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"We’re skipping school too to London and find Henry Thornton"

PART IV

BECOMING REAL

Chapter Twenty-One

From Year to Year

"I can’t believe you wouldn’t take the bike," said Jared

"I’m sorry," Kami told him "I have this irrational fear of fatal road accidents Anyway, getting here by public transport was perfectly si bus out of Sorry-in-the-Vale, then switching to another bus, and finally catching a train at Moreton-in-the-Marsh It would have been fine without so in her brain about the speed of his motorbike

"Oh yes," Jared said "Perfectly si of Waterloo Station gave Ka to help She grinned up at Jared, as standing with his hands in his pockets and his shoulders braced The feeling of discoot on the second bus (which she had put down to crankiness about his bike) niggled at her She pushed at his defenses and Jared pushed back, not letting her in He did sh

"Shall we be on our way?" he asked

Henry Thornton’s apart was more accessible by bus than by train, so they had another walk

"And another bus," Jaredabout public transport," Kami said "Did you ever take a bus on a school trip as a child? Was it a nice safe journey, driving at reasonable speed, being environ to an educational experience? I shudder to think"

They walked over Waterloo Bridge In the distance on either side bristled s, like weapons in the hands of eneht had colanced up at Jared The wind blew in from the river and ruffled his blond hair; his profile beneath was inscrutable

"And here you’re supposed to be the glamorous city kid"

"I just like Sorry-in-the-Vale," Jared said

"Sure, it’s nice," said Kami "But I like London too"

Cars ran on either side of the river, every second one a black cab Big posters stood against the sky, flickering fro with parted scarlet lips People went by, some with their heads down, some with their umbrellas pessimistically up despite the fact that there was no rain There was an Indianin a Chinese dialect

Her dad had attended only one year of college in London before he had to come back and marry her mother The times she came to London with hiretted it Here nobody kneho she was, that she talked to ihter of the son of that Japanese woman, one of theirs and not quite one of theirs Nobody looked twice at her or Jared It was just the two of the unnoticed by the whole world

Kami reached for Jared’s hand She barely brushed skin with her fingertips, the contact sending a jolt through her, when Jared flinched autoret a second later, but by then she had snatched her hand away

Ka the concrete-lined riverbank, where there were trees starving in little cages Kaht came to her: Jared really did not like London

"Bus stop’s that way," she said, and walked ahead of him

Henry Thornton’s flat was in the o past two schools, six corner shops, and innuether before they found it

Thirty-Two Croardens around it It was an uninspiring gray block of flats, all the s uniforray wall i ajar Soe in autus and thorns

"What do we say e press the button for Flat 16?" Jared asked, after they had stood looking at the building for a couple of ainst the wall and realized that she had been right at the train station The closed-off feeling she’d been getting fro underneath it, wasn’t crankiness or anger She did not usually look at Jared for long, stealing glances to hts in her mind The reality of him always made her bite her lip and look away too soon She studied him now; the shoulders she’d already noticed were braced, and the glea that already dark-blond hair

"You’re sick," she said, startled

"I’o now"

"We didn’t co a little peaky," Jared bit out "Kami! Come on" He didn’t say it, but that didn’t matter because she heard it in his ht!" Kaht of what had happened to Nicola, because Jared was right: she’d come here with a o ho to say e press the buzzer?" Jared asked

"I’ the buzzer," Ka in? I’ain