A/N~ sorry for not updating in a while I didn't do much writing over Christmas
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"You're a looney but I love you."
She broke the silence after what felt like forever.
"Where are we actually going Hafi?"
"That's a good question. First I'm taking you ho-"
"But mum's at home. She'll kill me!"
"Calm down boy. Caru's out, we're going to get your stuff, go to the lab, then go on our grand adventure."
"Where exactly are we going to go?"
"You'll find out. You still remember the stories your grandpa used to tell you don't you?"
"Of course I do."Not much later, we arrived home.
"Get enough stuff to last you a few days."
"Why? What about school."
"Well I can't deny that you're going to be sick for the next few days."
"Oh."
This wasn't something my auntie would normally do. I wasn't going to question something that would get me time off school though.So I packed my bags. A few days? Grandpa's stories? He's dead now, it's not like we'll visit him. I just decided to pack my bags and see where the adventure took me. Phone, charger, keys, money, clothes. What else?
"What else do I need Hafi?"
"Headphones?"
"Oh yeah."I then spent a few hours in the lab whilst Hafi worked. Most of the people recognised me because Hafi had taken me in so many times. I was allowed to wander around on my own and I went almost everywhere to see what everyone was up to. First, I went to see Gus. He was rather shocked to see me at first because he probably thought I was in school. Eventually I explained my day so far to him after which he pulled me into a tight hug and said nothing. We stood there for a while. Then he knelt down to me suddenly.
"Listen to me Tommy. No matter what they say to you or what they say about you, you are loved, you are special, and you, you boy, are better than all of them. You, Tomos, you'll go so much further than them. Don't let them change you Tom, you are perfect just how you are."
I wasn't really sure why this was happening but I thought I'd go along with it. We stood there for a bit, Gus hugged me and I'm sure he cried at one point. He usually seemed so tough, I'd never seen him cry, so it made me wonder: why was it this that he seemed so upset about? I've seen him in some rough times yet, in the 14 of my life, I'd never seen him this upset.
For the rest of my time at the lab, I tried to work out what had made Gus so upset. Did I really mean that much to him? Why?
"What are you thinking about?"
"Nothing Hafi."
"You are thinking about something. I can always tell when you're thinking. Your eyes look darker."
"It's about Gus?"
"Oh?"
"He seemed so emotional earlier."
"He- Well he- It's a long story. I'll tell you later."
With each pause, Hafi seemed to get more quiet and more upset. She almost teared up at one point. What happened that made them both so upset?"Come on Tommy, we're going on our adventure now."
"Where are we going?"
"You'll see"
I sat patiently wondering where we were going. What was this adventure?"Here we are."
"Walton?"
"Stop one."
We parked down a small road near a little block of houses.
"Why are we here Hafi? I thought we were going somewhere-"
"This is the first stop of our adventure. Stop thinking about it and listen to what I tell you."
I just nodded.
"You remember the stories your grandad used to tell you?"
"Yeah."
"Remember Luke?"
"Yep."
"This one is his house. And you see the one next to it?"
"Yes."
"That was where my mam used to live."
"Enfys?"
"That's right."
"So are we just going to sit here and look at them?"
"Nope. Come with me."
We got out the car and walked down the little path. All the stories my grandad told me seemed so much more real at that point. This was where she grew up. She lived here.Whilst I had been taking in all the sights, Hafi had knocked on the door of one of the houses.
"Hello?"
"Um. Hello sir. I don't really know how to introduce myself. Are you Luke?"
"I am."
"Sorry to intrude like this but did you know an Enfys Parry?"
"I did."
"Well. I'm her daughter. And this boy here,"
She held out her hand to me.
"This boy is her grandchild."
"Oh. Please come in."
"Thank you sir."He led us inside to a surprisingly beautiful house. A small fluffy dog was curled up on an armchair.
"Tea?"
"I'm fine, thank you. Tommy?"
"I'm good, thanks."He paused for a moment, looking at me and Hafi.
"You both look so much like her. The last I heard she was unwell. What happened next?"
"I'm afraid she died sir."
"Oh. I thought that would happen but it's still upsetting. Come, sit down."He lead us to the living room where the small dog was asleep on a chair. We sat down together whilst he sipped on a mug of tea.
"So what brought you two here?"
"Well my nephew, this boy, he was very interested when his grandfather told him the story of my mother, Enfys sorry, and I want to show him where everything happened."
"Oh right. I have something you might like boy."
He reached into a small drawer on the table next to him. He rummaged for a while.
"Ah. Here it is!"
He handed me a small book.
"What is it."
"It's an album of photos that she didn't want anymore. I didn't want them to go to waste."
Each page had four little Polaroid photos on it. She didn't seem to like taking photos of herself. I looked at it quietly next to him."There are plenty of photos of my grandad."
"If you ever want to know what someone fears losing, look at what they photograph most."Almost every photo included him. This was love. Then, suddenly, two tiny babies appeared in the photos.
"That's me and your mother!" Exclaimed Hafi.
"How's the one that had the wheelchair?"
"That's me."
"Really? I'd never have guessed."
"Thank you."
"I want to show you two something I've never shown anyone."
"Ok?"
He got up very suddenly.
"It's outside. Around the back."
He led us behind the block of houses. There were a few garages, each one numbered to match each house. He took us to his garage.
"I don't drive anymore, nor do I have a car. May as well use the garage for something. It still works too."
What still works?Luke opened up his garage to reveal a small, red car. It looked old.
"Do you want to sit in it?"
"Sorry but who's is it if you don't drive?"
"It's Enfys'. She would park it in here when she went to London and leave a spare key with me."
"Wow!"
"Get in and look in the glovebox."
I did as he told me and I found a small notebook that looked massively overused.
"It's her diary. You can have it. I was always too scared to read it."
I hugged it and looked up at him.
"Thank you, sir"
"I'm not a sir. Just call me Luke. I was never anything but Luke. Boy, get out and do things whilst you can. I've wasted my life. Never married. No children. All my friends left to get married. What did I get? Nothing. All I have to keep me company is my dog. Take every chance while you can. I'm not a sir because I'm not anything important. Don't be me, boy."He almost teared up before Hafi put her hand on his back.
"You're important to us, we can keep you company."
"You have to continue to find more about Enfys. You both have things to do now. Go and do them. Visit me another day."
"Thank you sir, we will."
"Thank you Luke."As we drove away, he stood and waved us goodbye.
"Where now?"
"Now we're going to stop two. It might take a while. You can have a nap if you want."
"I think I'll read this."
YOU ARE READING
My grandmother (love is patient sequel)
Novela JuvenilHi. My name is Tom. You know the story of Enfys Parry. I'm rediscovering it.