章 19: Chapter 19

“Wow,” a voice says, “you look just about how I feel.”

She makes him jump. It’s the girl he’s sat next to: a pretty girl with a freckled face and lots of fair hair messily pulled into a ponytail, and a hoodie announcing that she’s in the “St. John’s Senior Athletics Team.” She’s got a voice hacked with a Welsh accent—North Wales, maybe—and an open smile; she’s holding out a hand, and he shakes it too late.

“I’m Mara,” she continues. “Mara Taylor. Well, it’s Tamara, actually, but nobody calls me that but my Nana.”

“Ryan Anderson,” he replies.

“So? You nervous, or am I misreading you way bad here? ‘Cos I can totally do that. I’m really good at it, actually. Am I right or am I wrong? Huh?”

She talks ridiculously fast. And animated. She keeps waving her hands to punctuate sentences that don’t really mean anything

“Yeah,” he admits, with a smile. “Yeah, pretty nervous.”