Deviant (20 page)

“Hey. That’s cheating!” he shouted from behind me, but he was soon gaining on me. I didn’t mind. I secretly wanted him to have this.

Soon, we were side-by-side. Then he was past me, heading towards the lift. Jeremy managed to squeeze into it at the very last moment, waving his fingers at me as the door shut.

I didn’t waste any time. With a smile, I huffed and headed straight for the stairs. I hurried as fast as I could without bumping into anyone. The last thing I wanted was to bash into a sick person. That wouldn’t look too good.

I got to the bottom floor so fast that the lift doors were opening as I passed. Jeremy spotted me and, with an intake of breath, rushed out to catch up. I was almost at the door when I saw Jeremy out of the corner of my eye. He zoomed past me and, within an instant, was out the door.

Stopping momentarily, I shook my head, smiling. This boy never failed to amaze me, even in this short period of time we had known each other. Jeremy was quickly becoming like the little brother I never had.

Once I pushed the door open, I spotted Jeremy hunched over, trying to catch his breath. I instantly cringed, feeling guilty for pushing him too hard.

I rushed over to him. “Jeremy, are you all right? I’m so sorry. I never should have...”

Throwing his hand up, he looked at me reproachfully. “Don’t you take this away from me, Tyler. Please. I’m fine, honestly. Just treat me like you would any other day. Treat me like a regular sixteen-year-old about to embark on an adventure. Please, just give me that.”

Trying to fight the tears, I nodded. “Of course,” I replied, grabbing his shoulder.

With a smile, Jeremy looked down at my hand. “You just can’t keep your hands off me, can you?”

I rolled my eyes. “Jeremy, do you ever quit?” I shook my head with a smile.

“I’ll quit when I’m dead. Now, I have two questions. First, where are you taking me?”

I stood there motionless, waiting for the other question. When he didn’t respond, I waved my hands for him to continue. “And the other question?”

Jeremy gave me a cocky grin. “Well, this is the most important question of all. Have you brought me some Twiglets?”

Laughing, I dug into my bag and pulled out the Twiglets. “Okay, your most important question is answered, but as far as the first one is concerned, you will just have to wait a little longer.”

Jeremy didn’t have the most amused expression on his face, but I wasn’t going to let him badger me. This little gem of a surprise would just have to wait. “Come on, Jeremy. Let’s get going. We have a timetable to keep. We can’t be late.”

Jeremy shook his head, but followed me to my car. “Is this yours?” he asked, heading around to the passenger’s seat.

I nodded my head. “Yep. This is my baby. I saved for ages to buy this.” It was only an Alpha Romeo Spider, but she was my baby.

As we both got in, Jeremy hummed his approval. “You have good taste for a chick.”

I chuckled. “Gee, thanks.” I started the car and we were on our way.

Jeremy just kept on gazing out of the window, watching everything like it was the first time he had ever seen it. It was hard tearing my gaze away from this boy who seemed so strong underneath his fragile body. He looked the happiest I had seen him and, of course, it made me feel great that I aided to his happiness in some way.

“What are we doing in this area?” he suddenly asked, making me jump a little.

“Oh, you’ll see soon enough.” I pulled into a parking space and quickly got out to check the time. We still had five minutes. “We have a little three minute walk to your surprise.”

Jeremy nodded, but I could see him looking around. We were in Redhill Aerodrome, so he would probably guess soon enough what was happening. My heart was thumping. I just hoped he likes his surprise. In fact, I hope he loved it.

Tugging him towards me, I linked my arm in his and gave him the brightest smile I could muster. “Walk with me, Jeremy.”

He nodded and did as he was told, walking beside me with an eager expression on his face. I could tell he was excited.

As we rounded the corner, his expression nearly floored me. His mouth dropped and his smile spread wider than I had ever seen it. “Holy…fuck,” he whispered.

“Jeremy!” I scolded, laughing.

He looked at me, his mouth still wide open. “I’m sorry, but you have to admit that this is pretty much a holy fuck moment.”

I giggled, giving in. “Okay, I’ll give you that.”

Once he closed his mouth, he looked at me. “Is this what I think it is? We’re not just going to, like, stand here and watch it take off, are we?”

Pulling at his arm, I laughed. “No, of course not. I wouldn’t be that cruel.”

Jeremy scratched his head. “But how do you...? How could you have...? I mean, this is really expensive, isn’t it?”

I nodded. “Normally, but I’m good friends with a pilot who works for one of the major newspaper companies. He gave me this contact and I got a really good discount.”

Suddenly, Jeremy swung round and pulled me in for a big hug. “I don’t know how to thank you. This is just so huge.”

Pulling out of his embrace, I grabbed his shoulders. “It was worth every penny to see that smile on your face. Happy birthday, Jeremy. Now, do you want to come and fly with me?”

Jeremy beamed. “Do I ever!”

Giggling, I made my way over to a man standing by the helicopter. He looked up, saw me, and gave me a smile. “Are you Tyler O’Shea?” he asked as we got closer.

I nodded. “Yes, and you must be Charlie. Nice to meet you.” I offered him my hand and he accepted with a bright smile.

He turned his attention to Jeremy. “And this must be Jeremy.”

“Yes, sir,” he answered.

“Do you want to climb aboard, Jeremy? The weather looks to be about perfect for the trip.”

“Do I ever!” Jeremy shouted again, making us all laugh.

“I tell you what,” Charlie said with a wink. “You can be my wingman. How about you sit up front with me? I might even let you fly a little bit.”

Jeremy gasped, but sprang into action, climbing up into the helicopter. Charlie laughed and I could tell he was just as taken as I was.

Before getting in, Charlie turned to me. “He’s quite the boy, isn’t he?” I nodded with a proud smile. “Is he your bother or something?”

I shook my head. “No, although I kind of wished he was.”
Then, at least, he would have had a better life then he has
, I thought.

Charlie smiled, but didn’t press on. He helped me climb in and made sure I was strapped in before he got into his seat to help Jeremy.

Jeremy looked like he could barely contain himself. He was in awe, looking at all the controls and firing question after question at Charlie.

He took it in stride and told us we were about to take off. I had only booked a half-hour flight because that was as much as I could afford. I was actually quite excited myself. I had never been in one, so this was a first for me, too.

Within an instant, we were off the ground and my stomach immediately dropped. It was a strange sensation. I had been on planes, but this was a little different. I felt less in control for some strange reason. Maybe it was because you could see a lot more, and we were going up vertically. It wasn’t terrifying, though. In fact, I was enjoying it. And, by looking over towards him, so was Jeremy.

It wasn’t long before we were up in the air, a birds-eye view of London below us. As we neared inner London, everything came into focus more as I looked across the horizon. The city looked amazing from up here. Up ahead, you could see the London Eye and the Shard standing tall and proud. The clouds were sporadic and the sun was shining, giving us the great day for which I was hoping. If anyone deserved it, Jeremy did. He was looking anywhere and everywhere he could, almost as if he was desperately trying to take it all in.

As I tried to keep one eye ahead, I couldn’t help gazing at Jeremy. As if sensing I was watching, he turned and gave me that heart-warming smile. “I wish I had brought a camera with me,” he shouted.

Then I remembered I had bought one specifically for him. It was a disposable camera so he could use them all up, then I could get them developed for him.

Delving into my bag, I grabbed the camera and nudged Jeremy’s shoulder. He turned, saw the camera, and gasped a little. “Thank you!” He beamed at me, turning to take a picture of everything he could.

As he snapped away, I looked down and admired all the boats along the River Thames. In the distance, I could spot Grosvenor Bridge and Victoria Station. Seeing everything from up here felt strange. It made me see London in a completely different light. It was like I was seeing the city all over again, but from a different perspective. I loved it.

“Hey, Tyler!” Jeremy shouted.

I turned and he took a picture. “Jeremy, I wasn’t ready for that!”

He just smiled. “Come on. Let’s take a selfie.”

Smiling, I moved myself forward so Jeremy and I could move in as close together as we could. Jeremy quickly snapped our picture and I moved away. “That’s going to be my favourite,” he shouted.

I nodded. “I think it will be mine, too. I will have to get a copy and blow it up.” Jeremy smiled, then went back to staring ahead.

It wasn’t long before we were passing the House of Commons, following the river past Tower Bridge. It was a little way past there that Charlie suddenly turned and we were flying back to Redhill. We were soon over the countryside, which amazed me. I didn’t realise England could get so green so quickly once you left London.

“Now, do you want to have a go at the control?” Charlie asked.

Jeremy looked excited, but also a little hesitant. “Don’t worry,” Charlie said. “I won’t let you fall from the sky.” He chuckled and Jeremy soon followed. I, on the other hand, didn’t find that comment so amusing. Maybe I was a little more scared of flying than I thought.

Charlie motioned to Jeremy to grab the joystick and held his hand in place for a minute to show him how to control it. Once Charlie was satisfied, he let Jeremy take control and even asked him to slowly turn to the right a little. He did and we went a little off course, but Charlie soon had us back on track. I think I lost a few weeks of my life.

“Are you okay back there?” Charlie asked, noticing my worried expression.

Shaking myself out of it, I smiled. “Yeah, I’m fine. Thank you. This is all new for me, too.”

Charlie chuckled and looked at Jeremy. “He’s a natural. I may have to worry about my job with this kid around.” Charlie smiled and Jeremy beamed with joy.

“So,” Charlie continued. “Now that you’ve had a try, would you come again?”

Jeremy nodded enthusiastically. “In a second! This has got to be the best day I’ve ever had in my life.”

Jeremy continued to beam, but I couldn’t help feeling saddened by his comment. In such a short amount of years, Jeremy never got to have days like this where he was spoiled rotten by someone who cared for him, and it wasn’t right. It shouldn’t have been that way.

As we got closer to Redhill, Charlie took back the controls and started descending towards his landing pad. I checked the time and it was a little more than the scheduled half-hour. I smiled a little, hoping that was because the pilot was enjoying Jeremy’s company so much that time simply got away from him.

As we landed, my stomach seemed to come back down to earth, and I sighed. I did enjoy the ride. I just got nervous when people joked about falling from the sky. I’d always feared dying in a plane crash or drowning at sea. It was something I knew I should never think about, but I thought about it nonetheless.

“How was that?” Charlie asked me as he switched everything off.

“It was great. Thank you. It’s certainly been a memorable day.”

“You’re welcome.” Charlie smiled. “Maybe next time you could come and take some lessons.” He looked at Jeremy with a wink and I could tell he was getting a huge kick out of this.

Getting out of the helicopter, Charlie opened the door for me, handing me a card. “If Jeremy’s interested in some lessons, I can give him a very good discount. He really does have a natural talent.”

Taking the card from his hand, I smiled. “Thank you, Charlie. It’s definitely something to consider.”

And I did consider a lot of things when we, eventually, said goodbye and headed back to the hospital. Although Jeremy looked over-the-moon about his birthday present, I couldn’t help this nagging feeling that he was hiding how he was truly feeling.

“Are you okay?” I asked when we were in the car and halfway home.

Jeremy took his eyes away from his window and stared at me a moment. “Me? I’m fine. A little tired, but feeling great after that. I can’t thank you enough for this day. It is one I will never forget.” He smiled brightly, turning his head back to stare out of the window. Out of the corner of my eye, though, I could see Jeremy’s hand motioning a little my way. With his palm upturned in a gesture of affection, I couldn’t help the teary smile that overwhelmed me. I took his hand and he wrapped his fingers tightly around mine, squeezing slightly. He never looked over, never said a word, but I knew Jeremy was trying his best at giving me something other than his normal jovial, flirtatious self.