A Boy in the Hand is Worth Two in the Head

Chapter 26

I was in the car on the way home from The Plains. I’d gotten sick of the train and had succumbed to driving all the way out there and back, just this once, which Will had told me I should try. I’d decided already I never would again. My eyes hurt from fatigue as the lights of the city flashed past me, but I pressed on, knowing that I had to get home before night fell.

It was a week before my birthday, and only a couple of days before Matt’s. True to his wishes, I’d succumbed to throwing a party, but only a little one, and he was, indeed, invited. Will was going back to his house with his dad for Matt’s birthday, before making his way to the other side of town to spend the weekend with me.

 Since I’d quit the farm, or rather, mutually agreed to depart, I’d been a lot more independent. True to my word, I’d refused to go and live back with Mum and Michael, and had started to rent my own apartment. It was tiny, and cramped, but it felt a lot bigger with my lack of furniture. Besides, it was mine.

 Mum had somehow managed to squeeze together money for another year of college, and I had an awful feeling that she’d been saving up. I felt terrible taking it, but really, I was horribly grateful, and she wouldn’t take no for an answer.

 A scuffling on the seat beside redirected my attention for a second, and I couldn’t help but grin at the sight. My new baby, Miffy, grinned back at me.

Will had gotten her as an early present for me, the reasoning behind his insistence that I drive instead of catch the train. Most likely the cutest dog in the entire world, I was already falling desperately in like. I itched to read the note Will had tucked into her collar again. He’d made me promise that I’d wait until I got home, both of us knowing perfectly well it wasn’t going to happen. I was amazed that my resolve had lasted as long as it had, to be honest.

 A slight drizzle began to mist the windscreen, so I flipped the wipers on, and thanked my good fortune. Everything had been so perfect lately; my dog, my apartment, my part time job at Nandos, my uni, my new cheap car, and most importantly, Will. I felt woozy at the thought of my luck running out, because when it did, it was going to have to do a good job to counter this.

 The Smiths played quietly on the radio in the background. ‘William, It Was Really Nothing’ was on repeat again, most because I loved wailing along to how they said William. It had been stuck in my head for almost a week now, since Will had hijacked my iPod and filled it with his crappy music, which I was now getting addicted to, even though I still insisted I hated it.

 Miffy yelped beside me as we pulled up at a set of lights.

 I’d only been back at school for a couple of weeks, but I felt more comfortable there than I ever had the first time. I was more confident with what I could do, and what perceptions I could bring, and I looked forward to it every day. I knew it would wear off eventually, but for now I was enjoying the coasting.

 Tomorrow we were going to visit the High Court, and my fingers tingled in anticipation. The people there made my heart ache with longing. They were so lucky.

 I knew I could do it; really, anyone could if they tried hard enough, and I planned on doing so. My phone beeped impatiently, and with the light still red, I quickly flipped it open.

 ‘Text me when you get home, I have something to tell you, I do love you,’ it read. The lights changed before me, so I put my phone back quickly, and continued driving, a foolish smile planted across my face. Will and I had been arguing about whether he loved me. He said he did, I said he didn’t.

 When he’d first stuttered it out, I’d almost fallen over in surprise, then, a secondary reaction; I’d almost hit him. Thankfully he’d dodged it, but really.