She throws a wet arm around my shoulders, “Well, you’ve got a swimming buddy now,” and smiles widely before pushing back into the water and kicking hard with her feet. A torrent of water hits me, leaving me coughing.

I laugh and launch under water, grabbing at her ankles and pulling her down.

15

NOW

This morning’s sky was cornflower blue, exacerbating the lingering feeling of wanting to be free of the oppressive walls of the house and out in the wide open. After Helen had returned indoors last night, she had gone straight up to her room, ran a hot bath and soaked for a long time, trying to rinse the awkwardness from her skin and put Diana from her mind. She had only half succeeded. Images of her plagued her dreams through the night and she had woken feeling clammy, groggy and with the girl still imprinted on her eyelids.

There was something about Diana that unsettled her. Her brazenness maybe, or the openly challenging way she looked at Helen. It was like Diana was daring her to find a connection, a reason why she should feel like she knew Diana. Was it that she reminded her of someone? That frustratingly unsettling feeling of a thought being just out of reach. The best Helen could hope for was that this was just a fleeting flirtation for Matt and nothing more serious. Perhaps he would tire of her soon enough. Teenage boys could be fickle.

Then Diana would become insignificant, a name not to be mentioned again when he moved on.

Helen decided to walk to work rather than cycle, her feet itching to move. There was a wooden gate at the far end of the garden behind the pool house that would take her straight onto the coastal path, shaving a good ten minutes off her journey, but she never went that way these days. The gate was padlocked, had been for years, the lock rusted from disuse. Hidden as it was from the house and overgrown with ivy, she didn’t think anyone else even knew the gate was there, which suited her just fine.

After leaving Clive safely tucked up in his bed with a treat, she locked the front door behind her and headed down the driveway. Even though it was almost 9 a.m., Matt’s car was still parked in its usual spot. Helen hadn’t seen Matt at breakfast though. She assumed Diana had left last night when Helen was in the bath, but perhaps his absence at breakfast meant that Diana had stayed over. She wasn’t sure what to do with that. Matt was technically an adult, as was Diana, but it was her house. And the more she stayed over, the less likely Matt would grow tired of her.