Page 34 of In the Long Run
13
GEN
Thirty feels pretty good to me.So far, my birthday has included a breezy sunrise run, a nice lunch out with my family and now, a quiet night on the couch, because armchair baking is my favourite kind.I nod along as Paul Hollywood and Prue Leith explain the right consistency for a soufflé on the screen.Behind them, a group of befuddled celebrities watch on, clearly regretting their decision to enterThe Great British Bake Off’s big white tent.
Stretching forward, I scoop up my bowl of pistachio ice cream that’s melted to the perfect consistency and savour the first spoonful.A lady who used to be in a girl band drops her showstopper on the walk up to the judges’ table and I grimace, spoon still in my mouth.
I’m fast-forwarding through her teary confessional when there’s a loud knock on the front door.It’s after seven and I’m not expecting anyone.I check my phone, frowning at the screen full of notifications.
Meredith:Have you been on TikTok today?
Oh, are there new videos of baby goats doing yoga?Because that would pair perfectly with tonight’s viewing schedule.I’ll check it out as soon as I see who’s at the door.I’m halfway down the hall when I pause and check my phone screen again.There are three missed calls from Brand.
‘Gen?’Knox calls.‘Are you home?I need to talk to you.’
What is going on?
I pull the door open.
‘Hey.’Knox leans against the doorframe and folds his arms across his chest.File that under another look that works for him.Is it rude to not say hello to his biceps when they’re popping so deliciously?
‘Hi?’I say it like a question, knocked off-kilter by all these sudden interruptions to my quiet night.‘Is something wrong?’
He scratches at the stubble that lines his jaw.‘Can I come in?’
‘Sure.’I gesture for him to enter.
He strides past me, past the doorways to my room and then Caleb’s.I follow him, pulling my door closed as I pass it.Knox didn’t look, but just in case he does on the way out, he doesn’t need to see the clear evidence that Cyclone Genevieve made landfall yesterday.You’d think that someone who worked from home would have plenty of time to tidy up after themselves, but you’d be wrong.
‘Did you want to sit or …’continue to stand awkwardly next to the big bunch of hydrangeas that Mum gave me at lunch?
‘Are you on TikTok?’he asks, colour starting on his cheeks and spreading down his neck.
Whatever’s trending must be pretty huge if even Knox has heard of it.No offence to him, but he doesn’t seem like a social media guy.There’s no way he’s snapping pictures of his breakfast or hashtagging his way through the day.
‘Mere sent me a message asking the same thing!’
Knox pulls a phone out of his pocket.The case is covered in different French delicacies.‘This is Celeste’s,’ he says, catching what must be my confused expression.
‘And you have her phone because …’
‘She made a video’—he closes his eyes and rubs his forehead—‘of us.’
For a split second I think it’s a sex tape.Which isridiculousbecause we don’t have a sex tape.We haven’t had sex.But my imagination ignores that minor detail and images of our bodies twisted together and Knox taking everything I’d give him flash across my mind.
‘Gen?’
‘What do you mean?’I’m all breathy.There’s something wrong with me.
He frowns.‘She filmed us when we were at run club the other day.And we, ah, hugged.At the end.’It’s cute he thinks I could’ve forgotten that happened.No one could get up close and personal with his chest and forget it.
‘Okay?’I stretch the word into several syllables and sit back down, burying my hands under my thighs because I don’t know what else to do with them.
‘And, um, you see, Celeste has all these followers on TikTok’— he clears his throat—‘so there were some comments.’
‘About us?’
His jaw clenches and he nods.
