‘Are you . . . why are you mad at me?’
She made a noise of disgust. ‘Not everything is about you, Katie, okay? You have no idea. You just have no idea.’
‘You’re right,’ I said, trying to keep my voice even. ‘I have no idea what you’re talking about right now.’
Libby looked at me then with more anger than I’d ever seen her direct my way before. ‘How am I supposed to tell you now?’
‘Tell me what?’ I said, folding my arms.
She stood up. ‘Just – just kiss the guy already, okay? Then maybe we can talk about something else for a change.’
Her words stung. ‘Wha–’
‘Just kiss him!’ She yelled again, throwing her hands in the air and walking towards the door.
‘That’s what you wanted to tell me?’ I said. But it was to an empty room.
Nine
Guy was spooning cupcake mixture into a pan when I walked back into the kitchen. Libby had left. I was still shaken up by the whole exchange with her, but the sight of Guy was a soothing balm.
‘Whatcha doing?’ I asked as brightly as I could muster.
He looked up at me and smiled. ‘Ah. I wanted to finish this for you.’
‘How do you know how to do that?’
‘You created me with a great many innate abilities.’
‘Like the ability to make cupcakes?’ I asked.
He raised an eyebrow. ‘Like the ability to read.’ He gestured with his head towards the open recipe book.
‘Oh.’
‘You might have to help me with the – the oven? I don’t know how to . . .’ He looked dubiously at the buttons.
After we’d put the cupcakes in to bake, we cleaned up, and I gotta say, it was the most fun I’ve ever had doing the dishes in my life. I never knew it could be so . . . hot. And I’m not talking about the water.
Guy kept looking at me, a smile on his lips that I can only describe as ‘seductive’. I could feel my face heating up.
I was torn between just wanting to kiss him already and the fact that standing at the kitchen sink, up to my elbows in dirty dishes, while Max rolled around at our feet, was not exactly the first kiss scenario I’d been dreaming of.
I cleared my throat. ‘So. Guy. Tell me about yourself.’
‘You already know everything about me.’ He raised an eyebrow. I tried to remember how to swallow.
‘That can’t be true,’ I said. ‘We’ve only known each other two days.’
I realised as soon as I said it how ridiculous this conversation was. Something which Guy reinforced when he said, ‘Well, I have only been alive two days. About forty hours, to be exact.’
I laughed nervously. ‘Well, when you put it like that . . .’
‘And there’s still so much for me to learn,’ Guy went on. ‘About myself. About the world. About you.’ He said the last bit extra softly.
I dropped the sponge I’d been using in the water.
‘What do you want to know?’ I said.
Guy was quiet for a moment, rubbing my dad’s favourite I Like Big Mugs And I Cannot Lie cup with the tea towel. ‘Everything,’ he finally said. ‘I want to see and do and hear and feel it all. As much as I can.’
‘Oh. Is that all?’ I said.
‘All?’
‘Never mind.’
‘I want to experience everything in the world.’ He put down the tea towel and turned his body towards me, putting a hand on my shoulder so I swivelled to face him, too. ‘With you.’
His hand travelled down my arm and he took hold of my hand. Which was still encased in a bright orange rubber glove. I shuddered.
‘You know what,’ I said. ‘Let’s get out of here.’ I stepped away from Guy and peeled off the gloves, replacing them with an oven mitt. I checked the cupcakes and was glad to see they were ready. ‘I don’t know if we can manage everything in the world just yet,’ I said as I took the cupcakes out of the oven. ‘But I can take you to one of the best places in this neighbourhood, at least.’
Guy was grinning. ‘Lead the way.’
‘Oh no, it’s not me who’ll be doing the leading.’ I looked down at Max. ‘Maxie. Wanna go walkies?’
Twenty minutes later the sound of Guy’s laughter was filling the dog park as every dog in the place flocked to him. It was like he was the human version of catnip, but for dogs (dognip? Is that a thing?). He was lying on the ground, having been pushed there by the sheer force of about five dogs’ love. They were smothering him in kisses, tails wagging furiously. Their owners were all looking at the huddle with a mixture of bewilderment, amusement and admiration. The latter in particular was coming from a pretty girl who looked to be about eighteen or nineteen. I’d seen her at the park a few times before but we’d never exchanged so much as a friendly nod.
‘Frodo, down,’ she was saying, but she was laughing. ‘Frodo, come on, you’re going to kill him.’ She reached down to pull her poodle away from Guy’s face.
He sat up, smiling, and looked at her with one eye shut against the glare of the sun.
‘There are worse ways to die,’ he said. He was looking down at the dogs again, but the girl didn’t take her eyes off him. Irritation bubbled in my chest. I felt like I was watching a meet-cute. She opened her mouth to say something.
‘Babe,’ I broke in. The word felt foreign in my mouth. Guy looked up at me, and the girl turned around, an expression on her face that suggested she was surprised to see me standing right next to her. Like she hadn’t even noticed me before.
‘Let’s take Max down to the beach,’ I said. ‘It’s a little crowded here.’ I looked pointedly at the girl, and her gaze shifted between me and Guy, her face screwed up as if she was doing a hard maths equation.
Guy bounced up, his hair bouncing with him, catching the afternoon sun and looking more golden than ever. He really was breathtaking. I wondered what people thought when they saw him next to me. That girl had clearly not been impressed.
As we walked along the beach, Max bounding around our feet, Guy’s big hand enveloping mine and a contented smile on his face, I couldn’t help but catch the double takes of people as we passed.
What were they thinking? Wow, they look so cute! or Um, what’s he doing with her?
I had a feeling I knew what the answer was. And I didn’t like it one bit.
A splash of water hit my knees, jolting me out of my brooding. I gasped and turned to see Guy grinning at me, his tongue poking out between his teeth, a mischievous glint in his eyes.
‘You –!’
It was on now. I pulled my hand from his and kicked water at him. He tossed his head back in laughter and began to chase after me as I squealed and ran away. There was water going everywhere, not helped by the fact that Max was running in and out of the waves, too, barking at all the excitement. Guy quickly caught up to me, lifting me off the ground and swinging me around with ease. He placed me down carefully, but I still managed to lose my balance, landing firmly on my butt in the shallow water with a strangled scream. Guy bent down to help me up and I took my shot. I lifted both of my hands through the water with as much force as I could.
‘Plergh!’ he cried, straightening reflexively as he was hit in the face with saltwater – and a big hunk of seaweed.
‘Oh my god, I’m so sorry,’ I said, scrambling to my feet, but I was still giggling.
Guy plucked the seaweed off his head and said, ‘You know, if you preferred me with green hair, you could have made me that way.’ He dropped the seaweed and reached for me again. I shrieked and darted out of his grasp, running up the beach away from the water. I flopped down on the sand. I was soaked and breathing heavily. Guy lay down next to me and Max circled us a couple of times before sitting down near our feet, his face turned towards the ocean.
Guy’s eyes locked on mine. We were silent for a moment, taking each other in. With the sun drying and warming my skin, the sound of the waves swirling around me, the taste of saltwater on my lips, the smell of the ocean
everywhere, and Guy’s summer-day eyes staring at me – I felt absolutely, completely content.
Of course I had to go and ruin the moment by opening my mouth.
‘Guy. Do you . . . do you really like me?’ I cringed as soon as the words were out of my mouth. Way to sound seven years old, Katie.
‘Kate.’ His lips twitched. ‘Of course I like you.’ He rolled on his side and propped himself up on his elbow. ‘I like you so much.’
I could have left it there. I should have left it there.
But I didn’t.
‘But, like . . . why do you like me?’ I played with a tassel on my top and stared up at the sky. I couldn’t look at him directly.
‘Why do I like you?’ He laughed. ‘What kind of question is that? You may as well ask me why I need air to breathe. It’s a part of me. A part of who I am. I exist, therefore I like you.’
It sounded romantic as hell.
So why did I feel so . . . disappointed?
Instead of saying ‘thank you’ or something sweet back, the next thing that came out of my mouth, all in a rush, was, ‘Why haven’t you kissed me yet?’
I dared a peek at his face and saw that he was moving in closer. Oh!
Suddenly he was over me, holding himself there with a hand on either side of my shoulders. He leaned in close, so close I could feel his breath on my face. So close that all I could see was him.
He was beautiful. What did I look like to him? The thought made me turn my face away.
I felt his hand under my chin. Gently, he shifted my head back towards him. He was holding himself up with one arm now.
He was so strong.
He traced his thumb along my bottom lip.
I stopped breathing.
‘Do you . . . want me to kiss you?’ he said softly. ‘Here? Now?’
I didn’t get a chance to answer, because a large, wet tongue slobbered its way across my face, hitting me right in the eyeball.
‘Eugh! Max!’
Max had shoved his head between Guy and me and was busy twisting it this way and that, licking both of us.
Guy rolled away and Max was on top of him now, not letting up on the face-licking. I sat up and tried to wipe some of the slobber off my face, but it retained that sticky licked texture. The moment was officially gone.
‘Well.’ I sighed. ‘How about a Golden Gaytime?’
Five minutes later, we were sitting on the brick wall in front of the kiosk. Guy was swinging his long legs back and forth contentedly. ‘Now this,’ he said around a mouthful of ice-cream and biscuit crumbs, ‘this is the best thing I have ever eaten.’
Theo took us in with an unimpressed frown on his face. ‘Have fun today?’
Guy and I looked at each other and giggled. Although we’d dried off, we were both still covered in sand, our clothes all rumpled. While the effect just made Guy look softer – even his hair had that perfect beach wave thing happening – I knew I probably looked pretty scary. I reached up to smooth down my hair and winced when I felt the wiry texture.
‘Nup, rinse off first,’ Theo said when I tried to step into his room. ‘Or I’ll be finding sand in here for the next six years.’
‘What do you want us to do, hose ourselves down?’ I scoffed.
‘A hose down would probably do you good,’ Theo said. I stuck my tongue out at him.
‘Guy, you can jump in the shower I guess,’ Theo said, gesturing to the bathroom behind him and standing back to allow Guy to pass.
‘KC, you can come back when you’re sand-free. Maxie, you too. Sorry, buddy.’ Theo bent down to give Max a pat on the head, but Max was straining against his leash, trying to push past him to get to Guy, who had reappeared behind Theo, his shirt untucked and unbuttoned.
‘You’re not going, are you, Kate?’
‘Yeah. She is.’ Theo’s lips were pressed together and his dimples were showing. ‘Don’t worry, you’ll see her again soon.’ He was pushing me backwards.
‘Wait,’ Guy said. He was right behind Theo now. He placed his hands on Theo’s shoulders and leaned forward. Theo’s head snapped towards him, his brows furrowed.
‘Wh–’
‘Kate,’ Guy said, ignoring Theo even though he was literally in between us. ‘I want to kiss you. I really want to kiss you. But when I do, it will be when you are ready. It will be perfect. It will be everything you’ve dreamed of. I have it all planned out.’
I let out a shaky breath. All thoughts had evacuated my brain. There was nothing I could say to that.
‘I just thought you should know,’ Guy said.
Theo nodded. ‘Thank you for making me a part of this.’
Ten
Katie.
Katie.
I have a question.
Yes?
How are we still only TWO DAYS into this story?
A lot happened in those two days, okay!
We’ve got to speed this thing up. Move things along.
How do you propose we do that? Should everything just be in bullet points from now on?
That’s not a bad idea.
. . . Except it totally is.
No, try it! Think of it like a movie montage.
But this isn’t a movie.
Just do iiiit.
Fine. Cue the montage music! Something peppy and fun.
I’ve got just the thing.
Three . . . two . . . one:
• Cut to: Guy hanging out in Theo’s room alone all week while we were in school with nothing but books and Theo’s laptop to keep him company (Theo taught him how to use the internet).
• Cut to: Guy grinning and bouncing up to greet us when we got home each afternoon, regaling us with all the things he’d learned that day. The boy was fast and smart and fascinated by everything.
• Cut to: Theo and I talking Guy through the trauma of the current state of the world and trying to stave off a mini existential crisis on the day he discovered Twitter.
• Cut to: Libby acting totally fine the next time I saw her after her weird freak-out in my room, causing both of us to ignore what had happened and go back to normal. Except things weren’t really normal, what with the whole Guy situation. And Libby was more eye-rolly and on edge than usual. I put it down to the aforementioned Guy situation, and decided if she wasn’t going to talk to me about it, that was her problem.
• Cut to: Theo, Libby and I setting up a school of our own in Theo’s room, drilling Guy with the proper way to talk/behave/dress. Or sometimes the improper way, if it was Theo doing the teaching.
• Cut to: daily walks with Max and Guy, featuring lots of laughs and shared ice-cream and hugs and Guy waving at the old man who always hung out on the bench near the entrance to the beach like he was now his best friend. Since Guy had kinda taken the kiss thing off the table because of his grand romantic plan, I was able to relax much more in his company. Except when I remembered that I had no idea what his grand romantic plan was or how it might unfold – which only happened, oh, every ten minutes.
• Cut to: Theo, Libby and I taking Guy shopping. We went to a few op shops and then walked up to Kmart to get him ‘his own damn clothes’, to quote Theo. We made him try on a lot of ridiculous things before forking over our (MY) hard-earned cash for some t-shirts/shorts/jumpers for him.
Okay, how’s THAT for a montage?
I love it. Simple. Straight to the point. We’ll actually be done with this thing before middle age!
But some things happened that week that don’t fit into a montage, and can’t be told in neat bullet-point format.
I mean, I think it’s given a pretty clear impression of what the week was all about: Guy. When we weren’t with him, we were talking about him. YOU were talking about him. It was Guy, Guy, Guy.
I know, but there were things that happened that need expanding on!
Like what?
Why don’t you just let me tell the story and you’ll see? Honestly, Libby, you have no appreciation for my creative process.
&n
bsp; I do! I appreciate it so much I want to make it better! More efficient!
Art isn’t about efficiency.
Fine. Do it your way. I’ll see you in fifty-four years when you’re finally finished.
One thing that happened that week, amongst all the montaging, was that Theo’s sister Lena busted Guy. Apparently she’d let herself into Theo’s room to do her weekly dirty dish collection (gross) and SURPRISE, there was Guy, who we had thankfully just the day before taught about the importance of lying when the situation required it, i.e. whenever someone asked anything about him or his life or his general existence.
‘But lying is bad,’ he’d said.
‘Not all the time,’ I replied, wondering if I was a morally questionable person who was maybe, definitely going to hell. ‘Sometimes, it’s okay. If it’s to protect the people you care about.’
Apparently the message sank in enough. When Lena started screaming upon discovering the presence of this random in her brother’s room, Guy managed to calm her down and tell her our cover – that he was a friend of Theo’s and he’d needed a place to stay. Which, actually, wasn’t technically a lie.
When Theo, Libby and I arrived at Theo’s that afternoon, we were shocked to discover Guy missing from Theo’s room. I was just about to start panicking when Lena appeared at the door and said, ‘You guys had better come inside.’
We walked into the kitchen and there was Guy, happily dunking a Tim Tam into a cup of tea. He grinned and waved at us. ‘Kate, come, taste this! It’s the best thing I’ve ever eaten.’
Lena nudged my wide-open jaw shut.
‘I’ve just been getting to know your not-so-little friend.’ She turned to Theo. ‘I think you’ve got some explaining to do.’
Theo shrugged. He looked much, much calmer than I felt. Next to me, I could feel Libby practically vibrating with nervous energy.
‘I’m sure Guy here explained everything.’ Theo looked pointedly at Guy. ‘Didn’t you, mate?’
Guy nodded enthusiastically. ‘I told her exactly what you told me to say.’
Lena’s eyes narrowed. Theo let out a hollow laugh. ‘Which is the truth, obviously.’
You Were Made For Me Page 9
