You Against Me

As the coast swung into view, she nudged him. ‘I saw a whale there once.’

‘You never did.’

‘I did. Me and my granddad used to climb over that cliff and sit on a ledge about halfway down. When the tide was in, it was amazing with all that water crashing against the rocks. We used to sit there for hours watching the boats go by. And one day we saw a whale.’

‘Well, I’ve never seen a whale and I’ve lived here for years and years.’

She laughed at him softly, her eyes shining. ‘Well, maybe you weren’t looking in the right place.’

It was true. He used to come here sometimes with Karyn and Holly when he was a kid, but they’d just go to the beach. They’d eat pasties and doughnuts and Mum would take her shoes off. On su

The bus followed the curve of the bay and then swept back inland and up the hill.

‘We’re close now,’ she said. ‘Shall we walk from here?’

They stood on the corner and watched the bus move away. It was quiet after it had gone. It smelled different from town, like everything was wilder. The rain was lighter now, but it wasn’t letting up. He was glad. She might say they had to go back if it stopped. They walked in the road. No pavement, no cars. There was something old‑fashioned about it, as if they’d gone back in time.

‘Look,’ she said. ‘Lapwings.’

Two black and white birds hung poised above the sea. He thought they were gulls, but he liked it that she knew their proper names. They watched them gliding and pitching as they walked on. Even from the top of the cliff they could hear the faraway hush and roar of the waves.

‘Fancy a swim?’ she said.

He laughed, hoped she wasn’t serious. They’d get hypothermia down there today.

‘There’s a path that goes down,’ she said. ‘I used to stay here every school holiday with my grandparents and we’d swim every day.’

They stopped to look at the water for a bit. They stood under a tree, rain dripping around them. Out there, under the clouds, the sea was the colour of carbon. There was a strange light coming from the sky as well, like maybe a storm was coming.

‘Tell me about your grandparents,’ he said.

What she told him then sounded like something from a film – su

‘When we moved here last year,’ she said, ‘I was looking forward to spending more time with them, but as soon as we got here, my granddad died.’ She gave him a sad smile. ‘Three heart attacks in a row. I didn’t even know you could have that many.’

He took her hand. She didn’t move it away, only looked down at their fingers laced together.

‘After that, my gran went crazy,’ she whispered. ‘She lived with us for a while. She used to sit in a chair at the top of the stairs all night. She said if she went to bed, she’d wake up with cobwebs on her face. It infuriated my dad, so he shoved her in a nursing home. Now my mum has to drive miles if she wants a cup of tea with her own mother.’

Mikey lifted Ellie’s hand to his lips and kissed it. He didn’t know why he did it, but it fitted in with the sadness and the sea and the rain. He knew he’d got it right, because she gave him that look again, like he was some kind of hero.

‘Come on,’ she said. ‘It isn’t far now.’

Thirty‑four

‘I didn’t expect it to be like this,’ she said. ‘It’s so… bleak.’

There was her gran’s old armchair by the side of the fireplace and Granddad’s hard‑backed chair by the window. There was the sofa against the opposite wall. But everything else had gone – no books or photos on the shelves, no trinkets, even the TV had disappeared.

‘I thought my mum came here to get away from my dad for a bit, but she really was  clearing the place out.’

Mikey touched her gently on the arm. ‘It’s cold, which doesn’t help. We’ll put the heating on.’

They went into the kitchen together and hunted for the boiler, which they eventually found in a cupboard. It was ancient, had some kind of pilot light that needed holding down and an ignition switch that needed pushing. Ellie stood next to Mikey while he worked it out. She liked him knowing what to do.

‘Disco

While he searched in the hall closet, Ellie went back into the lounge, stood in front of the fireplace and rubbed her hands together, as if that would make a difference. Sadness washed over her in waves. She’d wanted it to be good, somewhere to escape to. She wanted sunlight streaming through the windows, like when she was a kid.

‘Nothing,’ he said as he came back in. ‘Not even a candle.’

‘I’m sorry. I brought you all this way and it’s rubbish.’

‘Don’t worry.’ He nudged her with his elbow. ‘I like adventures.’

That was so kind; he  was so kind. Dad or Tom would be fuming at the wasted journey and the freezing cottage. They’d be marching off down the road by now, looking for the nearest taxi rank. She felt the world loosen around her as Mikey stood there smiling.

‘Well, I’m sorry anyway.’ She meant for everything – the cottage, Karyn, all of it. None of it was fair. She wiped her face with her sleeve and gave him what she hoped was an upbeat smile. ‘So, what shall we do now?’

He laughed. ‘Wait there. I’ll be back.’

He went out of the lounge, down the hallway and out the door. She heard him scrunch down the gravelled path towards the gate. She sat on her gran’s chair by the empty fireplace and waited for what would happen next. He wasn’t long, came back in with a pile of newspaper and some logs and sticks in a basket.

‘I noticed the shed when we came in,’ he said. ‘I thought there might be wood.’

He ripped up sheets of paper, screwed them into balls and put them in the grate. He built a pyramid around them with twigs and stacked larger sticks around that.

She leaned forward on the chair watching him. ‘How do you always know what to do?’

He gri

She didn’t think that was true.

Mikey got out his lighter and lit the paper. She sat next to him on the rug as the flames took hold.

‘There’s plenty of wood,’ he said. ‘We can dry our clothes as well.’

He began to unlace his trainers. She wondered if his heart was slamming as fast as hers. All  her clothes were wet. How many were they taking off? She pulled her own trainers off and placed them next to his on the hearth. They peeled off their socks and laid them next to their shoes. She unzipped the jacket he’d lent her, knew he was looking as she carefully hung it over the chair so the heat could reach it. She watched him pull his hoodie off and spread it out on the floor. He was only wearing a vest top underneath.

‘Is that a tattoo?’

A small green snake with a red tongue writhed on his shoulder as he lifted his arm to show her. She traced the tattoo with her finger and he watched her. His skin was soft and she didn’t want to stop touching him. But she couldn’t go on for ever, so she pulled her hand away and put it back on her lap.

They sat there looking at each other. He looked away first.

‘You think there’s any food hidden away?’ he said.

‘I doubt it.’

He smiled as if he didn’t believe her. ‘Show me.’