Chapter 75

Marcus opened up his stride as he reached the peak of the hill, turning into his own road to head back home, and saw his father stood at the foot of the steps. Wrapped up in a heavy coat and hunched beneath an umbrella against the heavy rain, he shuffled from foot to foot as Marcus approached, only hearing the footsteps at the last moment.

"Good morning." He managed, despite the evidence, but Marcus chose not to correct him. There was a pause of a few seconds, and Marcus realised something was expected of him.

"Hi."

"Right. Listen, I've had a call, last night. I need to head back to the States today."

"OK."

"I understand that you don't want to try the clinic, and I appreciate why, I think." Marcus just nodded, blinking a little to clear the rain out of his eyes. "I just ... I think I came here with the wrong intentions, or perhaps the right intentions but the wrong methods."

"I don't understand what you're getting at."

"I wanted to try and make things right, or at least better. I've not been there for you when I probably should."

"I had Nick for that."

"You're not making this easy, are you?" he asked with a smile.

"Am I supposed to?" Marcus asked, and it wasn't a facetious question.

"I think, given everything, you probably have the right to do whatever the hell you want," he admitted, after a moment's thought. "I just wanted to say that I hope this isn't the end of us talking. I know you don't need to see me, but I'd like to keep in touch. If that's OK?" "Should be." Marcus nodded, surprisingly quickly. "I want to know more about you, and about my mother. I'm not going to treat you like ... Nick's my dad, now, you know that."

"I know. It's difficult to accept, emotionally, but I know that's the case. He's done well by you."

"In that case, I think we can probably get along." He could see his father was expecting something more, but he wasn't sure what, so he waited a moment, then shrugged when nothing more was said.

"I'll ... I'll be going then."

"OK."

"Right." Marcus waited, feeling it was only polite to see him off, and once the umbrella was out of sight around the corner he turned back to the flat and took the stairs two at a time.

"What was that about?" Hope asked, moving away from the window as he closed the door.

"He's going back to America, he wanted to know if we'd still talk."

"He's going away?" Hope stared at him for a moment.

"Yeah."

"You might never see him again."

"Well, I suppose so." Marcus admitted, his wet shirt half-way off as he paused to look at her. "What's your point?"

"You just ... No hug? Not even a handshake?"

"I said goodbye."

"I think he was probably looking for something more than that."

"He didn't say anything."

"People don't, Marcus."

"Well, it can't be that important then, can it?" he argued, feeling a little defensive as he realised what the expectant look from his father had been for.

"I'm not telling you off, honey, you don't need to snap."

"I'm not snapping," he snapped, and realised it as he did. "Sorry. I just ... part of me wants to talk to him, but mainly just to find out why he didn't want me around, and I don't think I'm ever going to understand. If I didn't realise how bad it was then, I'm not likely to understand any better now, am I?"

"Probably you are," Hope argued, running a hand over his naked back as he slipped his shoes off. "Are you going for a shower?"

"Yes." He nodded, then stopped, thinking about why she might have asked. "Did you want to go first?"

"No." she shook her head, and followed him as he headed for the bathroom.

"Did ... You wanted a bath?"

"No, I'm having a shower."

"Did you want me to leave the water running for you?"

"I'm not going in after you either, Marcus."

"OK." He nodded, confused for a moment. "Oh!"

"That's better." She smiled at him as he turned to look over his shoulder. "I need someone to help me wash my hair, come on."

"So, have we decided yet?" Shawna asked, flopping down onto the sofa with a contented sigh.

"Decided what?" Hope looked up from her book. "Don't say a word." She pointed at Marcus, who stopped with his mouth open, leaning forward slightly.

"What's going on?" Shawna looked back and forth between them.

"She folds the corner of the pages over," Marcus pointed, and Hope turned the text book on edge to show that he was telling the truth.

"Right?" Shawna looked confused. "Doesn't everyone?"

"NO!"

"Apparently," Hope struggled to keep a straight face, "that's not really the done thing. I caught him this morning tearing up sheets of paper to put little book-marks in my text-books on all the pages I'd marked."

"That makes sense." Shawna shrugged. "I do that myself, that way I can mark the book-marks. Colour codes, or little reminders."

"See, she doesn't fold the edges over." Marcus interrupted, and Hope stuck her tongue out in response.

"I do, actually," Shawna admitted, with an apologetic grin in Marcus' direction. "Not text-books, but when I read read I do."

"But ... that's what book-marks are for!"

"He's really getting worked up over this one, isn't he?" Shawna turned back to Hope, who nodded.

"Anyway, you asked if we'd decided yet. Decided what?"

"Where we're going for the Easter holiday?"

"We're going somewhere?" Hope sat forward. "I was ... well, I kind of told Daddy I'd go see him."

"Before or after he came here?" Marcus asked.

"Both. He hasn't replied since, but ... I'd like to see him. Try and patch things up."

"Don't rate your chances," Shawna interjected, laying a sympathetic hand on her knee. "That said, I should probably go see my mother, too. I've not really spoken to her at all this term. She sends a letter a week, but I can never think of what to write back."

"It's not like nothing's happened this term," Marcus pointed out.

"I know, but ... I just don't know how she'd take some of it. Any of it."

"Badly."

"Will she take it better in person?" Hope wondered.

"Probably not," Shawna confirmed. "What about you, honey, are you going back to see Nick and Ally?"

"I hadn't really thought about it. I didn't really want to go anywhere without the two of you."

"What, even when we fold pages over?"

"Even then," he managed a smile, although they both noticed he was gently cracking each knuckle one at a time as he said it. "I guess I should go home at some point. I've said thank you on the phone and by e-mail, and in four letters, but I think they'd like to meet you properly."

"Well, why don't we see if we can do all three?" Shawna suggested. "Your dad runs a guest-house, right?" Hope nodded. "So he's used to having people around. We'll head up there first, then we'll try my mum, and we'll finish up at Marcus'."

"I'm not sure Daddy will want you guys coming." Hope said, when Shawna noticed her hesitancy.

"I kind of expected that." Marcus pointed out, obviously wondering why Shawna hadn't.

"No, he won't," Shawna agreed, "but he'll do it if you ask, and we need to convince him about this, because you miss him."

"I do." Hope nodded. "I've spoken to Faith, and she says he's been out of sorts since he came down."

"So, that's our mission. To patch things up with your Dad, to try and explain to my mother without her killing me or herself, and then to recover with Marcus' parents."

"They're not my parents."

"Really?" Hope shrugged, not seeing the distinction.

"Especially not Ally. She's ... she's more like a sister."

"Would 'family' be a better word, then?"

"Probably." They fell silent for a few seconds, Shawna and Hope contemplating the prospect of the visit home, and Marcus growing more and more agitated.

"Alright, Marcus," Hope finally conceded, "you can go get me a bookmark."

"How was your shower?" Shawna leant forward, pitching her voice low as Marcus hurried back to their room.

"It was good," Hope gave a genuinely happy smile. "He washed me, I washed him, and then he just held me a while in the water..."

"That's it?"

"That's all I wanted." Hope's shrug and smile confused Shawna for a moment.

"I can..." Shawna began, but cut off as Marcus returned. Hope's smile just grew broader.

Hope's hair streamed out in the wind blowing from behind the ferry, and she kept reaching up to pull it out of her face as she stared ahead towards the low smudge on the horizon that used to be home.

"Angel?" Marcus stepped up behind her, his hand pressing her hair against her back for a moment before he pressed in tightly against her, wrapping his arms around her. "You look thoughtful."

"You think so?" she smiled a little, pressing back into him.