“Yeah. He was just an old friend of my mum’s.”
Amy glanced over her shoulder. “He doesn’t look too good.”
“He doesn’t. But that’s not my problem.”
We walked, none of us saying a word for a few minutes, until I couldn’t stand the silence any longer. I turned to Amy. “Grace told me you’re studying medicine.”
She smiled proudly. “Yeah, in my third semester.”
“You need pretty good grades for that, right?”
“My twin is super smart!” Grace interjected, throwing an arm around Amy’s shoulders. “She’s always wanted to be a doctor. When we were kids, she’d make me pretend to be her patient. I usually survived, but sometimes, she’d make me die on the operating table. The little sadist.”
“Hey! I only made you die when you talked.”
“And I only talked when you were doing a crappy job.”
Amy laughed. “Yes, but you weren’t supposed to be able to talk. You were under general anaesthetic.”
“It was boring to play a game where all I could do was lie there.”
I smiled at their bickering and found myself wondering, not for the first time, what it would have been like to grow up with siblings. I couldn’t rule out the possibility that I had some. Perhaps my dad had had impregnated other women, or he’d settled down and was living in a cute terraced house somewhere with his wife and my half-siblings, who didn’t know I existed. But I had come to terms with that, because there was no point in mourning something I’d never had—or that perhaps didn’t even exist.
Grace and Amy shared more anecdotes about their childhood and their brother, Jason, who was going through puberty and hated everything. They also talked about their parents. Their dad was a doctor, which had inspired Amy, and their mum was a teacher. I liked hearing their family stories, but it also stung a little, especially when they spoke about their mum. It reminded me just how much I missed my own. To distract myself, I told them about my plans to get a second job so I’d have more financial stability. I had already sent out a few online applications. Finding a job in this city wasn’t easy—especially not for a high school dropout. I was willing to do just about anything, but I had no qualifications, andmost companies required them—a lot of them. Simply because they could. London had a large job market, but the number of applicants was even larger. Every day, people with more impressive CVs were moving here.
We arrived at the secondhand shop where I had bought my leather jacket two years ago. Some items were pricey, but there were also some real bargains. The shop had a large selection, including a section for evening wear, which I made a beeline for while Amy and Grace drifted off in different directions.
I sifted through the dresses on the rack to get an overview. I didn’t really know what I was looking for, except that I wanted something black. I’d need to wear a mask, and everything looked good with a dark dress. Grace disappeared into the changing room with a pile of clothes, while Amy rifled through the jewellery and accessories.
“What do you think about these trousers?” Grace asked.
I watched her twist in front of the mirror to get a better view of her bum, which looked incredible in the dark-green leather trousers she had tried on. “I think they look great.”
“What do you think, Amy?”
“You should definitely get them!” she said, just as her phone rang in her handbag. She smiled when she pulled it out and saw who was calling. “Hey, what’s up? I’m shopping with Grace and her friend.”
I couldn’t hear the person on the other end, but I saw Amy’s smile falter until it disappeared altogether.
“Oh, OK. No problem,” she said quietly.
“...”
“I could come with you, if you want.”
“...”
“Of course. I get it. But Halloween is still on?” she asked hopefully.
“...”
Her smile returned. “Cool. I’m looking forward to it. Have fun tonight. I love you.”
She hung up and turned back to us.
Grace was still standing before the mirror, but her enthusiasm for the trousers was gone. Instead, she seemed annoyed. With her hands on her hips, she glared at her sister. “Please tell me that wasn’t Garrett.”
“It wasn’t Garrett.”
