‘I know.’ He kisses me long and slow before giving me a dazzling smile. ‘Bet you’re glad you gave in and brought your wellies now.’
‘Gladis a strong word,’ I reply, peering out the window at the dark clouds. ‘I’d rather I didn’t need them at all.’
‘Well, Max sent me an article this morning about the supposed wild storm that’s coming our way,’ he says smugly.Whilst the relationship between Elliot and his brother had been warped by the events of the last few years, it has slowly and patiently been rebuilt since last summer. It’s by no means perfect, but the kink has been reshaped and repaired as a result of constant care and transparency on all sides. I happily refer to myself as Elliot’s Honesty Coach, much to his chagrin.
‘No such thing as a Firecrest storm, Elliot,’ I insist. ‘It’s going to be very warm andsodry. And need I remind you that if it does rain that much you’re going to be walking around with a red cloud on your arm? You’ve witnessed it. You will have a clown for a girlfriend.’
He grins and takes a lock of my hair between his fingers. ‘I love the cloud.’
‘The cloud loves no one. The cloud absorbs everything and everyone in its path without mercy,’ I say seriously.
He shushes me and captures my lips again, threading his fingers through my hair, and my whole body relaxes.
When we walkinto the diner, we’re greeted by loud cheers from Owen and Josh, who are already sitting at a large booth by the window with Hennie. The seating is covered in ripped red leather, the tables a scratched and worn down metal decorated with laminated menus and tall bottles of condiments. The rattle of the rain against the windows only gets louder.
Josh has ignored the weather forecast entirely and is wearing a baggy vest and shorts with his usual bandana tied around his head. Owen turns back to Hennie with a grin as he takes a sip of his coffee. The five of us have become something so solid and familiar that I forget now what it was like to not know them.
It started not long after Firecrest. For Hennie’s birthday, they all came down to Brighton on a gloomy Saturday armed with balloons and beer, and we sat in my living room with more pizza than we could possibly eat – Owen playing music so loudly my neighbours started knocking on the walls. Elliot and I snuck up to my room as Josh and Owen passed out on the sofas and Hennie headed home, and when he took my body in his arms it felt like everything had slotted perfectly into place.
Elliot and I throw ourselves down next to Hennie and order two more coffees from the waitress. As soon as she’s gone Josh throws down his annual Firecrest to-do list to discuss, but Owen quickly interrupts him.
‘We can’t do that one in the rain, Ham,’ he says, pointing at one that says:get Owen to recreate Route 16 group pic from last year. ‘I can’t get my camera wet.’
‘Fuck the rain,’ Josh spits. ‘It’s not going to rain.’
The sound of thunder practically shakes the diner.
‘Exactly!’ I reply, turning to Elliot with indignation, but he just smiles and throws an arm around my shoulders.
‘It’s fine. If it rains, we just wear our waterproof shit and get on with it,’ Owen insists with a shrug. ‘But no photos.’
‘I don’t own any waterproof shit,’ Josh argues. ‘I’m not middle-aged or boring.’
‘You’re gonna be the boring one when you’re soaking wet and freezing,’ Elliot says plainly, nodding with thanks at the waitress who hands over two steaming mugs of coffee.
‘I have a spare umbrella, Ham,’ Hennie interjects.
‘There we go!’ Josh says with a wide smile. ‘See, that’s friendship. Take notes, Walker.’
Elliot responds by throwing a sweetener sachet at his face, and Josh releases a horrified squeal of surprise.
‘See this guy?’ Josh addresses Owen, pointing a thumb in Elliot’s direction. ‘Brings an anorak to a festival and thinks he’s the second child of Christ.’
Owen tries not to laugh and just nods at Hennie. ‘Thank God Hennie is here, as usual.’
I resist making eyes at Elliot, who is somehow convinced that there isn’t anything going on between Hennie and Owen. While Hennie lightly denies it and claims they’ve just become close friends, for some reason I don’t fully believe her. The way I catch them looking at each other every so often makes me so sure that there must be some feelings there, but I don’t feel I can quiz her on it any further.
We discuss the line-up in detail: which acts we should see and who could be missed. Queen Ego aren’t playing this year, which means I’m happy to be led by everyone else. I’m looking forward to not carrying any guilt about dragging the whole group around this time.
‘Anything you want to see, Nora?’ Owen asks, probably noticing my lack of input.
I shrug a shoulder. ‘Nope. Just… happy to see what happens.’
Josh points at me as he turns to the group. ‘And this is exactly the stunning vibe we need to be going for, team. Less plans, more following wherever our hearts lead us.’
‘Less plans? What about your to-do list?’ Hennie asks.
‘Well, obviously that needs to stay. It’s essential.’
