After Forever Ends - Ramone Melodie - Страница 24

She nodded. “I’ll be fine, Silvia. You can go.”

After I left her off, the twins and I headed out into the quad to find mostly the same students that attended year after year. After several brief “hellos” to them, we fell quickly back with our group of friends.

Lance had spent his summer at home in Caernarfon and unable to make the distance to see his girlfriend in Liverpool, they had parted ways, although they still seemed friendly enough when they met again at school. I caught on quickly, however, that this was false on Lance’s part.

“She’s already got someone,” He did his best to hide his ruin. “Can you believe it?”

“You don’t need anyone disloyal,” Alexander told him. “Bennington is filled with all kinds of girls. It’s a three-to-one ratio.”

“You would know,” Lance muttered.

“Oh, she was too short anyway,” I consoled, cuddling against Oliver's chest to hide from the wind, “But you now! You’ve sprouted up like a weed!”

“Ah, Sil and her sugar-coated lies!” His good nature left him unable to resist a smile, “Let’s just say I feel taller when you say them so sincerely!”

Merlyn, on the other hand, had had quite an eventful holiday. He had spent it in Paris, where his parents now lived. He’d gotten a job bussing tables in a jazz cafe, which I respected him for doing as he was quite rich and had no need to work at all. But he'd wanted the experience and it was one way he could find his way into a musical environment. He'd made loads of friends, he told us, had a little romance with a girl from Spain, and, best of all in his opinion, a professional lounge singer had offered to give him vocal lessons.

“I found my range!” He was ecstatic, “She told me that I’ll never be able to sing like Pavarotti, but listen to this…” He took a few steps back and belted out, “What’s New Pussycat?” People stopped to stare, but not in horror like they once had. Most walked away, but one actually clapped and said, “Yay!”

“You may have a future yet!” Oliver told him sincerely, “Merlyn Pierce, the new Tom Jones!”

Merlyn grinned. His chest puffed out, “Do you really think?”

“Oh, aye!” Oliver nodded enthusiastically, pulling his ear, “I really think! Keep at it! That was a great improvement!”

I was wondering where Sandra was when she came running up. Literally, she was breathless by the time she threw her arms around me. “Oh, Silvia! I missed you! You look wonderful! How was your summer?” I told her it was fantastic. Sandra gave Oliver a quick smile and a hello before she continued, “I checked the lists in the common room! Headmistress approved our request and we’re sharing a room again, only it’s a floor up, which is brilliant because I’m told the ones up there are larger.”

She unsnapped her satchel and reached inside, “I’m sorry I’m so frazzled. I drank about a barrel of coffee. Whoo!” She shoved her hair back with a shaking hand, “But I saw this when I went on holiday to the US and I had to get it for you.” She handed me a small box, “I meant to mail it, but if you want the truth I lost your address and couldn’t send it!”

“Oh, Sandra, you didn’t have to!” I took it from her trembling hand.

“I know I didn’t have to. I wanted to.”

I opened the box to find a beautiful silver hair clip adorned with moonstone and lapis lazuli. “Oh my, thank you! I love it!”

Oliver looked over and saw it in my hand. “Now that’s beautiful,” He said sincerely. “Give it here, Sil, I’ll put it in your hair.” He drew my hair back in his hands and fastened the clip. “It’s really lovely, Sandy.”

Sandra grinned, “It was nothing. Gor blimey, it's windy today! Can we get our bags yet? I packed my jumper.”

“No,” Alexander answered, sauntering up from behind, “Hello, Sandy. You’ve changed your hair. I like it. If you’re cold, you can borrow my jacket.” He removed his Bennington jacket and slipped it over her shoulders. He didn’t seem to notice when she went stiff and pink. Instead, he continued as if it was something that might have happened a million times, “They always start with the first years. It makes them less edgy if they get to their room and their stuff is there.”

Sandra put her hand on the shoulder of the coat and looked at me with wide, disbelieving eyes. “Oh, my God!” She mouthed at me and I nodded in equal amazement.

“They were still checking bags last I knew,” Lance mumbled, still noticeably miserable.

“I don’t know why they do that,” Oliver shook his head, “No one carries their drugs and liquor here in their bags. Everybody knows that.”

“Drugs and liquor at Bennington?” Merlyn pretended to be aghast.

“Oh, yeah,” Oliver knocked himself on the head, “Those here at Bennington! What was I thinking? Like that would ever happen!”

“Has orientation started?” I asked, suddenly remembering my sister.

“Yeah, they’re all in the dining hall meeting their dorm mates.” Oliver slipped his arm around me. “Don’t worry about Lucy. She’ll find her place.”

“I hope they still have biscuits in there when they’re done,” Sandra rubbed her stomach, “I’m starved. I love those ones with the caramel bits.”

Alexander leaned toward Sandy and reached into his jacket pocket. He produced a serviette and held it out to her, “Haven’t you learned to get into the hall before orientation? Silly girl! You’ve been here how many years?”

“Oh, I don’t want to eat your biscuit!” She seemed even more shocked. On a normal day he grunted at her and maybe asked her to pass him the salt. “You keep it!”

“Are you joking?” He grinned, “I nicked about twenty of them!”

She took it from him as if it were a great treasure, “Thank you, Alexander! You’re being so nice to me today!”

He gave her a funny look. “It’s just a biscuit, Sandy. I have been known occasionally to share with my friends.”

“Well, thank you all the same!” Sandra went deep crimson and tucked the biscuit into her purse.

“You’re welcome, Bach,” He gave her a grin, but turned away when Meredith Ainsworth called his name.

Oliver and I looked at each other in mutual shock. He called Sandy “Bach”? Alexander had obviously been harbouring an affection for the girl he’d never let on to before. For someone who possessed the capacity to spew venom at any random victim, Alexander could be a darling when you caught him in the right mood. And a shameless flirt.

“I still have about five,” Oliver grinned, “If you want another later.”

“Well, give me one then!” I held out my hand. “I missed the pillaging of the first-year biscuit table extravaganza!”

“Of course!” Oliver produced his own serviette and handed it to me.

“Thank you, Bach.” I said as I squished my face up at him.

“Anything for you, Bach.” He replied as he squished his face back.

Alexander had turned away from us and was talking with Meredith.

“I’m sorry I didn’t ring you back last night,” He was saying, “I ended up watching that film with Ollie and I fell asleep.”

“Oh,” She pushed a dark curl away from her bright blue eyes and flashed a devastating, if not calculated smile, “That’s OK. I needed to pack anyway. Your face doesn’t look so bad, not as bad as I thought it was going to. Not that your gorgeous face could ever look bad. Is Sandra wearing your jacket?”

Alex looked over his shoulder at Sandra for a second, and then turned back casually, “Yeah, she’s cold,” He said with little intonation in his voice.

“Oh.”

“You don’t mind, do you, Mere?” Sandra asked sincerely, acting as if she were about to remove the jacket.

Meredith smiled again, “No, no! Not at all!” She replied sweetly, “Why would I mind?”

“He was really just being nice,” Sandra explained apologetically.

“Yeah,” Oliver said suddenly, his eyes bright, “Sometimes I wear it, too!”

Everyone laughed. Alexander and Oliver exchanged glances. Another silent conversation that lasted only seconds. Alex shrugged his shoulders. A second later Oliver did the same. Then they both turned their attention back to whom they had been speaking before.