna go for a run girl?" Gary asked in hushed tones as he ruffled the fur on Honey's head.

Honey made a noise which Gary could only attribute as a groan and put her paw over snout, closing her eyes. He'd take that as a no then.

Gary stepped out in to the cold morning. The dawn was beginning to break, the sky taking on lighter hues as the sun attempted to rise. The snow and ice had melted to leave a dirty sludge clinging to the pavements. Gary was slightly hesitant at first, unsure of his footing.

Holly starred at the spot where Gary's scarf sat. She recalled how nice it had felt having her arm linked in his, how, despite their bodies not touching, she felt the warmth from his as they walked along side by side. She recalled the moment she thought he might kiss her and the disappointment that settled in her stomach when he didn't.

Jess's words from earlier came to her 'you can't help who you fall in love with'. Was she in love with him? So soon? Love at first sight was just a ridiculous notion concocted by romance authors to explain away plot holes wasn't it? It didn't actually exist? She didn't know anyone who could, hand on heart, say they'd fallen in love at first sight. But then she supposed they'd never met Gary Barlow.

Gary's pace picked up has he became more confident he wouldn't fall arse over tit. He ran past the North Star pub and towards the outskirts of the village. The air was cold and as he exhaled his breath formed smoke-like plumes in front of him. He ran to a pulsing beat in his head. His footfalls hitting the pavement in a steady rhythm.

The sun was beginning to creep over the horizon; the sky streaked with pink. Holly could see the weak sun penetrate through her flimsy curtains. She groaned, feeling tiredness creak in her bones. Holly could hear movement down the corridor and presumed the children we're awake. And she hadn't even slept. Rolling over, away from the window, Holly felt her heavy eyelids close and she willed herself to sleep.

***

Gary returned home as the sun tipped over the boughs of the trees. He panted as he slowed when he turned on to the driveway, the hoodie clinging to the sweat on his chest. He let himself in using the key that alway hid under the large terracotta plant pot that sat by the front door.