You should come over for dinner. Brittany, our supervisor lady, knows all about you from Nicole.” Matt was curious, Why had Nicole had been talking about him?
“Can we just drop by my house for me to tell my parents?”
“Can’t you just ring them?”
“Uh...” Matt was frozen, he couldn’t let Cas know his family only had one phone that his Dad kept strictly for emergencies. “My parents prefer me to tell them face to face. Anyway, it’s practically on the way to your house, or at least it must be because I saw you run past yesterday, you were screaming.”
Cas looked unsure, but dutifully smiled, “Lets not get into that Matt. Girls, we’ll take the long way through the park and then we’ll meet you at the end of Gibson Drive.”
“Isn’t that the road with the haunted house on it?” Ally, unknowingly asked.
“Yes, I think it might be.” Matt saw Cas glance at him as she said this. So that was what the neighbourhood called it.
“I’ll see you soon then Matt, I hope your parents won’t mind.”
“Nah, it should be fine with them.” Matt knew this wasn’t true, he would have to invent a cover story or else he could forget about eating dinner with the girls.
Hi Mum. I’ve just been hanging out with this guy called Ronald, he’s invited me round for dinner to work on our geography project together. Can I go?” Matt knew he had to keep to the truth as much as possible or else things could get messy.
“Sure, what’s your project on?”
“The rainforest, we’re doing a painting on a massive canvas!”
“Are you sure he doesn’t mind paying for everything?”
“No, he’s pretty relaxed with money.”
“Ok then, well, have a nice time!” His mother smiled and he was sorry for lying but there was no other way.
Hey Cas, let’s go!” Matt jogged up to her and pulled off his tie. Feeling too formal in his neat uniform.
“Oh, hi there! How’d it go?”
“It was fine.” Matt didn’t really want to talk about it in-case he let it slip that he had needed to lie to be able to come.
Most of the walk was a bit awkward but Cas asked him what he liked eating and what he wanted for dinner. Friday was take-away night so he could pick practically anything. Matt had recently had Chinese and suggested kebabs instead, Cas told him that it sounded like a good idea, finalizing the decision.
Suddenly, Nicole, who seemed to have been listening in to their conversation, piped up, “We should get Brittany to make spaghetti again, you would like that wouldn’t you?” Cas burst out laughing.
“Oh Nicole, please...” Matt had no idea what was so funny, it must have been an inside joke. Even as Cas continued talking, she just couldn’t keep a straight face, “Nicole really wanted to see me stick a... a... spaghetti noodle up my nose and I was just imagining it.” Matt looked at Nicole, she seemed confused. Cas also seemed a little embarrassed and eager to change the subject. What was she actually laughing about?
Not long after, they arrived at the house. “Come on in,” Cas got him to take his shoes off and hang his blazer up on a coat hook. “Hey Brittany, we’ve got a visitor and we’re having kebabs for takeaway. Can you get that sorted out please?” Cas puppy eyed the slim, blonde-haired woman sitting on the sofa with the TV on.
“Yeah, whatever.”
“Thanks, by the way, this is Matt.”
“Hi Matt,” she smiled as Cas rushed Matt and the groceries down the hall.
Matt had never been this way before, “Where are we going then?”
“The store room. I use it as a private art studio and beware, it stinks of paint.” By then, they had walked up to an old door with peeling paint. Cas shoved it open and Matt was mesmerised by the dazzling colourfulness of the room. There wasn’t a trace of the original paint on the walls, it was full of pictures of Cas through her childhood and paintings, even graffiti style art covered part of the walls. Compared to Cas’s tidy and girlie room it was a pig sty, opened paints and half finished canvases lay everywhere.
“Wow!” Was all Matt could say as he, an art lover also, found the room incredible.
“Yeah,” Cas looked slightly shy, “I’ve never really let anyone come in here before, it’s like my den. The real me loves it here, my bedroom is just a massive fake. When I can’t sleep, I camp out on the floor in here. My parents have forgotten it exists and my sisters won’t dare tell them. I would die if they found out and stopped me from coming here.
“They want me to be their little princess but if they actually paid more attention to me they would know I’m more of a...” Cas stopped suddenly, “Why am I telling you this? Sorry, lets start on the painting.”