That evening, when Mum's in the gym, I decide to sit by the pool. I'd changed into the only nice dress I'd brought with me, a pale grey, tight-fitting one with a loose skirt.
The real reason I was sitting by the pool wasn't to read The Hobbit that I took with me, but because the pool was in full view of the hotel rooms. Pretty much just in the hope that Tom would leap out of his first-floor window and declare his undying love for me.
I breathe in and fill my lungs with Spanish air. It's a warm evening, and I can hear distant traffic and birds chirping. The sun is throwing golden light on the water which twinkles like diamonds. I arrange myself Renaissance-like on the reclined chair then begin to read.
"There is nothing like looking, if you want to find something...You certainly usually find something, if you look, but it is not always quite the something you were after."
I disappear into the fantastical land for the next hour, until I hear the pool door shut.
Checking my watch, I turn around to see if it's Mum, but no one's there. I frown. Probably time to go back, I think, and sigh. No sign of Tom. As I bend down to put my sandals on, my book falls off the chair and slides along the floor. I spin around to retrieve it before it falls into the pool, and then from the corner of my eye I see someone standing behind me. I whirl round, and knock straight into that someone. Shrieking slightly, I stumble backwards and trip straight into the pool.
I fumble for the side, but I touch only air. I feel a hand grasping at my arm, but it's too late. I'm under water.
Nice one, Lottie, I think to myself as I resurface, gasping, my back to whoever it was that made this happen. A familiar laugh comes from behind me. I freeze, stop trying to wipe my eyes and slowly I turn round, filled with dread.
"You okay?" Tom asks.
