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Something jumps in my chest. Turning, I smile at Claire as she puts her bag down on the table. She shrugs off her coat, her hair slightly windswept from outside, and offers me a smile in return.
Without really thinking about it, I slide further along the bench, and Claire drops into the space beside me. Her side touches mine and I can smell the floral perfume she has on. I hadn’t realised how much I’d been hoping she’d show up until she did.
“Do you want a drink?” I ask her.
“Yeah that’d be great, thanks so much, Tom. I’ll get a—”
“White wine,” I finish. “New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, but if they don’t have that Pinot Gris, I know. You order it every time. Unless you want something different today?”
Her mouth opens in an O of surprise, before she closes it. “Yeah, white wine is great. Thanks for remembering.”
“Josh? Sam?”
“Maybe another pint,” Josh says. “Thanks, mate.”
“Fab, two pints and a wine, any more takers? Claire, do you want some food?”
She shakes her head, and as I stand to leave I spot Sam smirking at me. I remember what my sister said about the pair of them having a bet on whether I fancied Claire. Memorising her drinks order might be a giveaway, even though I hadn’t known I’d done it.
Kath waits with me at the bar after she’s registered our team name.
“I’ve called us the Spleen Team,” she tells me, with a satisfied grin.
I just raise an eyebrow.
“What?” she laughs. “It’s really funny. Like the dream team, but a spleen.”
“Kath, I love you. But as a supportive brother I have to inform you that it’s not as funny as you think it is.”
“Whatever.” She picks up my pint glass and steals a sip whilst we wait for Claire’s wine. “As your supportive sister, I have to know: have you asked Claire out yet?”
“Kath!”
“What? You asked my permission last week. It’s a legitimate question.”
“No, I haven’t yet,” I tell her. “I’m just waiting for the right moment. And you know… I also want to work out if she actually likes me before I shoot my shot.”
“I’m pretty sure she likes you,” Kath says.
The bartender passes the wine across the counter, and I grab it before heading back towards our table. The pub’s somehow reached new levels of overcrowded in the ten minutes we’ve been at the bar. People are shuffling chairs and tables like a four-dimensional game of Tetris, and I’m legitimately concerned about making it back to our table without wearing Claire’s wine. I navigate carefully, using my height as the only advantage I have in this situation.
“Pretty sure isn’t the same as definitely sure,” I tell Kath.
“Since when have you been nervous about asking someone out?”
She’s right. I’m never usually nervous. But this is Claire, I’ve known her forever, and it makes things feel different.
“Just don’t be weird,” I tell Kath as we reach the table, having successfully defeated the obstacle course.
“You don’t be weird.”
“Weird about what?” Sam asks as we take our seats.
“Nothing,” Kath and I say in unison.
Sam narrows his eyes. Before he can ask any more questions, the quizmaster taps the microphone.
“Good evening everyone, and welcome to Thursday Quiz Night.” A cheer goes up around the pub, including a loud one from Josh. “The first round tonight is music.”
