Sanctuary of Mine by S. Pratt, Emily Dawson Read Free Book Online Page A

first time in years that I have eaten food and not thought about the struggle of eating it for the entire meal. There’s something about Tyler Redding that makes me feel comfortable in my own skin. If I was a tiny bit honest with myself, I might even admit that I actually enjoyed it.
     
    His food is gone now and he goes to work on the straw in his mouth, sucking heartily with his cheeks working overtime to get the thick shake up it. When he nears the bottom of the cup, the liquid starts to make loud sucking noises as he manipulates the straw to get the last dregs. I almost laugh, he behaviour reminiscent of a child having such a treat for the first time. It’s very cute.
    ‘Sorry,’ he apologises.
    ‘No need.’
    ‘So what’s your favourite colour?’
    ‘My favourite colour?’ He’s just knocked me left of field with that one. Talk about random.
    ‘Yeah. Seems we’re going to be friends, we might as well get the hard questions out of the way first. So what’s your favourite colour? Where’d you grown up? I already know your favourite food, so you can leave that off the list. But what about bands? You like Springsteen?’ He points to my tee-shirt as he says this. I shake my head.
    ‘Not really no. I mean, Springsteen is okay, but it’s my dad who likes him. We went to his concert together. I grew up in Melbourne, although I was born in Perth. My favourite colour is blue.’ For some reason, I want to tell this guy everything about myself, but I bite my lip before anything else can escape my mouth. I feel like I’m prattling.
     
    ‘I see. Blue huh? You know that means you respect authority, right?’
    ‘Um no, I didn’t.’
    ‘True. So why’d you move to Sydney?’ He doesn’t seem at all fazed about asking me the most personal of questions, so I try not to make a big deal of it.
    ‘My mum’s boyfriend lives here. Things got serious, so …’
    ‘So you got dragged along for the ride, huh?’
    ‘Something like that.’ I can’t help but smile at him. We hardly know each other, and yet he seems to get me. I wonder why that is. Instead of pursuing that line of thought, I decide to ask him a few personal questions of my own.
     
    ‘So what’s your favourite colour?’
    ‘Would you believe me if I said blue too?’
    ‘Maybe,’ I say slyly, ‘it is a pretty popular colour after all, so you could be excused for liking the same colour as me,’ I grin.
    ‘That’s true. What else you got?’
    ‘You like football?’
    ‘You bet! I’ve been playing rugby league for South Sydney since I was a junior. I’m hoping to get drafted into the Rabbitohs when I’m finished with high school.’
    ‘Their team would be pretty hard to get into, wouldn’t it?’
    ‘Yes it would, but I’m driven. It’s what I want more than anything else and have been dreaming of it since I was a boy. You couldn’t get a higher accolade than representing your home town in the sport.’
    ‘Sounds great to know what you want in life.’
    ‘Sure is,’ he grins.
    ‘So do you have any brothers or sisters?’ And just like that his face clouds over and his smile vanishes. It’s almost like I just kicked him in the guts. I get the impression our conversation is over.
    ‘We better get going, or you’ll be late meeting your friend.’ Dark and broody Tyler is not someone I am used to. He grabs the car keys off the table and I scurry out of the booth after him.
     
    In the car, the silence is deafening. The short trip down the road to Bondi Junction suddenly feels like an eternity. He pulls up outside the shopping centre entrance and lets the engine idle while we sit in uncomfortable silence.
    ‘I’m sorry if I said anything wrong,’ I offer. His reply is swift, leaving me to believe even he’s not convinced by his words.
    ‘It’s nothing, don’t worry about it.’
    ‘Okay,’ I say with uncertainty. ‘Well, thanks for the ride.’
    ‘Anytime.’ A hint of light sparks back into his eyes, which makes me believe we