Page 13 of Will You Stay Another Day?
Where might Em have gone travelling this last year?
How dare she go without her!
Lili pressed dial, blocking out the possibility a total stranger might pick up. Or would it be a stranger? Could it be someone she knew, playing a twisted joke? What if dicko Sean… She’d bumped into him once, after the break-up. He’d smiled and said hello in that smooth tone, as if nothing had happened. Lili told him in no uncertain terms what a selfish, two-faced jerk he was. His whole demeanour changed in an instant and Sean had snarled back that Lili had always been jealous of Em dating him; he’d scoffed at how she’d never had a boyfriend, little realising that had been her choice. Could he have been playing a joke? No, no, no, she wouldn’t entertain that notion. Surely even Sean couldn’t be that spiteful?
The phone rang out. And rang. Her stomach twisted and… Oh. The call clicked into an automated voicemail. Not Em’s usual recorded message. Lili went to speak but ended the call instead. She hadn’t waited one year to simply speak to a digital voice. As the radiators gurgled with hot water, Lili shivered and wrote a text.
Hey Bestie, let’s meet up. I can’t wait to see you again. It’s time us interlopers show Cornwall how to live it up again xx
She put a turtle emoji. They’d called themselves interlopers when they’d first moved down from the north. Truth was though, the rugged coastline and down-to-earth Cornish banter quickly felt like the perfect fit. An idea came into her head and she carried on typing.
It’s Halloween on Friday, how about then? We could dress up!
Determined not to obsessively keep checking her phone, Lili went for a long bath. She ate the pasty. Only then did she pull out the charger and look at the screen.
A message was waiting!
Sure, mate! Sounds good. Thursday gives me time to get back from Europe! Halloween? It’s got to be The Rough Tor in Bodmin then. See you at eight.
No emoji this time, but no matter! Whoop! Friday it was!
Lili stared at the words on the screen. My God. What was she doing? Was this really happening? This felt right, and Em did occasionally call her mate, although she wasn’t familiar with Bodmin.
See you then! xx
A sob escaped her lips. These messages shone a torch into what had felt like such a gloomy future. Lili knew that whatever the outcome, she was going to this meeting. If there was the slightest possibility that this was Em, it was worth it.
8
LILI AND EM AGED TWELVE
On the first Monday of the summer term, they sat at the bottom of the playing field. Lili let a ladybird run over her hand.
‘Hannah and her friends are such bitches,’ said Em.
‘I thought they’d get bored of the nasty comments by now.’
‘Kamal said they’re idiots and it’s only because they’re jealous that we can play football and got to meet Katy Perry last Christmas.’
‘That’s cos he fancies you,’ Em said, and they both giggled. ‘Those VIP tickets were pretty amazing though. Your parents were so cool getting them for us.’
Lili rolled her eyes. ‘Yeah, yeah. A guilt present – for them getting a divorce.’
‘I blame Dad for my problems. I mean, who the hell calls their daughter Myrtle?’
‘It was after his favourite aunt who couldn’t have a kid of her own though, right? Anyway, my mum’s not much better, naming me Lydia after some random doctor who delivered me. I know it was a difficult birth but…’ The ladybird flew away. ‘No wonder Hannah and her friends say we’ve got old lady names.’
‘Gotta admire Hannah’s English skills, really, nicknaming us Myrtle Turtle and Lydia Bacteria within the first week of high school. Kinda catchy.’
‘And now she’s calling us lezzers.’
Em raised an eyebrow.
‘Kamal told me that as well. Hannah’s saying that us wanting to meet Katy Perry cos we liked her song “I Kissed A Girl” means we must secretly be into each other. Why do you think I held your hand crossing the playground today?’
Em grinned. ‘Lydia Taylor! That’s why those losers jeered. I wondered why Kamal was laughing. You really don’t give a shit, do you?’
‘No. For a start, why is being called a lesbian insulting? Mum’s best friend at work, Jill, is gay, and a far better person than Hannah will ever be. I only care about the opinions of kind people – like my nan. I can talk to her about anything. She said answering back to people like Hannah, or showing you are upset, feeds them; that they’re insecure, they get desperate and think the only way to feel better is to put others down. Our old classmates from primary school still like us, and Laura in my maths set has invited us both to her party next week. We play football with the boys and I reckon most of the teachers think Hannah is a brown-nosing idiot… you and I are doing okay.’
