Going back...

chapter 7

It's Saturday afternoon, the day has been boiling blood hot, the sun seems to evaperate even the sweat I'm sweating out.
I'm currently sitting on an old tyre swing, Liam, Chase and I made, watching my father fertilize his corn. The smell is foul and the glass seeds are getting in my shoes.

What can I say, I've been a country girl for 13 years of my life, it only took 4 years to make me a city girl.

My mind is drifting and I'm growing bored.

~flashback~

"Liam, want to do something to remember us by" I say smiling, rubbing my dirty hands on my dirt filled, shorts pockets. There was a cool breeze blowing in this late afternoon, the day had cooled off, but our sunburn seemed to slizzle even with the cool breeze. 

"If your going to suggest something girly, then no way" he says screwing his sunkiss nose up, throwing the football in the air and catching it.

"Come on, who needs to know, please" I begg looking at Liam with pleading eyes.

"Okay, I sware this is the last time I do something girly with you" he says smiling, looking at the ground, already knowing it most defiantly wasn't. "If you tell chase he will kill me" I says willing me to go on with my plan.

"Shut up, Chase doesn't have to know" I say smiling, grabbing the knife out of my bag and climbing onto a low beach of our tree. "Get up here, you know I need some help" I say annoyed Liam wasn't doing his part. "You ha r to witness this"

"OK, why are you in such a mood, didn't you get invited to Tarnie's 12tg birthday party" he says climbing up beside me. "Cause I sure did" he says smirking.

A pang of hurt stabbed my heart, why did that always happen when he talked about other girls. "Shut up... Your so annoying,and for your information I did" I says starting to calve our names into the tree branch.

"Oh good, I wasnt going to go unless you went" I felt a smile form on my lips before stopping it. "Oh give it here, your so lucky you have me" Liam says bragging the knife from my hand dangerously. "Girls" he says under his breath.

"Boys" I mimick, bit caring if I get on his nerves. ....."Can you make my 'y' at least look pretty" I pout looking at his capital messey wood writing.

"Can you hold your horses, this is going to look sick as" he says smiling not looking up from his calving.

20 minutes later...

"Why didn't you put a heart around it" I says shocked at the round bloapy thing he called a heart.

"That is a heart, it's got the inner thing and you know... I think it looks beautiful, Liam & Hayley" he smiles crossing his arms reading what he just calved into the tree branch.

"Ok, I'll forgive you" I say in defeat rolling my eyes. "You know you could have... "

"Hayley, Ive made you and Liam lunch, can you get Hannah for me" my mother yells cutting me off.

I quickly look at liam, the same time he does. We laugh and run off, not wanting to fetch Hannah.

~end flashback~

I look around coming back to reality, smiling at the memory. I stand up and find the low branch our names we're calved in.

Still exactly the same, Liam & Hayley, with the bad looking heart around it.The 'y's' was still odd looking and it was still all in capital letters as expected. The bark was still all pulled back from Liams little eight year old brother Micki finding our little secret. He had ran and told all his friends spoiling my fun.

Not thinking to much I lift myself up and start walking. The red dirt stains the bottom of my shoes. The smell of fertilizer is still distantly in the air. The feeling my loneliness and loss fills my chest as I think of the type of friend I lost. Liam the all mighty, saviour of my ever day, night in shining armor, all lost because of New York. The pang in my chest reminds me, he must have felt it more than me.

I'm brought out of my thoughts as I near an old farm house. It's a two story house with chipped white paint, the bottom has been made into a barbeque area. So many night I have spent sitting, laughing under that house. The fence is only on one side of the house now, which a tomartos vine is growing across. On the other side, town old rusted sheds still stand. The one with red tin has it's doors open and but isn't open enough to see inside. The other is of silver, which is a machinery shed, filled with tractors, graters and harvesters.

I walk up to the doors of the red shed, the rust rubbing off on my fingers as I touch it. I can hear an industrial fan going, someone is in there. There is a yellow light on and a figure laying underneath an old motorbike which is jacked up. Tools are laying on the cement, which has greece and diesel covering them.

"Mum I'm fine" the figure says climbing out from underneath the motorbike, grabbing a rag and whipping his face.
I stand still not knowing what to do, or what to say. Maybe I should run. No, I'd look stupid.
"Ummoo, I umm" I stutter over my words and stand still looking at the ground.

"Ohh, the cat trying to get the mouse again I see" I says turning around getting back under the motorbike. His singlet shows off his back muscles, which look very well defined since he is covered in sweat and greece. His hair is a mess and his face has smudged greece all over it.

"So what, your saying your the mouse,you seem pretty easy to catch" I argue not wanting to be the cat in this situation. Frown creases form on my forehead and my hand lands on my hip. This is not going to end well.

"I'd say you don't have any chance of catching me, but I'm a polite person and I'm not saying anything at all" he cheats taking in third person as if he can out talk me.

"Pfff, keep thinking, that's all it's ever going to be... Thoughts" I say angrily walking into the shed, standing directly in the blow of the fan.

"Glad to see you havent changed a bit" Liam grunts throwing a spanner over his head hitting the tool box. "How was it though... New York, did you like it" he says leaning back onto his elbows, making it really hard to consimtrate on the question. His arms looked so sweaty and tan, I wanted to touch it. No no no

"Awe... " I stumble for words, trying to get thoughs thoughts out of my head. "It was alright, lots of people, very loud" I continue raising my eyebrows thinking of words that didn't involve tan arms and a shed.

"Sounds like a horrible place to live" Liam says under his breath sliding back under the motorbike.

"What are you working on, and where on earth is Michell" I say looking around like he should pop up somewhere. Michel or Micki was Liams younger brother, he would hang around us sometimes, usually just annoy us, follow us, but he was cute and like a little brother to me.

"What are you talking about" Liam asks very sternly, sitting up abruptly like something had bothered him. Any sign of a joke was completely over. Maybe it was the motorbike, like duhh he's working on a motorbike, yeah I can see that. Oh great, I'm going to get a speak about getting glasses or something.

I stopped when I seen the look of pain and suffering, something was wrong but it was gone before I could catch it. "Well, shows how much we all meant to you" liam says in disgust, looking down and wiping his hands on a rag and standing up. "Micki died in a car accident 4 years ago" he finished before walking out without another word.