Page 95 of The Side Road
On the firstday of August, the full force of the winter winds arrived. A howling gale tore through the leafless tree branches. It funnelled through the streets with gusts so strong they could knock a person off their feet.
Lying in bed, Oliver felt weathered, as if he were coatedin rust. He stared at the ceiling. Mia was pulling away from him and he didn’t know how to halt her retreat. In racing, the goal was always to move forward. Speed got you over the finish line; only the injured retired. Reverse was never an option because motorbikes didn’t have a reverse gear. He loved her. He had no intention of crossing the finish line without her, but everyone ran their own race. Sometimes your teammate’s plans were hard to predict.
When the wind outside stilled, he heard breathing. He cocked his head. Cindy was lying next to him. Wearing a singlet top, her dark hair covered the pillow beside him.
‘What the fuck are you doing?’
‘I got spooked. An old woman died in this house. I was sure I heard something in the kitchen. Thought I’d sleep with you for the rest of the night. I feel safer here.’
He rolled out of bed. ‘No.’ He shook his head. ‘This is not happening. You’re moving to a hotel.’
She climbed out of bed and glared at him. Her skimpy top and knickers covered very little of her pregnant body.
‘Cindy, I care about you, and I care about your baby. But you can’t come into my room. I’m in a relationship.’
‘Really? Because it doesn’t seem that serious.’
‘I don’t care what you think.’
Cindy stormed out of the room. Somewhere in the house, a door slammed. Oliver sighed. ‘Again, with the doors.’
He slipped on a pair of track pants and followed her into the hallway. There was no sign of Cindy, but Mia was standing by the front door.
‘It was unlocked,’ she said, pointing to the door handle.
He let out a long sigh. It felt like he was expiring. ‘Did you see her come out of my room, because it’s not what it looks like?’
‘Cindy was in your room?’ Rebellion flashed in her eyes.
‘Never mind.’
‘We need to talk.’ She looked him over. ‘Do you need a moment? Shall I meet you in the garage?’
‘Fuck.’ He ran his hand through his hair.
As Mia stoodbeside the Black Shadow, Oliver looked from the gleaming bike to the dishevelled woman. The bike renovation was almost complete; all he needed was that elusive exhaust and it would be as good as new. Conversely, Mia looked like she was falling apart. He didn’t know how to fix her. But he knew heartache was coming for him.
‘Oliver, I’m going to step back from this. From us.’ She stood very still, absorbed in her words.
‘What does step back mean?’ Anger stormed his face.
‘It means I need some time. I thought we could go back to being friends for a while.’
‘Why?’
‘What do you mean, why?’
‘Mia, what do you expect me to do? Throw her out on the street? Pretend she doesn’t exist? I’m not going to do that. Turning your back on this – on us – won’t make it go away.’
‘I don’t think asking for space is unreasonable.’
‘That’s not what you’re doing. You’re acting like a spoilt kid who doesn’t get what she wants, so she takes her cricket bat and goes home.’ The words tumbled out of his mouth and landed on the cold concrete floor of the garage. This was a mistake he couldn’t take back.
‘Cricket bat?’
‘Netball. Whatever.’ He shrugged.
Her mouth was quizzical, like a crochet hook. The intense look she gave him made him catch his breath. Her blue eyes were dark, like asphalt.
