Chets and Mak

Of course it would be easier to wait till we get to Mak’s house to go through everything that’s happened when everyone’s together, but Ade wants answers and I can understand that, so we talk as we walk and try not to leave anything out. Well, I say we, but it’s mostly me. Kat’s still mad and I think Karim is scared of Ade. Which is another thing I can understand. Ade interrupts every now and then to ask questions, but she mostly just listens.

Chets lives the furthest away: across the river, out the back of the estate, through the posh residential area and across Cygnet Park. I feel like I’ve walked a million miles over the past two days, but there’s no way we’re doing this without Chets. We enter the park by the entrance furthest away from Chets’ house and make our way across past the pond, which has been abandoned by the 176 swans. It’s funny how the birds seem to know about the spores before anyone else does and get their asses away fast. We’re passing the playground when I see a familiar person jumping off a swing, waving like a madman.

‘It’s Chets!’ I say, so happy to see him that I almost wave like a madman back.

‘Aw, look at his happy face,’ Kat says, grinning.

‘Strange that he’s appeared in the right place at the right time,’ Ade says. ‘A little bit suspicious, don’t you think?’

‘I’m sure there’s a reason,’ I say. Having Chets around makes everything better, and I can tell just from looking at him being all goofy as usual that he most definitely isn’t a sporeling.

‘Yeah, Adrianne. You’ve turned mean,’ Kat says, and she pulls open the playground gate, running across the spongy ground to hug him. As the rest of us get closer, I look Chets over, just to double-check that he hasn’t changed. He’s all neat, his cheeks are pink and his eyes are like balls of chocolate. Same old Chets.

‘Fancy meeting you here,’ Ade says, raising an eyebrow.

‘I can’t believe it!’ Chets beams, oblivious to the 177 shade Ade’s throwing. ‘I finally persuaded Mum and Dad to let me out of the house because I thought I was getting a vitamin D deficiency and my knees felt strange.’

‘You see, Adrianne,’ Kat says, linking arms with Chets.

‘I was just thinking about walking to your house, Lance, but here you are! Were you coming to knock for me? It’s so great to see you all together,’ Chets says. And I see that he’s avoiding looking at Karim.