A Vision of Green (Florence Vaine #2) (39 page)

“
So, that was a nice gift Josh got for you,” she says in a low voice.

I roll my eyes at her. “His mum bought it, he couldn't even be bothered to pick something out himself.”

“
Yeah well, just be careful there Flo, I don't want to see Frank get hurt.”

“
I would never hurt Frank,” I protest. “Josh is a friend, but he mostly gets on my nerves. You don't need to worry.”

Layla's look informs me of her scepticism, but she doesn't say anything more. Christ. I have no intention of humouring whatever Josh is up to with me, and I can't believe people think there's something going on. If there is it's entirely one sided.

I take my plate and go to sit down on a chair to eat. All of a sudden I'm not much in the party mood, not that I was ever over the moon about it in the first place. I just feel so grateful that all of these people think enough of me to want to be here today. Sam and John step out into the back garden, both holding bottles of beer and having a chat. Layla and Ross are dancing in the middle of the room, and Caroline's trying to get Alex to stand up and dance too. That's not going to end well. Alex is certainly not the dancing type. Frank's over talking to Kevin and Benji. The twins are basically stuffing their faces with whatever food they can get their hands on.

“
I'm going to head off now Flo,” says Josh, who has stepped up behind me.

“
Oh right, do you have to go so soon?” I ask, turning around in my seat. I'm trying to be polite, but really I'm glad he's leaving. At least that will end all of the tension and speculation.

“
Yeah, I only ever planned on dropping in for a few minutes anyway,” he murmurs, eyes flicking across the room to where Frank is standing, probably watching the exchange. Josh's aura gets defensive very quickly, but it doesn't show on his face.

“
Okay then, thanks for coming anyway. And don't forget to thank your mum for the gift.”

Josh looks at me for a long moment, his mouth almost twisted into a sneer. “Yeah, my mum. Right. See you at school,” he says and quickly leaves the room. Well, that wasn't at all uncomfortable.

I stand up and go over to take the seat beside Alex, who's still fending off Caroline and her dancing requests. I suddenly burst out laughing when I hear Alex mutter, “I. Do. Not. Dance. Get that into your head, would you?”

“
It's a party, you can't come to a party and not dance,” Caroline throws back, not at all put out by his rejection. To be honest I think she's enjoying teasing him. I completely understand him though, I've never been one for dancing either. It's too bad as well, because the next thing I know Caroline has given up on Alex and turned her attentions to me.

“
Let's dance birthday girl,” she says, grabbing both of my hands and pulling me up with her. She drags me over to Layla and Ross and twirls me around like we're Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers. She sways me from side to side, doing some sort of old fashioned dance, totally in contrast to the pop punk song currently playing. Then she waltzes me back and forth and I almost get into it.

If nothing else, her antics make me laugh, and I feel like I'm enjoying myself for the first time since entering my party. Caroline's a bit of a ray of sunshine really. She always manages to put a smile on my face. She's wearing a multi-coloured, rainbow of a dress and gold sandals. If her and Alex ever get together they'll make a study in contrasts.

We dance and laugh and joke around for a while. I catch Frank's eye from where he's sitting on the other side of the room with the younger boys. He's smiling a truly genuine smile, his blue eyes luminous as he watches me. Caroline holds both of my hands and we spin around together, like two five year olds. Her a-line dress spans out around her body.

“
Hey Caroline, I'm enjoying the view from over here,” Alex calls. “If that dress swishes up any higher I'll get a good look at your underwear.” He's got a beer in his hand, even though he's not eighteen yet, and he takes a long swig, an amused look on his face.

Caroline immediately puts her hands down, flattening her skirt to make sure Alex doesn't get the look he's after. “You should be so lucky.” she retorts. “And I've got a real nice pair of undies on as well.”

He sputters liquid from his mouth, but quickly wipes it away with the back of his hand. He stands up from his seat, puts his bottle down on the table and walks directly over to Caroline. He grabs her hand, pulls her out of the room and into the hallway. I shoot Frank a questioning look, but he just shakes his head with a grin and turns back to his brothers.

I sneak to the door and peer out to see what's happening. Alex has Caroline backed up against the wall, palms placed flat on either side of her head.

Caroline lets out a nervous giggle. “What's all this about?”

Alex keeps staring her silently, it's such an intense stare. I can imagine Caroline's shivering all over right about now.

“
Say something Alex, you're making me nervous,” she goes on, a faint blush on her cheeks.

Alex lets out a breath as he moves one of his hands to cup her cheek. “Just shut up,” he says, right before he presses his lips to hers. They kiss for a minute and then Caroline pulls back, her yellow aura shimmering with shock and pleasant surprise.

“
I've wanted to do that for weeks,” Alex admits, red spreading out through his flames. Just like when you pour dye into a glass of water, it encapsulates everything within seconds.

“
You have?” Caroline asks, her voice shaky.

Alex smiles. “I have.” Then he leans back in and takes her mouth in yet another kiss that looks both soft and hard at the same time. I decide I should probably give them some privacy. I turn to head back into the room and bump right into Frank's firm chest.

“
What are you up to?” he says fondly, trailing a hand through one of the curls in my hair.

I lean close to him and whisper excitedly, “Alex just kissed Caroline.”

Frank laughs. “Finally. It's about bloody time.”

“
I know, this is so great!” I say, almost jumping with glee.

“
Will you do me the honour of a dance?” Frank asks, and it makes me take notice that a slow soft rock song has just started playing.

“
Um, won't that be a bit weird? All of your family are in there.”

“
I don't care about that. It's your birthday and I want to dance with you Flo.”

“
Well, when you put it like that...” I trail off as he brings me to the middle of the room. Ross and Layla are still dancing, so it's not as weird as I thought it would be. I wrap my arms around Frank's neck, resting my head in my favourite spot just below his shoulder.

When the song ends Hayley announces that everyone's going to sing happy birthday to me. I see Caroline and Alex come back into the room, both trying their best to appear oblivious as to the fact that they just kissed. I give Caroline a small smile and her cheeks go bright red. Then Hayley has a lit match in her hand and she's lighting up the eighteen pink candles that have been stuck into my birthday cake. My eyes lock in on the flame at the tip of the match. It's odd how fire can be so ordinary and mundane like that, yet whenever I look at Frank's aura it seems so magnificent.

Everybody gathers around the table and Frank ushers me to the spot right in front of the cake. It says “Happy Birthday Flo” on the top. It's just a cake. I'm determined not to cry. Then the singing starts, and I try to ignore my initial response to go crawling back inside my tortoise shell. Normal people don't run away from birthday cakes. I know I'm not normal in the usual sense, but I want to experience this watershed moment and enjoy the simplicity of it all.

When the singing stops voices are urging me to blow out the candles and make a wish. Does it have to be just one? There is so much that I want to wish for. I decide to cheat and work several wishes into one. I won't say what they are, that would take away the mystery.

I close my eyes, lean forward and blow.

Frank has my hand in his as he leads me through the trees, a backpack is slung over his shoulder. It's the day after my birthday and we've just left his house through the back door. He's brought me straight into the woods. My palms are sweaty and my heart is going into overdrive. I haven't stepped foot in the forest in weeks, not since before the creatures escaped.

“
I'm taking you for a picnic,” Frank says, his feet crunching on the leaves that cover the forest floor. He's wearing a navy knit jumper, denim jeans and boots. I can't take my eyes off his perfect form as we walk.

“
Isn't it the wrong season for a picnic? Picnics are summer time activities,” I tell him, wanting to let go of his hand and run straight back to the house where it's safe.

“
It's a nice day,” Frank replies, raising his arm to the sky to gesture at the small bit of sun shining through the tops of the trees. He's right, it's unseasonably warm for December. Still, that doesn't mean we have to go and eat food in the forest. A forest where all sorts of terrifying creatures once lived. I'm afraid that some of them might still be here. What if Bune didn't get rid of them all?

“
Don't think I haven't noticed what you do every night. You stare out of your bedroom window at this place, like you're just waiting for something bad to happen. I'm doing this to prove to you that there's nothing here any more.”

Oh God, he noticed. I've definitely been a little preoccupied with the forest. I'm paranoid that something else is going to happen. I just can't sleep thinking that more innocent people in the town could die.

“
Okay, you've proved your point, now can we go back home?” I say, lying through my false teeth. In this moment I'll say anything to get out of here.

“
I haven't proved my point,” says Frank. “My point will be proved after you've spent at least an hour in here with me, enjoying the sandwiches I made for us and finally accepting the fact that there's nothing to be scared of.”

“
You made sandwiches, are you sure they'll be edible?” I tease, even though I know Frank makes great food. I need something to take my mind off the nerves.

Frank kisses my forehead and smiles. “Cheeky. Of course they'll be edible. I packed some fruit too, we can feed each other. It'll be fun.” He winks.

We stop when we get to a small grassy clearing. I have to admit that it's nice here. There aren't any signs of humanity, and there's something very peaceful about that. Frank pulls a fleecy blanket from his backpack and spreads it out on the grass. He tugs me down and I sit in beside him as he unpacks the food.

About two foot away from me lands a tiny red robin, its breast is a colour somewhere between orange, red and brown. This small token of wildlife relieves some of my tension. If any creatures were still trapped in here then there wouldn't be birds. I also saw a furry grey rabbit hopping behind a bush on the way in.

The robin sings a little song and I rip off a piece of crust from one of the sandwiches to throw to it. The bird snaps up the offering with its beak, swallows the whole thing down and then flies away. A soft breeze blows through the clearing, causing the leaves everywhere to rustle gently. There's a stream nearby from which comes the sound of moving water.

The robin has landed on a branch over my head and has started singing its song again. The spot is completely idyllic. Finally my heart slows down to a more normal speed and I accept that it's just a forest now, nothing more.

Frank and I eat quietly, soaking up the nature all around us. I slip off my shoes and let my feet touch the cold grass. It tickles my toes.

“
I think I could learn to like it here,” I say, breaking the silence.

Frank glances over at me, swallowing down the last of his sandwich. “It's a good place to come and clear your head.” He looks away for a second. “It's also a good place to be alone with a beautiful girl.”

I try not to blush. “We haven't had a lot of alone time recently.”

“
No,” says Frank, dusting the bread crumbs from his hands. “We haven't.”

I lie down on the blanket, almost as an invitation for him to join me. He does and we stretch out side by side for a while, only our fingertips touching. I turn my head a little so that I can look at Frank. He's staring straight up at the clear blue sky above us.

His familiar flames comfort me, and I lose myself in them, tracing over the meandering edges with my eyes. Then I notice something different, something that doesn't normally show, especially when Frank's as chilled out and relaxed as he is right now. His demon slips through the orange, moving about, but not trying to break free like I've seen it do before. It's almost as if it's becoming more comfortable with its place in Frank's body, but also getting more tangible. Like it's suddenly more real than it used to be.