‘I’ll explain there.’ I’m not going to talk about the tenancy in here.
‘Sure. I should be able to pop in quickly.’ She sniffs. ‘I’ve got a lot of college work to get through, as you know. I haven’t got all day to myself.’
I receive the jibe loud and clear even though she doesn’t say it.
Thirty minutes later, when we step out of the café, my shoulders feel tight. The humid air presses down as I walk, but I barely notice it.
At the bus stop, I kick at the loose gravel while we wait. Paige has been my only real friend for the last few years. After leaving so much behind, she’s the one person I don’t have to pretend with. I don’t want to lose her.
I replay our conversation again and again. Had I been bragging? I hadn’t meant to, but maybe that’s how it came across. I can’t really win. My best friend is stuck, and I just got handed a dream escape route.
When we get to the house, I make some coffee and try to see things through Paige’s eyes. It looks as it always does, clean but cramped, and I remember when we first viewed it that it had seemed classy and brand new, compared to our scruffy bedsit on the wrong side of town.
Paige perches, stiff and unsure, on the edge of the armchair cushion opposite. She’s left her jacket on, as if she’s not yet decided how long she’ll stay.
‘So, I asked you over here because I wanted to make you an offer before we leave for the Lake District,’ I say, smiling warmly.
Paige tucks a strand of chocolate-brown hair behind her ear and reaches for her mug. ‘Sounds interesting.’
‘I understand it must have been a shock for you when I told you about the house win. I mean, it was a shock for us, too and –’
‘If you’re worried about that thing I said,’ Paige interrupts, ‘about the stuff in your past you’ve not told Dev yet, then don’t be. It’s not like I’m going to say anything, is it?’
I feel myself stiffen, every muscle in my neck and shoulders tightening.
‘Besides,’ Paige goes on, brushing an invisible thread from her sleeve, ‘when I mentioned the press earlier, I just meant they’ll be sniffing around after the house story. That’s what they do, isn’t it? But, honestly, I wouldn’t worry.’ She pauses, a spark of interest in her eyes. ‘Not unless you’ve got something really juicy to hide.’ She laughs softly, like she’s making a joke, but her supposedly reassuring tone has an edge to it – a softness that conceals a sharpened tip.
‘Anyway, we all have our secrets,’ Paige adds, when I don’t reply. ‘And yours are safe with me.’
I set down my mug, my fingers wrapping tightly around my knees. I wish she hadn’t mentioned that again, although she doesn’t know all my secrets, thank God.
‘The reason I asked you over here is nothing to do with that, anyway,’ I say, glancing at the window. ‘You know we’ll be moving out of here in a week or so?’
‘Yes,’ she says, her voice measured. ‘I’m excited for you.’
‘Well, there’s five months left on the lease, and given your circumstances, living with your parents, and wanting to save up to buy your own place, we wondered if you’d like to move in here for the remainder of the rental agreement.’
Paige looks at me blankly. ‘You mean actually live here?’
I nod. ‘It’s a start and you could move in as soon as we’ve gone. All we’d ask for is that you pay half the rent. We’ll cover the other half. And you wouldn’t need to worry about paying a deposit or anything because we sorted all that at the beginning of our tenancy.’
She looks worried, her brows pulling together in a tight frown for a moment, as if calculating something in her head. ‘How much would it be?’
‘We pay five fifty a month, but we want to help you out. How does two fifty sound?’
‘Oh, Merri, I really appreciate the offer, but money’s really short at the moment. Mum’s even letting me off paying board, because she knows I can’t pay and save up at the same time.’ One hand moves instinctively to the chain around her neck as she fiddles with the small pendant there.
I look around the small kitchen nook, the scuffed wooden floor, the single window with the slightly draughty frame. ‘Look, you’d be doing us a favour,’ I say. ‘Having someone in here we trust until our lease is finished is a problem solved for us. So forget about the rent, just look after the place for us.’ No doubt Dev would have something to say on the matter, but he doesn’t need to know.
Paige laughs. She jumps up and gives me a hug. ‘Are you sure? I can’t believe it … If you’re really sure, well, thank you so much!’
‘I’m glad you’re pleased.’ I pick up my mug again, mostly just to give my hands something to do. But the coffee is lukewarm.
I have the strangest feeling I’ve just handed Paige something – power, leverage about keeping my secret … I’m not sure. Maybe it’s another thing I’m imagining.
Paige blows out air and sits back. ‘This place is so cute,’ she says, looking around again, ‘I can see myself living here and it’ll be so nice to have my own space again.’
‘That’s what I thought,’ I say. ‘Hopefully, this is a fresh start for you, too.’ I want to add that when the tenancy is finished she’ll need to sort herself out. But the moment for that has passed, unless I want the frosty version of my friend back.
