Her words sit with me for the walk to Cardiff Castle. And it’s a long walk. It should have been a fifteen-minute journey, but I guess signs are hard to read and no one bothered to look it up.
I grit my teeth as we walk through the gates to Cardiff Castle.
I can go with the flow. I’m the flowiest goer there ever was.
We’ve just walked onto the castle grounds, and it hits me so hard—America is freaking young. An expansive lawn is spread out before me, with trees and grass and only a couple dozen tourists littered throughout. We’re flanked by the walls that divide the castle grounds from the city of Cardiff. In here, it’s different. It’s peaceful and stately. The smell of freshly cut grass hits my nose.
Dani and Ajay take pictures of each other in a touristy re-creation of medieval stocks. She hangs her head low while putting her hands through the holes. They’re a cute couple. The type you’d love to go on a double-date with. They complement each other, and neither one seems to take anything too seriously. They walk away together, hand in hand.
Sophie has run off too, possibly to learn more random Welsh phrases.
That leaves me and Pierce, alone in the fake city of love.
“The castle was built in the 1000s,” I explain. “Like, one thousand AD. It’s crazy, isn’t it? Over seven hundred years older than America.” Pierce eyes me. “What? I—”
“Googled it?” He snickers at me. “What don’t you google?”
“I like to be prepared. To know what I’m getting into, you know?”
“That’s why you knew the castle cost seven pounds, and how many kilometers we’d be driving, right? If you didn’t admit you googled everything, people might think you’re a genuine know-it-all.”
“Hey!” I snap.
We cross over the moat and start to scale the ancient stone staircase to get to the keep of the castle. He shrugs as he places a warm, guiding hand on my back. “I’m teasing you, love. Tell me more about these rocks.”
I hesitate before I continue speaking. “It actually dates back to first century AD. This spot, at least. It was a defensive fort for the Romans, left mostly abandoned until the eleventh century. There are conflicting theories about who built it up first, but the castle was built in the late eleventh century and continued throughout most of the millennium.”
Silence.
“Are you even listening to me?”
Through the castle walls and into the keep lies a simple but stunning yard. The top of the castle is behind, and I try to imagine the activities that went on here. It’s a small space, but it’s hallowed ground. Stonehenge was impressive in a “hey, those rocks have been sitting there for millennia” kind of way. This is different. Rich with heritage.
A stronghold.
Pierce is already up the stairs to the top of the keep, and I follow behind him, inching past a group of younger schoolkids coming down the staircase.
It’s dark in here. We’re alone.
There’s a stone window that’s no wider than the size of an index card and the length of my forearm. Pierce presses his face into the opening. I lean over him and look out the top half of the window, and see the city of Cardiff unfold beyond the castle walls. Another ancient tower stands on the grounds, with the rugby stadium behind it. A weird pairing of modern design with medieval architecture.
“I’ve never seen something like this,” I admit. “There’s so much here. There’s too much here. I’ll never be able to see it all.”
“Not with that attitude we won’t.”
We. Are we a we? I like that.
My stomach growls, but he ignores it. I ignore it. He puts his arms around my waist and smiles at me.
“We’ll get you to Italy. Don’t worry.”
I pull him into me and hold him close. I kiss his forehead. He places his head on my chest, which swells with excitement and energy and …
Hope.
Opening up to Pierce reveals a soreness, a vulnerability I never knew I could have. But I cling on to this boy. I’ll cling on to my new friends, and my new life. It’s only been one week, but I’m starting to feel like this could be home.
Cardiff really must be the city of love.
SEVENTEEN
The city center of Cardiff isn’t too dissimilar from some of the more modern streets of London. Wide pedestrian walkways are flanked by stunning new buildings, public art intertwines with restaurants’ outdoor seating, behemoth trees poke out