Hello World (16 page)

‘Neve,
this is Dixie,’ Blake introduces and I give a slight wave of the hand
awkwardly.

‘Nice
hair, I approve,’ Dixie grins before spinning on her heel and bounding into the
house. Blake winks and I follow them both in.

Inside the
décor is rather bland, which seems to clash with Dixie’s personality
completely. This is until she leads us through the kitchen and opens a door to
the back with steps leading down to the basement.

You can
immediately tell who decorated the basement. Various band posters cover the
grey walls and bright red sofas bring in a bit of colour. It reminds me a lot
of Blake and Jay’s den, what with the smallish TV and games console set up.

Snacks are
scattered around the place, a mini fridge in one corner. A blonde girl with
delicate curls sitting cross-legged on the sofa in an old band T-shirt and
jeans flicks through a magazine while the two other boys, one with dark blonde
hair and the other with darker hair like Blake’s, are in a heavy debate of some
kind.

‘Guys, we got
fresh meat tonight so try to be nice and you know… kinda sane,’ Dixie
announces, slipping onto the lap of the dark haired boy.

The dark
haired boy looks up and grins goofily at me.

‘Hey, I’m
Cole. That’s Nathan and that’s Leah.’

‘Neve,’ I
say, still extremely nervous.

‘Hey
Blake, Superman or Batman?’ The blonde guy, Nathan, asks, leaning back in his
seat. Blake snorts.

‘You’re
both nerds,’ he responds.

‘Which
means he agrees that Superman is better,’ Cole decides triumphantly. ‘Besides,
Batman doesn’t even have powers.’

‘Superman
can be defeated by a piece of rock,’ Nathan points out dryly.

‘Supernatural
rock,’ Cole defends. ‘Plus, Superman can fly.’

‘Batman
has the Batmobile,’ I volunteer in a quite voice.

There is a
moment of silence before Nathan beams at me.

‘I like
her, she can stay,’ Nathan laughs. Cole just sends him a dirty look which
Nathan blatantly ignores. ‘Welcome to the fold, want a drink?’ he asks, holding
up a bottle of beer.

I shake my
head. It’s not that I don’t drink, I just don’t think having a hang over for
school tomorrow will do me any good. Nathan shrugs and looks over to Blake.

‘I’m
driving,’ Blake clarifies, sliding onto the small sofa next to Dixie and Cole.
Nathan pats the seat next to him and I sit down too.

‘Speaking
of driving, Dix asked you about the car on Saturday, right?’ Leah smirks. Blake
rolls his eyes.

‘You know
what, you guys can just have the damn car and I’ll find myself some new
friends.’

Both girls
perk up. ‘Really?’ they chime in unison. Blake’s grin falls.

‘So, what
do you do?’ Nathan asks me while Blake mutters something inappropriate under
his breath.

‘Last year
of sixth form, then hopefully college next year,’ I tell him.

‘Cool,
what are you gunna study?’ Dixie asks from her spot on Cole’s lap.

‘Art,’ I
say. Nathan grins.

‘Then
you’ll fit right in. I’m up at Nottingham Trent studying Fine Art, I go back
next week. Dixie is also at college studying art and Leah studies English
Literature at Cambridge.’

‘Wow,
Cambridge University?’ I ask with admiration. Leah blushes and nods. Then I
turn to Cole. ‘And what do you do?’

‘Nobody
knows what Cole does,’ Blake laughs, earning himself a punch in the arm.

‘I’m doing
a mechanics apprenticeship,’ Cole explains dryly. ‘These guys don’t find that
an acceptable option.’

‘That’s
because mechanics is boring,’ Dixie teases, kissing his nose. I assume they are
either a couple or just really close friends.

‘I’m
sorry, but does no one seem to realise that Blake is taking
Physics
next year? Physics!’ Cole says
with exasperation.

‘And we
will tease him appropriately when the time comes,’ Dixie points out, this time
kissing him on the lips.

‘So what
sort of art are you into?’ Nathan asks and I tear my gaze away from the couple
and back to him. Nathan is fairly handsome, although not as toned looking as
Blake and with a slightly boyish face.

‘I prefer
the more traditional paintings than anything modern,’ I shrug.

‘Nice,
ever heard of Ivan Slavinsky? The National Gallery’s having an exhibition of
his work in a few weeks.’

‘No way,’
I grin. ‘I love his work.’

Nathan
chuckles. ‘I thought you might. If you like, we could go? I can easily make the
trip down from uni.’

‘That
sounds great,’ I reply honestly. Blake suddenly seems to choke on something.

‘So,’
Blake starts after recovering himself. ‘What’s the plan for tonight?’

‘Pizza and
movies,’ Dixie answers, amused. She casts her eyes between Blake and me but
doesn’t say anything.

‘From
Pizza Town?’ Cole asks innocently, raising an eyebrow. Dixie rolls her eyes.

‘Yes from Pizza
Town, unfortunately you aren’t allowed to request the drivers but I’m sure
Stacey is dying to have you drool all over her again.’

The doorbell
chimes and Blake and Nathan shoot up.

‘I’ll get
it!’ The guys announce, disappearing from the room. Cole looks longingly at
Dixie.

‘No, you
have a girlfriend, no drooling for you, mister,’ Dixie laughs.

‘Someone
has to make sure she doesn’t have to file a restraining order,’ he points out
and Dixie rolls her eyes, moving off him.

‘Fine, but
I won’t forget this,’ she scolds, smiling fondly as he disappears. Leah sits
there, shaking her head.

‘Boys are
pathetic,’ she states. Dixie laughs.

‘They’re
just having fun,’ she counters. Then Dixie turns to me, her expression falling
serious. ‘Speaking of guys, we heard what happened with Marty. You let us know
if he touches you again, okay?’

Although
she looks fragile and petite, something in her expression and tone tells me she
is anything but. I nod, shifting uncomfortably. Then the next words fly out of
my mouth before I can stop them.

‘Why did
Blake beat up Terrance?’ I ask. It’s something I’ve been wondering since Blake
first brought it up, but I don’t like to ask.

Leah lets
out a harsh laugh. ‘That arsehole got everything coming to him.’

Dixie
shakes her head sadly, ‘you know about Blake’s aunt, right? Terrance made a
comment he really shouldn’t have. Blake went ape-shit.’

Blake’s
words suddenly ring through my mind:
yeah,
they do that.
Terrance had taunted Blake about his aunt much like Marty had
taunted me about Alex.

I’m about
to say something else when the guys return, looking admittedly down hearted but
holding hot pizza.

Dixie
smirks. ‘So I take it Stacey wasn’t the delivery girl tonight?’

Blake
makes a face. ‘They sent this old, fat guy, it wasn’t pretty.’

Looking at
Blake now, he doesn’t look like a guy who would beat someone up, even with his
obvious muscles. Terrance must have really crossed a line.

Blake sees
me staring and mouths if I’m okay. I nod and smile which he returns and turns
back to the rest of his friends.

The rest
of the night runs surprisingly smoothly and the film is hilarious. Gradually, I
feel myself relaxing but at around eleven I start yawning and Blake notices the
time.

‘We’d
better be getting back,’ Blake announces, pulling himself up. ‘God knows what
Charlie will do if I don’t get you back before midnight.’

I smirk
and get up to join him. ‘I don’t think it’s worth thinking about.’

‘Hey,
Neve, you’re coming to the party on Saturday, right?’ Dixie asks, snuggling
against Cole.

I point at
Blake accusingly. ‘He’s making me go, even though I have nothing to wear.’

Blake
rolls his eyes. ‘Geez, what is it with you girls and clothing? Just grab
something and wear it, simple.’

Dixie
gives him a condescending shake of the head before turning back to me.

‘Why don’t
you come over before and we’ll find you something to wear?’ she offers. ‘Blake
needs to drive over here first anyway. We always take his car.’

I quickly
glance at Dixie’s current outfit. It’s almost something I would wear, if I
thought I could pull it off. Hey, what do I have to lose?

‘Sounds
great,’ I agree.

Blake
remains rather quiet on the way home, only turning towards me once we’ve pulled
up outside my house.

‘You
know,’ he starts shyly, as if nervous. ‘Nathan’s not the only one who can go to
the art galleries with you.’

I snort.
‘Really, you have the patience for art?’

Blake
blinks.

‘Of course
I have patience for art!’

I burst
into laughter at his reaction and Blake scowls.

‘That
sounds like fun, I might take you up on that,’ I say at last. Blake’s
expression brightens and we say goodnight as I get out of the car. I let myself
in, only to find the house empty, a note telling me he is off celebrating his
promotion with Nadine, probably at a bar or something.

I get into
bed but can’t seem to sleep, my thoughts going back to Blake’s words in the car
before we had gotten to Dixie’s.

The key
still sits on my bedside table, and after staring at it for goodness knows how
long I finally reach for my phone.

With
determination, I type the words,
Hey,
Jay. Up for another road trip?

After
hitting the send button I put the phone down, an odd weight lifting off my
shoulders.

It doesn’t
take Jay long to reply.

‘I cannot
believe I let you talk me into this,’ I sigh, looking over at Blake, who
smirks.

‘Well,
let’s face it, it didn’t take much persuading did it?’ he grins, ignoring the
glare I send him.

‘Hey,
buddy, you have to be nice, remember? If you think about it, the state of this
reputation of yours all depends on how I decide to play it tonight,’ I muse.

Although
Blake tends to hang out with Dixie and her crew, Blake is well acquainted with
some of the richer inhabitants of the town thanks to his ties to Charity. It is
this social circle he is trying to keep intact tonight.

It struck
me as strange that Dixie and the rest are going to one of Charity’s parties, or
have even been invited in the first place, since I’m pretty sure they all hate
her, but it turns out they’re all on fairly good terms with the girl because of
their school days. Although, admittedly, this is something Dixie tells me is
forced on her behalf.

Dixie and
I have that in common apparently.

Back in
the car, Blake regards me with a curious glance at my threat.

‘You
wouldn’t dare,’ he says slowly, amusement seeping into his voice.

‘You just
keep telling yourself that,’ I smirk before bursting into giggles.

Truth be
told though, they’re nervous giggles, and currently my stomach is doing
cartwheels and flips uncontrollably. All of my instincts are screaming at me
that this party is a terrible, horrible idea.
 

Blake
rolls his eyes and shakes his head, trying to act nonchalant which only
entertains me further.

‘So you
guys are definitely going up to March tomorrow, right?’ Blake asks and I nod.
March is the little town where my parents used to live. The plan had been to go
up there today and then come back in time for the party but Jay had woken up
feeling awful this morning and just needed to spend all day in bed.

‘Providing
he’s feeling better,’ I note. ‘I’m still trying to work out whether this is a
good idea or not,’ I frown.

‘Well, if
it helps, I think you’re doing the right thing.’ Blake smiles reassuringly.
‘Unless of course the house is haunted and you end up falling head first into a
pit of terror, then maybe not. Just watch out for any trap doors or spooky
goings on.’

Despite
myself, I laugh again.

‘Right,
and I should probably avoid any ghosts and zombies that come across my way
too?’ I raise an eyebrow.

‘Exactly. And
if there is a loud noise or scream, for goodness sake don’t go towards it,’ he
sighs, shaking his head mockingly. ‘Whenever someone goes towards the screaming
they either end up dead, zombified or dead.’

‘You said
dead twice,’ I point out.

‘I was
emphasising my point.’

My nerves
only seem to intensify further as we approach Dixie’s house and my heart seems
to have dropped into my foot by the time we actually reach the front door.
Apparently Dixie had told Blake the house would be open earlier so Blake doesn’t
bother knocking and just pushes his way in.

‘Up here!’
Dixie announces when he calls and we trudge up the stairs to the first floor.

Dixie
comes flying out of her room, a pair of unplugged curlers in her hands and a
look of fierce determination on her features. She eyes me up and tilts her head
to the side before nodding.

‘Okay, I
think I can work with this,’ she announces approvingly, her lips quirking up
mischievously.

‘Erm,
thanks?’ I laugh, tugging on my jacket nervously. Dixie winks.

‘You’re
quite a bit shorter than me but I think my sister’s stuff will fit you. As for
you,’ she declares, turning to Blake. ‘Sort your hair out and then vamoose,
this is a girl’s only zone.’

Blake’s
hand immediately flies up to his hair and he frowns. ‘What’s wrong with my
hair?’

‘It’s too
neat,’ she criticises before shooing him off the landing.

Personally,
I think Blake looks perfectly fine; he’s in skinny jeans and a dark, checked
shirt with his black, leather jacket pulled over the top, but I daren’t argue against
Dixie’s judgment.

‘Good
luck,’ Blake calls, winking at me before I’m pulled into Dixie’s room, where
Leah is already sitting comfortably on her large double bed. Dixie and Leah are
like chalk and cheese really, Dixie with her vibrant personality and Leah with
her general shyness. Yet, judging by the photos hung up on the walls, the girls
go back years.

Dixie
literally bounces when she walks, and she bounds over to the vanity table,
flicks on her IPod and picks up a heavy-looking make-up bag before regarding me
again, her burgundy skirt swaying whenever she moves. She has coupled this with
a black-and-white, striped blouse made from floaty material and a pair of
killer black boots.

Leah on
the other hand is in a white, strapless dress, sequins forming a sort of belt
around the bust and pale, beige heels. Her blonde curls are delicately pinned
up on top of her head.

‘What are
we thinking, Leah?’ Dixie asks, both girls now studying me closely.

‘Keep it
natural,’ Leah decides in a soft voice. ‘Hair down, but we should go over her
natural curls with the curlers to make them stand out more. Sit,’ she
instructs, patting the bed beside her.

I oblige
and sit down, facing so that my back is to her so she can play around with my
hair whilst Dixie tops up my mascara.

‘So, you
and Blake, huh?’ she grins. I look at her with astonishment and my cheeks start
to burn.

‘Sorry?’

‘You and
Blake, are you together or what?’

‘Erm, we
aren’t… we’re not like, dating-’

‘Pout,’
she says suddenly and I stare at her with confusion. ‘Pout,’ she repeats,
miming the action and holding up red lipstick.

‘What
happened to looking natural?’ I question, raising an eyebrow. Dixie makes a
dismissive motion.

‘This will
look great, trust,’ she assures me, and there is nothing more I can do than
follow her instructions. ‘Anyway, I’ve known Blake for a long time, don’t think
I can’t tell when the guy likes someone,’ Dixie grins, finishing with the
lipstick and holding up a tissue. ‘Clamp,’ she instructs and I put the tissue
between my lips to get rid of any excess lipstick.

‘That’s
ridiculous,’ I protest. ‘We’re just friends.’

Dixie
snorts, but when I go to argue further she puts a finger on my lips and makes a
shushing sound before announcing she’s disappearing to get her sister’s dresses
and dances out of the room.

I just sit
there and stare, my mouth falling open. Behind me, Leah laughs at my
expression, a soft, musical sound.

‘Dix can
come across as abrupt and brash, even sometimes rude, but she will always have
your best interests at heart. It’s just her way,’ she informs me with a smile.
I nod.

‘Is Dixie
a nickname or something?’ I ask randomly. I’ve never come across someone who
has that name before. Leah laughs again.

‘My real
name is Danica,’ Dixie announces, returning with a bundle of outfits slung over
her arm.

‘But she
reminds everyone of a pixie. Pixie, Dixie,’ Leah informs me, trying to keep a
straight face as she says the last two words.

‘Anyway,
this is what we have to work with. These should be your size,’ Dixie says,
lying the dresses down on the bed.

Leah holds
up a white dress with red, pink and yellow flower prints covering it, buttons
running down the front.

‘This is
cute.’

Dixie makes
a face and I’m inclined to agree with her.

‘It’s too
sickly sweet,’ Dixie says. Leah scowls but dismisses the dress anyway.

All three
of us reject the electric blue body-con dress with weird lacy bits hanging off
it.

‘I don’t
even know why she has it, Zoë needs to burn that immediately,’ Dixie murmurs
distastefully. ‘Well I guess it’s a toss up between these two, the bathroom is
just across the hall.’

The first
is a plain dark purple, one-shouldered, long-sleeved dress that tucks in at the
middle. The second has a pale, lace top attached to a black skater skirt.

‘The lacy
one,’ Leah decides. ‘It goes better with your hair.’

‘It’s
slightly too big,’ I frown, having to hold the middle up. Dixie dives into her
wardrobe and returns with a thin black belt that she fastens around my waist.

‘Perfect,’
she announces happily. It turns out that although Dixie is a bigger size than
me, we share around about the same shoe-size so she lends me a black pair of
boot-heels.

The whole
experience is slightly strange to me. I’ve never had a group or even a single
girl friend to share clothes with or share make-up secrets with before.

When we’re
finished, I stand in front of the mirror, completely dumbstruck. The girl in
the mirror can’t be me, can it?

‘You look
great,’ Leah says with a smile and Dixie just winks.

‘If we
could get there before they run out of alcohol, that would be great!’ Cole
shouts up. Dixie swears down at him but we emerge from her room nonetheless,
her arm looped through mine encouragingly. I try to stay planted at the top of
the staircase but Dixie is having none of it.

‘About
time,’ Blake sighs, mockingly checking his watch. But when he looks up his eyes
settle on me and widen considerably.

I knew
this was a bad idea.

‘I know, I
look terrible, I shouldn’t have bothered,’ I say in rush, suddenly feeling
embarrassed and self-conscious. I try to escape but both girls keep me pinned
in place.

‘No, you
look… wow,’ Blake says, lost for words yet breaking into a grin anyway.

‘You can
be my fake-girlfriend anytime,’ Nathan announces, looking impressed.

‘Hey, we
look hot too,’ Dixie scowls, pointing between her and Leah.

Cole
laughs and wraps an arm around her, pulling her close.

‘You
always do,’ he grins and she giggles, rewarding him with a quick kiss. Then she
turns to Blake. ‘You boys can take Nathan’s car while we take yours. Keys,’ she
demands. ‘Also, nice hair.’

Blake
rolls his eyes.

‘Promise
me you won’t crash the car?’ he groans.

‘Come on,
would I ever?’ she asks innocently. Blake raises an eyebrow. ‘That was one
time! It’s your fault for lending your car to a learner.’

Begrudgingly,
Blake hands over the keys to his fancy sports car and Dixie leads Cole out,
ruffling his hair as she goes. Nathan then turns to Leah.

‘So everyone else is hooking up, how about
we make this a triple-date?’ he asks with a smirk. Leah just smiles and shakes
her head, walking out of the door. ‘Is that a maybe?’ Nathan calls after her,
following Leah out.

‘Ready?’
Blake grins, holding out an arm. I loop my arm through his and take a deep
breath.

‘As ready
as I’ll ever be,’ I laugh.

Just as we
walk out of the door, Blake whispers in my ear.

‘You look
beautiful.’