That Girl

Chapter 3

"How far away is your place?" I say, fingers crossed behind my back. I can't imagine me walking far in these shoes.
I wobble around, trying not to twist my ankle.
"Not too far. About 20 minutes?" He says with a smile.
I almost faint.
"20 minutes?" I mutter.
"Yeah! If you fall, I will try and catch you." He says, giggling.
I smile. I weakly reach for the rotting wood. Oh my god, I am seriously bad at this.
I pull my lame body off of the bench, and prize my hand away from it. I struggle for a minute, and after a short time, I regain my balance. Seriously undignified.
I start to put one foot in front of the other. Easy...
I start to move. It is like learning to walk again, but this time I am a couple feet taller.
I reach the pole after a long 7 steps, and from there, I think I will just hold on.
We keep walking, mainly in silence, until we reach the end of the pier, where the cold support stops.
I curse under my breath, and wobble along after the now ahead, Noah.
"Wait!" I shout. "I can only go this fast."
"Why don't you just take them off?!?" He says with a smirk.
"Because there is chewing gum on the floor. And I am not getting it on my tights. My sister will kill..." My words trail off, and Noah looks into my eyes. I can see sadness, lurking behind walls of happy that he has built.
Oh gee.
And with that, I shrug off the heels, and hold them in my hands.
Noah's eyes begin to light up again.
We walk and talk, me careful to avoid chewing gum and suspicious sticky lumps on cobbles.
"Have you always lived here?" He asks, obviously curious.

"Yeah, I have always lived in this area, but not in the same house. We had to move a lot when I was younger..." I say, a little dreamily. I can still feel the tear stains clinging to my skin.

"So where have you moved from?" I ask him.

"Somewhere along the coast called Tanerberry. It is a tiny village near Dorset." He draws me into a deep description. So deep I lose track of reality, and almost walk into the middle of an A road.
"Here we are! Your home away from home." We winks at me and salty tears are bearly visable through my grin.

The penthouse suites on the oppostite end of town. So rustic and modern, unlike our house, which is Edwardian and classic, with oak floors throughout, and an ornate fireplace in nearly every room.
Battered oak floors and bare brick walls add to the atmosphere. I can see Noah in the corner, looking slightly sad.
"What's up?" I ask
He glances up at me, looking like a puppy left in the rain.
"My parents have run off to New York for 3 weeks." he holds up and envelope, and the contents floats to the floor.
Notes and an emergency telephone number list pour out onto the wood.
I reach down to collect the money.
"I'm really sorry..." I say, gathering a large stack of notes into my arms. As I move, a note casually flies from my grasp. I put the notes on the glass table, and move my arm to get the stray £10.
I get one finger to touch the note, but someone else's hand is already there. Shocked, I look up, and the pinkish blush returns to my cheeks.
His deep eyes look surprised, and his touch remains. He reaches across my fingers, and holds my hand tightly.
"Come on. Let's sort out what we should do." He says, but I can see colour still in his cheeks.