‘Isn’t it the same as yours?’
‘Not quite.’ She points at the fireplace. ‘Mine is right behind yours, I guess we share a chimney. Shame they don’t work anymore.’
Now that is something I did not know, and I’m unbelievably relieved I didn’t try to light a fire a couple of nights ago when curiosity almost got the better of me. Mia runs one finger along the bookcase as I close the door gently.
‘The rest of it looks pretty similar. Don’t you just love all the old wood?’
‘Feels like I’m living inside a tree,’ I say, and she smiles. ‘My parents’ house was built in 1874, and I thought that was ancient. This is something else.’
‘Beaufort is pretty, though.’ Mia stands over by my window, resting against the ledge, like she’s still not sure she wants to committo sitting. ‘My grandparents took me and my older brother one time.’
‘Kane, right?’
‘Do you remember everything everyone tells you?’ she asks.
‘No,’ I reply and it’s true. I only remember the thingsshetells me. ‘And yeah, Beaufort is pretty, but it’s a small town. I can’t see myself moving back after college.’
Or even after this semester, I think, with a quick flash forward to a dark Christmas break spent alone in this room. Not something to worry about right now.
‘Me either. You think they’ll let me stay here if I’m real quiet and help out with chores?’
‘Sure.’ I chuckle as I hang my returned jacket on the hook behind the front door. ‘That’s the plan? You want to stay in the UK?’
‘Maybe? The only thing I ever really wanted was to come to Hemden, I have no idea what comes next. I’m the dog who caught the car, I guess.’
‘What if you could do anything? Pretend I’m a genie and you’ve got three wishes.’ I hold up three fingers. ‘Shoot.’
‘First wish has to be world peace, obviously.’
‘Obviously.’
One finger down.
‘Second wish, end world hunger?’
‘Eh, we can bundle that into world peace,’ I say. ‘Call it a twofer.’
‘Then I’m gonna have to go with waking up with perfectly styled hair every day. I can’t tell you how much time that would save.’
I laugh and she lights up, just a little, just enough for someone paying attention to notice.
‘And third.’ She takes a big breath in then sighs it out on a loud exhale. ‘When I was younger, I wanted to be an author but actually, I think I’d like to be an editor. At one of the big publishing houses, you know? I want to be the person who helps publish the books, find new writers, get their work out into the world. I would love that.’
‘What’s stopping you?’
‘It’s a difficult industry to break into. Most of the jobs go to people who already have connections. You have to go to grad school, move to New York, work unpaid internships. All those things take money I don’t have. The careers counsellor at Marshall did everything he could to steer me away. I figure having Hemden on my resume would help but it isn’t going to magically put thousands of dollars in my bank account. So unless you really are a genie, I have no plan.’
Growing up with money means never having to think about what it might mean if you didn’t have it. My dad’s cash has opened so many doors. Paid my way into multiple top-tier schools. Set me up with the best soccer coaches and equipment money can buy. Secured the best doctors in the state for Chris and paid for an awful lot of silence along the way. I wish there was something I could do to help Mia, someone who deserves an easier path way more than me, but I know that’s not how the world works.
‘I don’t know which is worse,’ I tell her. ‘Having no plan at all or having a plan and fucking it up.’
She slants her head to the side. ‘Wasn’t your plan to play for Hemden?’
‘Uh, I didn’t mean me,’ I say quickly, mad at myself for putting on a sweater. Too weird if I just whip it off to distract her with my bare chest again? ‘Just a hypothetical. I don’t really know pastcollege either. Soccer, hopefully, but if I go pro, I could end up anywhere. Can’t plan on anything.’
‘I always thought that must be strange for athletes. What if you really love where you live then your team trades you and you have to move to the other side of the country? You just have to uproot your whole family and go? Then do it all over again in a couple of years if things don’t work out?’
‘Even if they do work out in soccer. MLS is great but most of the guys I know, their big dream is to play in Europe. Italy, Germany, Spain, here in the UK.’
