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The Smyths’ sitting room resembled the chaotic interior of a back-street antique store. I breathed in the stuffy air as I sat on the couch among the tasselled cushions, staring up at the dusty chandelier. I like antique stores. I like rummaging through all the objects to find hidden treasures. In that sitting room I longed to examine the ornaments and the photographs and memorabilia, but I couldn’t, because Colin Smyth sat on the chair across from me, his eyes fixed on the flickering television. He had a thick mop of red hair and his attractive face was covered in pale freckles. He wore a blue shirt and grey cord trousers.
Quite a stylish dresser, I thought. Back in the caravan I’d frantically tried to make myself look presentable. I was wearing a short purple velvet dress that I’d bought in a vintage shop, black fishnet tights and black Converse. Although Colin wasn’t really my type, he had a certain cuteness, so I was glad I’d made an effort.
Colin hadn’t said much during dinner but he seemed nice. He had happily obliged when Brigid suggested that he bring me into the sitting room to watch TV, but he totally avoided making eye contact with me. I don’t normally like people who do this – it makes me uneasy. But I decided to let Colin off the hook, as he just seemed to be a bit shy.
We hadn’t spoken a word since we sat down in front of the TV. I tried to think of a conversation starter as I scanned the framed paintings and prints that clashed with the floral-papered walls.
Several times it seemed as if Colin was about to say something, but then he would just look back at the television, pretending to be enthralled by it. Then when he wasn’t flicking through the channels he was fidgeting with the button on his shirtsleeve. He twisted it round and round and round.
Just think of something to say, Jacki. Anything at all.
Round and round it twirled, then – ping! – the button bounced on to the wooden floor and rolled away, skimming the rug and disappearing from view. Colin’s face went bright red. I stood up to look for it.
‘It’s OK. It doesn’t matt-’
‘I think it went over here,’ I said.
I knelt down to check under a glass-fronted cabinet, but was distracted by the unusual objects inside. These included a perfume bottle, a magnifying glass and a delicately painted porcelain egg with a hinge on the side. I very much wanted to open the egg to see what was in it.
‘Found it!’ said Colin.
‘Thought you two might like a snack -’ Brigid Smyth walked in with a bowl of freshly made popcorn to find us both on our knees on the floor.
‘Oh… thanks,’ I said, scrambling back to the couch.
‘Are you two OK?’
‘Yes, Mam,’ said Colin. ‘We were just looking for my button.’ He held it up to show her.
‘Oh, right,’ she said. ‘I’ll leave you to it then.’ She headed back to the kitchen.
Colin took a handful of popcorn from the bowl. I noticed that there were flecks of paint on the backs of his hands and remembered Brigid had said at dinner that Colin liked art, so I decided to spark up a conversation and find out more.
‘What kind of art do you do?’ I said. I liked drawing, but I wasn’t very good at art and I didn’t know a lot about it.
‘Oh, I like lots of different styles. At the moment I’m really into Manga-inspired stuff, you know, like the Japanese comics,’ he answered, shifting his gaze away from the TV and looking at me instead.
‘Wow, that sounds really cool.’ My friend Hannah would’ve been disgusted if she’d heard me say that. Last year her brother had done a twenty-four-hour comic workshop in Dublin with some famous Manga artist. She said she wouldn’t be seen dead going to such a nerdfest. But Hannah wasn’t here now, and I really needed to make some new friends.
‘Yeah, I read a lot of Manga,’ said Colin, ‘so I like drawing that sort of stuff. Anything Japanese really fascinates me.’
‘How do you do it?’ I asked. ‘Do you use a computer?’
‘First I make a sketch,’ he said, sitting up a little bit straighter, ‘then scan it on to my laptop. Then I either work on it digitally, or print it off and use ink and watercolours. That’s what I was doing today, before dinner. I just finished one off.’ It seemed that Colin could be quite talkative once he was concentrating on a topic that interested him.
‘Can I see it?’ I said.
He hesitated for a moment but then got up from his armchair and lowered the brass handles of the doors that separated us from the next room. Then he pushed them open to reveal possibly the coolest bedroom I’ve ever seen.
‘This is your room?’ I said in awe.
‘Yep,’ said Colin, clearing a path through the chaos of clothes and comics on the floor. ‘One summer Mam wanted to use my old bedroom for some guests so I got shoved in here. I really like it so I convinced her to let me keep it.’
Colin’s bedroom was really big, just slightly smaller than the sitting room. The walls were covered in various Japanese film posters. I recognized Akira and Spirited Away. Computer games and DVDs were stacked beside a TV along with an assortment of anime figures. There were a couple of plates and glasses on the floor. The blue duvet cover was crumpled up at the foot of the bed and a noticeboard hung over the headboard with tons of stuff pinned to it – sketches, magazine clippings, ticket stubs. The computer desk was littered with pens, pencils and discarded pieces of paper. I followed Colin through the mess to the back corner of the room. A wooden easel stood there, holding a recently completed project. It was of a girl with jet-black hair and blood-red lips. Her head was bowed and a single red tear, like a drop of blood, stained her white cheek. The overall effect was striking, and I was captivated by it.
‘It’s incredible,’ I said. ‘You’re really talented.’
I couldn’t take my eyes off it.
‘Thanks,’ he said, blushing slightly.
‘Is she based on anyone you know?’ I asked, as I took in all the detail.
‘No, she just sort of appeared in my head.’
I knew what Colin meant. Sometimes ideas for songs just popped into my head, and I had no idea where they came from.
‘Are you going to do art in college?’ I asked, still fascinated by his painting.
‘Hopefully,’ said Colin, flopping down on the swivel chair at his desk. ‘I’d really like to study in New York. What do you want to do in college?’ He had this intense look when he asked questions, like he was really interested in what I had to say. His initial shyness seemed to have vanished, and I felt relaxed in his company.
‘Music, I suppose. All I really want to do is sing and play guitar. But I’ve got another three years before I have to think about college. I was actually hoping to work on a demo this year…’
I surprised myself by telling him that. Maybe Colin would turn out to be one of those people you could share your secrets with. I was even beginning to wonder if I could fancy him.
‘I can’t wait to finish school,’ he said. ‘It’s so boring sometimes. Anyway, wanna go back and watch TV?’
I couldn’t help looking longingly at his computer. I was having serious withdrawal symptoms.
‘Em… would you mind if I used your computer for a few minutes? We don’t have Internet in the caravan and I’d love to just check my messages…’
‘Sure. Knock yourself out,’ he said, pushing some rubbish off the keyboard.
I sat at his desk and logged on while Colin lay down on his bed and picked up a book.
Fifteen messages. The first was from Hannah wondering how I was. The next five were Hannah wondering why I hadn’t messaged her back. She wanted to know was I mad at her because she kissed Ross? Hannah and Ross. Weird. I wasn’t mad though. I used to fancy him, but then I’d seen him throw up after drinking too much cider, and the attraction had dwindled. I presumed they wouldn’t last very long anyway. Hannah disposed of boys just as often as she blew her allowance on Topshop accessories, i.e. almost every fortnight. The next message was a dirty joke forwarded by Ross to me and twenty other people. And the next was a picture of a tiny kitten wearing a top hat, forwarded by Sophie. The rest were spam. I quickly replied to Hannah, explaining why I hadn’t been in contact.
‘Thanks, Colin,’ I said when I’d logged out. ‘I really miss having Internet; you feel so cut off without it. I can get it on my phone but I never have enough credit and the coverage is really bad here anyway so it takes forever to load.’
‘Tell me about it – it’s so annoying. You’re welcome to come down here and use it any time you want,’ he said.
‘Oh, thanks!’
Colin was turning out to be a nice guy.
‘I’m sure you could even stay over sometime if you needed a break. I’d go insane if I had to live in the same room as my mam.’
‘Wouldn’t your mam have something to say about… y’know, me staying here?’
‘Nah, she wouldn’t mind, she knows you’re not my type,’ said Colin with a laugh.
‘Well, you’re not my type either!’ I snapped.
‘No, sorry, that’s not what I meant, Jacki. I’m… I’m gay. Sorry, I presumed you knew.’ Colin looked down at his feet, and I instantly regretted being so snappy.
He’d taken me completely by surprise. ‘Oh! No… nobody told me.’
‘Well, it’s not such a big deal any more, I suppose. It was hard at first, but I came out last year so by now most people around here just accept it.’
‘That’s really cool. And I would definitely like to stay over sometime.’
‘So what’s your type then?’ said Colin as I followed him back into the sitting room.
‘Em… I dunno really,’ I said, but Nick Reynolds’s name suddenly popped into my head. I had tried to forget about him, but I just wasn’t able to. Colin probably knew him… It was such a small village. Maybe I could find out more about him. ‘So…’ I said. ‘I was thinking maybe you could introduce me to some of your friends? I know literally nobody here.’
‘Sure, there’s a good gang in Avarna. I’ll let you know what’s going on. Here, let me take your number now,’ he said, taking out his phone.
‘Thanks,’ I said with a smile and called it out. ‘Well… I’ve already met two people: Nick from the shop and his girlfriend, but only briefly.’
‘Nick’s one of my best mates!’ said Colin excitedly.
‘No way.’ I tried to sound casual, but was really happy to hear that. I thought of quizzing Colin about Nick and Sarah’s relationship, but I didn’t want to be too obvious, so I decided to leave it till another time.
Through the sitting-room window I could see Des’s van pulling up outside his terraced house across the road. He walked round the van and helped an old woman out of the passenger side. Taking her by the arm, he led her to his front door.
‘Is that Des’s mum?’ I asked.
Colin glanced out the window. ‘Yes. He lives with her. She hasn’t been too well lately.’
‘What’s wrong with her?’
‘She had pneumonia.’
‘Oh no, the poor woman.’ I watched the dark figures moving behind the lace curtains.
‘She’s recovering though,’ said Colin, leaning back on the couch.
‘Did his wife die? Or is he divorced?’ I asked as I rearranged the cushions a bit to get comfortable.
‘He never married,’ said Colin.
‘Really?’ I decided not to mention Des and my mum. Talking about something can make it feel more real sometimes. And there was no way I wanted him to become part of our lives.
Just as Des’s door closed, the door of the shop opened and Mary walked out and got into her car.
‘Have you met the infamous Mary Reynolds yet?’ said Colin, nodding in her direction.
‘I have indeed.’
‘Very quiet woman,’ he said. I giggled. ‘Mary’s one of my aunt Lydia’s best friends,’ he added, offering me some more popcorn. ‘She and my mam are organizing a surprise fiftieth for Mary. Along with Joe Clancy.’
‘Oh, your mam was telling us about that earlier. I’d say Mary will be delighted.’
‘It should be good craic.’
I finished off my handful of popcorn, then looked over at the cabinet again.
‘Where did you get that?’ I asked, pointing at the porcelain egg.
‘The egg? Oh, it’s Lydia’s. It’s been there for years. Why?’
‘No reason really. I just think it’s really pretty. I used to have one with a little swan inside it. My dad bought it for me. But I broke it.’ I’d dropped it a few weeks before he died and had been really upset because I loved it. He’d promised to buy me a new one, but he never got the chance.
‘Where is your dad tonight?’ asked Colin.
‘My dad… he died a few years ago,’ I said.
‘I didn’t realize… sorry.’ Colin started to fidget with his sleeve again.
‘It’s OK,’ I said. ‘You couldn’t have known. He died when I was nine.’ Sometimes it surprised me how easily I was able to talk about my dad now.
‘What happened to him?’ asked Colin.
‘He had a tumour. He’d been sick for a while.’
Colin nodded and then looked away.
‘Is there something inside that one?’ I said, changing the subject.
‘Which?’
‘The egg; is there something inside it?’ I’m not sure why, but I really wanted to touch it. Maybe because it brought back memories.
‘Open it if you want.’
‘Can I?’ I didn’t know why I felt such a rush of excitement.
‘Yeah, sure.’
I opened the door of the wooden cabinet, clasped my fingers round the smooth turquoise porcelain and lifted the egg out. I gently pulled it open. Inside there was a little silver heart, studded with tiny sparkling crystals.
‘Wow.’
‘Nice, isn’t it?’ said Colin. ‘I used to be fascinated by it as a kid. But I wasn’t allowed to touch it. I used to open it when Lydia wasn’t here. She’d have killed me if she’d found out.’
I stared at it for a few moments. As I placed it back in the cabinet I could hear loud music blasting through the wall.
‘Is that Iggy Pop?’
‘Yep.’
‘Where is it coming from?’
‘Lydia’s shop,’ said Colin. ‘She’s a little bit crazy, in a good way. Come on and I’ll introduce you.’
I followed Colin out the front door. Just a few steps away was the bright shopfront of Lydia Jones Designs. I’d spotted it on our first visit to the village, but figured it would be way too expensive for my budget. Colin pushed open the door and we stepped into a wonderful little clothes store. Racks of beautiful handmade dresses hung on multicoloured beaded hangers, and pink shelves held suede clutch bags and charming costume jewellery. A half mannequin in the centre wore a pretty red dress with an empire waist and lace hem.
Colin weaved through the racks towards the back of the shop where a woman whom I guessed was Lydia sat at a desk working on a sewing machine. She was surrounded by a mess of fabric and buttons and beads, and clearly hadn’t heard us come in. She was bopping her head up and down, and singing along to the music. Like Colin she had pale skin, but hers had only a few freckles. Her hair was dyed purple and she wore what looked like one of her own designs, a yellow shift dress with a collar of white felt daisies. It was the kind of outfit that only somebody very quirky could pull off.
Colin waved his hand in front of her face and her head jerked up. She reached for the stereo and turned the music down.
‘Hello!’ she said in a cheery voice.
‘This is Jacki,’ said Colin. ‘She’s just moved here.’
‘Hi, Jacki, nice to meet you.’ She stood up and held out her hand. I noticed that her fingernails were painted neon pink.
‘Nice to meet you too,’ I said, shaking her hand. ‘I really like your dresses. They’re amazing.’
‘And your dress is adorable,’ she said.
‘Oh, thanks!’
‘I love vintage too. I use a lot of antique materials in my designs.’ Lydia sat back down on her swivel chair.
‘People come from all over to get dresses made here,’ said Colin. ‘She’s practically famous.’
‘Oh, stop!’ said Lydia with a giggle.
I liked Lydia immediately. She was wonderfully weird.
‘We could hear your music through the wall again,’ said Colin, picking up a piece of blue fabric from one of the chairs and fashioning it into a belt round his waist.
‘I can’t concentrate without loud music,’ Lydia explained. ‘I need it, but it drives my sister crazy.’
‘You need to get earphones,’ said Colin.
‘It’s not the same,’ said Lydia and I in unison, and we both laughed. ‘I play albums on repeat when I’m working on a design,’ Lydia added. ‘Each dress a different album. Lust for Life will forever be fused in my brain with metal sequins and lace.’
Colin was so lucky – I would have loved an aunt like Lydia. I couldn’t imagine her being best friends with Mary though. The two of them were completely different.
‘Anyway, what do you guys think?’ Lydia held up the dress. It was beautiful, turquoise with a purple lace hem and metal sequins on the bodice.
‘Wow. That’s the prettiest dress I’ve ever seen,’ I said.
‘Fabulous!’ said Colin.
‘It’s the same colour as your porcelain egg,’ I noticed.
‘Yes, it’s exactly the same colour,’ said Colin. ‘Where did you get that egg again?’
‘What egg?’ Lydia enquired, fixing the dress’s collar.
‘The porcelain egg in the cabinet. Jacki was admiring it.’
‘Oh, that thing. A friend gave it to me. A long time ago.’
‘Which friend was that?’ asked Colin.
‘Just an old friend – you don’t know her.’
‘It’s lovely,’ I said.
Lydia looked thoughtful for a moment. ‘Yes, it is nice,’ she agreed.
‘Colin, are you in there?’ called Brigid from the doorway. ‘Jacki’s mum is heading home.’
‘I’d better go,’ I said. ‘I’ll be back to have a look around your shop sometime.’
‘Yes, definitely drop in,’ said Lydia. ‘We can listen to extra-loud music together.’
Colin walked me out to the shop door and even gave me a hug as we said our goodbyes.
I lay in bed that night smiling, pleased that I’d actually made a new friend. Colin was so cool and, as an added bonus, he knew Nick really well. I realized Nick had a girlfriend, but maybe they hadn’t been going out that long. Or maybe they’d been going out for ages and were headed for a break-up. A girl can dream.