5:21 PM

travelling with you

A few days later, we went on an adventure.

I hadn't seen you since the whole mind blank ordeal. You had been busy, I had been busy. However for the next few days we would both be free.

You wanted camping, I wanted glamping. I hated tents, I hated how the flimsy material was controlled by the weather. I hated the extremes; the freezing cold at night and the sweltering heat during the day.

You told me that glamping was only for the weak reality stars that look like Oompa Loompas.

I remember telling you, 'Well maybe my life goal is to be on TOWIE'.
You were not impressed.

We needed somewhere to go. This was to be a proper adventure. Not the half hearted staying two miles from home adventure. So I suggested that we go somewhere that neither of us had ever visited before. Somewhere remote, somewhere peaceful and beautiful.
And you told me we were going to be sleeping in a tent.

'What about Cornwall?' I asked you.

'I've been to Cornwall many times, my grandparents own a summer house there and that was the May half term holiday destination each year.' you told me, shaking your head.

'Right okay, what about Wales?'

'Nope, I've been there.'

'North Yorkshire Moors?'

'I've camped there too.'

'Bloody hell. Where haven't you been?', exasperation laced through my voice.

'I've never been to Scotland,'

And that's how our destination came about. Scotland. The land of rolling green hills, kilt-wearing bagpipers and crumbling castles. And also the home of Princess Merida of Clan DunBroch and the unicorn.

It took us a day just to find the all the equipment we needed. Tent. Sleeping bags. Camping stove. Gas. It was a chore, well it was a chore for you. I was just sat around strumming the ukelele I had found in your garage.

You had a big house, a pretty house. You had paid three quarters on the deposit and your family had paid the rest. I am pretty sure to this day that you were the only twenty three year old with a house and minimal debt.

I drove us to Scotland. The drive up north was tedious and soul crushing as we encountered masses of traffic jams and as you said yourself, you cannot sit still. We played eye spy to pass the time, well you played eye spy with yourself since I was driving.

Half way through the journey, I turned on the radio and we sung along to Christine and the Queens. You had a sweet voice, soothing and calm. This was when I was beginning to learn you were good at everything.

When we finally hit the Scottish border you gave a small cheer and muttered finally. I glared at you, you had it easy. Enjoying the ride with your feet up, singing along to Drake and eating Kettle Chips. But we still had to go even further north.

Then we had the rather large task of finding the field. It wasn't any old field, no it was a field one of your parents friends owned, but it looked like every other goddamn field in Scotland. Green and full of grass. It took us another three hours with the coordinates your mother gave you, a compass and a thirty year old Ordnance Survey map, to find it but we did it. Of course we did it.

You and I, we could take on the world and win with a grin on our faces.

And of course we cannot forget to mention the fiasco of putting up the tent. It was a bloody pop up tent from B & Q, but we still managed to find the minuscule flaws and argue like every other 'couple' does when putting up a tent.

After we had put our canvas camping chairs out, pulled a tartan blanket over one another, I mean we were in Scotland, and had a large hot mug of tea in our hands, we were fine. Tea solves almost every problem.

The view was breathtaking, the sun; an iridescent orb in the sky setting behind the smooth curvature of the famous headlands, shining softly upon the slope of your nose bringing out the faint dotting of freckles. In the distance, the faint colouring of auburn glistened in the warm twilight, the Shetland cows were laying on the lush grass. They looked peaceful, calm, serene.

You took a sip from the steaming cup and moaned softly. We needed the tea, we were gasping for a cuppa. I chuckled to myself, completely sympathising with that pleasurable noise that escaped your scarlet lips. We loved tea.

'Hey Noah,' you muttered softly, 'I think this is going to be fun.'

And you were right. It was going to be fun. It was going to be a hell of a lot of fun.

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TOWIE ~ 'The only way is Essex' » a British reality tv show based in Essex
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Just wanted to mention that rosebindings made my cover, so go and check her amazing work out!

And if you liked this chapter, please don't hesitate to vote and comment!

I have had some questions about the character of 'you' and why her name hasn't been mentioned yet and I just want to explain that as this book is set in the present, Noah is almost reciting and remembering times he had with her so it is essentially a diary/letter to her, and we won't be finding out her name until the last chapter. I hope that clears up any confusion and doesn't put any readers off :)

I also wanted to say that updates for the next two months are going to be very patchy as my exams are coming up, so this is most likely going to be the last/ second to last update until the 17/06/17.

Again THANK YOU SO MUCH for the votes and comments, it means a lot :)