His body shifted forward a fraction.
Turn and go.
Don’t even look back, Alice.
Just leave!
As she finally turned to run, she felt something grab her.
His hand had found hers. The hand she’d held so many times before.
God, how she’d missed his touch.
She felt her body turn back instinctively to face him again.
‘Wait.’
God, how she’d missed that sound.
The sound of him.
She tried to pull her hand away but he only held it tighter and squeezed. This was what home felt like, all along.
‘Alice?’ He raised an eyebrow and flashed her a wicked smile. ‘What the hell took you so long?’
Epilogue
Alfie
Five years later
‘Mr Mack! But what happens wh—’
‘Kaleb. Remember, we don’t shout out over each other. If we want to say something, we have to raise our hand,’ Alfie reminded him gently.
‘Sorry, sir.’ Kaleb’s eyes flashed in panic at the realization that he’d once again spoken without his hand up, which subsequently flew high up in the air, arm straight as an arrow.
The little boy looked as though he was about to explode at any moment if he wasn’t relieved of the burning question that he was holding between his puffed-out cheeks. Alfie managed to stifle a laugh. ‘Yes, Kaleb. What would you like to ask?’
‘What happens if peopledosay mean things to you. Don’t you get upset?’ Kaleb’s voice faltered and his gaze dropped to his lap.
Even though Alfie had been running these after-school sessions for nearly a year now, they never got any easier.Talking abouthisexperiences didn’t bother him much these days. He’d had enough practice in reliving every stomach-wrenching, heart-breaking moment of his life in his therapy sessions with Linda. So speaking about his mental health to school children was a dream in comparison to that. No. What got him the most, what kept him awake at night, was knowing just how many children were suffering in silence. He could recognize the signs immediately. The way they asked certain questions, the glances around the room to check they weren’t going to be laughed at, or dragged round the back of the school later and beaten because they’d dared to voice an opinion. Sometimes all Alfie had to do was look into their eyes and he’d see the pain – the humiliation swimming behind the glazed-over stares. But no matter how difficult and uncomfortable he found running the discussion groups, he had never felt prouder of anything in his life.
‘Well.’ Alfie straightened up and looked directly into Kaleb’s anxious face. ‘When people say mean things to me, the first thing I do is take a deep breath. Sometimes, I close my eyes and just take a moment to sit with how those words made me feel. Then I name those feelings: maybe it’s anger, or sadness or shame. Sometimes that’s enough for them to disappear. Other times, if they are very strong, I’ll take myself away from the situation and write down what happened. Everything. My thoughts, what I was wearing, what the other person was wearing, how I felt, what I wanted to say. I get it all out of my head and on to the paper. Then I usually tell someone I love what happened and we talk about it. Do you have someone you can talk to, Kaleb?’
The little boy’s face lit up instantly. ‘My big brother. I can tell him anything. He’s my best friend.’
Alfie’s insides melted and his heart surged in gratitude.‘Good. Then remember, if you ever find yourself in those situations, you can always talk to your brother. You’re never alone, OK?’ He tore his eyes away from Kaleb and surveyed the entire room. ‘And … even if you don’t have an older brother, or sister, or someone you can talk to in your family, you always have me. Always.’ The sea of worried little faces nodded in unison, and Alfie prayed that they believed him.
A pale hand shot up into the air. ‘Yes, Mandy?’ Alfie asked.
‘Who do you talk to, sir?’
Alfie’s face broke into a wide grin. Even after five years, the very thought of her sent electricity through his body.
‘Most of the time, I talk to my wife, Alice.’
Hushed excitement rolled over the children in waves. ‘Can we meet her, sir?’ Mandy chirped.
