Rowan smears the camera lens with the corner of his sweater.

‘Did you get soaked?’

I imagine for a moment that he might turn the camera round – let me look at him drenched and dripping wet. And the thought of seeing his face makes my stomach flip.

I wring my hair out above the camera, so it

h o s e p i p e s

down.

‘That answer your question?’

It almost feels like I, too, am soaked to the core, heart beating from running and rain dripping off my nose. And outside my own window, a mile away, I can see the same rain hammering, droplets blurring the bell tower in the distance to just a smudge.

We sit, curled up next to a huge metal foot holding up the body of the pier. Looking out, we can see rain curtains on either side, and other beachgoers screaming as they hold newspapers over their heads, darting into shops, their faces scrunched.

There’s a hole in my shoe and

the weather’s leaking in.

I’ll just tape it up when I get back.

Take another shift at the golf.

I got this.

Rowan gets up suddenly and shakes himself again.

‘Are you cold?’

‘Nah.

It’s my turn now.

I want to show you something.’

He turns round and we see a gate at the very back of the pier, barring the entrance to a dark tunnel under the road above, where killer cars tear through puddles and traffic lights flare.

He winds his fingers into the criss-cross bars and gives them a rattle. They don’t budge.

I’m ready to walk away and perhaps try looking for something else to do while we wait for the rain to ease off, but Rowan traces his hand round the edge of the gate until he finds a latch.

‘It’s locked,’ I say.

It always was.

He bends over, so all I can see is the zip of his hoodie, and I hear sounds like metal teeth chewing marbles.

‘We’re in.’

The gate

C R E A K S

open

like a scary movie.

‘Did you just break and enter?!’

And he actually laughs.

‘Well,

we’ve not entered yet.’

He turns and I look around, checking for police officers and listening for sirens.

‘You’re as bad as my friend Cecelia. Locks are put on things for a reason, you know. It could be dangerous.’

‘It’s not dangerous.’

‘How do you know? Like you said, you haven’t entered yet.’

‘Maybe not today …’