Close to Heaven

Chapter Eight

Chapter 8

‘Well, that was certainly a strange coincidence.’ I say to Clay as I take a seat next to him in the upstairs lounge they have.

He nods, frowning a little. ‘Very weird. I can’t actually get my head round it.’

I sit back on the couch, being only inches away from him, he stays quiet for a minute, and so do I, our breathing the only sound.

‘Did you know he was here?’ He asks suddenly. ‘I didn’t invite him, and I don’t think Gia would’ve.’

I look up to him, and unfortunately I have to tell him yes. He frowns, and I can tell he wants to ask something, but he stops himself. ‘I wasn’t here with him though.’ I say.

‘I realise that.’ He says quietly. ‘So did he go to Carnell then?’

‘Yeah.’

‘And so you were friends?’

‘Yes. And then we tried the dating thing, and it didn’t work.’ I don’t really want to be talking to him about this, but I guess we should just get it over and done with, as it’s already been brought to his attention.

‘It never does.’ He says. ‘Friends turning into something more I mean.’ He says, looking at me intently, his dark eyes wide and rich in the dim light. I can’t stop myself; I push up a little and press my lips to his lightly. He smiles. ‘Looks like we’ve skipped the friend’s thing,’ he says, laughing. ‘There’s hope for us yet.’

I smile and look away a second, taking a look around the room. It’s decked out in lots of fabric, cushions everywhere and a large television suspended on the far right wall. Probably a movie room or something. It’s very intimate, sitting here with him. ‘Did you know him well then?’ I finally ask the question I’ve been desperate to ask.

‘I knew him . . . we hung out a couple times. But I didn’t know him very well, hence why I didn’t know the name of his ex-girlfriend.’

‘Would you still have spoken to me if you did?’ I ask, grinning cheekily.

He smiles. ‘Yes, I think I would. Stopping myself would have been difficult. I do, however now realise why he’s so hung up on you. Even though I really wish that weren’t true.’

‘Oh, no! Really?’ What I feared is true, and it’s not great that Clay knows about it. I don’t even want to think about it, let alone him.

‘Afraid so.’ He says, frowning again.

‘Stop that.’ I say, laughing and placing a finger to his lips. ‘The feelings aren’t mutual. He’ll get over it, and all will be forgotten.’

He sighs deeply, blowing the air out onto my hand, before kissing my finger lightly.  ‘Well, I’m glad about that, at least.’

‘I want nothing to do with him anymore.’

‘How come you knew he was here, again?’ He asks, obviously more worried about this than I want him to be. So now he’s fishing.

‘I didn’t say.’ I shrug. ‘He’s the guy Evelyn wanted me to pick up. But I shouldn’t have to explain that. It means nothing.’

‘So she likes him?’ He asks, turning to face me fully, rather than side on as he had been.

‘I really don’t know. I can’t work it out. She seemed to at points, and then at others, I wasn’t too sure. She’s never shown an interest in him before. We haven’t actually seen him for over three months, and before that barely anything.’ I shrug again. ‘He’s Cole, an old friend, but not a current one. We didn’t really see each other at all after the break-up. But . . . let’s talk about something else.’