Page 51 of The Prospect

“Let’s go somewhere.” I whip my head over my shoulder, confidently sitting upright in my chair as I lock my eyes onto Green’s.

He looks at me with sheer disarray. “Go somewhere?” he repeats back to me, visibly confused at my sudden shift in topics. “Like?”

I softly tilt my chin to gesture into the distance, and from the simple motion alone, I know that Green knows where I’m referring to.

It’s been a long time since we’ve been there together. I think I’ve tried to avoid it over the years because of all the memories it holds—feelings it makes me have to suppress, but right now it’s the only place I can think of that'll prove to him that no one will ever come in between what we have…what we’ve created.

“Remember when we used to race there?” I stand up from my chair eagerly. “Hm? Do you?”

A half smile creeps its way onto Green's lips. “Do I remember?” he retorts, the golden rays of sunlight dancing along the high points of his cheeks by now. The sight alone makes me want to fall right back into my chair. I stay strong.“The better question is…”He rises to his feet, and as he does, he immediately towers over top of me. “Do you remember how many times I beat you?”

I mockfully roll my eyes at his raging confidence. “Yeah, yeah. That was then, Greenie. This is now. Care for a rematch?” I know for a fact that I don’t stand any chance of winning, but realistically, it doesn’t matter. I’ll do anything at this point to bring him back to me. Anything. “Unless, of course,” I tease, “you’re afraid I’ll beat you this time?”

Green smirks as he assumes a racing position. “Hazel Jane Collins,” he calls me by my full name. “You’re on.”

SIXTEEN

G R E E N

10 YEARS AGO - Age 14

“Mum!”My voice bounces from wall to wall as I shout in through the house. “I’m going out to play footy with some friends. I’ll be home before the streetlights come on, alright? Bye!”

I don’t wait for her to respond before I slam the door shut, kick a football up into my hands and pace my way down the driveway.

Today’s been go, go, go, but I’m not quite done yet. Not only was class full of assignments and tests, but after school, I had practice—one that went so well that the boys and I aren’t ready to call it quits yet.

We’re convinced that if we keep our momentum going, we’ll be able to finally beat our competitor school in our match next week. They say practice makes perfect, and boy, if we want to beat them…we’re sure as hell going to need a lot of it.

“Daniel. Wait!” Mum takes me by surprise as she swings open the door and calls out my name. The panic ridden throughout her voice forces me to quickly turn on my heel and meet her face. She looks distressed—worried.

“Everything alright, Mum?” I ask, paving my way back to the doorstep. “What’s going on?”

“It’s…Hazel.” Mum runs a troubled hand along her forehead, and almost instantly, I feel the world stop.

“Hazel?” I can barely repeat her name back to her. “What do you mean, ‘it’s Hazel’? Is she okay? Is she hurt?” I discard my football to the side, hardly having enough strength in my palms to keep grasp of it. “Tell me something didn’t happen to her, Mum. Please!”

Most of the lads at school laugh when they realize that not only is my best friend a girl, but she’s also two years younger than me.

I don’t care what others think.

From the moment Hazel first came into my life, she’s become a necessary part of it. She’s shown me friendship unlike anyone else. Taught me things I don’t think anyone else ever could and made me realize that I can never ever lose her because losing Hazel would mean losing a piece of myself.

“Relax, Daniel, she’s okay. She’s alright.”

Mum places a comforting hand on either side of my shoulders to help settle me. I hadn’t realized that my breathing had turned borderline erratic.

“It’s just, Hazel came racing here after school looking for you. I told her you were at practice and would be back soon, but…” Her voice trails off as she sinks into the doorframe. “She seemed really upset about something, Daniel and now I’m really worried about her.”

“Is she still here?” I ask, ready to charge my way inside. “I’ll go and speak to her now.”

“She’s not here.” Mum shakes her head. “I asked for her to come in, but she said she needed to go somewhere to think. Somewhere to clear her mind. I asked her what she meant, but all she said was that she was going to ‘your spot.’ Now, I don’tknow where ‘your spot’ is exactly, but if you need me to, I can drive you there and…DANIEL!”

Mum’s sentence trails off as I race my way past her and rush through the house.

“Daniel, stop! Where on Earth are you going?'' She follows after me as I reach the back-end of the garden and unlock the back gate.

“To the spot,” I tell her. “I need to find her. I need to talk to her.” I refuse to slow down, but now Mum has clutched onto my arm and halted me in place.

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