Storms - 27. Julie

I was concerned when Daniel didn’t show up for English, and even more so when I didn’t see him all the rest of the day. I sent him a text asking if he was all right, but the answer didn’t arrive until much later, and consisted of, I’m okay. I’ll tell you about it tomorrow.

But the following day, Daniel still wasn’t at school. I sat through Mrs. Lawton’s maths lesson unable to focus, glancing at Daniel’s empty seat. Where was he? Michael would know.

I was on my way to my next lesson when I saw Michael talking to Mr. Griffiths. Good, I could ask Michael about Daniel. I overheard their conversation as I approached.

‘He’s all right,’ Griffiths was saying. ‘He wanted me to tell you not to worry. He just had a rough day yesterday, you know? You can come over after school if you like. It took some convincing to get him to stay home, he wanted to see you and the others so much.’

‘I’d like that,’ Michael replied, smiling. ‘I . . . I miss him.’

Griffiths smiled. ‘Yeah, I remember that feeling. One day apart seems like forever when you’re a kid. I’ll give you a lift if you like.’

I stepped up to them. ‘Hey. Were . . . are you talking about Daniel?’

‘Oh! Er . . .’ Michael bit his lip.

‘I was just gonna ask you if you knew where he was, is all.’

‘I need to get a move on,’ said Griffiths. ‘I’m sure he’d want Julie to know, Michael.’ He strolled off.

‘So?’ I asked. ‘What’s going on?’

‘It’s . . . kind of a long story,’ said Michael. ‘Maybe I can tell you and the others about it at dinner?’

I nodded. ‘Okay. Is he okay, though?’

‘Yeah. Yeah, he’s fine. Or, maybe not fine, but he will be. It’s really complicated.’

‘So, why does Griffiths know so much about it?’

Michael laughed. ‘I have to get to Music, Jules. I’ll explain everything at dinner. Promise.’

‘Okay. I guess I’ll just have to wait.’ I sighed resignedly.

* * *

I practically ran to dinner, and of course, Michael and the others weren’t even there yet. I got myself some food and snagged a table. When they finally showed up, after what felt like forever but was really less than ten minutes, Siobhan hugged me and Amy kissed my cheek.

‘Hey, guys.’ I was trying to contain myself, but the moment Michael was seated, I turned to him and said, ‘Okay, so tell us, please. Where’s Daniel? What happened yesterday?’

Michael sighed, as if not sure where to begin. ‘All right. So, you guys know his home situation isn’t exactly . . . ideal, right?’

Siobhan nodded. ‘Yeah, he’s said something about his mum not caring much a couple of times, hasn’t he?’

‘Right. Well, it’s a lot worse than that. The reason why they moved here is that Daniel’s stepdad dumped his mum. He was . . . not nice, to them. Daniel’s mum is kind of a wreck. Like, she’s depressed, spends most days in bed. He has to take care of himself, and her, really, because he feels like she won’t manage without him. So, anyway, Griffiths kind of picked up on it, and yesterday they called him to a meeting, to try and get him to tell them about it, so they could do something to help. He had kind of a panic attack and wanted to see me, so they let me come and take care of him a bit. He told them everything, and social services got involved, and, well, long story short, he’s living with Griffiths and his husband now.’

‘Wait, Griffiths is gay?’ Deacon asked.

‘That’s your takeaway from this?’ Siobhan asked, quirking an eyebrow.

‘Poor Dan,’ I said. My eyes had been tearing up while Michael spoke, and now I drew a shaky breath, trying to hold them back. ‘I knew things were bad for him, but I had no idea . . .’

‘He didn’t want to tell anyone,’ said Michael. ‘He was worried they’d take him away. From his mum, and from here. From me—us.’ He looked a bit embarrassed. ‘They were talking about his stepdad, which is a huge no, but they also talked about grandparents. In Dudley, wherever that is.’

‘Black Country. West Midlands,’ said Amy, and we all looked at her. ‘What? I have family in Wolverhampton. Why are people always so surprised when I know things?’

‘We’re not,’ I said. ‘You know loads of stuff.’

‘Damn right, I do.’ Amy pouted. ‘But, if Dan’s staying with Griffiths, that’s good, right? Are they, like, foster parents?’

‘Yeah,’ said Michael. ‘They’ve fostered a kid before, apparently. But there’s no guarantee Daniel will be staying with them for long, what with the grandparents and all that.’ He looked sad. ‘I . . . I really want him to stay here.’

‘Well, I mean, he’s fourteen, he’s not a little kid,’ said Deacon. ‘They have to listen to what he wants, right?’

Michael nodded. ‘Yeah, and he’s never even met his grandparents. They all but disowned his mum. Or at least she ran away and they never made much effort to find her.’

‘Well, he’d never leave here voluntarily for some grandparents he’s never even met though, right?’ said Amy. ‘I mean, he wants to stay with you more than anything. He’s crazy about you.’

Michael smiled, looking down at his plate, a slight tinge of pink colouring his cheeks.

‘I’m sure Griffiths would make a great dad,’ I added. ‘I mean, he’s such a cool person, you know?’

‘Yeah,’ said Siobhan, smiling. ‘Think they’d let him stay there if he wanted to? Do you think he wants to?’

‘Well, when Griffiths brought it up yesterday, he agreed just like that. Really seemed like he wanted to go. Which, you know, can’t blame him. Like you said, Jules, Griffiths is really cool and nice. I’m going over there after school.’

‘Well, you’ll have to tell him hi from all of us,’ said Deacon.

‘Hey, Julie?’ came a voice from behind me and I turned around. It was Sophia Hopkins.

‘Hi, Sophia,’ I said. ‘What’s up?’

‘Well,’ she said, ‘I was just wondering if you knew how Daniel’s doing? Seems like he’s had a pretty bad time of it, and he’s not at school today . . .’

I nodded. ‘He’s okay. Like you say, he’s had a bad time of it lately. He just stayed home today. Self-care day, I guess.’

Sophia nodded. ‘That’s good. You know, it’s really awful what Patrick did to him. I’ve been trying to rally people for, like, an anti-bullying protest or something, but people are so lazy around here. Really hate that Patrick.’

‘You and all of us,’ said Amy. ‘Wish he’d been expelled instead of just suspended.’

‘Ugh, me too.’ Sophia nodded emphatically. ‘Him and all his creepy friends. And I’m a pacifist, but he totally deserved what he got . . . Anyway, glad to hear Daniel’s okay. Me, Tekla, Justyna and Oliver wanted to put together a care package for him or something, I dunno. Just, do something for him, you know? What does he like?’

‘Chocolate,’ said Michael. ‘And, erm, sci-fi stuff.’

‘Ooh, cool. Tekla’ll think of something there, then.’ Sophia smiled, and I suddenly liked her a lot more than I had when I thought she was just a social justice warrior sticking her nose in everyone else’s business. Maybe she was a genuinely nice person after all. I’d always thought she just wanted to stir up trouble.

‘Thanks, Sophia,’ said Michael, smiling. ‘Dan’ll really appreciate it.’

Sophia returned his smile. ‘No worries. I’ll see you guys later.’ Then she walked off.

‘See?’ said Amy. ‘She grows on you. Like fungus.’ We all laughed.

‘So, anyone got plans for today?’ asked Deacon after a while. ‘Other than Michael who’s gonna go snog his boyfriend?’ Michael blushed at that but did not deny it.

‘Homework,’ I sighed. ‘I cannot wrap my head around this equation Mrs. Lawton gave us.’

‘I’ll help you . . . if you like,’ said Amy, smiling. ‘This may surprise you, but I’m really good at maths and sciences. I can come to your place if your mum’s okay with it.’

I grinned. ‘Can’t see why she wouldn’t be if I’m getting help with my homework. I’ll let her know.’

* * *

As predicted, my mum was perfectly fine with Amy coming over to help me with my homework, provided she also eat with us, so Mum could have a chat with her and find out what sort of people I was actually spending time with these days.

‘So, tell me about your family,’ said Mum, passing the potatoes to me.

‘Well, my parents are married and together and stuff. And I have two siblings, Holly and Ryan. Ryan’s twelve, he’ll be thirteen in March. Holly’s just six. We live, like, five minutes that way.’ She indicated with her head.

‘What do your parents do?’

‘Mum used to be a paediatrician, but she was in a car crash, so she’s in a wheelchair now, and doesn’t work anymore. Dad’s kind of a failed musician, half the year he runs a youth club not far from here, and the other half he’s a roadie and tours around Europe with bands. That’s in summer, though. Pays more than the youth club.’

Mum gave her a sympathetic smile. ‘Sounds rough.’

‘It’s not, really.’ Amy grinned. ‘Dad brings home cool stuff for us. He’s taken me with him a few times when he’s had whole weekends and some free time in other countries, which is awesome, so I’ve been to Germany, Norway, Sweden, The Netherlands, France . . . And we’re not poor or anything, we get by just fine. We’re happy, really.’

I didn’t know any of this about Amy. All I knew about her was that she was cool, and pretty, and nice to me. And fashionable and sassy and had a crush on Luke Cage. And that she was crazy observant and always knew what was going on with her friends, sometimes before they even knew it themselves. Not that that was nothing, but I had known nothing about her family until my mum asked.

After we had eaten, we went to my room and Amy proceeded to help me with that equation I was struggling with. ‘See, to find the x you have to switch these . . .’ We were sat on my bed. Amy was leaned over my workbook, sitting really close, and I could smell her perfume, a floral scent. Lilac, maybe? She had let down her hair from the ponytail she’d had it in earlier. I liked that she kept it natural, didn’t straighten it and stuff, even if she had said that she wished she had straight hair like mine.

Her voice brought me out of my thoughts. ‘You paying attention, Jules?’

‘Oh! Sorry. Yes. Could you explain that bit again?’

It took a while, but I finally got it. I solved the equation, and Amy looked it over. ‘Wow, well done! You got it right.’ She reached out and ruffled my hair, grinning at me. ‘Knew you could do it.’ She leaned back against the wall. Her expression when she looked at me was almost fond. ‘I’ve been meaning to ask,’ she said after a moment, ‘about Mike and Daniel. Do you feel okay about it?’

I blinked. I hadn’t even thought about it, really. ‘Yeah. Just fine, actually. I think . . . When you talked to me that time, when we’d been to Deacon’s, I think I kind of got over it then. I mean, I liked Michael, but I don’t think I was ever properly in love with him. And Dan . . . He deserves to be happy. They both do.’

‘You are just the sweetest, aren’t you, babes?’ We sat in silence for a while, and then Amy asked, ‘So, have you ever been in love?’

I considered this. ‘I dunno. Not really.’

‘And have you kissed anyone?’

I blushed, looking away. ‘With my mum watching me like a hawk? Never been alone with a boy long enough to get the chance. I mean, I think I kissed a boy back in infant school once. But, like, that hardly counts, does it?’ I paused, giving her a sidelong glance. ‘What about you? Bet you’ve snogged loads of people.’

Amy shrugged. ‘A few. On a dare. Like, spin the bottle at parties. Never had a real boyfriend, though.’ That really surprised me. Somehow I had just assumed that Amy had had lots of boyfriends. Maybe even had sex. The thought made me blush.

I licked my lips, unsure of how to phrase my next question. I didn’t know why, but it suddenly felt really important. I’d never even thought about it before, not really, but now I had a burning desire to know. ‘And . . . have you ever kissed a girl?’

The corner of Amy’s mouth quirked up in a half smile. ‘No,’ she said, slowly and deliberately. ‘Is this going where I think it’s going?’

I blushed furiously and stared at my hands. ‘I dunno. Where do you think it’s going?’

‘Do you want to kiss me, Julie?’

‘I . . .’ I had no idea how to answer that question. I hadn’t thought about it until right this moment, but I suddenly knew that I really, really wanted to.

It was like Amy sensed it. She scooted closer to me, reached out to touch my cheek, tilting my head so I’d look at her. When I didn’t pull away, she leaned in, slowly, and put her lips on mine.

The kiss was very gentle, soft and sweet, and something stirred in the pit of my stomach. Her lips tasted like mango lip balm. It was over far too soon, and I bit my lip as she pulled away. We spent a few moments just looking at each other, and then she gave me a slow, sure smile. I returned it with a soft giggle and looked away again.

‘How was that?’ she asked.

‘It was . . . good.’ I dared to meet her gaze again. Her brown eyes had that playful twinkle that was all Amy. ‘How . . . what did you think?’

‘Hm . . .’ Amy looked thoughtful. ‘Pretty good. May require further testing, though, just to be sure.’

‘Yeah?’

‘Yeah.’ She leaned in again, and this time it was less gentle, but no less sweet, her soft, full lips moving against mine, and I opened my mouth a little bit. She did, too, and then there were tongues, and she put her arms around me, pulling me closer. It was nice. It was really, really nice. And it felt exciting.

When we pulled apart, my breathing had become a little bit laboured, and my whole body tingled. My face felt hot. Amy licked her lips and smiled. ‘Do . . . Do you like me?’ I asked, voice barely more than a whisper.

Amy quirked an eyebrow. ‘Would I be kissing you if I didn’t?’

‘No, I know, I just meant . . .’ I couldn’t meet her eye and found myself looking at her mouth instead. I really, really wanted to kiss it again.

She pursed her lips. ‘I . . . I don’t know. I mean, you are super pretty, and I like you. I just never . . .’ She paused as if searching for the right words. ‘I’ve never really been in love either,’ she said. ‘I had a crush on Michael. I was pretty serious about it, but . . . I don’t know, Jules. I wouldn’t mind finding out, though. And . . . I like kissing you.’

I looked her in the eye again. It was the first time I had seen Amy look embarrassed. I wondered if anyone other than me had ever seen that. She was always so confident, always held her head high. Always seemed so grown up. Now she seemed like the schoolgirl she actually was, and I found myself smiling, her embarrassment making me feel bolder.

‘Yeah. Me too.’ This time I kissed her, and it felt really, really right.