The following day at lunchtime, Harper spotted Cleo in the shelter shed with Corey. What would he be telling her? She wanted so much to trust Cleo with her secrets. Cleo always had tons and now Harper had the wildest secret of all.

Will’s words were in her head: Would you believe it if you hadn’t seen it?

‘Cleo, I need you,’ Harper said.

‘Sure,’ Cleo replied, and got up.

‘What’s the emergency?’ said Corey. ‘I was just about to tell Cleo something.’ He gave Harper a piercing look while Cleo wasn’t looking.

Harper ignored him and pulled her friend away.

‘Is it about your mum and dad? Are they okay?’ said Cleo as they picked their way around games of two-square.

‘They’re fine. It’s not about them.’ Harper didn’t add that she’d trained herself not to think about them. That was a secret she’d never tell. If people found out, they’d think she didn’t love her parents. ‘Has Corey said anything about me?’

Cleo stopped walking.

‘He has, hasn’t he?’ said Harper. ‘What’s he said?’

‘He said you talk to yourself. But no one cares. Everyone’s told him to shut up. Don’t worry.’

Harper’s mouth had gone dry.

‘He just jokes around!’ said Cleo. ‘No one cares, Harper.’

‘Come this way.’ Harper led Cleo down the path towards the back of the library.

‘But we’re not supposed to go down here,’ Cleo said.

‘It’s fine.’

‘But I’m a vice-captain, Harp—’ Cleo began.

‘Look at this door,’ Harper interrupted.

‘Oh! Was this always here?’

Harper had a moment of doubt. She took off her glasses: she couldn’t be sure that they had anything to do with seeing Will, since she could also see him without them, but she’d been wearing them the first time so it might help Cleo now. ‘Wear these,’ she said.

‘Why?’ Cleo leaned back to stop Harper from putting them on her.

‘Please. Trust me?’

‘Harps, you’re being weird. Is this about what happened when you were in here with Corey?’

‘Nothing happened. He doesn’t know anything. Just wear them for a second. And come inside.’

Cleo put the glasses on and said her eyes felt strange. Harper took her hand and opened the door. Once they were inside she shut it again, closing them off from the playground.

‘I’ve been having these weird…experiences,’ Harper began.

Cleo looked worried, the way she always did when Harper was upset.

‘This is not something that’s easy to believe, but it’s true. I need you to look all around the room.’

Harper held onto her while she walked around.

‘Look everywhere, Cleo. Tell me if you see something.’

Cleo giggled. ‘Harps, all I can see is what’s always in here. Old books.’

‘Keep looking.’

‘Harps, come on, what am I meant to be seeing?’

Harper’s frustration was rising. It wasn’t Cleo’s fault she couldn’t see Will, but Harper couldn’t help feeling like she wasn’t trying.

‘Okay, take off the glasses, give them to me.’

Harper turned in a slow circle as she adjusted them on her face. Then she did it again, heart beating fast in anticipation, eyes wide and searching.

She couldn’t see him. She panicked, thinking it had been a one-off thing and she’d never get to speak to him again.

‘Will?’ she called softly.

‘Who’s Will?’ Cleo asked.

This had been a terrible idea. Harper had said his name out loud but she had no evidence for Cleo.

‘Who’s Will? There’s no Will,’ Harper replied, putting on a smile.

‘But you just said, Will!’

‘Yeah…but what I was saying is…will you come to my birthday party at the weekend?’

‘Huh?’

‘As I didn’t get to have one. I want to invite you, um…Ro, Misha, Tahira, Augie, Jake. The old group. Maybe Sol, too. Lolly’s flat isn’t big. Will you come?’

‘I mean, sure,’ said Cleo, with a frown. ‘But is that all you wanted to say? Why did you say you’d had weird experiences?’

‘Just—everything’s weird at the moment, right? Pandemic.’

‘I guess, but why did you make me wear your glasses and come in here? What was I supposed to be looking at?’

‘At the…shelves! I tidied up! Doesn’t it look nice?’

‘Have you? Okay. Cool, I guess.’ Cleo didn’t look convinced.

‘I didn’t want to tell you when Corey was there. He’s always making fun of me being library captain. And I was just messing about with the glasses. Because you look pretty in them.’

Cleo smiled awkwardly and said, ‘Well, so do you. You’re the prettiest ever. So what’s happening with this party?’

‘Sunday. Five o’clock. We’ll just listen to music and eat. Will people think it’s boring?’

‘Course not! You’re so funny, Harps. And I want to meet your nonna, she sounds funny too.’ Cleo hugged her suddenly. ‘I know this isn’t allowed but I’m doing it anyway. I missed you. Are you sure you’re all right?’

‘Promise.’

A hug and those perfect words: I missed you. They should have made Harper feel like everything was good again. But now she was stuck with a party she didn’t really want, and looking over her friend’s shoulder, thinking: where is Will?

Cycling home, she wondered if Will had gone for good. They’d only just met but that night she couldn’t think about anything else.

After saying goodnight to Lolly, Harper got out her iPad and typed: Underage ANZAC soldiers World War One.

Douglas Wood: died at the Battle of Fromelles, aged 15.

Leslie Prior, died at the Battle of Bullecourt, aged 15.

James Martin, died at Gallipoli, aged 14.

William Park, died at Gallipoli, aged 14.

Vince Lyons, joined at 14, survived Gallipoli.

Leslie Shaw, joined at 13, survived Gallipoli, Flanders and the Somme.

Harper inched open the bedside drawer where she’d put Cleo’s drawing of Will and the cadet badge. Both were there; nothing had moved, nothing strange had happened and it had been a while since she’d woken in the middle of the night.

She propped the drawing against the lamp and looked at it for a long time before she fell asleep.