Freeze

Chapter Thirteen

The snow flurries had cleared overnight and Gary woke to a beautifully bright Winter's morning. A crisp coating of frost clung to everything exposed to the elements. He rolled on to his back and allowed the sun to dapple his face in its weak glow. Anticipation bubbled in his belly. He bounded out of bed and headed straight for the shower.

Holly woke slowly to the sounds of her parents pottering around the house. The low strains of the radio in the kitchen drifted up the stairs, rousing her from her slumber. She stretched in bed, before rolling on to her side, her eyes flickering open. An unusual concoction of feelings churned in her stomach. Excitement. Apprehension. Guilt. She allowed each one of them the briefest of moments to encapsulate her before she took and deep breath and threw the duvet back.

His hair still damp from the shower, Gary set about packing his suitcase. He was a precision packer; a seasoned pro. The amount of cases he'd packed didn't bare thinking about. Europe. The Americas. Australia. You name it he'd packed a suitcase for it.

Shoes, T-shirts, jeans, jumpers were all placed in the case as if Gary was playing a game of Tetris. He stuffed socks in to shoes and rolled T-shirts in an effort to save space. Not that he was short for space, it was more out of habit.

Holly emptied the contents of her case on to the bed. She roughly folded T-shirts and jumpers before flinging them haphazardly in to the cavernous case. She'd bought minimal clothes owing to her suitcase being full of presents for the kids and now her clothes rattled around the case. Given her current circumstances she wished she'd bought more clothes. She had a prefect jumper dress that gave off the vibe of her having made an effort whilst also saying 'what this old thing'. Of course, she hadn't anticipated a pop star would be giving her a lift home and had left it in London.

She felt nervous. She didn't know why. That was a lie, she knew full well why she was nervous. She liked him and despite the guilt that lined her stomach about moving on from Danny so quickly, she wanted Gary to like her too. That was never going to happen though, was it. He was a heart-stoppingly gorgeous pop star and she was just some average looking small town girl.

Holly grabbed her phone and as a distraction and tapped out a quick text to Grace.

Coming home today x

Her message was short and to the point. Holly rummaged through the small pile of gifts she'd received a few days earlier. Maybe that top her mother had bought her might work with her blue skinny jeans.

Her phone chimed with a text. Grace.

Does that mean you're coming to the NYE PARTY?!!!!!! Xx

Holly smiled wryly, her fingers moving quickly across the buttons.

No, it just means I'm coming home! X

If she was honest, Holly hadn't given much thought to the party. Grace was desperate to go, but New Year's Eve was never really Holly's thing. There was all this build up and by the time midnight comes around everyone is so wasted it doesn't even register!

Gary placed his case down softly in the hallway by the front door. His mother came through from the kitchen, a mound of Tupperware in her arms.

"These are for your brother" she said pushing the pile of plastic boxes in to Gary's arms. "There's Shepherd's Pie, Spag Bol and chicken curry" she said mentally ticking off the dishes she'd made.