hoped she’d be delivering the BMX back to Bill in one piece. An Airedale terrier leapt towards his wheels and Zak just managed to swerve to avoid it.
‘How about some hot chocolate?’ Rachel called out with what little breath she had left, pedalling hard to keep up. She pointed to a small café in the middle of the park – sitting down for a while would at least keep Zak out of the way of tourists.
‘OK,’ Zak said, screeching to a halt.
Milly and Zak rested their bikes up against the wall and Rachel bought hot chocolates for all three of them. They sat down at a small metal table, bringing their cups towards them for warmth; their breath was visible in the cold air that morning.
‘Buckingham Palace is huge, isn’t it?’ Zak said, looking over. ‘Do you think we’ll see the Queen?’
‘I’m not sure about that,’ Rachel said, ‘she probably heard you coming. What do you think, Mills? Would—’
Rachel looked over to Milly, but her head was bent over her phone, texting, oblivious.
‘Millllly,’ Zak said, jabbing his sister in the side.
‘What?’ she said.
‘Nothing important,’ Rachel said. There was a distance in Milly’s expression, as if she were partly somewhere else. ‘Are you OK, Millypede?’
‘I’m fine, Mum,’ Milly snapped.
Rachel flinched, then tried to get things back to normal.
‘OK, well, while we have your attention, where do you fancy cycling to next?’ Rachel asked. ‘Shall we go down to the river? We’ve still got a bit of time before your dad’s train gets in.’
‘Yes, the river! Let’s go and see the boats!’ Zak gulped down his hot chocolate and bounced to his feet.
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Hi Milly,
It’s good to hear from you. And damn, you are even cooler than I thought … I’ve always wanted to see Paris too. When did you say you were coming home again?
You mentioned Kate, actually I bumped into her on the high street yesterday. We chatted for a while, mainly about you. She told me you want to be a fashion designer, is that right? She also said she’s having a house party this weekend as her parents are going away, and she wishes you could be there.
Carter x
P.S. You asked about my name. Carter’s my surname, but it’s what most of my friends call me. And talking of nicknames, where’s yours from? It’s cute.
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Hi Carter,
If your friends call you Carter, then Carter it is. You asked about my nickname, well my dad started calling me Millypede first, and it stuck. It’s silly, but I kind of like it.
What Kate said is right, I’ve always liked designing clothes, so my dream is to do it for a living. I WISH I could go to her party this weekend. But my grandma’s still not well and we’re going to be in London for a while.
London is fine, my Dad’s getting down today so hopefully that’ll chill Mum out a bit. I brought a copy of The Hunger Games down with me so I’m reading that at the moment. It’s amazing – I really want to see the film.
What are you up to this weekend?
Milly x
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Hi Milly,
This weekend is all about chilling out for me. Seeing friends on Friday. Lying in. Playing some Playstation probably.
Enjoy your book. I’ve not read that, but I’ve heard it’s good – I prefer films generally (hope that doesn’t make me sound dumb?!). Anyway, we can watch it together when you’re back? I wish you were here now. I can picture you now – cool red hair, awesome clothes, great smile. So that I can remember, can you send me some pictures of you?
Carter x
‘I missed you, Rach,’ Aiden said, hugging her as they stood in the hallway. ‘I know it’s only been a couple of days, but still.’ Rachel pulled back to look at him: his skin was chapped from the cold December wind, and the lines around his eyes looked deeper than usual.
‘Well, I’m glad to hear it,’ Rachel said, smiling,
‘How about some hot chocolate?’ Rachel called out with what little breath she had left, pedalling hard to keep up. She pointed to a small café in the middle of the park – sitting down for a while would at least keep Zak out of the way of tourists.
‘OK,’ Zak said, screeching to a halt.
Milly and Zak rested their bikes up against the wall and Rachel bought hot chocolates for all three of them. They sat down at a small metal table, bringing their cups towards them for warmth; their breath was visible in the cold air that morning.
‘Buckingham Palace is huge, isn’t it?’ Zak said, looking over. ‘Do you think we’ll see the Queen?’
‘I’m not sure about that,’ Rachel said, ‘she probably heard you coming. What do you think, Mills? Would—’
Rachel looked over to Milly, but her head was bent over her phone, texting, oblivious.
‘Millllly,’ Zak said, jabbing his sister in the side.
‘What?’ she said.
‘Nothing important,’ Rachel said. There was a distance in Milly’s expression, as if she were partly somewhere else. ‘Are you OK, Millypede?’
‘I’m fine, Mum,’ Milly snapped.
Rachel flinched, then tried to get things back to normal.
‘OK, well, while we have your attention, where do you fancy cycling to next?’ Rachel asked. ‘Shall we go down to the river? We’ve still got a bit of time before your dad’s train gets in.’
‘Yes, the river! Let’s go and see the boats!’ Zak gulped down his hot chocolate and bounced to his feet.
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Hi Milly,
It’s good to hear from you. And damn, you are even cooler than I thought … I’ve always wanted to see Paris too. When did you say you were coming home again?
You mentioned Kate, actually I bumped into her on the high street yesterday. We chatted for a while, mainly about you. She told me you want to be a fashion designer, is that right? She also said she’s having a house party this weekend as her parents are going away, and she wishes you could be there.
Carter x
P.S. You asked about my name. Carter’s my surname, but it’s what most of my friends call me. And talking of nicknames, where’s yours from? It’s cute.
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Hi Carter,
If your friends call you Carter, then Carter it is. You asked about my nickname, well my dad started calling me Millypede first, and it stuck. It’s silly, but I kind of like it.
What Kate said is right, I’ve always liked designing clothes, so my dream is to do it for a living. I WISH I could go to her party this weekend. But my grandma’s still not well and we’re going to be in London for a while.
London is fine, my Dad’s getting down today so hopefully that’ll chill Mum out a bit. I brought a copy of The Hunger Games down with me so I’m reading that at the moment. It’s amazing – I really want to see the film.
What are you up to this weekend?
Milly x
From: [email protected]
To: [email protected]
Hi Milly,
This weekend is all about chilling out for me. Seeing friends on Friday. Lying in. Playing some Playstation probably.
Enjoy your book. I’ve not read that, but I’ve heard it’s good – I prefer films generally (hope that doesn’t make me sound dumb?!). Anyway, we can watch it together when you’re back? I wish you were here now. I can picture you now – cool red hair, awesome clothes, great smile. So that I can remember, can you send me some pictures of you?
Carter x
‘I missed you, Rach,’ Aiden said, hugging her as they stood in the hallway. ‘I know it’s only been a couple of days, but still.’ Rachel pulled back to look at him: his skin was chapped from the cold December wind, and the lines around his eyes looked deeper than usual.
‘Well, I’m glad to hear it,’ Rachel said, smiling,
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