Hatred Breeds Fondness

Chapter 1

Simon-

I lost a bet. Penny was wrong when she announced to the table that I don't like Baz Pitch. I hate him. She stood up and everyone seated at the oak table watched as she thrust her finger at the dingy monitor hanging over the bar, the turquoise and purple Watford jerseys merely pixels on the outdated screen. Her giant ring glinted under the yellow lights as a smile stretched across her face.

She swivelled her chin and looked me dead in the eye, "I'll bet that you can't go this whole match without making one comment about him."

I laughed and her smile grew, "What do you want to bet?"

Rhys and Gareth looked at each other and cackled.

"If you win I'll buy everyone a pint," she yelled and a chorus of cheers erupted from the back of the bar. "If I win," she said as she leaned down, "you have to wear a Pitch jersey to Agatha's party on Friday."

I rolled my eyes and shoved my hand into hers.

She shook it, "It's a deal."

Penny shuffles around the dorm the night of the party looking for her purple skirt.

She drops to her knees and sticks her head under the bed. "I really don't understand why the two of you are still together."

I sigh, Penelope is well aware that Agatha and I are having a bit of a tit over me not coming to tea with her parents the previous weekend. The headmaster asked me to run an errand and by the time I remembered I was supposed to be sitting in a white wicker chair sipping on unsweetened tea and talking about scholarships it was too late.

"We're just going through another rough patch." Penny's head pops back up, purple fabric clenched in one fist, she raises her other hand and I grab it, yanking her back to her feet. "We'll be fine. We're always fine." Penny scrunches her brow and puffs out a breath.

It's more than the missed tea time though, Agatha's been extremely passive with me lately. Whenever I try to explain myself it's always a lot of "Sure Simon"s and exasperated sighs. She seems more withdrawn than she's ever been. This isn't the first time we've hit a dry patch, but this one's outlasted the others.

I'm glad she decided to throw her annual end of summer party. For a while I didn't think she'd throw it while we were fighting. (Are we fighting?) (Can you be fighting when neither side has any passion in the argument?) I told Penny and she said I was being ridiculous, "Agatha's decisions don't depend on her relationship status, Simon."

She's right. She's always right. Agatha's decisions have always been her own and there's nothing I can do except wait for her to make them.

Penny turns away from me and walks into her bedroom. I can hear her rummaging around again. She comes out wearing the purple skirt and holding out a bundle of cloth for me. Turquoise and purple. The Watford home jersey.

She gives me a shit-eating smile, "Suit up."

The party's already in full swing by the time our Uber pulls up to the curb of the reserved restaurant. The fabric of the jersey is itchy which only makes me hate it more. Before we left the dorm Penny made sure that I looked in a mirror and could see the giant PITCH embossed on the back.

We wade our way inside, pushing through crowds of people in various stages of sobriety. One bloke knocks into my shoulder so hard that I crash backward into Penny. The room is packed with people. I can already feel sweat collecting at the back of my neck.

I see Agatha sitting at the bar with a gin. She's wearing a sheer ivory blouse and her hair is pulled into a tousled bun. She looks posh. Everyone here looks posh. I wouldn't be surprised if there were even a few celebrities milling around. Agatha's cheeks are rosy and she glows even under the shitty bar lighting. Penny waves and pushes me hard in the back to get me moving in her direction.