And Your Girl Can Sing

Chapter 71: But I Never Saw Them Being Nice To Each Other, Till There Was You

"Raspberry?"

I took one from June's cupped hands, her usually pale skin slightly tanned from the sun. "Thanks."

Danny looked worried. "You just picked them off of that bush over there? What if they're bad for you?" June laughed. "Loosen up, Danny, as the Americans say it." I popped the small thing in my mouth and chewed. It only needed a few movements of my jaw to completely collapse in my mouth, filling it with sweet juices of the berry. "They're good."

June smiled. "Of course they are. Maybe I should become a berry picker when I grow up."

"What are you going to do? I've never asked," Danny remarked in curiosity, stretching his legs out on the blanket and nabbing a chip from its packaged bag. June took her hair out of her ponytail, shaking it out, before answering darkly, "Don't ask me that. It's too early, Danny Newsport. Besides, what are you going to do?"

"I don't know either. Maybe something with writing, but let's be real. Writers don't get jobs."

"Some do," I pointed out. "J.K. Rowling."

They both stared at me. "Y/n, I'm no J.K. Rowling," Danny said, a smirk forming on his face. June sighed. "You know, you don't have to be Rowling. Some writers get famous off of completely potty things like... like..."

"Like those barmy sites where you can write stories about, say, Harry Potter, or bands like Led Zeppelin," Danny hooted. "Ha! Imagine making Rowling's salary off of one of those sites." We all laughed and he continued. "Cute you have that much faith in me, though. Well, I'll certainly need that in the future. Me as a writer, you as a musician, where the hell are we going to get our income from?"

June laughed. "I can help. I'll become a doctor."

"A doctor!" we all hooted. She leapt up, now invested in an imitation. "Patient, you're complaining of stomach ills," she demanded, her imitation strangely realistic. "I recommend a cup of berries to wash it down, as well as a kiss from that handsome frog over there."

"Did you just call me a frog?" Danny asked, bemused, and she leapt up, yelling back, "I'm going to get some more berries." As soon as she had gone, Danny tucked a strand of hair behind my ear and said, smiling, "Shall I give you what the doctor prescribed?"

I kissed him, and he put a hand on mine, running a thumb along my hand the way John did, now that I think about it. "Cora," he said, panting a little, breaking away from the kiss. "We should think about our futures. Seriously, no mucking about. This is serious. We're getting older and older."

"I want to stay here," I whispered, looking around at the field, where June was somewhere foraging for berries, and then shook my head, changing my mind. "No, we can't. I have to plan. We have to plan. Time is running out."

***

"Shall we bring you back to your flat—" I started, and he shook his head and said, "No, no, no, I can't worry grandpa." I glanced at John at these words and nearly stumbled over the curb of the pavement.

"Watch out," John said quietly.

"Where can we go?" I asked. "We need to clean up your wounds, Martin." We paused in the street in front of the closed NEMS shop. I could almost feel the ghosts of the sound waves that filtered through the shop in the daytime. A car passed the curb we were standing on. I saw the taillights of the vehicle as it the engine purred past us like a black cat in the night.

"I can take ye back to my joint," John offered, the words coming quickly. I was a little surprised. Mendips—and a stranger? John was conservative about showing people where he lived, for what reason I don't know. Maybe Mimi. Martin nodded, too weary to protest. We had reached the end of Matthew street, John supporting Martin. He had tried to walk before, but it appeared an ankle was sprained or broken, and so he had accepted John's offer of a sturdy arm. I noted his gritted teeth and set jaw; I had offered to help him before but he refused my help, and I suddenly realized to the male perspective it looked a lot better to be supported by another male than a woman.