Burning Bright (3 page)

Flynn raised his eyebrows. ‘I just said I didn’t want to talk right now which—’

‘I know what you said, but it’s not fair. Alex knows. Emmi knows. And it’s not my fault Alex wound you up about whatever it is.’ I paused. ‘The truth is you
don’t trust me.’

Flynn blinked. He looked genuinely shocked.

‘It isn’t that, Riv, honest.’

‘Then tell me what happened rather than playing these stupid games – walking out and waiting for me to follow you.’ A gust of icy wind blew through my top. I shivered, wishing
I’d worn a warmer jacket.

Flynn smiled. He put his hands on my arms, warming them. I was turned on. Really turned on. Just by standing next to him. Just by the feel of his hands.

This made me even angrier, mostly with myself.

‘I know Alex was an idiot earlier but you’re spoiling the whole evening,’ I said, shaking off his hands. ‘And for what? Why? What’s the matter with you?’

I turned away, intending to march back into the restaurant. Flynn grabbed my arm again.

‘You’re right,’ he said. ‘I’m sorry. I was going to tell you what happened, but I didn’t want to have to think about it and get cross all over again.’
He paused. ‘I was actually trying
not
to spoil everything tonight.’

I sighed, letting his words sink in, feeling my rage ebb away. This was so typical of my life with Flynn. One minute I’d be full of fury. The next, Flynn would do or say something that
stood everything on its head and my anger would evaporate, as if it had never existed.

I let Flynn pull me round to face him. He slid his hands into mine.

‘The fight
was
about a girl, but not the way that sounds,’ he said in a low voice, his eyes burning into mine. ‘You know Café Yazmina?’

‘Of course.’ Café Yazmina was one of the places Flynn worked.

‘Well, one of Alex’s friends came in with his girlfriend when I was working there on Thursday night and apparently she lost her purse. The next day Alex and his friend accused me of
stealing it. They were totally in my face and I got mad and pushed them away. It’s just so typical. Everyone at school always assumes I’m to blame when anything happens.’

‘They thought you stole a purse?’ I frowned. My head had been so full of images of Flynn making out with another girl that I hadn’t stopped to consider he might have got into a
fight over something else. It didn’t fit with what I knew of him – Flynn might be mouthy and aggressive, but I couldn’t imagine him stealing anything.

‘It’s just an excuse . . . something to attack me with because I don’t fit in,’ Flynn said.

He sounded full of fight, but I could see the pain in his eyes.

‘Oh, Flynn,’ I said, moving closer to him. ‘They’ve got no proof. Nobody who knows you will listen to rubbish like that, it’s just gossip.’

Flynn made a face. ‘It’s not the first time I’ve been accused of stealing stuff. You know, things get lost and people at school go behind my back and tell the teachers it was
probably me. After a while everyone starts to believe it, even though there’s no evidence. And I’ve been given millions of detentions for my attitude, whatever that means, and for
fighting too.’ He hesitated. ‘After the fight yesterday they called in my mum and said I’d been in trouble too often. They . . . they gave me a one-day exclusion for
Monday.’

‘No,’ I breathed.

Flynn shrugged. ‘I mean, I couldn’t care less about missing the lessons, but I
have
to get my A levels.’ His mouth trembled. ‘Otherwise staying on at school will
have been a total waste of time.’

I nodded, understanding straight away. Unlike anyone else I knew, Flynn’s priority was to look after his mum. He was hoping to get to uni and become a lawyer . . . something that would
make people respect him, he’d said, and that paid really well.

We stood looking at each other for a moment. It struck me I’d been silly to get so upset before. I mean, sure, Flynn could have told me all that stuff earlier, but I understood why he
hadn’t wanted to go into it during the party and, anyway, he’d told me now. His life was so difficult . . . so full of problems I couldn’t begin to understand.

I lifted my face up a fraction and Flynn bent down to kiss me. A long, slow, lingering kiss. Goosebumps that had nothing to do with the cold air ridged along my arms.

‘So that’s why you stopped yourself from punching Alex, because you don’t want the school to have any more excuses to have a go at you?’

Flynn shrugged. ‘Partly,’ he said. ‘But also because you were there and I knew you’d hate it.’ He smiled, his whole face lighting up, and I felt a sudden rush of
love for him. I hugged him hard.

‘D’you want to go back in?’ Flynn said, pointing through the window to the others inside the restaurant.

I followed his gaze. Emmi was standing by Alex’s chair. Two of his friends, clearly drunk, were hanging on her every word. Further down the table James and Grace were deep in conversation.
Everyone was chatting and happy.

They didn’t need us. We didn’t need them.

‘No,’ I said. ‘Let’s go back to mine. Mum won’t be back till late.’

We walked along in silence. Flynn rested his arm across my shoulders. I wound mine round his lean, muscular back and put my head against his chest. I loved how we could walk along like that,
fitting perfectly into each other, not needing to say anything.

Everything was perfect.

Well, what happened earlier hadn’t been perfect – Flynn had got into an argument at school and been suspended and his tussle with Alex made it harder than ever for all our friends to
get on – but he hadn’t gone after any other girls.

He was mine.

Totally mine.

‘See you later, Mum,’ I yelled as I charged across the hall the following Saturday. I’d hoped to get away from the house before she stopped me, but she was
out of the kitchen and into the hall before I’d even opened the front door.

‘Where are you going?’ Her eyes narrowed suspiciously. ‘I thought we could go out later – do some shopping, spend some time together. I never get to see you properly
nowadays.’

‘Sorry, Mum.’ I shot her an apologetic smile. ‘I’m meeting Grace and Emmi,’ I lied. ‘I’m late, in fact.’ I pulled the front door open.

‘Well, when will you be back?’ Mum’s voice was plaintive. Typical. She sometimes spent whole weekends at stupid work conferences and yet as soon as she had a free Saturday, she
expected me to drop everything and do stuff with her.

‘Later.’ I shot out the door before she could ask me any more questions. It’s not that Mum and I don’t get on at all, but she doesn’t like Flynn – she’s
made it clear she thinks he is rude and aggressive – plus she has an annoying tendency to act as if I’m about nine years old.

I ran down the road, looking forward to meeting Flynn. He’d done an early shift at his car-wash place today so he was free to take his little sister, Caitlin, to some party at midday. She
was going back to a friend’s afterwards. His mum and older sister, Siobhan, were working all day. We were going to spend the afternoon on our own at Flynn’s place.

There was nothing wrong with this, of course. But I knew if I’d told Mum she would have just made a fuss about how much time I spent with Flynn. She didn’t seem to appreciate that we
went to different schools and, when you factored in all Flynn’s jobs and our homework, we had hardly any time to ourselves.

I reached the high street and strolled down to the post office. Flynn had said he was picking something up for his mum and that I should meet him and Caitlin there.

The queue for the counters was out the door when I arrived. I caught sight of Flynn immediately, about halfway down the line. I made my way past the other customers – mostly elderly men
and women – to reach him. He saw me coming and smiled. His presence filled the room.

‘Hi,’ I said breathlessly.

‘Hi.’ Flynn pulled me close, fixing me with his eyes as he bent his face to mine.

A few months ago I would never have let anyone kiss me so publicly. Now I didn’t care. I only cared about being with him. I closed my eyes and let myself fall into the kiss. Falling was
what our whole relationship felt like right now. Falling in love. Falling into each other. Like we were flying, floating down through endless air. The rest of the world rushing by, all we needed in
our arms.

An elderly lady in the queue behind us tutted to her friend.

‘No shame, these kids,’ she muttered.

I smiled as I carried on kissing Flynn.

‘Oh don’t go on, Vi,’ her friend sighed. ‘Why shouldn’t they?’

I felt Flynn smiling back.

‘Cashier number four, please,’ boomed the electronic voice above our heads.

‘Cashier number four, please,’ mimicked a loud, giggling chorus of little girls’ voices.

Caitlin. I’d forgotten she was even going to be here. I pulled away from Flynn and opened my eyes. I saw Caitlin immediately. She was just around the corner, lounging against the far wall
of the post office, her face, so like Flynn’s, wreathed in cheeky smiles. Two little blonde girls stood on either side of her. All three of them were doubled up with laughter.

‘Cashier number four, please,’ they repeated in even sillier voices, collapsing into more giggles.

I looked round at Flynn. He rolled his eyes. ‘They’re driving me mad,’ he said.

‘You taking all of them to this party?’ I asked, sliding my arm round his waist.

Flynn nodded, then leaned over the barrier that separated us and scowled at them. ‘You guys are total pains in the butt. You know that?’

The two little blonde girls giggled shyly up at him.

I nudged him. ‘Those two have such a crush on you,’ I whispered.

Flynn shook his head. ‘Doesn’t mean they take any notice of what I say,’ he said back.

I grinned at this new image of Flynn. Aggressive, hard-headed and terrifying – and floored by a couple of eight-year-olds.

‘Hi, River.’ Caitlin was smiling up at me.

‘Hi,’ I said. ‘I like your top.’

Caitlin peered down at the pink T-shirt she was wearing. ‘Thanks. Are you coming to my first Holy Communion?’

I frowned. I dimly remembered Flynn’s mum mentioning something about a first Holy Communion the very first time I’d met her last year. I’d had no idea what it was then and I
had no better idea now.

‘Sure,’ I said. ‘What is it? When is it?’

Caitlin’s friends giggled again. Caitlin herself turned to Flynn. She put her hands on her hips. ‘You promised you’d ask her,’ she said in an outraged voice.

Flynn’s face suddenly clouded over. ‘You know I’m not going,’ he said harshly. ‘So there’s no point.’

We’d reached the head of the queue. ‘Cashier number five, please,’ the electronic voice boomed.

Flynn stepped swiftly away from us and strode up to the counter. I looked down at Caitlin. Her face was sulky and cross, her lips pressed firmly together.

‘What happens at this Communion thing?’ I said.

Caitlin lowered her eyes. I suddenly realised she was trying not to cry.

‘You get to wear a party dress and stuff,’ said one of the friends, smoothing down her hair.

‘And have a party after,’ added the other, grinning.

Caitlin looked up. ‘It’s really about taking the bread and wine for the first time,’ she said sullenly.

‘Oh.’ I felt none the wiser, but decided there was no point asking more questions. Clearly it didn’t really matter what the whole thing was about. That wasn’t what was
important to Caitlin, anyway.

I took the girls to the door of the post office. Caitlin was very quiet as we stood there, waiting for Flynn.

After we’d dropped the three of them at their party we walked to the bus stop to go back to his. It was raining and Flynn – who owned no coat apart from a completely hideous jacket
he refused to wear unless it was actually freezing and he knew no one would see him – was soaked.

We stood, kissing, at the bus stop. Flynn’s shirt was damp under my hands. I pulled away, laughing. ‘You’re making me all wet,’ I said.

He reached out for me again, grinning. ‘I’ll take it off as soon as we get home, okay? And then I’ll take off yours and I’ll dry you . . . mmmn . . . Now come
here.’

‘Hey, Flynn.’ I thought back to our conversations earlier in the week.

‘Mmmn, yeah?’

‘You never told me what it was like being suspended?’

‘That’s in the past now, let’s not talk about it, yeah?’ He tried to kiss me again.

‘Okay.’ I hesitated. If he wouldn’t talk about last Monday’s exclusion, maybe he would open up about something that was going to happen in the future. ‘Why
can’t we go to Caitlin’s Communion thing?’

His eyes locked onto mine. ‘You know.’

‘No. I don’t. I didn’t know anything about it, remember?’

‘Don’t be mad about that.’ Flynn sighed. ‘Mum did ask me to ask you, but I’m against the whole thing, so—’

‘But Caitlin was really upset when you said you weren’t coming,’ I persisted.

A bus drew up and we got on. I followed Flynn up the stairs. The bus was virtually empty. We sat towards the back. Flynn put his arm round my shoulder and leaned in to me.

‘Why can’t you go for Caitlin?’ I said. ‘For your mum?’

Flynn’s eyes darkened. I knew from long experience this was the time to draw back. That he was just seconds away from losing his temper.

That I shouldn’t push it anymore.

‘I think you’re being selfish,’ I said.

Flynn slammed his hand down hard on the seat beside him.

‘You don’t freakin’ know anything about it, Riv,’ he said. ‘The whole thing’s wrong. What Caitlin’s doing, it’s like something kids are
brainwashed into – I mean she just sees it as a big excuse for a party, but it’s actually about becoming a Catholic – about joining in with everyone else taking Communion. And you
know what Communion is? What the bread and wine are supposed to mean? Jesus’s body and his blood.
That’s
what you’re actually supposed to be eating. It’s
freakin’ cannibal, Riv. It’s disgusting.’

My heart pounded. His face, his angry face, was terrifying.

I put my hand on his arm and took a deep breath. ‘I don’t see why any of that means you can’t be there for Cait,’ I said. ‘I mean, how often does she see your
dad?’