He seemed mystified. ‘… We’re working together on this project – Wait! You actually thought we were … Do you mean together-together?’
She was irritated at how unlikely he thought it was. ‘Why not? Or is she “too old”?’
‘… Um, Nell? Why are you pissed off?’
‘I’m not pissed off.’ She was close to tears. ‘But it’s not cool that you think she’s too old to be, like … She’s only twenty-nine!’
‘I said nothing about her age! I think she’s amazing, but it’s just not that sort of … thing.’
‘Sorry.’ Tears had leaked onto her face. ‘I’ve had a weird week. Sorry.’
Nell lay on her bed, listening to the various Caseys outside her tent.
‘We need to be there early so Dilly and me can see,’ Kassandra wheedled.
‘Five minutes everyone!’ Jessie clapped her hands together. ‘Then we go to Duran Duran. Yes, I know it’s very early, but who wants Dilly and Kassandra to cry?’
‘Me!’ Bridey said.
‘I wouldn’t mind either,’ TJ said.
‘Bunnies!’ Jessie gasped. ‘No!’
Nell was exhausted. Being happy and dance-y would be impossible. She had too much to process.
So when Jessie called, ‘Time!’ she stuck her head out of her tent. ‘I’ll catch up with you all in a while.’
Jessie gave her a hard look. ‘You okay?’
‘Grand.’ She forced herself to smile. ‘Fine.’
When their voices died away, she stuck her head out again, just to be sure they really were gone. Furtively, she emerged and headed for the woods, moving in the opposite direction from the main stage. She’d cut back down to it in a while, when she could cope.
Overhead, a tangle of branches formed a canopy, which muffled all sounds of the man-made world. The sun was going down, but a meandering path through the trees could still be seen. Out of nowhere, in a clearing, a tiny wooden house materialized. Startled, she came to a sudden halt. Gingham curtains hung at the fairy-tale windows and the little front door was painted red. Before Nell’s surprised eyes, the door opened and a woman in a long, shimmery dress, with glittery stuff in her hair, came out. ‘Hello there.’ She smiled. ‘What brings you here?’
‘Ugh … going to the gig.’
‘Funny route to take.’
‘I wanted some time to think. What are you doing here?’
The woman smiled. ‘I’m from your future.’
This was creepy. It was getting dark now and who knew where she was?
But the woman laughed. ‘I love saying that line. It’s so dramatic. No, no, you’re grand, I’m Altfy – A Letter To Future You. I’m on the programme. Take a look.’
‘What do you do?’
‘I give you a pen and paper. You write a letter to yourself – well, to the person you’d like to be in a year’s time. You describe your life then, all the good things you’d like, all the bad stuff you want sorted out. Then we stick on a stamp and post it to you in a year.’
‘Why would I do that?’
‘Brings positive change to a life.’ She paused. ‘So they say. When you write down what you want, it helps you focus on the important stuff. Allegedly.’
‘How much does it cost?’
‘Nothing. Included in your ticket.’ A bundle of pages was passed to Nell, along with a pen. ‘They located me off the beaten track,’ Altfy announced. ‘So that only those who needed this would be led here. Which I get. But I’ve only had six people all day. And no Wi-Fi.’
‘That sounds, um, boring?’
‘You have no idea. Anyway, plank yourself under a tree and work away. Don’t over-think this. Be optimistic.’
As she faced the blank page, Nell was nervous. This felt like a big responsibility. If she got it wrong, she felt, her future would turn out to be a shambles. ‘I’m scared,’ she called to the woman.
‘Ah, it’s only a bit of fun.’
‘How do I begin it?’
‘You could write “Dear Future Me.”’
Dear Future Me,
I’m writing this, in my present, where I’m very scared. I don’t think I love Liam any more. I promised I’d love him for ever, and I know nobody really thinks marriage is for life, but in fairness, ten months is pretty poor and I don’t like myself very much.
But in the new present, things are okay. I left Liam …
What?! She threw down her pen.
Had she really written that?
Altfy looked up. ‘Keep going,’ she said. ‘Think happy endings.’
You were scared sick, but it was totally the legit correct thing to do.