‘You’re very welcome.’
They drifted back towards the other kids. ‘Mate, what’s this beer?’ one of the dads asked, draining half the plastic cup I’d poured them in a single swallow. ‘It’s fucking awesome.’
I opened my mouth to answer, but Fiona got in first. ‘It’s a lager from Bruny Island. Satoshi has it on tap.’
‘I do,’ I said. ‘Tsundoku is a wine bar, but we’re serious about good beer too. Come in sometime for a pint.’
‘I will, mate. Cheers.’
They left. ‘Thanks for the plug,’ I said, nudging Fiona. ‘You just can’t help giving me free advertising, can you?’
‘You don’t need it.’ She nudged me back. ‘You’re a good enough advertisement all on your own.’
Night had almost completely fallen, the pinks and reds of the summer sunset giving way to dark blues and greys. A few stars were visible in the sky, almost perfectly mirroring the little constellation of freckles beside Fiona’s nose, their light winking off the few strands of silver hair at her temples.
‘Thank you,’ she said. ‘For coming when I needed you.’
No one seemed to be looking in our direction, so I dared to reach out and take her hand, tracing my fingers down her wrist and along her palm before clasping it. ‘Any time.’
She smiled at me and squeezed my fingers, and for a few heartbeats, we were the only two people in the world.
But then more thirsty parents approached us and we slipped back into service mode, transitioning gradually, as the evening wore on, from pouring drinks to packing down. I watched her in my peripheral vision as we worked, her eyes sparkling like the summer stars were caught in them, the most beautiful person I had ever seen.
We were doing the right thing, going slow. She’d been hurt so badly, and if there was even the slightest chance she might one day trust me with her heart as well as her body, I had to show her she could trust me to keep it safe.
None of that changed the fact that right here, right now – this minute – this second – I wanted her so fucking badly.
‘Lex, can you wait here and make sure no one runs off with Satoshi’s keg?’ Fiona called, putting a few last empty wine bottles back into the cases. ‘We’re just going to take these to the bin.’
Lex nodded. I picked up one of the cases. ‘I’m not sure why anyone would want to steal an empty keg, but thanks for protecting it.’
‘Are you kidding? You heard those craft beer dads.’ Fiona picked up the other case. ‘I wouldn’t put it past them to steal it for a homebrew set up or something.’
I followed her across the oval and around the corner of the school hall to the bins. ‘I know I’ve said it already,’ she said, as we started putting bottles into the dumpster, ‘but I can’t thank you enough for tonight. Truly. The last week or so has been pretty rocky, and I really needed a win.’
‘It was no trouble at all.’
She gave me a look. ‘I don’t know how you definetrouble, but magically turning up with half a bar’s worth of booze five seconds after I flashed the Satoshi signal into the sky for sure required some.’
‘Seriously, it’s fine.’ I flattened a cardboard box. ‘Isamu was at the bar anyway, so I had cover. Besides, this wine probably would have gone to waste otherwise – it’s all leftover open bottles from study group yesterday.’
‘Satoshi,’ she said, ‘are you telling me that so you can try and give it to me for free?’
‘No.’ It was mostly true. ‘They all would have oxidised sooner rather than later. Plus, some of them were complete garbage. Taking money for them would be a crime.’
She chuckled. ‘Fine, fine. I’m paying for the beer, though. How much for the keg?’
I named a price that was about a third of market value. She nodded, a furrow forming between her brows. ‘I can make that work.’
Shit. I should have gone lower.
‘Can I pay you tomorrow?’ A few more bottles clanked as she threw them into the dumpster. ‘When I come in for our study session?’
‘Of course.’ I flattened the other cardboard box. ‘And I heard you before, by the way. No further than second base.’
She exhaled. ‘Sorry. The second I think I’ve got my shit together, something else will happen that sends me into panic mode, and—’
‘Hey.’ I caught her wrist. ‘You don’t need to apologise, remember? There’s no hurry. It’s not a race. We can take as much time as you need.’
