Seeing You - Boys of Tommen

All Aboard

December 31st, 2001

Hugh:

I hadn't expected to see Katie walking into a church. I thought it was weird that she hadn't told me she was religious, I mean it wasn't hard to believe, I had yet to hear the girl swear but I was just suprised  she never mentioned it to me.

It made me feel even more guilty about spending so many afternoons with Lizzie and her family, I knew it wasn't cheating, the time we were spending together was far from romantic, our current relationship was more akin to the relationship a patient has with their psychiatrist. But I still hadn't told Katie, I wasn't actively lying but... I still felt shitty about it.

The lads and I were standing outside of the Church, when Katie finally emerged. Her eyes bulged out of her head when she saw us, I noted how her eyes were kind of bloodshot and puffy, she must have been crying earlier, and I felt like an asshole for ambushing her like this. 

"Hey Katie." I said.

"Hey...um what are you guys doing here?"

"We were at the shop and we saw you so we came."

"Oh okay." The rest of the lads were obviously regretting our decision of coming over here, but it was done now, no going back.

"Did you walk here?" I asked, it was a long way from her house, I think there's closer churches to her house, but maybe this one has sentimental value or something. Something you should probably know about your girlfriend.

"Yeah."

"Jesus, it's freezing you walked from your house?" Gibsie asked.

"Kind of like your own pilgrimage." Feely says and Katie laughs.

"Do you want to come back with us? We can give you a ride."

"My Mam's car only sits five, Hughie."

"It's fine anyways, I still have to get ready, I'm good just walking back."

"We can give you a spin home and we can leave Gibs to fend for himself."

"My Mam's not going to leave me."

"You can just sit on my lap." I say to Katie, so maybe this Church ambushing wasn't all for nothing.

Katie blushes and nods following us back to the car, I drape my arm over her to warm her up and she's shivering.

When we get to the car, Mrs. Allen isn't quite as enthusiastic about Katie sitting on my lap as I am. She's practically a second mother to me, and sees right through my bullshit. "Katie, can sit in the front and Gerard can sit on your lap."

"What?" Gibsie and I say at the same time. "Mam, I'm not sitting on Hughie, it's just not happening."

"I just thought, Katie would be the best option, because she's the lightest and takes the least amount of room." I say.

"Really, a whole seat is wasted on her." Gibsie adds

"Fine, Katie dear you can sit on Patrick's lap,"he chokes.

"What?" I say.

"What would your mother say, if she knew I allowed her thirteen year old son to have his girlfriend sit on top of him, in my car no less?"

"But another thirteen year old is fine though."

"I don't live across from his mother."

"Christ." I say, and Katie is dead silent, looking like she regretted getting out of that Confessional booth.

"Mam, Katie's a good girl, she literally just did a confessional."

"Good on you, love." She said putting her hand on Katie's shoulder, "It's refreshing to see a committed young person."

"Thanks." She says blushing.

"Okay kids, all aboard!"

Patrick looks like he's actively having an aneurysm, but I decide out of my friends I can trust him the most. 

Thanks for reading! This is random, but during this and Taming Seven I always imagine Gibsie's mother as Mary from Derry Girls lol. - H <3