Page 6 of Only When It Breaks

I ignore her, tuning in to Maxine, who looks embarrassed as she says, “I know it’s not much, but we like to call it home.”

“It’s beautiful,” Dad tells her, following her to the kitchen.

Emmie steps around me and heads that way, too, so I follow, relieved when I see a couch in the corner of their open-plan kitchen/dining room. I drop down, dumping my bag at my feet, then pull out my old mobile. I’m disappointed when I see no messages from the phone-napper.

“What is that?” asks Emmie, pointing to the device in my hand and trying to not laugh.

“A phone. Obviously.”

She puts her hand to her ear, pretending to talk into it. “Hello, the nineties called, they want their phone back.”

Dad glances over, then smiles too. “He’s not having another one. He lost his new one, it cost me a fortune.”

“I didn’t lose it, it got stolen,” I mutter.

“Have you reported it?” Maxine asks as she moves around the kitchen gracefully, gathering things she needs to make lunch.

“No, we have not,” Dad cuts in firmly. “He isn’t wasting police time over his disregard for his own property.”

Emmie smirks with a glint in her eye. “Naughty boy,” she mutters before turning on her heel and walking out. I roll my eyes and take my attention back to the cracked screen. I really need to get that phone back.

It’s another half hour before Maxine calls us to the table. I trudge over, eyeing the quiche with disdain. How did I guess it would be my most hated thing, with the other most hated thing, salad.

I take a seat opposite Emmie, who is already serving up.

“Emmie,” Maxine says, tapping her hand until she drops the salad tongs. “We have guests.”

She gives me a stiff smile before holding out the tongs, which I take.

“So,” says Maxine brightly as she tops my glass up from a jug of iced water. “I didn’t realise you went to Oakridge too. What a coincidence.”

Try punishment,I think as I load my plate with salad. “We don’t exactly hang out,” I say, dropping the tongs.

“We exist in the same building,” says Emmie, deadpan. Maxine laughs awkwardly, glancing back and forth between us.

“Maybe that will change,” Dad says, slipping his hand into Maxine’s, who smiles back at him like he’s her everything. “Especially if we-”

“Dad,” I snap, cutting him off. And he and Maxine exchange a wary look. I don’t want to throw a spanner in his love life, but the truth is, I’ve seen it all before. He gets swept up, goes all in, and then it falls apart. And I can’t let that happen because Emmie knows me. Well, she thinks sheknowsme. And I’m happy to lether think I’m a walking cliché, for her to roll her eyes in irritation whenever I look her way. I don’t care that she doesn’t drop to my feet like all the other girls in college. But she can absolutely know nothing about my real life.Ever.

Chapter Three

Emmie

Torture. That’s all I can describe lunch as. Pure torture. It was bad enough that I had to witness my mum flirtingbadly. But once his highness made his displeasure clear, things were just awkward. And what’s wrong with my mum anyway?

“Tell me again,” says Ava excitedly.

I sigh, “His dad forced him to invite me,” I repeat for the tenth time at least. “He made it clear he didn’t want me there.”

I think back to the conversation earlier at lunch.

“Kai’s having a get together at ours later,” Joel had told Mum. “Emmie is more than welcome.”

“It’s friends only,” Kai had cut in, his eyes wide with annoyance.

Joel had placed a hand on Kai’s shoulder, I’m pretty sure he squeezed it before adding, “And Emmie is a friend now, isn’t she?” It was said through gritted teeth, and we all heard it, butMum continued to stand there with a wide smile. “And then I can take Maxine out for dinner.”

“Oh, you can take her anyway,” I rushed to say. “I have a date with my English Lit books.”

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