Falling Fast by Sophie McKenzie Read Free Book Online Page B

the other
tables were full.
    If Emmi and Grace looked into the café and saw me with Flynn . . .
    I couldn’t face it. This thing with Flynn was all so uncertain. So fragile. And my feelings were so confusing. No way was I ready to tell Emmi and Grace about it. Not until I was more sure
of how I felt. Right now it was private – it belonged to me and him.
    No one else.
    Flynn raised his eyebrows. ‘Who was that?’
    I shook my head. ‘No one,’ I said. I didn’t want to tell him I was supposed to be meeting Emmi and Grace. He might suggest he came along to say hello or something.
    I stood up. ‘I gotta go,’ I said. ‘I’m meeting someone.’
    Flynn stood up too. God . He was so much taller than me. I felt suddenly ridiculous, only coming up to his chest like I did. I glanced up at him. For the first time since I’d met him
he looked unsure of himself, like he didn’t know what to say or do next.
    ‘Thanks for the coffee,’ I said. My mouth felt dry. I didn’t want to go. But Emmi and Grace would be down here any second.
    I turned and practically raced out of the coffee shop.

 
8
    I spent the rest of the weekend reliving what had happened in the coffee shop. Thinking about Flynn.
    I could feel myself falling for him. It was the weirdest sensation, like the thought of him was sucking me in – taking up all my energy.
    I couldn’t believe I still knew so little about him. OK, so I was pretty sure he wasn’t well off and I knew he had a couple of sisters, but that was about it. Discovering those
things had only thrown up far more interesting questions, none of which I had satisfactory answers to.
    Why was he so angry about being poor? Loads of people don’t have much money, but Flynn acted like it was . . . I dunno . . . somehow shameful.
    And why was he so protective of his sister? It struck me when I thought about it that it was extremely odd for him to pick her up after work. I mean, she was older than him, and he was in the
sixth form: one year older than me. That meant she must be at least eighteen. Surely she could get herself home after work on her own?
    I tossed and turned, unable to sleep on Sunday night. If only I’d been able to stay longer at the café, I might have worked some of it out. We could have talked about the play too.
I could have found out why Flynn had said it was great that I wasn’t Catholic. Why he didn’t like anyone using his first name, Patrick.
    I could have given him the chance to ask for my phone number.
    Jeez . I could have asked him for his.
    Instead, I’d met up with Emmi and Grace and had another coffee with them, then we’d set off for town, where – true to form – Emmi had spent her allowance on three pairs
of outrageously sexy heels and Grace had deliberated for half an hour over a new pair of trainers.
    Part of me wanted to talk to them about Flynn. I knew if it was either of them, they would have gone on and on about him. In fact, Grace did go on and on about Darren. While Emmi let slip
– very casually, as if she wasn’t that bothered – that Alex had asked her to some party a week next Saturday.
    But I couldn’t do it. Not just because of how uncertain everything was with Flynn, but because of how powerfully I felt about him.
    How deep my wanting him went.
    I approached Monday’s rehearsal in a state of high excitement. Surely Flynn was bound to say something to me today?
    But he wasn’t there. And this time James had no reason to offer up.
    Bitterly disappointed, I schlepped moodily home with Emmi and Grace afterwards. They were both buzzing from the rehearsal, which had gone well, despite Flynn’s absence.
    ‘Wasn’t it funny when Mr Nichols got Alex to do that sword fight with a folded-up piece of paper?’ That was Emmi.
    Grace giggled. ‘Yeah. His face when it flopped over that time.’
    She and Emmi clutched their mouths, remembering.
    ‘I thought it was stupid doing the fight without Romeo being there,’ I said grumpily.
    Emmi and