‘Nope,’ I chuckle, realising I must have dropped it.
His breath keeps grazing my skin, which does nothing to cool me down. I’d step back, but I’m pressed between a shelf and Luca’s body.
‘You’re finding this a little too amusing, considering we’re trapped,’ he huffs, but I can tell he’s not mad from the smile in his voice.
‘Would you like me to get annoyed instead? This is at least partly your fault. And you’re squashing my toe.’
He shifts and his hip pokes into mine. It’s no less painful than a squashed toe, so I move his body, my hands on his ribcage. Now his full weight is on me, but at least he’s no longer cutting off vital blood circulation. Luca’s chest expands, and in my fascination that I can feel the air moving in and out of his lungs, I forget to let go. I should be weirded out by the shape of his bones beneath my touch, but it’s real and beautiful.
‘I can’t believe you’re blaming me, when you left your designated spot by the door,’ Luca says, pulling my wandering mind back into the supply closet.
‘This is a prime example of a self-fulfilling prophecy. You’re convinced something is going to happen and so it does,’ I say.
He snorts. ‘If I had that power, then—’
‘Then . . .?’ I ask. A pearl of sweat runs down my neck, and the palms of my hands begin to tingle where we’re touching. Luca’s gaze is downcast, almost like he’s purposely avoiding my eyes. The thing is, we are so close that his forehead rests against my temple. There’s no avoiding me.
‘Nothing,’ he says after several breaths. His voice is low, more vibration than sound.
Impatience hums in my chest, but I remain still.
‘No, tell me.’
I don’t know why, but I’m dying to hear what he wasabout to say. When he finally faces me, his pupils are dilated, something like apprehension glimmering in their depths. These past couple of weeks, I feel like we’ve been walking a tight line, skirting around things unspoken. Now I sense a shift coming.
His lips part. I can taste the lemonade on his breath, down to the mint leaves he likes to add. On my part, I’ve stopped breathing altogether. I don’t know what’s next, only that I must not miss it.
‘Simo,’ he whispers, and I tilt forward, compelled by my name in his mouth.
Something builds between us, a silence so intense that I’m seized by a sudden panic. My foot connects with something on the ground. Metal clatters with a violence that makes Luca jump. His shoulder hits my jaw, and a second later I taste blood on my tongue.
‘Ow,’ I whimper.
‘Sorry. You OK?’ he asks, and grabs my shoulders, trying to regain his balance in the dark. ‘I hate this cupboard.’
‘I think the feeling is mutual,’ I mumble through my already swollen cheek. As the pain ebbs away, so does the tension in the packed space. I watch Luca stumble to the door, and I’m left with shortness of breath and a bitter feeling of disappointment. I don’t know what I was expecting. The mood in the room changed so quickly I’m sure I made it all up.
Luca hits the door with his open palm and shouts for his dad.
‘I thought I heard the door shut,’ Maz notes when he arrives and props it open.
I sigh at the cool breeze that enters the room. My T-shirt is soaked, sticking to my back and constricting my chest.
‘And you didn’t come to check?’ Luca complains.
Maz looks from me to Luca with an unreadable expression, shrugs and walks away.
Luca bends down and pulls my phone from beneath a potato sack. ‘Here,’ he says, handing it back. Sweat glistens on his brow. When he glances up at me, his lips twitch with amusement. He starts to pull spiderwebs from my hair, every brush of skin intense as a burn.
‘I’m gonna get some air,’ I say, and step away, forcing myself not to run. Because everything is normal, and I’m normal, and it’s not normal to flee from your best friend. Once outside, I inhale deeply and try to get rid of the mix of dust and blood in my mouth. On wobbly legs, I cross over to the abandoned pet shop and perch on the window ledge.
Two figures step out of the cafe, iced coffees in their hands. Mairi is easy to recognise, long blue braids falling down her back. In all the years we’ve shared classes, there’s not a single colour she hasn’t tried.
She sees me and crosses the street, the guy following behind. I wish they’d stay away, but because everything is normal, and I’m normal, I stay where I am. Mairi’s friend is tall with ginger waves falling into his eyes. Though he seems the tiniest bit familiar, I fail to place him.
‘You look like something attacked you,’ Mairi greets me.
‘You could say that.’
