Age 7
CLASS IS BUSY TODAY.
It's always busy, but this is a different kind of busy. The teachers are frantically discussing something in the corner whilst letting us kids run wild, but this is what I like about school so far.
Tessa, my twin sister, and I joined here last year, around this time, and class has only got more fun as the year went on. I had a few friends in class, and so did Tessa, and we liked it. We were here until the end of this year, when we move up to big school, and despite not really knowing what that means, I didn't want things to change.
We turned seven just before Christmas, and our parents had hinted that big school would be totally different. But I always knew I had Tessa. No matter what happened, whenever I felt scared, I held onto Tessa's hand and all was well with the world.
This new kind of busy was exciting. We'd worked out pretty quickly that the teachers only talked like this when we had new children starting, and sure enough, two minutes later four children are filed in, followed by their parents, and they stand at the front of class.
Three girls and one boy, and as I looked at them all, and the boy's eyes locked on mine, I realised I'd seen him earlier.
The sandy-haired boy had been sat with the woman standing behind him, his mum, and she'd had her arms around him as he watched the children in the playground. I could see he'd looked intrigued but he was no doubt too scared to ask to join, even though I would have let him.
He's relatively small compared to the other boys, and he stands smallest out of the four children at the front, which doesn't help the terror on his face. He wears a wary expression as he looks around the class, looking at every single person who is staring right back at him.
I wanted to go up to him earlier, but by the time I'd worked up the courage, the bell was rung for us to come back inside. He looked incredibly shy, but he was clearly curious because I could see his eyes moving all across the room, to the art boards in the corner, to the alphabet caterpillar on the back wall. He looked nice enough though, and the fact he'd been watching our football game earlier meant I liked him immediately. Anyone who liked football is okay in my eyes.
After a couple more minutes of loud chattering, Mrs Tracey begins trying to get our attention. She stands at the front of class and holds her finger to her mouth patiently, waiting for us to follow suit. Tessa and I put our fingers to our lips quickly, and the rest of our table and the room follows soon after, making Mrs Tracey smile.
I could see the boy was turning around to look at his mum. She was giving him encouraging looks in return but she looks nervously at Miss Dimmock and Miss Moore as they started to gesture out the other parents. She waits behind him though, and I can see her eyes darting about the room too, looking for a child who would be nice enough to make her son feel comfortable. I find myself hoping I can be that friend for him, and when she catches my eye I try to smile.
I nudge Tessa's arm, pointing at him at the front, and I see her grin toothlessly at me. She nods and I know she's listening as intently as me for their names to be read out.
As the final tables become silent, I can see he's close to tears. He keeps sniffing and he wipes his nose unattractively with his hand. I can see his bottom lip quivering, and to be honest I can understand why he feels uncomfortable. I certainly wouldn't want to be standing at the front of class. I felt for him, given we'd had to do it a year ago, and I wanted to tell him everything would be okay.
His eyes continue to dart around the room as the class becomes silent but he doesn't try to stop his mum as she steps from behind him. He swallows and looks from side to side, looking at the girls standing at the front with him.
"Hey kids!" Mrs Tracey finally announces.
"Hey Mrs Tracey!" We all shout it back with enthusiasm and she claps her hands together happily, chuckling at Louise and Lola waving at her on the front table.
"Now, as you can see... we have a few new faces in here today."
There are a few hushed whispers along with some snickering, probably due to the fact the blonde girl on the end of the row is picking her nose. She doesn't seem embarrassed by it at all, but Mrs Tracey does have to intervene when her whole little finger disappears up her nostril. Tessa jokes that she's managed to touch her brain.
"So we have Laura," she touches the shoulders of Nose Picker, "Aashani, Libby... and then we have Archie."
Archie.
Looking at him, I feel a grin spreading over my face. The name suits him.
His big, wary brown eyes were now scanning the room again, this time for a seat, and it looks like he smiles slightly when he spots a spare one in between Tessa and me. His smile is cheeky, and it pushes his cheeks up, revealing a dimple in one cheek, his eyes creasing gently.
"Who wants to help make them feel welcome?" Mrs Tracey asks, clapping her hands together once, hoping at least one of us volunteers.
My hand shoots straight up in the air, followed by Tessa's, and Archie looks in our direction again.
I smile as I see the grin on Archie's face widen, revealing his two missing front teeth.
He giggles and, without a second glance, he walks to sit in between Tessa and me. He looks round briefly for his mum before he sits down, but with an encouraging smile and a nod from her, he gingerly sits down. As soon as he sits though, the dimple vanishes, and when his mum leaves the room, his smile disappears from his face.
He must be quite shy because he doesn't say anything. But from his body language, I can tell he feels a little more comfortable. He isn't radiating tension anymore, but I do see his lip quivering as he tries to stop himself from crying. I can see Tessa trying to smile at him, with her toothless grin, and after a minute or so, she manages to get him to do it again, albeit less than before.
"Okay kids, everyone settle down please!" Mrs Tracey barks over our excited chatter. "So, yes, welcome to the new kids! I'm sure we will all make them feel very welcome. Matt and Tessa," she points to us, "can you both be Archie's new buddies?"
We both nod and Tessa leans a shoulder into Archie, who shrugs away slightly, obviously not liking the contact.
"Excellent stuff. Louise and Lola look like they are looking after Laura and Aashani, and then Libby? Ah yes," she smiles as she spots her at the back. "Libby is with Georgina. Great! Okay!" She is grinning as all the new children seem to be settling okay, having found at least one friend.
"Alright. Now, as we have so many new faces, as a little treat, we're going to have story time in a minute, with drawing and art sessions after lunch. How does that sound?" She asks us excitedly.
Cheers erupt all around her in response and I see Archie jump from the sudden noise, covering his ears as he ducks his head down on the table.
I didn't usually mind story time because it meant we didn't have to use our brains. Not a lot anyway. Sometimes Mrs Tracey calls on us to read for a paragraph, but that was rarely. Today we may be lucky, but the reading material was rubbish. It was all fairytales, usually chosen by one of the girls. Some days we get a good story though, with Treasure Island being the only good one we'd got so far this year. But I bet you today the suggestion will come from one of the new girls because I can't see Archie offering any options given he's not said one word to anyone yet.
"So if we could all make our way, calmly, to the reading corner," she emphasises the word calmly, "and we'll have a polite show of hands as to which story we want. Okay?"
She claps her hands, dismissing us, and we all get up at once, meaning a small stampede of children all ran to story corner, myself included, all competing for a spot on the big cushion in the corner.
In my haste to get to the cushion, though, I completely forget about Archie. When I get to the middle, I look right and still see him sat, watching everybody as we wrestle for a spot closest to the teacher.
I smack my forehead and start to get up, but then I see Tessa head back to our table, back towards Archie, who now looks like he's close to tears, if not crying already.
His head lifts as she approaches and he puts on a brave smile as she extends her hand for him. I see him look from her, to her hand, and back to her again before finally putting his into it. I can see her eyes brighten as she leads him over to the reading corner and she sits with him at the back, nowhere near me.
For the first time in my life, it makes me hate my sister. It makes me wonder if she'd done it on purpose. I feel rage bubbling inside of me, and as I look at them together it gets worse. I don't really like the feeling.
Being a twin, and being my twin at that, Tessa is always quiet and reserved. I'm the boisterous one that always gets what I want, and she's the one that always goes along with it. But today she'd got what she wanted, and I could feel my ears turning pink as I seethed slightly when Mrs Tracey beings the story that had been chosen.
I'm annoyed because Archie was going to be my friend, and now she had gone and stolen him. She'll get her hooks in him and make him play 'princes and princesses' if he ever comes round to play at ours, and that will be that.
I glare at her, but she's not watching. That makes me even more annoyed, but I really don't know why. They're not even looking at each other, they're looking at Mrs Tracey as she reads, both caught up in the story, but I can see they are still holding hands,
When Rapunzel is almost finished, I see Archie whisper something in her ear. Whatever it was makes her smile, and I see a blush creep over her already-pink cheeks. I don't know what it was he said, but from the look on her face, I don't think she'd ever tell me.
It's lunch next, and when we get back to our seats I start on winning him back.
I talk to him about football - well, I talk at him really - but it peaks his interest, so I stick to that. Luckily, Tessa is talking to her friend Bryony, playing with peas on their plates to make smiley faces, so I seemed to be holding his full attention.
He opens up a little bit by the end of the day, saying a few things and asking a few questions. But it's in Arts and Crafts that he truly comes out of his shell. And looking at his piece of paper compared to mine, I can see why.
He's good at it. Even at six. Where I've drawn stick figures and can't colour in the lines, Archie's people are actually looking like people, and his colouring is neat and defined, and even shaded. He draws a picture of his family, telling us all about his little sister, Millie. I tell him that Tessa would love to meet her, but although they both smile in agreement, I had my own agenda behind it. Tessa could hang out with Millie whilst I hung out with Archie. And everyone would be happy.
After school he joins our game of football, and he's laughing and smiling widely as his mum spots him when she comes in the gates. Even from a distance I can see she's overwhelmed, and her eyes glisten as he runs up to her and gives her a hug.
"Mummy, these are my friends," he says shyly, pulling her hand to introduce us.
"Oh that's great, sweetie," she ruffles his hair and he gives me a grin, before telling her that he'll be seeing us tomorrow as well.
As they leave, he spots Tessa. And I see his smile change into a wider one, a dimple forming on his left cheek, showing off his missing two front teeth.
And that's what annoys me most. Even though he's been with me all afternoon, playing football and laughing, he only smiles and waves to Tessa as he goes through the school gates, and he doesn't wave at me.
***
AGE 16
"Are you and Tess coming round this weekend?" Archie asks as we all walk towards the bus stop. He's doing his usual; inviting us round to his house.
We go most weekends to hang out at his, mostly because his house is cooler than ours. His dad is loaded, and they have paddocks out back, a pool, tennis court, games and cinema room... You name it, the Wall house has it.
Since that day in Reception class, Tessa and I had been thick as thieves with Archie. We'd been best friends since the beginning, and we'll be best friends until the end. He'd warmed up pretty quickly after day one, and we both soon learned he was just as mischievous and ridiculous as we were. He fitted into our group perfectly, as did Millie when we met her, and after a few days it was as if we'd known him our whole lives.
I was always worried about him and Tessa being best friends though, always niggling at the back of my mind. But it seems I've got less to worry about these days. Tessa has backed off a bit and isn't spending so much time around us anymore, and I'm not overly sure why. And neither is Archie. She hangs out when we're watching a film, but even she's quiet and doesn't join in with our running commentary or jokes like she used to. She reads a lot, leaving us to it most of the time, or she goes to spend time with Millie or Charlotte.
"Yeah probably," I answer, bringing myself back to the present. "Have to ask Dad. We're going out after football on Saturday though right?" I ask, knocking him slightly with my shoulder and he smiles.
"Yeah definitely. Dad's away so I can get something from his stash again."
"That would be ace! We can all go see a movie on Sunday too, I think they're re-releasing the first Avengers film."
Archie grins and looks behind us at Tessa, who is happily talking to Millie.
"Tess, you coming this weekend?" Archie asks.
She shakes her head. "I'm not sure I can this weekend. I'll be there on Saturday night, but I'm playing tennis with Charlotte and Cammie on Sunday as tennis season starts soon."
I see Archie's face fall. I can tell he'd rather be spending time with her than me. I don't feel the sting of jealousy anymore, because I think I've noticed there is something between them. Well, I can definitely see it from his side, but I'm not so sure about Tessa. I noticed it that first day we met him, and it's been increasingly evident, that despite having a girlfriend - a popular one at that - he definitely likes her as something more than friends. Even if Tessa wasn't aware of it, it wouldn't be long before Dee caught on. If I've noticed, she definitely has too.
To be honest, I'd been thinking about it more and more these days. And I think as long as he doesn't muck her around, or hurt her in any way, I could get used to them being more than friends. Of course, thinking it and living it are two different things entirely, so I'd see... but I don't see why they can't be more than friends. But then, I also don't want to tell either of them how the other feels. Selfishly, I still want to keep Archie's friendship to myself.
"Bring Charlotte. It'll be fun," Archie pleads, dropping back slightly to walk next to her. "You didn't hang out with us last weekend either."
I look at them both and chuckle. Despite being half a head smaller than us when we met him, Archie has overtaken us both and stands at just over a head taller than Tessa. He's only a couple of inches taller than me but he's still tall. It's obviously a gene thing because his parents are both tall, and Millie, and I curse Mum for her smallness sometimes, wishing I could be one of those six foot eight goalies. That said, I'm still over six foot, so I shouldn't really be complaining.
Tessa inclines her head up to look up at him and shakes it. "Arch, all you guys do is play football, or play video games, and it's boring," she says, her face deadpan.
I chuckle as Archie scoffs, trying to say we do other things too. She's right, though. That is pretty much what we do.
"And Millie feels the same by the way."
We do invite them to play sometimes, but we give up. Although Tessa is okay at football, having practiced with me over the years in our back garden, she plays it more like hockey. Combine that with the fact Millie hates being tackled, and it makes it hard for us to play with them. We always start with sibling teams to make it more even, but Tessa always switches with Archie when she gets sick of me being bossy. Subsequently they accuse us of ganging up on them when it's boys versus girls, so we just give up and let the girls do their own thing.
"How about Millie comes to ours," she looks to her and she shrugs, "and then we'll just join you later?"
Tessa is adamant, and I know Archie won't get anywhere near convincing her. He used to be able to, but now she's standing back, he's finding it harder to convince her.
It actually makes me think I had it wrong about them. And if that was the case, then maybe the two of them would be disastrous. The last thing I wanted was for them to date for a while and then learn they actually hate everything about each other.
They do want different things. Archie wants to explore his art and drawing, either becoming an artist himself or a curator, and I've heard him bandy around studying in America as well. Tessa wants to travel before university, and then I think she ultimately wants to teach.
I don't think either of them has thought about what complications a relationship between them would bring. Selfishly, I'm always thinking of myself in all this. If they do ever get together, and then subsequently break up due to irreconcilable differences in opinion, where does that then leave me?
Archie isn't going to want to come round anymore and then Tessa's not going to want to go round to his either. Dad's going to hate him and won't let him come round, and then then it'll be university and we'll all drift apart. The more I think about it, I decide that it really is the worst thing for all of us, and I see it all going pear-shaped for everyone. I just hoped that if I didn't say anything, it would all just blow over.
For this weekend though, despite Archie's desperate pleas, it's decided that the girls will just meet us at Callum's party. Later Archie said he'd get some drink for it, and that he'd meet me there. He also said he'd ask his mum about lunch for all of us, including Dad.
Weekends have been pretty much the same since we were little, give or take a holiday in summer. Us round their house, or them round at ours. Our parents didn't mind because it kept us occupied, and they always said as long as homework was done, which it was, they didn't mind.
But then he didn't turn up. And when Tessa came to Callum's party, Millie wasn't with her either. The two of them didn't show, didn't message, and when we got home on Sunday morning from Callum's, we were both a bit worried about them.
Then we were especially worried when neither of them turned up for school on Monday.
He was fine at our football match, and he was obviously stoked to be celebrating our win. He'd been laughing and smiling when he'd left our school's football pitch.
But what was odd was that there was no explanation... he hadn't even texted to say why he hadn't been at Callum's and why he wasn't at school. Millie too. And that's what worried me.
By Thursday, neither of them had been at school all week. I had had a message from him, saying he was ill with a stomach bug, but I didn't believe it. Something had happened, and I was going to find out what.
On Thursday evening, Dad received a call from Wendy, Archie's mum, asking for him to come round to their house. Tessa and I begged for us to come with him but he refused to let us. So Tessa and I wait for hours, looking out for his car.
When he finally comes home later that evening, we knew something was seriously wrong. His shoulders were low and stooped, his expression was serious. The smile he usually wears has disappeared, replaced by a grimace that looks saddened by something.
He goes straight into his study when he comes in the door, and he stays there for a while, only coming out when Tessa announces that dinner is ready. We mostly eat in silence, but after twenty minutes of stone silence, Tessa finally breaks the quietness and asks the question that's been on my mind for the last four days.
"How is he Dad?"
She looks concerned, but then again, so am I. This is the first time he'd ever been off school since we'd known him, and I have only had one message from him, which was unusual.
"How's who?" He doesn't look up from his food. I look at Tessa incredulously and scoff before opening my mouth.
"Archie, Dad. How is he?" I ask, more forcefully than Tessa.
"Oh! Oh, he's fine. He's got a nasty stomach bug, and Wendy seemed to think it was getting worse. He's been running a high fever, so Wendy called me to take a look at his ba- to take a look at him." He stammers but corrects himself.
"If it was so serious, then why didn't she just take him to the hospital?" Tessa asks quietly.
"Contagious," is all he answers as he holds on tightly to his fork, his knuckles turning white.
"But if he's-"
"ENOUGH!" Dad explodes, making Tessa yelp slightly in surprise and me jump. "Can we STOP with the twenty questions. PLEASE!"
Tessa and I are stunned into silence from his outburst, as he's never shouted like this before. Tessa looks worriedly at me and then at Dad, putting a small hand on his. He seems to calm a little after a minute or so, but he's still breathing heavily through his nose.
"Sorry," he apologises, taking his hand from under Tessa's. He looks so sad, and I hate that I don't know what to do or say to help.
I could see he was worried, and it had to be something to do with Archie, but I didn't want to say anything more to him, I didn't want to push him... yet I had so many questions bouncing around my head.
I suppose I could try texting Archie again, although I wasn't sure much good that would do. He had ignored all my messages but one, even though I know he's been reading them, and I didn't want to push him either. But he's my best friend, basically my brother, and I could see clear as day that something was wrong. But then what was it? And why couldn't he feel like he could tell me?
Opposite me, Tessa is bursting with as many questions as me. She keeps looking at me to ask them but after Dad's explosion, I don't want to open my mouth.
However after another five minutes of silence, Dad pushing his untouched food around his plate, I can't take it anymore.
"Can we go round this weekend?" I ask quietly.
"NO!" He shouts immediately and I spring backwards in my chair. His expression is thunderous, his eyes bloodshot as he glares at me. But despite being angry, his expression fades to sorrow and sadness before he finally drops his head.
"I expect he'll be back in school on Monday" he counters softly, as if he's trying to barter a deal. "You can see him then."
"But can we go round and see him?" I ask again, pushing despite Tessa kicking my shin under the table.
He shakes his head. "No. If you really want to see him, and he's feeling up to it, then he can come here if he wants."
"Okay..." It wasn't a no, so I decide I'd text him later.
I look down but then look across at Tessa who is chewing her lip, and she shakes her head slightly, pushing her food round her plate as well. I can see she's chewed her thumbnail raw and I try to give her a reassuring smile.
She doesn't believe Dad about the fact Archie having a stomach bug, and neither do I, but we had to wait. Dad wasn't going to tell us, and I didn't want to call him out on it, not in the mood he was in.
"I don't want you guys going round to that house anymore unless you've okayed it with me first, okay?" It's phrased as a question but it definitely wasn't one. It's a demand. And an odd one at that.
"What do you mean? Why?" I ask the question back before I can stop myself.
"Matt! Drop it," he points at me. "I mean it."
I didn't want to drop it. Dad was clearly rattled by whatever had happened, we all were, but I do as I'm told and I drop it, shutting my mouth, sulking.
Later when I find Tessa to tell her my plan to ask Archie about what happened, she looks reticent. It's as if she can see through me, seeing that I was potentially only doing it to satisfy my own curiosity, rather than see that he was okay. I did want to know he was okay, but she was right in knowing I wanted to know what happened too. She didn't say anything other than not to push it, saying Archie would tell us when he was ready, and I knew she was right. She always is.
I do text him, asking about coming over this weekend, but he says no, and that he'll see us on Monday. He said he didn't feel well, and for the rest of the weekend, none of us said anymore about it.
However, when Monday comes around, he still wasn't in. Then Tuesday and Wednesday came and went with no sign of him either, although Millie was in. She was avoiding us, which was easy given she is one school year below and in none of our classes. And when we couldn't catch her at all on Wednesday, we were really starting to worry.
But on Thursday, we finally saw him.
Tessa spotted him first, sat on a table in the common room by himself, but she said not to bother him.
He looked okay in himself, but he was visibly in pain, wincing anytime anyone came anywhere near him. When we did finally go up to him, he wouldn't let us within a foot of him, like he was terrified we were going to hurt him or something. The thought made me sick to my stomach.
He'd been excused from football after school, and he barely spoke a word to us all day, other than to say he had to dash immediately after school. I think he must have known we'd have questions, and the more I saw how he was acting, the more questions I had. But then I could see he was worried we wouldn't let it go, and that made me feel even worse.
Of course, Tessa knew better than to ask him. After school on Friday, while we were waiting for them to meet us at the Tower, she speaks to me, and finally makes me see a little sense.
"Matt, come on, you can see he's not himself. I don't think we should force it out of him," she scolds after I told her I was going to ask. "Like Dad said, I think he'll tell us when he's ready. And I think he'd appreciate it a lot more if his friends were there for him, you know? Rather than forcing him to give up something he's clearly not comfortable with in the first place."
I glare at her, but she holds her nerve. I know she's right, but I was having difficulty letting it go.
"But it's something big, you know it and I know it."
"Yeah I know it is, Matt, but there's no way I'm forcing it out of him. Come on," she says, annoyed and crosses her arms.
She ignores me when I go to protest again and just continues, "For all we know he may have just been really sick, and Wendy was just taking precautions to make sure it didn't spread around school?" She shrugs.
"Yeah. Right. When has he ever been sick, Tessa?" I ask, crossing my own arms as she scratches her head, obviously not believing what she'd just said in the first place. "The boy has the constitution of an ox."
She shrugs, not saying anything still, and I know I'm going to lose this battle. Just like she'd said before, I need to drop it. The questions I had bouncing around my head are in there hundreds, but I was going to have to put them in a drawer and tuck them away for another day.
"He needs his friends, Matt. He doesn't need our questions," she says finally, hiking her bag up as she looks at something over my shoulder.
I glance around and see Archie and Millie coming towards us, looking very nervous. Millie is holding Archie's arm, her cheek resting on it gingerly. Archie's cheeks are flushed and he's wincing again, but he's clearly comforted by Millie as he doesn't tell her to move.
"I'm going to ask Dad if they can stay round ours this weekend," Tessa says to me quietly, holding Archie's gaze. "It might be the best thing for them. Look, even Millie looks terrified." She shakes her head subtly and I turn to see what she means.
She's right. As she gets closer, I can see Millie's eyes are wide with terror. Archie's as well to be honest. They are both smiling, although it's more grimacing than smiling, but something is definitely off.
"Do you reckon he'll say yes?" I whisper as they get closer.
She shrugs, "Don't know. Talk to them for a sec and I'll see if they can. I'll see if we can get a lift too."
She doesn't give me any time to answer because Millie and Archie arrive at my shoulder just as she wanders off, putting the phone to her ear to have the conversation out of earshot.
"Where's she going?" Archie asks, looking over my shoulder, his eyes following Tessa as she walks through the crowd.
Someone knocks into him by accident and he winces and crouches slightly, screwing his eyes shut. He grits his teeth, obviously trying to stop himself from screaming. After a few seconds, he flexes his shoulders and stands upright, giving me a pained smile, his face vaguely back to normal. I want to blurt out all my questions, but I bite my tongue from asking what I wanted, and shrug as Tessa continues to talk to Dad.
"She's ringing Dad to see if we can get a lift, I think? Do you guys fancy coming to ours for dinner? Maybe some Playstation?" I go to jog him with my elbow but he flinches away from me.
I mumble an apology as Millie detaches herself from Archie's arm, clamping onto mine instead. I automatically put it over her shoulder and kiss the side of her head as she squashes it into my chest, hugging me tightly.
"Erm... That sounds really good actually, yeah," he nods. "I'd need to check with Mum, but yeah," he continues with weird smile, relief evident in his voice.
I turn slightly and see Tessa nodding and smiling, obviously getting a positive answer from Dad. She gives me a thumbs up as she puts her phone away and bounces towards us.
She stands next to Archie and as I watch him, he visibly relaxes. He stands up taller, he hands are no longer shaking and his smile is more natural. It's Tessa's presence that makes him better... makes him feel calmer.
"So that was Dad. You guys are staying for the weekend!" She grins at Archie and he responds with the first genuine smile I've seen from him in two days.
"All weekend?" I ask, smiling too.
She nods, "Yeah. What do you think?" She touches Archie's shoulder gently.
I'm half expecting him to flinch, like he had with me, but he doesn't. Instead, when she drops her hand from his shoulder, he takes it in his and laces their fingers together. She looks at him with a reassuring smile but doesn't take it away, and I briefly wonder if something is going on between them.
"We'll need to talk to Mum, though?"
She shakes her head. "Dad spoke to Wendy already. Apparently she's gone to see her sister this weekend, so asked him if he could look after you. I think your dad's out too?" She asks, and Millie gives a quick nod. "So all you guys have to do is say yes?" She grins, giving his hand a reassuring squeeze.
His answering smile is much wider, much more genuine, and I can see that Tessa was right. Having them at ours this weekend was the best thing for them. It was already making a big difference to both of them.
"Unfortunately though, we will need to get the bus because Dad's working until late today."
Millie groans, making me chuckle.
"Can't we walk?" Archie suggests, nudging Millie's arm. "It's such a lovely day, we may as well."
I smile, "I'm up for walking. Only takes thirty minutes."
"Cool, yeah. Ice creams on us on the way home," Archie chirps back, looking at Tessa again before taking Millie's hand and starting to walk towards the road.
Tessa follows but I stop her.
"What did Dad actually say?"
"He said what I told you. Wendy rang him earlier and asked. Matty I'd tell you if he said anything else."
"What's he doing that's making him late?"
"I told you, he's working the late hours today. It's Friday and he always does that?"
I roll my eyes, remembering. "Okay," I say, walking alongside her.
"They look happier already," she says next to me and I agree. This weekend will do them some good, and maybe they could stay over more often. We have the space.
"You're not going to ask him, right?" She asks, and I'm slightly annoyed by her accusation.
"Tess, I won't. Cross my heart," I make a cross over my heart like we used to do when we were little and she smiles before jogging over to where Archie and Millie were waiting. She takes Archie's hand again while Millie waits for me, and we wander home.
Swatting away all my questions into a locked box in the corner of my mind, I put an arm around Millie, as she asks me about football yesterday.
While I was answering, I was thinking to myself that Tessa was right. Archie would tell us when he was ready, and I'd be there for him one-hundred percent. He's my best friend, and best friends are there for each other, no matter what.