Page 11 of You, As You Are

Iain – who looked like he’d been adopted by this gaggle of elders – kept Ted on a rope lead for now. Maisie sidled up to catch the corner of his sight and vaguely pointed over in the direction of safety posters on the lifeguard station written in both English and Welsh.

“Do you understand Welsh?” she asked. Given the thickness of his accent, he’d definitely been raised here.

Iain adjusted the grey, tubular snood around his throat. “Ydw?*.Why do you ask?”

“Just curiosity. I noticed when I used to come here when I was young that so much is written out twice.” On signposts, shop fronts – even the painted markers on the roads.

“Pick any other country in Europe and things will be written twice there, too.”

Well that just made her sound naive.

“I know.” Maisie backtracked, digging her hands into the pockets of her waterproof coat. “Sorry, I just wondered if you could speak it, that’s all. A few of my friends are bilingual and sometimes I just wish that I was a part of that club.”

The slight edge to Iain’s focus softened. “It’s never too late to learn.”

“True. But it’s not quite the same as growing up that way.”

“So youdidn’tgrow up here?” The tiniest hint of goading wormed into Iain’s voice.

“Was it my accent that gave it away?” He was saved from having to answer that by Vera who called the group together.

Half listening to a rundown of how long the trail was (she heard ‘eight kilometres’ and the words ‘be very careful’ uttered at least twice), Maisie dug out the fleece that she’d bundled into her backpack and took a minute of shedding and replacing her coat to put it on underneath.

She knew that coming to Wales would involve rain, so she’d purposefully bought a deep-berry coloured pair of outdoor trousers before she’d left London – which had been an absolutenightmareto find. Firstly, finding a pair in her size, and secondly, a comfortable high-waisted pair that didn’t cut off her circulation midway up her belly. She’d spent an arm and a leg, but given that the trousers were necessary, Maisie put up with it. Now that she was stuck going on her first ever hike, she was gladto have them. The inner fleece was so warm despite the wind flapping at the fabric around her calves.

When Maisie lifted her backpack from the ground and her eyes from her feet, the group had already begun to move off. But Iain watched her, waiting. He’d stayed where he was whilst the others were already out of the car park and walking along the roadside path.

“Are you ready to go?”

“Oh,you—” Her voice came out pitchy and Maisie cleared her throat. “You don’t have to walk with me.” With those legs, she’d have thought Iain would be halfway home by now. He didn’t say anything but tilted his head warmed by a grey beanie. “I’m not going to be very fast,” she added as seagulls wentkeowover the shifting tide.

“It’s not a race.”

Maisie wrapped her fingers around the straps of her backpack. “I’ll slow you down.”

“If I wanted to go for a quicker walk,” Iain said in his slightly bored tone, “I would’ve joined a marching band.”

She chuffed. “Okay then. But when we fall behind you can’t say that I didn’t warn you.”

Iain appraised her outfit in another slow sweep that made Maisie acutely aware of herself, his gaze snagging on her feet. “Are those boots new?”

“Yeah. They look good, right?” She didn’t think he was interested in her fashion choice for aesthetics, which made her ask, “Why?”

Another rumble came from his throat.

What wasthatsound for? She’d bought the navy and pink boots from a reputable shop for people who did this sort of thing more often than her. Iain would’ve blended in seamlessly with the railings of earth-toned fabrics and murals of mountains and rivers on the walls.

“Come on you two!” Ronnie called out.

The group had gained a decent distance ahead, along a narrow road that followed the coastline above the beach.

Iain gave a gentle tug on Ted’s lead, disturbing his sniff of a fence post separating the car park from the sand, then cocked his head for Maisie to walk with them. Still confused by the furrowed brow he’d directed at her boots, she stepped beside him while Ted bulldozed his way forwards, nose to the pavement.

After merely a few paces, it was nearly impossible to ignore the elders’ furtive glances, noses peeking over their shoulders to look back at them lagging behind.

Maisie lacked the faculty of filtering her brain before she asked, “What’s the chance that they’re going to gossip about you catching me?” Hastily, she added, “Thank you, again, for that.”

“You’re welcome.” Iain may be a little grouchy but at least he was polite about it. “And chances are likely.”

---