Girl Heart Boy: No Such Thing as Forever (Book 1) by Ali Cronin Read Free Book Online

probably just been busy. Loads to organize before going back to uni, etc. And patience had never been my strong point. I quickly typed:
    Yep why not. I’ll get train
to Victoria tomoz AM. Text
me details! Sx
     
    Talk about emotional rollercoaster. I was high on joy – and feeling like a tiny bit of an idiot for having played the drama queen. I hugged myself with glee and got on with enjoying myself, putting to the back of my mind the small matter of telling my parents that I was going to spend the weekend with Joe.
    I didn’t get home till gone midnight, so it was morning before I had a chance to talk to Mum and Dad. I was showered, dressed and at the table eating my Alpen when Mum came downstairs.
    ‘I thought I heard you up and about,’ she said, planting a kiss on the top of my head. ‘Tea?’
    I grunted assent through a mouthful of muesli mulch. She busied herself with kettle, mugs and teabags for a couple of minutes. ‘So. How are you feeling?’ she finally asked casually. I rolled my eyes. She was desperate for me to stop moping.
    ‘Yeah, good actually,’ I said brightly.
    Mum beamed like I’d given her a present. ‘Excellent! About time you snapped out of the post-holiday malaise.’
    ‘Yeah, well. I’m fine. Thanks.’ I loved my mum, but she could grate on my nerves like a knife squeaking against a plate.
    She gave me another kiss before putting my tea down in front of me. ‘Well, I’m pleased … So. Any plans for the weekend?’
    I was pretty sure she would not be impressed if I told her I was skipping up to London for a weekend love-in. So I lied.
    ‘Ash’s mum’s away so she’s having the girls over for a DVD and pizza weekend.’ I made a show oflooking at the time on the microwave. ‘I’ll be off in a minute, actually.’
    I was pretty proud of this little deception. It was wholesome enough for Mum to approve, but the fact that she’s not a huge fan of Ashley’s would ensure she didn’t instantly think I was making it up. Although actually she’d probably have believed whatever I told her. I’d never lied to her or Dad like this before.
    ‘At nine o’clock in the morning? That’s a lot of DVDs.’
    I got up to put my bowl in the dishwasher. I didn’t trust my face not to give me away. ‘We’re spending the day at the beach first. Making the most of this Indian summer.’ I nodded towards the window. Which was covered with a fine mist of drizzle. Huh. Maybe should have thought that one through.
    Still, Mum accepted it. I felt bad for deceiving her, but she wanted to believe I was having fun. And, anyway, my excitement at the thought of seeing Joe outweighed my guilt by about seventeen billion to one.
    I skipped upstairs to grab my bag with a song in my heart and a salsa rhythm in my rudey bits. I had a quick look in the mirror on the landing and beamed at my reflection. Joe Joe Joey Joe! I checked the time on my phone. In three hours, we’d be together.
    But as the train sped through the stations my giddiness gave way to nerves. I’d been so caught up in the joy of Joe I hadn’t thought about the fact that it wouldn’t just be him there but all his uni mates too.
    I chewed my lip and stared at the countryside rolling by. Even the clothes I’d packed seemed wrong. Would all his friends be smoking spliffs and making intellectual jokes? And if the conversation got on to politics – or, let’s face it, any kind of current affairs that didn’t involve TV or celebs – I was screwed.
    At Victoria I joined the mass of people filing through the ticket gates. I pulled my Tube map out of my pocket for the hundredth time. Joe had given me directions and I’d been to London loads, but this was the first time on my own. As soon as I was through the gates I found a space by a cash machine and stopped for a moment to gather myself. I closed my eyes and was halfway through a cleansing in-breath when right in front of me a voice said, ‘This is no time for a nap.’
    I almost died of