Only British Summers - On Hiatus

Hop To It

Rustling sounded as Francis pulled on his oversized raincoat, a look of distain evident on his face as he surveyed how repulsive it looked in the full length mirror perched in the wall beside him. Jeanne stood a few feet away, hunched over as she checked through the shopping bag on the sofa, making sure that everything was in it's designated spot.

Francis listened as to the weather report carefully, trying to deciefer certain words and their meanings. " Que signifie 'storm' ? " Francis asked, watching as the weather man pointed to the coloured smudges moving towards the south, away from Scottish territory. " Tempête. " The brunette hummed back, before giving a small nod and turning to Francis, bag in hands.

" It said that I it would rain today because the storm coming tomorrow, " She passed over the bag with a small smile and made sure her friend had done the coat's buttons up " But don't worry, it will just mean some wind, rain and maybe some lightening if we are unlucky. ". Francis sighed over dramatically.

" Pourquoi tu ne peux pas venir avec moi? Vous vous sentirez seul si vous restez ici. " Francis complained, trying to convince Jeanne to join him instead of staying at home. " I won't be alone - I'm helping maman in the farm, I need to herd the cows and chickens inside so they won't get ill when the storm comes. " Jeanne moved away from the boy and made to open the front door with a small click.

Dragging his feet across the mahogany flooring, trying to stall his leave. " Mais pourquoi dois-je le leur livrer ? Ils sont comme n'importe quel autre client, alors ils devraient l'avoir eux-mêmes. " He protested, halting on the weather beaten welcome mat that lay on their front door step, a few stray rose petals scattered across it from the neatly groomed bushes on either side.

" Unfortunately not; they give us discounted fruit, jam, flour- basically all the things we need to run a shop. " Jeanne retorted, counting the items of her fingers before shaking her head and stepping out of the door's way. " This is where we bid adieu, make sure to be back soon so you don't get caught up in the rain. "

" Je ne le ferai pas, je ne le ferai pas. Au revoir mon ami - je serai de retour avant que tu ne t'en rendes compte! " Giving a small wave, Francis stepped back and watched as his friend shut the door before making his way out their garden, the crunching of gravel sounding beneath his feet. The garden was average in size and filled to the brim with a variety of flowers, no blemish to be found on their flourishing figures, splashing the cobbled walls around them in a flush of colour.

Above however could be seen as a different story, Francis thought, his eyes crossing the sky's dreary tone before snapping down so as to avoid walking into the garden's birdbath. He hoped with all his heart that it wouldn't rain for he had spent all too long fixing his hair that morning and didn't want his hard work to amount to nothing.

Shutting the gate behind him, Francis continued on his way to Dylan's shop, constantly swopping around the hand that held the bag in order to maintain a steady blood flow.

Francis was walking along Dylan's fence when it first showed signs of rain, small droplets staining the dirt beneath a shade darker before being obsorbed. Lifting his coat hood he continued onwards hastily, speeding up in attempts to outrun the rain. It was only when the crops began to thin didn't he realise he was about to pass their house.

On the outside the house appeared just as it did before, the same white washed walls coated in a trail of roses leading up to a small window on the top right corner. Only this time the curtains were wide open, but instead of seeing the young Brit in the windowsill he saw two cats lurking there, piercing eyes examining his every move. He recognised Oliver as the cat from yesterday, his small body pressed up against the one he had seen cradled in the Brit's arms.