Chapter 13

“Yeah. I know. Eternally and evermore.”

It was a glorious late summer morning. High in the cloudless sky, the golden disc of the sun threatened to shine all day. The general populace went about their business as they always did, albeit wishing they didn’t have to and could spend the day by the sea instead. But it was no ordinary day. It was exam results day and Will was worried. He had tossed and turned for most of the night and felt as if he had only just fallen asleep when his alarm woke him. He’d dragged himself out of bed, showered, dressed and traipsed downstairs where his mother had greeted him with a full English breakfast.

No spoke during the meal. He ate quickly then went next door to call for Lizzie.

“Ready?” he asked when she opened the door.

“No. You?”

“As I’ll ever be. May as well get this over with.”

“We calling for Amy?”

“You need to ask?”

The direct route to school would have taken them less than ten minutes, but to swing by Amy’s house, they had to take a longer route. Will didn’t mind. As much as he wanted to get the inevitable over with, he wanted his girlfriend by his side when he did it.

Amy was sitting on her garden wall waiting for them. As soon as she spotted them she jumped up and raced over.

“Hi Lizzie,” she said with a smile.

“Hi.”

“Hey, you.” She kissed Will’s cheek and slipped her hand into his, their fingers intertwining as they always did. “Thanks for last night,” she whispered in his ear. “It certainly took the edge of my nerves.” She kissed his mouth, slipping her tongue between his welcoming lips as he put an arm around her waist and pulled her close.

“Oh, pur-lease,” said Lizzie. “Get a damn room.”

Amy pulled away and stuck her tongue out at her friend. Lizzie laughed and they set off for school.

It felt like such a long time ago that Will and Amy had celebrated their last exam in their own special way. Since then, he’d been working part-time at a local firm of solicitors—where he hoped to gain some experience of the law before starting university—and spent every spare second with Amy. They’d spent a lot of their time together naked and, quite literally, joined at the hip.

He needed to get four top grades out of four to qualify for the place he’d been offered at Jesus College, Oxford. He was nervous. He thought the exams had gone well, but that meant nothing. It was only what the examiners thought of his answers that counted. His future rested on four small letters on a piece of paper in an envelope that, at that moment, sat on his headmaster’s desk.

“You nervous?” Amy asked as they entered the school building.

“Not at all. Walk in the park. Nothing to worry about.”

“Liar. I didn’t sleep at all. And I’ve less riding on this than you.”

“I hardly slept, to tell the truth. I can’t believe today’s arrived. I didn’t think it ever would.”

“Best of luck, William. I hope you get in.”

“Even if it means we’ll be apart.”