The Turn of a Page

Chapter 16

Chapter 16

            While two of them were in the shower (we had two bathrooms), the other two sat watching Van Helsing (with Hugh Jackman in, who was very handsome) and Barry and I were in the kitchen making dinner for everyone (they had all chipped in to cover the price).

            As I was stripping one of the two cooked chickens we had bought, I had to constantly claw at Baz’s hands and slap them to keep him from eating the pieces as I put them on a plate.

            ‘Stop it, or I’ll lock you outside,’ I threatened while holding up a wooden spoon in front of his face. ‘And you know I will so go and sit down or be a bit more helpful.’

            ‘Yes, Kez. But you know I love chicken,’ he admitted.

            ‘And if you carry on there will be none left for the rest of us. So watch the vegetables and distract yourself from me stripping this.’ He squeezed from behind me, and chuckled husky like in my ear. I waved my hand at him to get on with something else and to stop distracting me and began disassembling the other chicken.

            Lying on our backs, on his floor, Baz and I sang along to some songs (like we had in the car earlier) but this time it was music that I knew much better and there were songs that I could sing along to by myself as he couldn’t hit high notes that girls could, instead he hummed along. At the introduction of a new song, I rolled over and lay on my front next to him, propped up by my arms; I looked down at him as I sang along and he smiled while he brushed my cheek and pushed some strands of hair from in front of me eyes so he could stare into them.

            The song finished and I leaned over him to his laptop (which was on the floor under his desk) and stopped his music player on it. While I was leant over him, he wrapped his arms around my waist and leant up to start kissing my neck (licking my skin a little too).

            ‘Mmmm,’ I moaned with closed eyes and limp arms. Tensing my body up a little as he pushed me so we sat on the floor with our legs crossed, I ran my hands up and down his arms. ‘Baz, you know we have school tomorrow?’ I asked rhetorically.

            ‘Yes. What’s your point?’ he said still nuzzling my neck and collar bone.

            I pushed him off a little. ‘We need to be up early, and we have a lot to do. The props and backdrops are starting to be made tomorrow for the play and I was thinking of offering to help out.’ My self-conscious recoiled at me saying that bit of detail. ‘In my free time of course, and well...’ I hesitated. ‘I was hoping you would volunteer with me.’

            ‘Oh, I see. Unlike you, Kez, I didn’t take Art. You know it’s not my thing and I’m not amazing when it comes to making things and doing crafts. By all means, you can go along and help out, don’t let me stop you. I just don’t think I should, knowing me I’ll end up nailing myself to bits of wood.’ We both giggled. ‘Nah, its fine. If any of them decide to stay back some nights and you want to as well then just text me and I’ll get the bus back home.’ That was not what I wanted to hear; of all the things that he could have said, that was one of the worst. Even though I had once before, I didn’t want to be stuck with Cayleb (and whoever else) in the drama studio late at night.

*

            As it was inevitable to happen, I stayed back late with other Art students to finish up painting some of the backdrops we had in mind for the play. Paint brush in hand and a load of paint pots laid on a decorating cloth placed on the studio floor, I set about finishing a forest scene. Some of the Tech guys had taken over the stage to do their best at making more props.