Page 88 of Game Point
Trying to be as gentle as possible, I carried her through to her bedroom, only hesitating a little at the doorway, memories of all we’d done between those four walls. And against them. Swallowing, I laid her down, the unmade bed making it easy to slip the duvet over her. She looked peaceful as she snuggled into the covers. My heart clenched painfully in my chest, somehow feeling lonely and desperate for more.
But I’d made my choice; to be only friends, and agreeing to one night that would haunt me for the rest of my life.
I left her, leaving the door ajar as I headed into my bedroom, ready to fake falling asleep in the guest bedroom until I was sure she was fast asleep. As soon as my head hitthe horribly uncomfortable pillow, I was reminded how awful this bed was. Instead, my eyes traced the shadows on the ceiling, following them as I tried to distract myself from the girl on the other side of the wall.
She was right next door. As always, far too close. At first, it had been a crush, our friendship too new to be anything more, the distance safe enough to keep real feelings from forming. It had all started to change before the China Open. Seeing her in person, after weeks and weeks of communication.
The second I’d seen her at the gala, in that green dress, I should’ve known how deep in I was. If not from the fact I couldn’t take my eyes off her, but because I’d followed her around the world without so much as a place to stay.
‘Holy shit!’ I screamed at the sight of something black and large scurrying across my room, each one of its eight legs tapping along the floor. I scrabbled from the uncomfortable air mattress, darting out of the room, crashing into Dylan as I ran out of the room.
‘What is it?’ she asked, my hands on her shoulders to steady both of us, a panicked look etched on her tired face.
‘It’s huge.’ I looked back at the room, as if to make sure it wasn’t tracking my exit. Hunting me down. ‘It’s got so many fucking legs. It was hairy.’
‘A mouse?’ Dylan asked.
I lowered myself down on the hallway windowsill, keeping a safe distance. Dylan inched towards the room to investigate.
‘No, don’t. I think we need to call somebody,’ I cried, clutching her arm.
‘You’re being dramatic.’ She pulled herself from my grip. ‘What is it?’
‘A spider. A really fucking big spider,’ I replied. ‘I knew they were bigger here but Jesus Christ how big do they need to be?’
‘Let me go. I’ll save you from the big scary monster.’ She headed towards my bedroom, slowly at first, staying in my line of sight. Her body relaxed, ‘Oh, it’s just a baby.’
‘That’sa baby?’
‘It’s only a small one,’ she said, walking further into the bedroom. I heard some noise, half convincing myself she was fighting it Steve Irwin style.
Dylan vs the biggest spider I’d ever seen in my life. I truly wasn’t sure who would win.
‘It could be someone’s pet,’ she added, followed by a loud slam of the window. ‘I bet it escaped.’
‘That thing was a lot of things but small is not it,’ I shouted back, waiting for a moment, before I asked, ‘Did you kill it?’
The silence grew longer and I began to worry.
‘Dylan?’ I shouted, waiting for a response. I stepped forward, creeping towards the room. No response. My heart began to beat harder in my chest. No response. My hands turned clammy. I took a few steps forward, easing towards the doorway.
Something big and black flew out of the doorway, landing on my chest as I screamed in horror, falling backwards on the floor, feet scrambling as my hands swiped at whatever had landed on my chest.
It wasn’t until I heard the sound of an unhinged cacklethat I took pause, fingers brave enough to pick up the thing on my chest. ‘Did you throw a pair of pants at me?’
She stood in the doorway, an arm wrapped around her midsection as she laughed, a hand over her mouth to muffle the noise. ‘You are great fun to tease. And easy.’
‘You are evil. Truly evil.’ I collapsed flat onto the floor, my lungs still burning for a full breath. ‘How did you get rid of it?’
‘I used a glass to put it outside.’
‘Must’ve been more like a bucket.’ I opened an eye to find her standing at my feet. She stretched out her arms towards me to help me up.
Dylan smiled. ‘Wait till you see the big ones. Then you’ll really be afraid.’
‘I hate this country,’ I muttered, my hands meeting hers for the second time tonight. I tried to ignore how they felt pressed together, the buzzing of electricity under my skin, all sparked by her touch. Dylan pulled me up. This time, when I was upright, I couldn’t bear to let my hands leave hers.
‘Border control will happily see you go,’ she grinned, her eyes still bright with mischief.Would she be happy to see me go? Leave her in peace?
