Page 61 of Date with Destiny

She nods excitedly. ‘While you’ve been dance-flirting with Mikey and Zach—’

‘I wasn’t!’ I try to protest but she waves my interruption away.

‘—While you were toying with two blokes who are both clearly into you,’ she doubles down, eyeballing me, ‘I was googling a thousand different variations, trying to find a website or something – nothing doing, but then I finally found this random post on a Facebook page for a small town the funfair set up in after leaving London.’ She gets taller as she speaks, her chest puffing out with pride at her detective skills. ‘So then I clicked on their page and I’m pretty sure it’s them! I’ve sent the guy who runs it a message.’

‘Wow, you are amazing,’ I tell her, blown away. ‘This could be it then! We could be speaking to the fortune teller, like,tomorrow! She could tell me who my soulmate is and we could be settled down together by Christmas.’ I breathe inslowly, trying to control the thumping in my chest.

Myfanwy grimaces. ‘Hold your horses, mate. I don’t think it’ll be that quick. I don’t think blokes who run travelling funfairs tend to be particularly quick at answering their Facebook messages. We might have to wait a bit to hear back.’

I nod, ‘Right, sorry. I got carried away. I’ll be patient. Thank you for doing all that, you are the absolute best.’

She smiles broadly. ‘I know.’

Someone behind us clears their throat and I see Myfanwy’s face change. The smile falls away as she pales with shock.

I quickly turn around, coming face to face with… Daniel.

‘What the…’ I run out of words.

He looks embarrassed but gives me a head-to-toe with wide eyes. ‘Wow, Ginny, you look… just wow!’

I don’t say anything, so Myfanwy does.

‘What are you doing here, Daniel?’ she says carefully. He visibly swallows hard, looking between us.

‘Um, I wanted to talk to Ginny,’ he turns to me, his eyes beseeching. ‘Can we talk? Please? I know you said you wanted space and I’m really aware that you didn’t reply to my last messages but… please?’

‘How did you even know I was here?’ I feel so bamboozled, so dazed, I don’t know what to think. ‘Did Toni invite you?’ I glance over at my sister. She’s oblivious, talking to Sonali and Zach, with Shawn glued to her side.

Daniel shakes his head. ‘No, she tagged you all in on Instagram at this bar. I still follow her.’

Ugh, what? Who the helltagseveryone into a place orvenue on Instagram? Surely that function is only for celebrities who are getting their holiday for free.

‘Right,’ I say, still unsure what to make of his sudden arrival.

‘Can we talk?’ he asks again, stepping a little closer.

‘Um…’ I’m interrupted by Toni who has just spotted her never-was brother-in-law.

‘Oh my GOD, Daniel!’ she squeals, bursting into our small circle, Shawn close behind her. She throws herself into my ex-fiancé’s arms before suddenly remembering everything that’s happened and retreating, glancing at me guiltily. ‘What are you doing here?’ She echoes my question, before again looking over. ‘Did you invite him? Are you guys…?’ She looks between us excitedly and I jump in, swallowing hard, ‘No! No no no no no no!’

Daniel regards me sadly and everyone falls silent. The awkwardness reverberates between us, zinging from me to Daniel to Myfanwy to Toni to Shawn, and back again.

And it is just then, in the most horribly uncomfortable moment of my life, that Mikey rocks up.

‘Wotcha!’ he crows, throwing lazy arms around me and – oh god – Daniel. He quickly realizes his mistake. ‘Oh sorry mate,’ he unhooks himself and offers up a hand. ‘I thought you were Zach. I’m Mikey.’

Daniel looks at the hand for a moment before taking it. ‘Daniel,’ he replies warily.

‘Nice to meet you, Daniel,’ Mikey says, tucking hair behind his ear, oblivious to the horror each of us is feeling.‘Are you one of Toni’s mates?’ Daniel looks down at the ground and Mikey glances around, frowning, finally sensing the mood. ‘Or, er, one of Shawn’s mates?’ he adds, looking to Shawn anxiously.

‘Er, no,’ Shawn says, reaching into the group to offer his own hand to Daniel. ‘Hi, we haven’t met, I’m Shawn,’ he nods.

‘Hi,’ comes the reply, but Daniel is now looking at me, and only me, his sad cow eyes penetrating my soul.

‘Daniel is, um…’ I begin and Mikey raises his eyebrows at me. ‘He’s, er, he’s…’ I can’t. I don’t know what to say. Honestly, I don’t even really know how I’m supposed to describe him. Where to begin! He’s my ex-boyfriend slash fiancé who I loved and adored for five years and thought I’d be with forever, until he moved out of our flat weeks before our wedding, ending our relationship without really telling me.

Would that cover it? But no, of course it wouldn’t.

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