‘He wanted to spend some time with his girlfriend at her family’s place in Canada. Finn has a band in LA, so when Dan heard he was coming over, he asked if he’d fill in as a favour.’
It all comes back to me in a rush: the reason Finn left Cornwall.
‘Oh God, I’ve just remembered what happened to his mum!’ I say. ‘That was so awful.’
‘Yeah,’ Rach agrees soberly.
How could I have forgotten? His mother went missing on Christmas Day when we were in Year 10. Her clothes were found on a cliff edge not far from here – it was presumed she had jumped with the intention of taking her own life. The sea had swallowed up her body without a trace, so the family couldn’t even have a proper funeral. And then Finn had toleave Cornwall to go and live with his biological father in America.
‘So Finn still lives in America?’
‘Yep.’
‘What’s he doing back?’
‘Seeing his grandparents and his brothers.’
‘I forgot that he has brothers.’
‘Half-brothers, technically. They all have different dads.’
‘I didn’t even know he and Dan were friends.’
‘Dan is friends with everyone.’
It’s true. He’s that kind of guy; remembers names, is always willing to stop for a chat on the street. He might be the lead guitarist rather than the singer, but everyone thinks of the band as his.
‘How long is he here for?’
‘Six weeks,’ Rach replies. ‘But he’s been here a couple already.’
We’re almost halfway into July.
She must read something in my expression because she grins. ‘Obsessed!’
‘Shut up. Anyway, you can talk. How do you know all this?’
‘Eyes and ears to the ground, my friend. Eyes and ears to the ground.’
‘No, seriously, how?’
‘Sophie and Claire had all the gossip.’ They’re another two of our former schoolmates. ‘They were all over Finn last weekend when the band did their first gig. Almost slipped over in their drool. You have your work cut out for you if you’re interested.’
I wave her off. ‘I’m not interested.Orup for it, for that matter.’
I have other things on my mind this summer.
Rach and I dance and shout-talk the next hour away, but through it all I’m hyperaware of Finn. I may have other things to focus on right now, but I can’t pretend that shivers don’t run down my spine on the rare occasions that he addresses the room.
Towards the end of the night, Amy joins us on the dance floor.
‘I’m so happy we’re going to be working together again,’ she says, giving me a hug.
We both did a stint here the year we turned eighteen. It felt like the end of an era then – I was heading off to Edinburgh for four years and she was taking a gap year before starting a three-year course in midwifery – but now it feels like the start of the rest of our lives.
‘At least until you get one of these jobs you’ve been applying for,’ I reply with a smile, tucking her flyaway long blonde hair behind her ears.
‘I’m sure I won’t. They’ll go to someone with more experience.’
