‘Well, fine. Looks like we should all get acquainted if these two are about to become superglued at the hip,’ Hennie suggests.
‘Yeah, so true.’ Josh nods sternly. ‘How do you feel about K-pop?’
Hennie and I turn to each other, brows raised. ‘Good?’ we both say with a shrug.
‘Mmm.’ Josh’s lips press together. ‘Disappointing.’
This explains the K-pop group that adorns the huge white t-shirt that hangs over his lean, tanned limbs.
They nod politely as Hennie and I introduce ourselves.
‘I’m sorry about them.’ Owen gestures at both of his friends. ‘You’ll get used to them eventually.’
Getting used to Elliot is not something I can see happening, but I appreciate the sentiment.
‘Just to be clear,’ Josh says hurriedly. ‘I don’t even reallylikeham. It’s not a meat-preference-based nickname.’ His voice is airy and high in comparison to Elliot and Owen’s rumbling deep tones. Elliot snorts before shaking his head incredulously. He’s noticeably more relaxed in their presence – his body has loosened and his shoulders have dropped significantly. And I have to say, I can see why. I can’t force the smile off my face from the boys’ infectious warmth.
‘Untrue, he carries ham with him everywhere,’ Owen retorts. ‘He calls it his “bag meat”. Don’t you, Ham?’
‘Ignore him. He’s misleading you, he is sick and twisted,’ Josh snaps.
My eyes trail down to Josh’s small crossbody bag, briefly wondering if there reallyisham in there. He must notice it as he exclaims, ‘Fine, I’ll prove it! I won’t stand for this assassination of my character.’
But then he reaches into his bag and, indeed, pulls out… a square piece of wafer thin ham.
‘Oh, you fucking losers,’ he breathes, venom in his eyes. ‘When did you even put that there?’
‘Genius,’ Elliot murmurs to Owen.
Owen turns to us with a smirk. ‘Sorry about him, his behaviour can’t really be explained–’
He is interrupted by the ham flying at his face, letting out a loud yelp as it hits his cheek. He retrieves it with a grin and runs over to unapologetically rub it into Josh’s hair.
‘Oh, you fucking – Ihateyou–’ Josh splutters while laughing, attempting to prise Owen’s hands away. Elliot covers his mouth with a fist as he tries to cover his laughter and I take in the sight, realising it’s the first time I’ve seen him really smile. I can’t help but stare at the tiny dimple that appears next to his mouth and the crinkles that form around his eyes. It’s astoundingly pretty. So pretty that I almost feel my cheeks flush until I get a hold of myself.
‘Great, now I’m going to smell like sandwich,’ Josh complains, but he doesn’t look upset. If anything, he looks like he’s desperately trying not to laugh too. He aggressively rakes his hands through his hair and nods toward the boys. ‘You see what I have to deal with? Sick andtwisted.’
Owen just shakes his head, his face blank. ‘I did not put that there.’
‘Oh, shut up,’ Josh barks. ‘And grow up.’
‘You grow up.’
Hennie and I exchange a look. Her lips tremble with mirth.
Without pause, Josh flips the conversation to report they should get going to a different stage.
‘You guys know Linnea?’ Owen asks. ‘She’s great, and it’ll be a perfect show for The Magpie.’
‘You guys are really coming?’ Josh says, gesturing at Hennie and I.
‘Yes, they’re coming,’ Elliot says in a bored tone.
‘Cool,’ Owen says simply with a nod. ‘Let’s go.’
Josh’s face lights up with his wolfish grin once again as he bounds behind us and briefly rests an arm on each of our shoulders. ‘Alright peaches. Welcome to the greatest weekend of your lives.’
Elliot sighs as Josh begins to prance away. ‘You don’t mind going to see Linnea?’
