And yet, when his lips touch hers, the doubt disappears. Rather than push him away, as she had imagined she would, she puts one hand on the short hair at the back of his neck and pulls him towards her. She moves her mouth against his, lets his tongue find hers. He shuffles closer without breaking the kiss and wraps his arms around her. For once, she allows herself to forget about everything but this, even when she thinks she hears the door open and close again. She is going to stay put for as long as she can.
When they finally come up for air, Danny has a big silly grin on his face. But once the seal of their mouths has been broken, there’s a space for all Georgia’s fears and doubts to rush back in. Although she smiles at him, it is a mask concealing her terror. She can’t go down this road again.
Before she can say anything, he speaks.
‘Georgia, I’ve been wanting to do that for ages.’
She sits still, mute, and he must read something amiss in her reaction because he grows serious. ‘Look, I know you’re having a tough time right now, and I’m not going to pester you . . . but when you’re ready, can we spend some time together? Nothing too heavy – just get to know each other?’
She doesn’t trust herself to speak, but she nods. She wants to be excited, but she knows that there is no future with Danny unless she tells him the truth, and that’s not going to happen right now. Not in Bethany’s bedroom, with their friend hovering outside the door. In spite of herself, her eyes begin to fill with tears, and she turns away from him and swipes angrily at her face.
‘Sorry, there’s just been so much to deal with today.’
‘It’s okay, Georgia, I’ve been thinking about Sophia heaps, so I can’t imagine what you’re going through. She’s your best friend. You must be gutted.’ He pauses. ‘I think you’re amazing for running tomorrow. Why don’t we pace each other a bit in the first section of the race – what do you reckon?’
She imagines them alongside one another, their footsteps pounding the same rhythm, and it calms her. ‘That sounds good.’
‘Ahem,’ says a voice from outside the room. ‘Is it safe to come in?’ Bethany pokes her head around the door. She is holding more drinks and carrying packets of crisps under her chin. ‘I thought you guys might need an energy kick if you’re going to pash each other like that.’
Georgia is embarrassed but Danny just laughs, then grabs one of the packets and bursts it open. ‘Look,’ he says, ‘I’ll get going and leave you to it. I know I’m interrupting. I can catch you another time, yeah?’ He smiles at Bethany this time, and Georgia feels the first twinges of jealousy as Danny gets up and swings his bag over his shoulder. ‘I can let myself out,’ he says. ‘I brought my bike – it’s a bit too soon for me to walk down Vicarage Road again.’
Once they hear the front door close, Bethany sits down with a bounce on the bed. ‘You okay?’
‘I think so.’
‘Danny’s a good guy.’ Bethany is shovelling crisps into her mouth by the handful. ‘I know some of his friends are dicks, but he won’t hurt you, Georgia. I should warn you, though, his taste in movies and music is shocking. And he takes all my money playing cards.’
Any jealousy that was brewing in Georgia is once again quashed by Bethany’s easy nature. But she doesn’t get to relax for long. ‘So,’ Bethany continues, ‘you seemed like you were going to tell me something juicy. You know, Sophia’s been worried about you for ages. Says you don’t want to hang out with her any more, that you only want to go running.’
They have been talking about her. Georgia imagines them speculating behind her back, but there’s too much concern in Bethany’s voice for her to take offence. However, before she can reply, the doorbell rings again.
‘For god’s sake, he must have forgotten something.’ Bethany hauls herself up. A short time later there are two sets of footsteps coming back towards the room again, but to Georgia’s surprise it’s her father who appears, with Bethany behind him.
‘You weren’t picking up your mobile.’ She scans his voice for irritation, but he just sounds worried.
‘I didn’t hear it ring.’ Georgia pulls her phone from her pocket to check it. ‘Oh, sorry, the battery died. I didn’t realise.’
‘It’s okay. But you won’t have seen anyone’s messages then? Sophia’s awake.’
‘Oh my god, that’s fantastic!’ Bethany cries, breaking into a big smile and bouncing across to give Georgia a hug. When she pulls away, Georgia is crying.
Her dad comes over and puts a soothing hand on her shoulder. ‘It’s okay, love. It’s really good news. She’s still pretty groggy tonight, but hopefully she’ll be a lot better tomorrow. Now, I’ve just finished a stint at the rescue centre, so I thought I’d come and give you a lift home. Your mum’ll be getting worried. She’s not happy I let you come here in the first place.’