‘How so?’
‘After we were told it was … terminal, he did like many people do and sank into a depression. Well, who can blame him?’
‘I’d be as angry as hell.’
‘He was at first, too. He thought he had his whole life ahead of him only to be told it’s not going to last as long as he’d assumed …’ She paused and turned her head away from Jade, as if she had suddenly just relived the moment the awful news had been delivered all over again. She cleared her throat and continued.
‘It was pretty bad, Jade. None of us knew how to react or how to help him. Then, at the darkest time of his life, he discovered he had a DNA Match, and it didn’t matterthat she lived in a different country or that he’d probably never meet her face to face. Just knowing you were out there and being in communication with one another was a reason for him to continue.’
‘I had no idea about any of this—’
‘And he should have told you. I told him you deserved to know, but he didn’t know how to bring it up. For him, you were a welcome distraction from it. When you and he were texting or talking, he’d forget about what was happening to his body. He became a different person … He was my little boy again.’ Susan clasped Jade’s hand firmly. ‘Thank you,’ she whispered. ‘Thank you for being my boy’s friend and thank you for coming to see him.’
‘I’m glad I came.’ Jade smiled. It had been a long and extraordinary day, and as it caught up on her, she suddenly wanted to cry. It wasn’t a feeling she was used to – she hated people thinking she was weak – so she swallowed hard and kept the tears down. She meant it, she thought, she was pleased she had met Kevin and already she felt close to him.
But there was just one problem – she knew that on meeting her Match, she wasn’t in love with him.
Chapter 34
NICK
It turned out the feeling Nick and Alex had shared in Alex’s clinic wasn’t a fluke.
The moment he spotted Alex in the trendy Birmingham bar, Nick was scared his legs might give way beneath him before he’d even reached the table. The two men politely shook hands and gave each other awkward smiles.
‘Can I get you a drink?’ Nick asked.
‘Sure, another one of these, thanks, mate,’ Alex replied, and lifted his bottle of lager.
Nick nodded and headed to the bar. As he ordered their drinks he noticed Alex’s reflection in the mirror behind the spirits. Sally was right when she’d commented on Alex’s handsome appearance. Even as a straight man, Nick could appreciate he was a good-looking guy. He was much more masculine than him and held himself confidently. He was the kind of guy women flocked to, and for some reason this thought made him feel funny inside. He checked his phone to see if Sally had received the text he’d sent telling her he’d be late home because of a client meeting. It was a plausible lie, he thought, as he often had to wine anddine existing and prospective clients. ‘OK babe, luv u.’ He read her reply. He didn’t respond.
Nick returned to the booth with their bottles, sat down and took off his coat.
Neither knew where to begin.
‘So how’ve you been?’ Nick said eventually.
‘Good, thanks. Pretty busy at work, you know. You?’
‘Yeah, same here, same here.’
Both men simultaneously looked down at their drinks, unable to maintain any prolonged eye contact and risk a repeat of what they’d felt the first time they’d met. Two choruses of an old Oasis song played in the background before either of them said another word, both feeling cripplingly self-aware.
‘Actually, things aren’t good,’ admitted Nick. ‘There’s no easy way for me to say this without sounding like a total idiot, but I need to get this off my chest before I back out. The more I try not to think about it, the more it becomes the only thing I can think about at all. It’s about what happened … the first time we met.’
He paused, realising how ridiculous he sounded. He looked at Alex hoping for confirmation that he might be feeling the same, but Alex’s face gave little away.In for a penny, in for a pound, Nick thought and continued regardless. ‘That feeling I got when I looked at you as I was leaving; I’ve thought it through a thousand times since and I still can’t explain it properly. None of it make sense. I’m not gay.’
‘I’m not gay either,’ Alex replied.
‘So why do we have this link?’
‘I don’t know.’
‘I’ve not so much as kissed a guy, not even for a laugh or when I was drunk.’
‘Me neither.’
‘So if neither of us are into blokes, then what’s happening here?’
