Page 124 of Someone Like You

‘Issy,no.’

Raff’s cheeks turn candy pink, and mine have heated up too.

‘What? It’s funny! You wanted to go to thehospital.’

‘Issy!’

‘She thought she was dying and asked me to call 911,’ she tells Raff.

‘Oh, er…’ Raff mutters.

‘He doesn’t want to know,’ I scold.

‘Fine!But you’d think the daughter of an OB-GYN would have paid more attention in health class.’

‘Issy!’

She shakes her head, still laughing at the memory, and goes back to making fondant snowflakes. If she weren’t so good at it, I’d kick her out for breaching the sister code. She’s lucky I don’t launch into the story of her getting her driver’s license. Orfailingher driver’s license –fourtimes. She was the only person in her junior class who couldn’t legally drive. Though, she did driveillegally a handful of times – something I was sworn to secrecy about in exchange for rides to the movies.

My phone rings with an incoming video call. ‘It’s Freya,’ I announce, accepting the call. ‘Hey, Frey! Merry Christmas Eve Eve!’

She giggles. ‘Hello! Wait, are you wearing an apron?’

‘Yep.’ I flip the camera so she can see Raff and Issy. ‘We’re making a wedding cake.’

‘You are not,’ she says with a laugh. ‘Oh,’ she says when I direct the phone camera towards the cooling cake tiers. ‘You are!’

‘Well,Iam,’ says Raff, lifting his gaze from a huge bowl of fondant. ‘Gabs has been relegated to clean up.’

‘Phew,’ Freya replies dramatically.

‘Hey!’ I cry, pretending to take offence – though we all know I have the culinary skills of a llama.

Freya giggles again. ‘Hello, Issy!’ she calls out, and Issy waves. They’ve never met in person, but they’ve said hello a few times on calls like this one – mostly when Freya’s been at my place and Issy has called.

‘It’s wonderful that you could be there for Christmas,’ says Freya. ‘What a lovely surprise for your family.’

Issy’s eyes meet mine and I mouth, ‘Sorry.’

She fakes a smile at the phone, uttering, ‘Mm-hmm,’ before going back to her snowflakes. Next time I talk to her alone, I’ll tell Freya Issy’s real reason for showing up unexpectedly.

‘So, why are you making a wedding cake?’ Freya asks.

‘Shall I take this one?’ I ask Raff, and he nods.

I flip the camera back around and quickly fill Freya in on the Snowpocalypse wedding.

‘Wowser – that’s far more exciting that what’s happening here.’

‘What’s happening there?’ I ask.

She brings her phone so close to her mouth, I could give her a dental exam. ‘I’msobored, Gaby. It’s either sit around with my older relatives who drinkglöggand play Alfabet all day – it’s like Scrabble, but it’s in Swedish and I am nowherenearfluent enough to join in, so I just end up doing the drinking part…’

I snigger. ‘Or?’

‘Or I go cross country skiing with my cousins – and you know how unfit I am. I went with them on my second day and they practically had to bring me home on a dog sled!’

I’m sure she’s exaggerating, especially since her family lives in the outskirts of Stockholm. I doubt there are random dog sleds roaming the ’burbs, looking for unfit Brits who need assistance.

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