I Do, Maybe: A Novella Read online

  RE:

  Tell me about your day.

  “Fraser, I’m so sorry,” I said quietly.

  Again I heard typing then another ping.

  From: Fraser Lewis

  To: Emily Watkins

  Sent: Monday 5th May, 2014 19:23

  RE:

  Please talk to me. Tell me about your day.

  “Okay,” I said as I sat down at my desk. “Umm, I went for a ten k cross country run with my running team first thing this morning. And then I gave an oral presentation in history about Genghis Khan. And I umm…” I lowered my head down to my hand, rubbing my forehead. “Umm…I…” I stopped and listened as Fraser sobbed down the phone. He sniffed as I heard him typing again.

  From: Fraser Lewis

  To: Emily Watkins

  Sent: Monday 5th May, 2014 19:24

  RE:

  Keep talking.

  I took in a deep breath. “Second period I had geography. I have to do an assignment about natural disasters; I think I’ll choose bush fires. I had double English after recess. We read two chapters from The Outsiders and then we had to complete a review.”

  Fraser continued to sniff and take uneven breaths as I spoke.

  “Umm…then I had math.” I looked across to Kat and shrugged. She smiled back. “Then for sixth period I had etiquette. We had to write thank you notes and…”

  Fraser sobbed again.

  “Fraser, are you okay?”

  He sniffed as he typed again.

  From: Fraser Lewis

  To: Emily Watkins

  Sent: Monday 5th May, 2014 19:25

  RE:

  Did you swim today?

  “Yes I swam today, I just got back before you rang.”

  He typed again. I wished he’d talk to me.

  From: Fraser Lewis

  To: Emily Watkins

  Sent: Monday 5th May, 2014 19:26

  RE:

  What are you doing tonight?

  “I was going to get a start on my geography assignment, I have some math homework…I don’t know.”

  He typed again.

  From: Fraser Lewis

  To: Emily Watkins

  Sent: Monday 5th May, 2014 19:26

  RE:

  I’ve had a pretty bad day.

  “I know Fraser, I just found out before you called. I’m so sorry.”

  He typed again.

  From: Fraser Lewis

  To: Emily Watkins

  Sent: Monday 5th May, 2014 19:27

  RE:

  Dads really upset. I’ve never seen him like this. I don’t know what to do.

  “Fraser, there is nothing you can do. Just be there for him. Give him lots of hugs.” I wasn’t even sure that teenage sons hugged their fathers.

  “Yeah,” Fraser breathed down the phone.

  “Fraser, are you okay?”

  “No,” he sobbed.

  Tears came to my eyes at his honesty. “What can I do?”

  He typed again.

  From: Fraser Lewis

  To: Emily Watkins

  Sent: Monday 5th May, 2014 19:28

  RE:

  Can you stay on the line?

  “Yes, I’ll stay on the phone.” I kept my phone to my ear as I listened to Fraser slowly stop crying. It was about eight o’clock when he finally went quiet. I listened to his breathing for a little while before I spoke.

  “Are you asleep Fraser?” When he didn’t answer I smiled at Kat. “Good night Fraser.” I pressed the red button on my phone, ending the call. Then I broke down in tears.

  Kat came to my side, took my phone and called my mum. I told her what I could and she told me that the Lewis’ didn’t want flowers but were asking that donations be made to a charity that Fraser’s grandmother had set up. Mum said she’d email me the details so I could make a donation. She said she and dad would also make one.

  Early the following morning I received a phone call from Fraser. He apologised for the night before then thanked me for being there for him. He said the original shock had left but he still felt sad and angry.

  “I’ve never hated anyone so much in my life. I wish them dead, Emily. And I don’t even know who they are,” he said.

  Fraser spoke very matter of fact as he told me what he knew. He told me that his grandparents had been discovered by their day security in the morning. One night guard had been found beaten and bound in the garage; the other was inside the house, beaten unconscious.

  While his grandmother was still in bed, his grandfather was on the floor in the upstairs landing. Police think he may have got out of bed after hearing noise downstairs. They had both been stabbed in the neck.

  Investigators had begun a thorough search of the property for any clues and were interviewing all security personnel. Fraser mentioned something about it being an inside job.

  “We’re hoping we can have the funeral this weekend,” Fraser said finally.

  “If it’s okay, I’d like to go,” I said.

  “I know, but you can’t. But I’ll let my family know you wanted to come.”

  We spoke for a few more minutes before I had to get ready for school. That night, Fraser called again.

  “They found a ransom note in the front yard.”

  “They were going to kidnap your grandparents?”

  “Just my grandma. They wanted ten million dollars. At least the police know who did it now.”

  “Who was it?”

  “Just two guys, two ordinary guys who thought they’d try to get some easy money.” Then Fraser laughed. “What they don’t know is that neither my granddad nor my dad would’ve paid the money.”

  “What? They wouldn’t…for his own mother…”

  “We have a strict family policy. No ransoms. We’ve all agreed to it. If you pay one ransom, you’ll end up paying more. That’s why we have personal security, to try to stop any kidnap attempts.”

  “Do you have a personal security guard?” I didn’t remember seeing a security guard the one day I’d spent with Fraser.

  “Yeah, his name’s Mitchell. He’s nice enough. Sometimes I wish he’d get lost. But he’s good at his job. He keeps me out of trouble.”

  I heard Mrs. Lewis’ voice in the background.

  “I’m talking to Emily, I’ll be out in a minute,” he said away from the phone. “I have to go,” he said to me.

  “Okay.”

  He took a deep breath. “Thanks again Piglet.”

  I laughed a small chuckle. “You’re welcome Eeyore.”

  Fraser called me every night for a week. He didn’t tell me anymore about the murder of his grandparents, I found out all the missing pieces from what Kat saw and read in the news.

  Fingerprints found on the murder weapons matched finger prints on the ransom note, which also matched the finger prints of the men who had been arrested. There was also three drops of blood found on the garage floor that belonged to one of the men.

  It was an opened and closed case, there would be no trial and it was expected that both men would be receive hefty sentences.

  Fraser was teary again on the day of the funeral; he called me in the morning before he left home. He said he was nervous about carrying the coffin with his brothers and father and one of his grandmother’s brothers.

  I watched the news that night and saw footage of Fraser’s family going into the church and then after wards, carrying the coffin and getting into their cars. I didn’t see Fraser in any of the footage, but I saw his father and two men who I assumed were his brothers.

  My heart ached for him and his family. They were good people and they didn’t deserve to have bad things happen to them.

  Seeing this softer side to Fraser almost definitely cemented my feelings for him. I didn’t love him, but I found myself thinking of him as more than just a friend.

  Chapter Four

  Winter arrived and so did my first lot of competitive races.

  From: Fraser Lewis

  To: Emily Watkins

 
Sent: Wednesday 4th June, 2014 22:47

  RE: Good Luck

  Piglet,

  Wishing you all the best in your first race of the season. Pump those little legs!

  Eeyore

  From: Emily Watkins

  To: Fraser Lewis

  Sent: Thursday 5th June, 2014 15:02

  RE: First the worst, second the best

  Hi Eeyore.

  Legs well and truly pumped, came second in zone race, conditions were terrible, wet and windy but I ploughed on through. My arch nemesis is Sally Collins from St Andrews. She beat me by two seconds. I made a rookie mistake, left my last minute surge three seconds too late. But I’ll get her in the districts.

  Piglet.

  From: Fraser Lewis

  To: Emily Watkins

  Sent: Thursday 5th June, 2014 16:14

  RE: Organised Crime

  Piglet

  I know people. I could arrange an unfortunate accident involving her knee cap. Mwahahahaha.

  From: Emily Watkins

  To: Fraser Lewis

  Sent: Thursday 5th June, 2014 16:17

  RE: Organised Crime?

  No way!! If I’m going to beat her I’m going to do it fair and square.

  P.S. That was a joke right?

  He didn’t reply.

  I didn’t hear from Fraser again until a few days before the end of term. He emailed me to let me know that his parents had received a copy of my mid semester report and that they were “thrilled” with my results. He also congratulated me on being elected junior captain of my running team. He ended his email by telling me that he and his family were going to Fiji together for a bit of quiet time and that he hoped I enjoyed my time with my family.

  Greg picked me up from school on my last day of term. I was to go straight to the airport to fly home to Melbourne. Ten days at home. I couldn’t wait.

  “Good afternoon Greg,” I said as I climbed into the back seat of the car.

  “Good afternoon Emily.” He closed the door behind me.

  Once we were off school property, Greg addressed me. “There has been a small change of plans for the weekend. Bad weather is preventing us from being able to fly tonight. We’ll have to wait until the morning.”

  “Bad weather?” I looked out the car window to the crystal blue sky.

  “In Melbourne, the weather in Melbourne is bad.”

  “Oh.”

  “I’m instructed to take you back to the apartment and hopefully we can fly out first thing in the morning. Your mother has been notified.”

  “Okay, thank you Greg.” But my disappointment showed in my voice. I was so looking forward to going back home. One more day, I’d have to wait one more day.

  When I walked into my apartment something was out of place. There were people sitting in my living room. Mum and Dad and John and Aunty Bree.

  “Surprise,” Mum said as my mouth dropped open.

  “What are you all doing here?” I said, unable to move forward. I was frozen in shock.

  “We thought we’d come to visit your home away from home. We’ve never been to Sydney,” Dad said. He looked tired.

  “Dad, you’ve shaved your hair off,” I said as I slowly coaxed my feet into moving.

  “Yeah,” he said, running his hand over his head. “It was for charity.”

  “It suits you, you look younger.” I hugged my dad. “I’m so glad you’re all here. There are so many great things we can see and do.” My excitement escalated as I hugged my mum, then John and Aunty Bree.

  “Honey, we’ve sort of made other plans,” Mum said.

  “What do you mean?”

  “It’s been such a long time since we’ve had a family holiday, so we’re having a family holiday.”

  “Yeah, I know. You’re here,” I said, looking between them.

  “No, I mean, we’re not staying in Sydney.”

  “Where are we going?”

  “To the Gold Coast. We leave in the morning.”

  Mum’s smile amplified as mine did. “The Gold Coast? Are we going to Dreamworld?”

  Mum nodded. “And Seaworld and Movie World and Wet ‘n Wild and…” She stopped talking as I started jumping up and down in excitement.

  “You’ve planned all this behind my back.”

  “Well, actually…it was Fraser’s idea. He said you’ve earned a holiday, a real holiday. He wanted to send us to DisneyWorld, but you don’t have a passport and…” She looked toward Dad. “Anyway, we’re going to the Gold Coast.”

  “Oh Mum, this is perfect. I couldn’t ask for anything more.”

  I pulled my phone from my pocket. “I have to call Fraser to thank him.”

  I must’ve thanked Fraser a hundred times before he finally laughed, told me to get back to my family and hung up on me. He’d organised everything, from flights to accommodation in a resort to day passes to theme parks to transport…everything, all the while his family was experiencing the greatest of trauma’s.

  That night, John and I stayed up until the early hours of the morning talking. I’d missed him so much. He told me about his short stint as a boyfriend to a girl named Zoe and how it ended abruptly when she came to school on Monday and said she had met someone else. John didn’t seem that fussed.

  “It’s a pity Fraser doesn’t have any sisters,” he said as he lay down across the sofa.

  “You wouldn’t qualify for a Lewis Scholarship. You’re not smart enough.”

  He threw a large cushion at my head.

  *****

  Two days before Fraser’s birthday, I sat down to write him a card:

  Dear Fraser,

  I’ve thought long and hard about what to buy you for your 15th birthday, but I couldn’t decide. Then I figured if there was anything you wanted or needed you’d just go out and buy it for yourself. Then I got to thinking, what is something money can’t buy. And that is where my idea for your present came from. This year and every year to follow, I will give you something that only I can give you. Something your money can’t buy. This year, my gift to you is my friendship. Through good times and bad, laughter and tears, you will always have it.

  Happy birthday Fraser,

  From Emily.

  As soon as I posted the card I instantly regretted it. Talk about the world’s lamest birthday present. Oh well, it was done. Hopefully he wouldn’t read it.

  “You didn’t get him a gift certificate did you?” John asked as we walked away from the post box. We were enjoying a day in Surfer’s Paradise.

  “No, worse than that.”

  “Cash?”

  “No John, he’s got plenty of cash.”

  “Then what did you get him?”

  After I explained my gift, John stopped walking and looked at me in pure shock. “What?”

  “Oh John. What am I going to do?”

  “There’s nothing you can do now, unless you stalk the postman.”

  “Can I do that? If I wait by the post box, when they empty it…”

  John shook his head. “Did the card at least have a naked chick on it?”

  “No.”

  “It didn’t have bunny rabbits or something lame like that?”

  “No, it was a glass of beer and a bowl of chips.”

  “What’s that got to do with friendship?”

  “I don’t know, beer and chips go well together…John, help me.”

  “Sorry, but I wanna see you squirm when he rings to tell you yours was the lamest present he’s ever received in his life.”

  For two days I barely ate or slept. When I told Mum what I’d done she smiled and said she thought it was a sweet idea. Dad rolled his eyes and Aunty Bree just frowned.

  I had sent the card to his father’s business address as I didn’t have a personal address.

  “Maybe if I ring the office I can ask the receptionist to throw the card away before he sees it.”

  “Honey,” Mum came toward me. “There is nothing wrong with your gift. What you wrote was beautiful, Fraser will
love it.”

  “I doubt it,” I sighed as I sagged on the sofa. “Oh well, maybe he’ll call the whole thing off and I’ll never have to see him again.”

  “Over my dead body,” Dad said causing Mum to gasp.

  “Whatever, I don’t even care anymore,” I stood up from the couch. “I’m going for a swim.

  Fraser’s birthday came and went as did the day after it. And the day after that. I was beginning to think that maybe he hadn’t seen it. Maybe he had a personal assistant who opened all his mail and only handed on the important things. My card would be thrown in the bin, never to be seen by human eyes again.

  Thank goodness.

  I enjoyed the last few days of our holiday. It was a whirlwind of fun, laughter and I couldn’t think of a time when I’d been happier. If I’d known it was going to be our last family holiday, I might’ve taken time to slow down and cherish the smaller moments.

  It was Sunday night, I was getting ready to go back to school. Fraser called me. My stomach knotted and my heart started racing. I knew he’d seen my card. I answered and talked; non-stop talked.

  “Hi Fraser. I just have to thank you again we had the best time the hotel was amazing and the food was so good and we had so much fun at Dream World we rode the Wipeout seven times in a row and Mum

  and Dad were too scared to go on the big drop thingy…”

  “Emily?”

  “…But John and I went on it twice and then we went to Seaworld and saw all the animals and it was so great and we went on all the rides even the little kiddie ones…”

  “Emily? Em?”

  “And Mum got sick after the Storm Coaster ride and we went to Movie World and I had my picture taken with Batman and Superman and Bugs Bunny and we went on all the rides twice and saw the stunt shows and we spent a day in Surfers Paradise…”

  “Piglet?”

  “…And we did the sling shot thing it was so scary and the weather was so perfect and we spent every day outside and at the beach and we did some shopping one day just us girls and…”

  “Emily stop!” Fraser shouted.

  I stopped.

  “What’s wrong with you?” he asked.

  “Nothing,” I said and closed my eyes, waiting for him to tell me all about his crap birthday present. “How was your holiday?”

  “It was really nice. We just got back this morning. I’ve been opening my birthday presents and I just read your card.”

  “I’m sorry about that.”