Page 70 of Not Moving Out
‘Love you too, Dad.’
‘Thank you for being so understanding about the show.’
‘Just remember, if it becomes a huge hit, you owe me,’ said Dolly with a smile and then a laugh. I would miss that laugh so much when she left for university. ‘And I don’t mean like symbolically owe me, I mean literally with cold, hard cash.’
I laughed. ‘I promise,’ I said, and then Dolly turned around and started walking away.
I watched her for a moment until she was out of sight, and then I started walking back towards home. It was a gorgeous day and perfect for a stroll through town, and then home to do some work. Everything was finally out in the open, and maybe it had broken Freya and me, but it had, perhaps, made my relationship with Dolly even stronger, and that was something worth hanging on to. Now I just needed to find a way to make up with Freya – or at the very least, get her to speak to me again.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Freya
We were sitting around the kitchen table and the atmosphere was definitely a little fraught. At least, it felt fraught to me. I was on one side, holding my cup of tea in my hands for comfort, and opposite me were Joe and Dolly. I hadn’t seen Joe since the argument because I had been staying with Mum and Marmalade, which had brought its own challenges. Mainly Mum constantly asking if I was okay, and Marmalade asking me every five minutes if I wanted something air fried. It was an incessant barrage of concern and air-fried food, but I was home now, and Dolly had news.
‘I got three As! I’m going to Durham!’ said Dolly jubilantly, breaking through the tension and in a second the entire energy and atmosphere in the room changed.
‘Oh my gosh, Dolly!’ I said, getting up and walking around the table to give her a hug. ‘I’m so proud of you! Three As, that’s incredible!’
‘Dolly, darling, that’s amazing!’ said Joe.
We both gave Dolly hugs and kisses, and then we finally sat down again. I glanced across at Joe, and he looked back at me for a second. He smiled but I looked straight back at Dolly. Joe looked a lot better than the last time I had seen him. He had shaved, had his hair cut, and he was wearing a shirt and a smart pair of jeans. He was obviously making an effort, at least with his appearance.
‘I can’t believe I got three As,’ said Dolly. ‘I thought maybe two As and one B, but it doesn’t matter because Durham, here I come!’
‘The dream,’ I said with a smile. ‘I remember the day we did the tour and you were completely smitten from the moment we got there.’
‘I remember that, too,’ said Joe. ‘That night at the hotel you said, I’m coming to university here, and that was it. Now you’ve made it happen!’
‘So proud,’ I gushed.
‘Right, we should celebrate!’ said Joe. ‘Are you working today, Dolls?’
‘Nope. I’m off.’
‘Then what about dinner?’ Joe looked across at me. ‘Dinner is good, right?’
What else could I say? ‘Of course. Wherever you want, love.’
‘Just one thing,’ said Dolly. ‘Can I invite Elle?’
‘The new girlfriend?’ said Joe.
I had only heard fleetingly about Elle via text, and I was curious and excited to meet her.
‘Not girlfriend, just, actually I don’t know what she is. We haven’t given it a label, exactly, yet, but yeah, casual girlfriend slash summer fling, maybe?’
‘Invite her for dinner,’ I said. ‘I’d love to meet her.’
‘I’ll message her now,’ said Dolly, getting up and slowly walking away, her fingers tapping at a hundred miles an hour on her phone.
With Dolly gone, Joe and I were suddenly alone. I barely wanted to look at him because, despite feeling calmer than I had the day of the argument, I was still so annoyed with him. I couldn’t believe what he had done.
After the argument with Joe, when I was an emotional wreck, I called Sam and I arranged to meet him for a coffee. Obviously the moment we met, he could sense that something had happened, and after a quick coffee we went to his house for a proper chat. He put together a light lunch, and over tea and sandwiches I explained everything and he just listened. He was lovely, and looked so handsome in relaxed weekend clothes, in his gorgeous house in Hove – exactly how I had imagined it, so on-brand – and after everything with Joe, I did something spontaneous and so unlike me. I kissed him. We had finished talking, we both stood up at the same time, and suddenly we were so close to each other, and I leaned in and kissed him. The thing was, for a moment, he kissed me back, before we both pulled away at the same time.
‘Freya, I…’ said Sam. ‘I’m sorry, but you’re vulnerable, I’m your boss, and—’
‘I’m sorry,’ I replied quickly. ‘Shit, sorry, Sam. You were just being so nice, and this house is gorgeous, and you, you’re so handsome, and everything with Joe, it all—’
