Page 39 of Atticus Arnott's Great Adventure
Jake sat at his desk and stared out of the window.
He could see the farm shop and café, where weekend visitors were milling around. Over at the campsite, there wasn’t an empty pitch, and Jake yearned to be out on the Little Grey Fergie, servicing the site and helping new campers settle in or assisting anyone who needed a hand. He wondered what his grandad was up to and if campsites in Spain lived up to their reputation. Did Solma Vacaciones really have the amazing swimming pools he’d viewed on the website, and was it reallysoclose to a long, sandy beach?
Swivelling in his chair, Jake turned to his laptop, his fingers poised over the keyboard. He hadn’t checked the @thetravellinggrandad account on Instagram that day. Atticus’s previous photos of his journey and the giant bulls had been interesting, but today, Jake hoped there might be something showing the campsite.
Opening the account, Jake scanned the page.
At first, his expression remained neutral as he realised there were scores more images to view. But as the content of the photos came into focus, Jake’s eyes widened, and his eyebrows arched as he leaned in closer to absorb every pixelated detail. Without realising he was smiling, Jake suddenly began to laugh. ‘Oh, Grandad,’ he giggled and fist-bumped the air.
Reaching for his phone, Jake dialled Uncle Arthur’s number.
‘'Ello?’ Arthur answered. ‘Who is this?’
‘It’s me, Uncle Arthur,’ Jake said excitedly. ‘Who else would be callingyour mobile?’
‘Well, I’m certain Julia Roberts has been trying to get through; she’s gagging to have an affair with me.’
‘Julia who?’ Jake was puzzled.
‘Never mind, lad,’ Arthur sighed. ‘Have you had word from abroad?’
‘Nothing from Grandad, but have you seen his Instagram account today?’
‘I haven’t. In truth, I’m in the pub.’
‘Uncle Arthur, you’ve never seen anything like it!’ Jake gasped, keen to share his newfound knowledge. ‘Grandad is having a blast.’
‘Eh? What do you mean?’
‘He’s been partying, and there are all sorts of people in the photos, and…’ Jake trailed off as his eyes fell on an image of a person covered in tattoos, linking her arm with Atticus. ‘Wow…’ Jake breathed. ‘Just look at those piercings…’
‘Piercings? Atticus has got piercings?’ Arthur sounded confused.
‘Crikey!’ Jake exclaimed. ‘These tattoos look like a zoo!’
‘He’s had a zoo tattoo?’ Arthur was aghast.
‘No… Listen.’ Jake shook his head, remembering Arthur’s old Nokia, despite urging him to upgrade to a smartphone. ‘You need to go home to your computer. Get on to the Instagram account I set up for you and see what he’s up to and…’ Jake suddenly stopped. His jaw dropped, and he sat back, his eyes falling on the number of Atticus’s followers.
‘What’s up? Are you there?’ Arthur sounded anxious.
‘Bloody hell…’ Jake breathed.
‘Now, you know you shouldn’t swear,’ Arthur remarked.
‘Grandad has nearly five thousand followers!’ Jake gasped.
‘Eh? I thought only you and I followed him?’
‘You’re as bad as Grandad,’ Jake said, exasperated. ‘When you use hashtags, it doesn’t give you exclusivity; it allows people to search for that hashtag, and if they like what they see, they’ll start following the account.’
‘Oh, is that so?’
‘Yes. I knew Grandad didn’t understand,’ Jake sighed. ‘He thinks only you and I will see the photos.’
‘Do you mean he’s going global?’ The light was slowly dawning in the back room of The Black Bull’s snug.
‘I’ll say,’ Jake giggled. ‘The Travelling Grandad is becoming an internet sensation.’ Atticus’s hashtags had created visibility, and Jake scrutinised the descriptions. ‘He’s used all these:#party #tattoos #laterlife #travel #upallnight #sangria #piercings.’
