‘Looksloadsbetter than it did before I went at it with a mop,’ Will said, patting the spot next him on the couch.
‘So,’ Divya said, sitting beside Will and shooting Oliver a sly look, ‘excited to see the man of your dreams tonight?’
Oliver blushed. His friends had been suitably shocked when he’d told them about Declan, and Will had found their reactions endlessly entertaining, insisting he hadn’t been surprised, not in the slightest, when Oliver had told him he was bisexual.
‘Please don’t call him that.’
‘Why? He’s the fittest on the show, not a bad choice at all.’ Her gaze was more approving than he’d expected.
Someone knocking saved Oliver from responding.
‘How are we the last ones here?’ Max asked, when Hanna opened the door on her way to the kitchen for a corkscrew. ‘We live ten metres down the hall.’
‘Why isn’t it on?!’ Chloe demanded from Max’s side, ushering him in and closing the door behind them. ‘We’re going to miss the recap!’
Oliver held up a pacifying hand, turning the TV on. His friends gathered around, Hanna leaning on him from the left and Chloe rubbing the top of his head affectionately. He felt an overwhelming sense of warmth just sitting with them.
‘And that’s what you missed onSummer of Love!’ Neil Steel declared over panning shots of the villa’s exterior.
Oliver was startled by the longing he felt looking at the patio area where he’d spent so many afternoons lounging, the kitchen where he’d made breakfast in the mornings, the deep turquoise of the pool. Even in the comfort of his friends’ company, it still felt like something was missing.
The footage seamlessly transitioned into a montage of Jack and Maeve’s relationship, from Jack kissing her hand during truth or dare the first week to their final slow dance.
‘He’s certainly not what I expected to find when I agreed to come on this show,’ Maeve was saying, gazing adoringly at Jack, who wore a ridiculously big grin.
‘I think I wore her down with my boyish charm!’
‘Boyish?’ Maeve teased. ‘You’re practically an old man.’
‘Take that back,’ Jack said, going in as if to tickle her but instead dropping a quick kiss to her forehead.
‘They’resocute,’ Chloe gushed. ‘Can’t believe she started with that prick Callum and ended up with the sweetest bloke of all.’
It shouldn’t have been surprising that Chloe had a perspective on his friends’ public relationship, but Oliver realised he hadn’t considered how weird this situation would be for him.
‘Ooh,’ Divya said, smirking at Oliver as Declan and Imogen appeared on screen. ‘Declan’s up. This should be good.’
Declan wore an expression he’d never directed at Oliver, rendering him almost unrecognisable. ‘Imogen and I are practically shoo-ins at this point,’ he said, with a smile that wasn’t even close to the real thing.
Oliver somehow hadn’t considered that the Declan on TV would be the version of him that everyone saw, not the one he knew. A lump formed in the back of his throat at the thought that he would never see that version of Declan again. He had been trying to be optimistic about the future – he had so many options ahead of him, so many directions to take his life in. And yet none of them involved the one thing he was certain he wanted.
On screen, Imogen smiled at Declan. ‘I’m so excited for what the future holds. It’s going to be one long adventure.’
Watching them together, with his friends representing only a sliver of the audience who had no idea what had happened, made Oliver suddenly nauseous.
‘Ugh,’ Chloe said, as another montage began, this time of James and Zoë. ‘I wish they would stop replaying clips I’ve already seen. I want to know who wins.’
‘Anyone want more wine?’ Oliver asked feebly, heading for the kitchen without waiting for a response. He stuck his head in the fridge, keeping it in the cool air for a long moment. By the time he returned with a glass of wine, Darcy was getting ready to announce third place.
She made unnerving eye contact with the camera, and Oliver gulped involuntarily as the live crowd cheered. ‘In third place…’ Darcy said dramatically, ‘we have… Declan and Imogen!’
Declan and Imogen smiled graciously from the side of the stage. The camera didn’t have a good angle on Declan’s face, but Oliver thought he looked almost relieved.
‘Declan,’ Darcy said cloyingly, ‘how does it feel to get so close, and lose it all?’
‘Well, Darcy,’ Declan started, his voice oozing with charm, ‘you know how much I hate to lose out on anything.’ He paused to look fondly at Imogen. ‘But somehow I still feel like a winner right now.’
Darcy frowned, turning to Imogen. ‘Imogen, you fell for Declan the moment you entered the villa. How does it feel knowing it simply wasn’t enough?’
