Till Next Time

Chapter 1

August 21st 2007

#Oliver's Point of View#

Em will be leaving for boarding school soon. She has been living with us for a year now and has become my closest friend. Even though the boys at school tease me, I never move from my designated position beside her. We have been through a lot together and there is nothing I don't tell her. Except maybe the fact that I have a teeny tiny crush on her but that is beside the point. I move towards Em's now bare room and peek my head inside. Em is silently crying, surrounded by her belongings. I have never seen Em cry, it is always the other way around, so I don't know how to comfort her but I try my hardest anyway.

Em has calmed down now and is getting in the car. She has said thanks to my parents and given Daniel my little brother a fist bump and assures him he'll see her soon. She isn't allowed to come and see us on the holidays because we aren't her family but hopefully her family will come back soon and she can visit us with them. Em turns around and I quickly look away only now realising I was staring but she doesn't notice. I look back, her hand is in starting position and I position mine there as well. We go through our handshake before she closes the door to the car. She looks through the back windshield and mouths something that I don't catch but do the same pattern with my mouth as well. Whatever it is I supposedly said she seemed contented with it and waved before turning to face the front of the car. I will find out what she said next time I see her, I'm just not sure when that will be.

*10 Years Later*

#Oliver's Point of View#

It has been a month since we moved up to Brisbane and I'm fitting in well. I have a bunch of cool friends and girlfriend and I am doing great in school. The only downside to all of this is I have to catch the bus to and from school every day. Unluckily this includes my birthday so I am getting on the bus with my friends trailing behind me singing happy birthday. They have been doing that all day but I didn't mind since we were at school but on public transport it is just embarrassing. I whip around and tell them to shut up but they continue on singing and I just tune them out after a while.

Our bus has to stop near Castle Hill Boarding School even though it is not entirely a boarding school because some people only go during the day. Castle Hill is a creepy old castle that has been transformed into a boarding school. Whenever we drive past it I get shivers because of what might have happened in there long ago. There are rumours that there is a ghost haunting the third floor but I don't believe them. I'm sixteen, of course I don't believe in ghosts. The bus stops outside of Castle Hill and I expect to see the two girls who always get on but instead I see three. The girl in front looks embarrassed and I realise her friends are doing the same thing mine were. Singing her happy birthday on the bus. I can definitely empathise on that one. She turns around and tries to get them to stop but they keep going. Our friends then realise that they are singing at different times and pause to get our names and start together. Here they go again.

'Happy Birthday to you'

'Happy Birthday to you'

'Happy Birthday to Emily and Oliver'

'Happy Birthday to you!'

'Hip Hip Hooray!'

'Hip Hip Hooray!'

'Hip Hip Hooray!'

At the mention of our names together we both look up and lock eyes. We hold each other's gaze for what seems like hours but in reality is only a few seconds. She looks familiar but I can't place where I know her from. She then stands and comes to sit in the spare seat beside me.

'Hi I'm Emily,' she says holding out her hand. 'And you are Oliver I'm guessing?'

'Yep,' I reply sliding my hand into hers and it strikes me as oddly familiar the same as her voice. Suddenly her hand retracts from mine and her pale bluey grey eyes meet mine and I know, I know them from somewhere.

'Sorry if I'm wrong but you don't happen to be Oliver Rideley do you?' she asks and I hear a mixture of hope and sadness in her voice. I remember how I heard that same combination in a certain best friend of mine's voice, 10 years ago and here I am hearing it again.

'Yes,' I say, 'that's me.' I'm a little disturbed at how she knows my full name when we only met five minutes ago but I, being the sixteen year old gentleman I am, smile at her and nod as another confirmation that it is my name. She visibly deflates as she sees me nodding even though she was over the moon a few seconds ago. Abruptly my side feels cold and I realise that she has stood and so have her two friends. I look around and see that the bus has stopped so I'm guessing they have to get off here. Emily looks back at me as she is about to exit the bus and says a string of words that leave me baffled.

'See ya round, Oreo,' she says, then leaps off the bus looking emptied and starts to talk animatedly to her friends.

Only one person in the world is allowed to call me that and that is a certain best friend I lost a long time ago. Over the years I accepted that she was never coming back and now I've found her again, I'm not entirely sure of what to do.

Thank you for reading! I hope you liked it!

Please tell me what you think and if you want, suggest what you want to happen.

Smash