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“DO YOU BELIEVE IN DESTINY? That even the powers of time can be altered for a single purpose? That the luckiest man who walks on this earth is the one who finds... true love?”
Bram Stoker, Dracula
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FLORA DIDN’T KNOW WHAT to think. Gabriel was her date?
They had almost reached the bottom of the stairs when another Gabriel came through the front door, holding hands with a very beautiful girl, whom she could only assume was Vanessa.
She did a double take at the boy standing beside Nate. He looked so like Gabriel, the same high cheek bones, the same white blond hair, but it wasn’t Gabriel.
He was slightly shorter, and definitely younger. Exactly her own age in fact.
Flora swallowed several times, this was the boy of her dreams! Not Gabriel.
Ellie grabbed her hand and pulled her forward to meet him.
“Flora, this is Michael, Gabriel’s brother.”
“Hello Flora,” Michael smiled and held out a beautiful orchid corsage. “I know it’s not traditional in England, but Ellie tells me you’re American, so I thought this might be appropriate.”
Flora wanted to melt into a puddle right there in the hall. His voice was cultured and refined, incredibly British upper class, but his face held none of the haughty aloofness of Gabriel’s. He was, quite simply, perfect, as far as she could see.
Their eyes held as he slipped the corsage onto her wrist.
“You look stunning,” he said in a low voice.
“So do you,” she whispered.
“I’ve been considering coming to school at Compass Court for years,” Michael said seriously, “Now I really think I have to.”
They smiled at each other, then he took her hand and led her into the dance.
***
SOPHIE JONES SAT AT the dressing table in her dorm room and touched the Calla lily lying in front of her.
She’d had such a wonderful time on stage that she had barely thought of Jack, but as soon as her scenes were done, the reality had set in, Jack was somewhere out there in the audience.
She had known he was attending; after all, his brother Alex had a major role in the production, and she had hoped that he might visit Alex backstage when it was over. But she hadn’t even caught a glimpse of him.
She had dutifully partied in the rehearsal room for half an hour, then made her excuses and come upstairs to prepare for the dance.
That was when she found the lily on her bed. A note had been pinned to it. It simply said: ‘All my love, Jack.’
Why couldn’t he ever explain what his notes meant? Why was he always so brief and cryptic? Was it just an acknowledgment of her role in the play?
When they had all taken their bows, Owen Lang had come onto the stage and presented Grace, Beatrice and herself with a bunch of flowers each. Was this in the same vein? The bunch of carnations already lay forgotten on the end of her bed. It was the single long stemmed lily that held her attention.
Or did he actually mean what the note said? Was it a gesture of love?
Almost certainly not. Jack had shown an interest in her, but there had never been any talk of it being more than that, not on his side anyway.
And now he was gone again. He had come to the play but he wouldn’t be at the dance, he didn’t go to Compass Court anymore.
It was a whole year ago, exactly to the night, when she had thrown herself at him at the previous end of school dance. She had liked him for so long and he had been about to leave Compass Court forever. She had lost her heart completely that night, and she knew that she would never get it back. It had always been Jack.
She’d liked Torrin very much, as well as several other boys she had briefly dated, but it was always Jack for her, she’d never been tempted to go further than kissing with anyone else. But for Jack, she would have swum naked across Oak River.
She sighed, knowing she ought to go downstairs and put on a big smile.
It was just so hard, everyone seemed to be in a couple except her.
She had watched Grace getting ready to meet Ben, Diana getting ready to meet Alex, and Rose getting ready to meet Leo. Until she was the only one left in the room, getting ready to meet no one.
She wondered if Jack was spending the night at the hotel in Oakworth Village down the road. What did he mean by ‘All my love’? She was half tempted to walk into the village and ask him. Ball, ball dress and high heels be damned.
Or she could text him! She jumped up and found her phone. If he was just down the road she could ask him to meet her in the Compass Court woods. In the exact spot where they’d had their perfect night a year ago.
She dithered for a moment. What was she thinking? Did she have no pride left at all? She had spent all year getting over her one kiss with Jack and now she was about to open the wound again! She had already managed to salvage her pride by turning him down; she should leave it well alone now. It was simply the memory of this same night a year ago that was getting to her.
Her phone buzzed in her hand, making her jump.
She flipped it open, heart pounding.
Are you coming down? We’re all starting to worry. Grace x
Sophie sighed. I’m on my way, she texted back. Then she strapped on her high heels, picked up her bag, and taking a deep breath she went to join her friends.
***
JACK PARKHURST ADJUSTED the pressure around his neck and continued searching the room. He usually loved wearing black tie, but tonight he felt constricted and distinctly tense.
As a favourite ex-pupil, with both his brother and sister in attendance, he’d had no problem convincing the Head Mistress to let him come to the end of year dance, but he desperately hoped he hadn’t set himself up for an evening of heartbreak.
The trouble was that he just couldn’t stay away. He had to see Sophie.
He had to beg her on bended knee to leave her boyfriend and go out with him instead.
He knew it wasn’t really cricket to steal someone else’s girlfriend, but he felt in his bones that she belonged to him. He had loved her first, he just hadn’t realised it. He’d been slow on the uptake and he could only pray it wasn’t too late to tell her.
Watching the Year Twelve production of Dracula had been both hugely enjoyable and hugely torturous.
He was so proud of Alex he could hardly believe it. Alex had been brilliant as Jonathan Harker, so earnest and mature; it made Jack see the kind of man Alex would become.
But Sophie: she had been full of colour and vivaciousness. Her personality had taken the stage by storm. She had been completely effervescent in her role of Lucy Westenra. He had watched with a mixture of adoration and frustration as she flirted with every goddamn man on the stage and they all fell under her spell. The part had been her to a T.
He had wanted her a long time now, but only since Easter had he realised it was more, much more than that. He wanted to hold her and never let go. He wanted her voice to be the last thing he heard every night. He wanted to convince her to become his girlfriend and eventually come to Manchester University so they could be together every single day instead of doing long-distance.
He had been the biggest fool ever not to realise that she was the one a year ago. If she had even a spark of feeling left towards him then he was going to work and work until that spark was a flame.
As his watch crept towards a quarter to nine, he began to wonder if she was even coming.
She had to come. He had to tell her he was in love with her.
***
SOPHIE PLASTERED A big false smile onto her face as she entered the ballroom. She had to at least appear to be having a great time. All round the room her friends were enjoying themselves.
Out on the dance floor she soon saw Rose and Leo. Rose was wearing an emerald green dress that matched her new engagement ring. It was a large round-cut emerald surrounded by a tiny circle of diamonds, and Rose was delighted with it. Earlier that evening, as soon as the play was over, Rose and Leo had reintroduced their parents to each other. This time all four parents had swallowed their animosity and had grudgingly shaken hands. Rose and Leo had been thrilled with the results of their plan. They weren’t intending to get married any time soon, but it was very much on the table.
Nearby on the dance floor Sophie spotted Alex and Diana. Their relationship had been amusing to watch. After the party at Easter, Alex and Diana had officially become a couple, yet they were both still far too shy to actually talk to each other. As she watched them sway to the music, holding each other close, Sophie was glad that they had clearly found a way to communicate other than talking.
Grace and Ben were over by the refreshments table, deep in conversation. Their relationship was still in that new touchy-feely stage, and she didn’t really want to intrude.
She could even see Torrin, looking rather too happy, as he and Felicity made out behind a pillar.
She was actually considering slipping away again, when a hand touched her back. Spinning round she saw the one person in the world she most wanted to see.
“Hello Sophie,” said Jack.
~
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