Chapter 43

Waking up at around 6:30am is becoming a bit of a habit now, which I love. After my morning routine (shower, hair, make-up, get changed...), I decide to go downstairs and make another amazing breakfast.

It’ll be weird having my Dad back now after living free for a week. I feel grounded when he’s here. I’ve not even told him about my best friend or my boyfriend. I’m just glad we’re off school for a week now.

I walk into the kitchen and make myself a yoghurt with strawberries in, before walking into the lounge to watch a bit of TV.

“Mum?” I see her reading in the living room.

“What are you doing up?” she asks me.

“I couldn’t get back to sleep, you?”

“Same” she laughs.

I sigh, “Dad will find out about Conor”

“What?”

“My wall is covered with pictures of us all in London. He’s going to find out”

“What’s wrong with that? He has to know eventually”

“He’ll go mental, especially seeing as I didn’t tell him about my relationship with them when it started. What do you think he’ll do?” I ask nervously.

“I don’t know what you’re so worked up about. He’ll probably just ask to meet the boys. They’re lovely so I’m sure he’ll like them and won’t mind you hanging around with them” she smiles.

“But what about when Conor comes round? We have to sit in the living room with you and my room is off guards?”

“Well, I think your Dad will have to get to know them first”

“For god sake” I sigh “Can I tell you something? You can’t tell Dad”

“Yeah sure, what is it?”

“I feel suffocated with Dad around. Like, I can’t even be myself around him anymore. That time when I told you about Ben, Jack and Conor, I just felt like I could trust you and everything and I treated you more like a best friend than a Mum. I couldn’t feel that before because I never told you something as big as what I did that day. And when you took us to London, it was great. I could be myself around you and I knew you wouldn’t judge me. And you treat Jack and Conor like they’re your own” I explain and she starts smiling at all the compliments I’m throwing at her. “But with Dad, it’s different. I feel like when he finds out about Conor, he’ll flip out and if Conor actually is able to step foot in this house, he won’t give us any privacy and he’ll be watching my every move. I don’t want it to be that way, you know?”

She frowns, “Lucy, you're acting as if you don't know your Dad anymore. In Cheshire, you got away with murder and you were both so close. He's not going to be mad at you for hanging around with boys and stuff, he might just be a little bit mad that you didn't tell him. He's still the same person as he was before we came here, he's just not around enough for you to see that”

I start sighing and she turns her whole body to me.

“If I were you, I’d tell the boys that your Dad doesn’t do ‘banter’, you know what they’re like” she laughs and I just smile. “Are you doing anything today?”

“Dunno” I shrug and the living room door opens. Dad...

“Morning” he smiles and sits next to me.

“How was Paris?” I ask him, trying to get on the good side of him before I tell him about the boys.

“It was great! I got you a present actually” he smiles. Wait, what? “Just let me go get it”

He walks out of the room and I just give my Mum a confused look.

“See, he’s not so bad” she winks and I roll my eyes.

He comes back in with a red box in his hands. He hands me the box and I open it to see loads of red paper in it to keep the thing inside protected. I pull it all out and see a small Eiffel Tower – a bit bigger than my hand – made out of glass. It has a tiny clock in the middle of it that’s also made out of glass but is a baby pink colour. It’s literally perfect.

“Oh my god I love it” I gasp.

“I knew you would. As soon as I saw it I knew you’d want it” he laughs. “It’s kind of a sorry present as well”

“Why?”

“You were right about saying I’m always away on business. I mean, you probably had the time of your life with your Mum but we never really bond anymore. I feel like we’re growing apart since we came here and I got a better job. I’m sorry” he smiles and opens his arms for a hug. Who is this man and what has he done with my Dad? I embrace him for a few seconds before pulling away.

“It’s fine” I shrug and my Mum gives me a ‘tell him about Conor while he’s in a good mood’ look. “I um, need to show you something”

I stand up and walk out of the living room, leaving my Eiffel Tower on the sofa. He follows me up the stairs and before I open my bedroom door, I stop and turn around.

“Don’t freak out ok?”

“Please don’t tell me you repainted your walls” he sighs and I start laughing.

“Definitely not” I mumble and open the door. He looks around and tries to notice the room change. I sit on the bed and watch him investigate my room. He double turns at the decorated wall and starts to walk over to it. This is when my heart beats 10 times faster than its usual rate.

“You went to London?”

“Yeah” I nod, although he can’t see me.

“And who are these?”

“Um” I walk over to the wall and point at Jack. “That’s my best friend, Jack” I point at Conor “And that’s my boyfriend, Conor”

His eyes go really wide and he turns to look at me. I just smile and he turns back to look at the wall. He looks at all the pictures and glances over to my nightstand. His eyes go wide when he sees the picture of me kissing Conor’s cheek.

I’m not as worried as I was a while ago because he hasn’t really spoken. I’m trying to ‘play it cool’ for now.

“This,” he points at the picture “is your boyfriend?”

“Yeah”

“And this is your best friend?” he points at a picture of Jack and I.

“Yeah”

“A boy?”

“Yes...”

“And your Mum’s fine with this?”

“Why shouldn’t she be?” I ask and he lets out a huge sigh and shakes his head.

“When have you been friends or whatever with these” he gestures to Conor and Jack.

“Since I started school here” I sit on my bed and he sits next to me.

“Why didn’t you tell me?”

“Dunno” I shrug. “I didn’t know how you’d react”

“How did you think I would react?”

“Depends what mood you’re in. I was expecting to never see them again to be honest” I exaggerate just to see what he says.

“I wouldn’t do that”

“Well I was expecting to never have them round again, never be able to go to their house, and have you watching my every move” I explain.

“So they’ve been here before?”

“Yeah”

“How many times?”

“Dunno, quite a lot”

“And did your Mum know?”

“Most of the time”

“And you’ve been to their house?”

“Yeah. They’re brothers so I see them both when I go to theirs”

“Right...” he simply says. “How long have you been dating this boy?”

“About...” I think. “A month?”

He gasps, “And your Mum lets him in your room?”

“Yes” I snap. "We don't do anything" I lie, just to put him at ease.

“Ok ok” he raises his hands in defeat, noticing I’m getting angry. He stays silent for ages, just staring at my picture wall and it’s really irritating me.

“Aren’t you going to say anything?”

“I don’t know what to say to be honest”

“Why?”

“Well I come home after a week and you tell me you have a boyfriend and a boy ‘best friend’ that you’ve been to London with and have been inviting each other round to each other’s houses for a month. It’s too much” he’s getting angry.

“How is it too much? I communicate with boys...”

“Why don’t you just hang around with girls like normal people?” Those words hit me in the face like a brick.

“I do hang around with girls! I just have a better relationship with Jack and Conor. And what do you mean, like normal people?”

“It’s just strange”

“This is why I didn’t tell you. You just judge me all the time. Sorry for not being perfect” I stand up and run downstairs so Mum can back me up. “I knew I shouldn’t have fucking told him” I throw myself on the sofa.

“Woah, calm down. What happened?” she asks when he walks in.

“Apparently I’m not a normal person”

“Lucy, I didn’t say that” he says.

“Yes you did! You said ‘why don’t you just hang around with girls like normal people’”

“There was no need for that Adam” Mum sighs.

“How would you feel if you found out your daughter has been inviting boys over without you knowing?” he shouts.

“Fuck this” I mumble and walk out of the room. I slip on some shoes, grab my coat on the stairs and walk out of the house, slamming the front door behind me. I don’t know what I’m going to say but I start to call Conor.

“Hey!” he answers in a cheery voice.

“Conor, my Dad”

“What? Lucy, are you alright?”

“Are you in?”

“Yeah, um, come over”

“Ok, I’ll be there in two minutes” I end the call and power walk the rest of the way to his house.

I knock on his door and hear Anna and Conor’s voices.

“I’ll get it!” Anna shouts.

“Anna move, it’s for me” Conor argues. Anna swings open the door and smiles at me.

“Hi Lucy!”

“Hey babe, you alright?” I ask her.

“Anna move” Conor demands and she rolls her eyes before walking off. “Come in” he smiles. I walk into the living room with Conor and sit on his huge sofa. I barely ever come in this room...

I laugh, “Sorry about this”

“Don’t be daft, what’s wrong?”

“My fucking Dad. He came back today and I decided to show him the pictures in London, seeing as they’re like all over my wall,” I explain and he laughs “and he was alright about it at first but then he said ‘why don’t you just hang around with girls like normal people’. He took it way out of proportion and Mum tried sticking up for me but he wasn’t having it, so I just walked out”

“What a dick... Oo sorry” he says, covering his mouth.

I laugh, “Don’t be, I agree with you. He just expects me to be perfect all the time, you know?”

“Yeah, just give him some time and show him who you really are. You’re his daughter, he has to accept you for who you are. Just give it time” he puts his hand on my knee and I just nod before giving him a massive hug. I pull away and look at him.

“Since when have you been good with advice?”

“Fuck off!” he laughs. “Come on”

“Where are we going?”

“We were just trying to make food until you came so now you’re helping” he smiles and holds my hand to drag me into the kitchen.

“Well erm, actually, I’m gonna get going now”

“You’re not getting out of this Luce”

He pulls me into the kitchen and I see Jack stirring something in the pan while talking to Anna, sat on the kitchen side.

“Hey Lucy!” Anna smiles.

“Hey! Hi Jack” I smile and give him a hug.

"What are you doing here?" Jack panics slightly, looking back and forth between Conor. I look up at Conor and see him glaring at Jack.

"Just came to talk to Conor" I frown at his weirdness.

"Anyway" Conor tries to change the conversation. What the hell's going on?

“You helping? Conor’s no use” Jack forces a laugh. This has just gotten awkward now...

“Okay?” I laugh dryly, shrugging his awkwardness off.