Distorted with anguish and confusion, his expression said it all.
I knew I couldn’t do this. It’s all my fault.
I went to go with him, but he jerked his head at the Harriers, who were mostly now huddled with a few parents and supporters. Giving him as reassuring a nod as I could manage, I went to assist the Harriers’ manager in the best way I could: by taking care of his team.
29
On Sunday evening, the Boys to Men project members convened at the kitchen table for a progress update. It was about the last thing I felt like doing, after such a rough week, but as Arthur pointed out, they were paying me.
‘Ta-da!’ Arthur waved a proud hand at a plate of caramel shortbread in the middle of the table, with a pot of tea and four mugs.
‘Very nice.’ I picked up one of the crumbly golden slices. ‘Nicked some leftovers from the picnic, I see.’
‘Well, yeah.’ Isaac was sitting beside Arthur. ‘But it shows we put thought into obtaining snacks in advance. And we got an actual teapot, with matching mugs. Come on, sis, this is genuine progress.’
‘You’re right.’ I glanced at Elliot, at the end of the table, opposite me. Back straight, face neutral. In the depth of his eyes a raging hurricane. ‘Even if it doesn’t always seem like it, you’ve all come a long way.’
‘So, what’s next?’ Arthur asked, handing me a mug that he’d poured tea into with a flourish. ‘One month down, two to go.’
I couldn’t help smiling. ‘Arthur, you’ve seen Elsa, what, three times this past week?’
Arthur went pink with pleasure. ‘Well, yes, but one of those was youth group.’
‘And the two hours after youth group that you sat in the garden snogging?’
‘We were talking!’ He wriggled about on the wonky stool in protest. ‘Mostly talking.’
‘Anyway. You have the girl of your dreams, it’s going great. What more could you want?’
‘This. Obviously.’ Arthur stood up, rummaged in the pocket of his giant cotton shorts and gingerly placed a ring box on the table.
‘Bro.’ Isaac stared at the box, a slow grin of disbelief spreading across his face.
Arthur nodded his head slowly as his gaze travelled around each of us. ‘Time for the game to hit the second half, baby. And this boy needs to become a man damn quick because he ain’t chancing a last-minute own goal.’
I took a few sips of tea, hoping that one of Arthur’s friends would step in to address this madness.
‘Jessie?’ Isaac turned his delight in my direction. ‘Thoughts?’
‘Okay.’ I took another sip, stalling for time. ‘You already told me about the ring. Can we safely say that this is going to wait until the end of the second half? You aren’t planning on proposing any time soon?’
‘Of course not!’ Arthur guffawed, causing a momentary flood of relief. ‘An Elsa-worthy proposal takes time to prepare. I will resist the urge to declare the true extent of my feelings until the party.’
‘What party?’
‘The engagement party, of course! It would be ungentlemanly to propose until I’ve met her family and asked for their blessing. They’re travelling up from Hampshire, so I had a stroke of brilliance and decided to combine the meeting and the proposal into one event. From there, the obvious thing to do was to make it into a party.’
‘An engagement party?’
‘Yes. Did I not make that clear?’
‘Arthur, people have an engagement party after the proposal, to celebrate getting engaged. What’s not clear is that you seem to be hoping to propose to Elsa at the party itself.’
‘Incorrect!’
‘Oh, thank goodness for that.’
‘No hoping about it! Iammost definitely, 100 per cent going to propose at the party.’
