Part 22 (1/2)
It was a joke, but it crushed me. ”So it's me?”
Stu frowned. ”Don't be an idiot. It takes two to tango.”
”Why is our tango so s.h.i.+t, then?” My turn for a rubbish joke.
He shrugged, looking thoughtful before he leaned closer. ”So I've slept with a ton of people you know my number and I've just told you I've had great s.e.x with some of them ...”
Honestly, it felt like the worst pep talk ever.
”... but there has been no one who does this to me.”
And he kissed me, softly, just lip-to-lip, a little kiss. And then another. And another. I reached out and ran my hand down his arm, shoulder to wrist, only lightly, but the result was electric and I felt Stu's breath rush out before he kissed me again. Once. Twice.
”s.e.x just needs a bit of practice. That?” And I knew what he meant. ”That s.h.i.+t you can't learn. You've either got it or you haven't.”
I kissed him on the cheek and felt him sigh a happy sigh.
”And we have that?” I said.
Stu's eyes searched mine. ”Our first tango was a flop, but everything else is off-the-scoreboard-awesome.”
And he kissed me again, harder, sending my nerves into overdrive as I kissed him back. By the time we stopped, it was turning dark outside and his dad and stepmum would be home soon. We were still clothed. Still sitting propped against the bath.
And we got better with practice. A lot of it.
That was the truth of what I had with Stu the sting in the tail when he cheated. Everyone else might think they know what we had, but they don't.
Not that we have it any more.
What I have now is a photo of him kissing another girl, reminding me that my ex only knows how to be the kind of boyfriend that's for sharesies.
I'm not someone who likes to share the people I most want to be with.
24 * CAVALRY
KAZ.
The timer on my phone is two minutes from going off and a live show of Sebastian's smile is preferable to the horrific symphony of thoughts surrounding Tom. I decide to risk it.
”Why don't we check out the Unsigned Stage?” Ruby and Lauren look equally nonplussed. ”The band I saw earlier were surprisingly good,” I lie.
I know that all I'd need to do to convince the pair of them would be to tell them I said I'd meet a cute new boy, but I couldn't cope with how they'd respond to each other's reactions. This relative harmony post-Gold'ntone wouldn't survive an aggressive compliment-off.
Besides, I just think Sebastian seemed nice. It's not a declaration of marriage.
In the end, it's the size of the crowd gathered outside that does the convincing. Neither Ruby nor Lauren object as I plough forwards, spreading apologies in my wake until I stop exactly where the X was and Ruby walks into me, her nose mas.h.i.+ng into my back.
”Ow,” she snaps.
I ignore her. Ruby does not feel pain like a normal human. Instead I look down at my feet. Although the X has long since been scuffed over, I know I'm in precisely the right spot.
”Looks like the band's coming on soon.” Lauren reaches for the timetable and reads out the name. ”SkyFires.”
Where is he?
The stage goes as dark as possible at five-thirty in the height of summer and I turn to look out over the hushed crowd. Still no sign of him. A note is struck on the keyboard, a gently building tremble of sound that reaches out across the air, gathering strength when it's joined by an electric guitar.
Ruby nudges me just as a man's voice lifts up to join the rest of the sounds flowing from the speakers.
”Turn around.”
I do as she says and my eyes go straight to the mic as the singer steps into the spotlight.
RUBY.
This guy's presence is phenomenal. His voice... I let it sink into me and it's like the sound is speaking to my soul.
Beside me I feel Kaz blossom in the light from the stage. Like me, she's lost in the sensation of sound. Even Lauren, who never seems to shut up, has been stunned into the same silence as the rest of the crowd, held captive by a boy who can't be any older than Lee, who is not handsome, is not cool, but who is undeniably talented. We watch, listen, feel right to the last note of the first song before erupting into applause. I'm clapping so hard my skin stings and I'm screaming my support as if I'm the only person he can hear.
KAZ.
The person onstage, the one whose voice has stolen every heart in here, is Sebastian. The boy I thought I was meeting is not one who stands in crowds, but one who stands on a stage. And it's a stage he owns.
”Hi. So we're SkyFires” there's a swell of cheers and screams ”and this is our first festival.”
Ruby wolf-whistles and Sebastian glances this way. He's wearing different clothes from before, but his gla.s.ses are the same and his tousled hair. I wonder whether it feels as soft as it looks.
”This next one is about knowing what it means to escape.”
Sebastian is a mesmerizing front man. Everything from the expressions he wears to the way he touches the mic with the tips of his fingers before throwing his arms wide and powering out the chorus draws the audience in. The rush of emotion has me smiling, eyes bright as I listen to him, my body tensed up on tiptoes, tilting towards him, straining to see him. His vocals give way to the guitar and he steps back from the mic before glancing this way.