for a couple of weeks, though.’ He smiled at Maddie. His accent was tinged with American. ‘You flew over? From England?’
She nodded. He had kind, blue eyes and sandy-blond hair, which was sticking up in places. ‘I understand. I’d have done the same. You need some sleep too. Tell him to take it easy on the surfing next time!’
‘Yes, I’ll tell him,’ Maddie managed as a huge wave of relief hit her and she could feel the tears threaten again.
She waited till 7 a.m. and Ed hadn’t stirred again. Her neck hurt, her feet were swollen and sweaty in her trainers and she badly wanted a shower. She wandered to the nurses’ desk and told one of them she’d be back later and left them her mobile number.
Outside the hospital, the doorman hailed a cab for her. It was a grey, overcast morning; the sun had not surfaced yet. The bars were now empty and there was a wet sheen on the pavements. It must have rained in the night. A street cleaner slowly brushed the tarmac using a wooden-handled broom. He was wearing black baggy trousers, flip-flops and a white T-shirt. His arms were bony and thin, his movements slow and deliberate.
As the taxi drove towards Kuta Beach she glanced at the stretch of sand. It was quiet, a discarded towel lay on the sand, some litter. A few scrawny cats were roaming the beach. Waves crashed down before they hit the shore, swathes of huge white angry foam breaking, spray flying upwards, then cascading down again on the beach. She shuddered. Ed could be lying on the bottom of the ocean and I wouldn’t have known.
When she got back to the room, the bed looked dirty and crumpled, but she was beyond caring; she took off her shoes and fell onto it, fully clothed.
*
When she woke up, she glanced at her watch. Eleven o’clock. The sun was streaming in through the windows. She could see streaks on the glass windowpanes of the door leading out to the gardens. She sat up in bed, her clothes damp with sweat, and rested her head on the wall behind.
She found her small case, pulled out some clean clothes and had a shower, then texted Tim to give him an update.
She wandered outside the hostel and was immediately in bright sunshine and hot, muggy air surrounded her. She squinted and saw a café across the road. She had never eaten out alone before. She took a seat outside on a red plastic chair. A little girl, no more than ten years old, in a turquoise dress came to take her order – the menu was thankfully full of pictures of food. She pointed to some scrambled eggs and a cup of coffee. The girl nodded then skipped away.
Later, she headed back to the hospital, keen to see Ed.
‘The doctor said you’d be out tomorrow.’
He nodded.
She stayed and chatted for a while, but after about an hour Ed’s eyes were drooping and the colour had drained from his face.
‘I’ll go now, Ed, OK, but I’ll phone the hospital later, see how you are. You need to rest.’
He mumbled something to her as she left and she hailed another cab back to the hostel.
As her taxi crawled along the busy main drag, fairy lights across the bars were sparkling and the outside tables were filling up in the dusky evening. The air was infused with spice, exhaust fumes and the salty air of the sea.
When she got back to hostel, Johnny was in the foyer, sitting on a bench. His hair was wet and tied back in a ponytail, sunglasses perched on his head, his board shorts damp.
He stood up when she walked towards him. ‘Hey, how’s Ed?’
‘Yeah, good. Doctor says he’ll be out tomorrow.’
‘Awesome.’
‘Yes, yes, it’s good news.’ She looked at him, noticing for the first time that he had bright sapphire-blue eyes that lit up when she told him Ed was on the mend. ‘Right, well I’m just going—’ But before she could say any more he’d interrupted.
‘Hey, why don’t you come out with the gang tonight?’
The gang?
‘Um, no it’s fine, I’ll just get a cup of tea somewhere – um, I’m pretty tired,’ she said as her stomach rumbled. ‘No idea what time it is in the UK.’ She shrugged.
She must have waited just a jot too long to reply, as Johnny quickly said, ‘What does it matter what time it is in the UK? What else will you do, sit