Alec and I didn't see each other all that much over the next week.

It wasn't like it was planned to be that way, but there were several contributing factors that led to me spending more time on the farm and with Jonathan and Barbara. First, the sheep managed to escape their pen so Jonathan and I spent an hour trying to round them up before spending the rest of the day making sure the fence was secure. We weren't sure how they had even broken out since there was little to no damage to the fence, but they did and we couldn't risk it happening again.

After that, Barbara finally decided it was time to have the girl's day she had promised several months before. None of us were really sure what a girl's day would entail in the middle of the country, but Eva and Enid were more than willing to participate despite the short time frame. We spent the day in the village and Barbara even took us to a small cafe that was still operational despite all the rationing. They even had small cakes. I didn't know how Barbara managed to pay for it, and I didn't ask.

I didn't tell Barbara and Jonathan about what Alec and I had discussed because it just felt like an awkward conversation I didn't want to have just yet. We hadn't really had the chance to talk about it ourselves so it would have been out of place to suddenly start talking to Jonathan and Barbara about it. They would find out when I was ready to tell them and only after Alec and I had the chance to talk about it in detail. I had no idea if we were still considered friends or more than friends.

"Sybil!" Barbara asked, knocking on my bedroom door as I ran a brush through my hair.

"Yes?"

She poked her head around the door. "I need to run some errands in the village, would you like to join me?"

"Why not? I think Alec is still dealing with the escaped chickens."

"How many chickens got out?"

"Most of them. Mabel doesn't like locking them in and she doesn't always close the door to the coop properly. Alec said yesterday that three of them were still missing."

"I wouldn't want to be the one chasing chickens." Barbara laughed. "Get your shoes and a small jacket, it's cold out there. I'll meet you downstairs when you're ready."

"Alright."

She smiled and then left the room, closing the door behind her. I ran the brush through my hair again and reached under my bed in search of my normal shoes. My boots and wellingtons were always kept by the front door because Barbara didn't want me traipsing mud through the house, but my buckled shoes were kept in my room. I rarely wore them apart from for church and most of the time they were kicked under my bed as the week went on. Since I wore my boots on our girl's day out, the shoes had disappeared.

I flattered myself out on the floor and reached under my bed in search of my shoes, which could have been anywhere. During my search, I grabbed hold of a discarded chocolate bar wrapper from my birthday and just flung it across my room as well as a loose sock that didn't have a pair. Eventually, I wrapped my fingers around the back of one of my shoes and dragged it out from under the bed before finding the second one.

After finding my jacket, I put both the jacket and my shoes on before leaving my room. Barbara stood at the bottom of the stairs, jacket and shoes on, hair pinned up and a wicker basket hanging off her arm.

"How come it took you so long to get your shoes? I've been waiting almost ten minutes."

"Was it really that long?" I grinned sheepishly. "I couldn't find my shoes."

"I'm not surprised given the state of that room. Tomorrow, I want you to clean it before you even think of heading into the paddock."

"Yes, Barbara."

Jonathan appeared in the kitchen, drying his hands on a cloth. "How long do you think you'll be?"

"It depends; I have a fair amount to do today. Why?"

"I have some work to do on the upper pen. Might take Goose with me."

On the sofa, Goose's ears perked up and she lifted her head from her legs to stare at Jonathan. She could always hear her name being said no matter where in the house she happened to be and could even sense her name being said outside. I watched her jump off the settee and cross the room to Jonathan who fussed her behind the ears.

"I think that's a yes from her," I said, laughing.

"Good to know."

"Right, come on you. We've got a lot to get done today."

"I'll see you both later."

I offered Jonathan a small wave and followed Barbara out the front door and into the September air. It certainly felt like September with a slight chill in the air and dark clouds looming overhead, although no sign of rain just yet. The ground was still hard from a lack of rainfall, but dew drops clung to blades of grades as a sign that the seasons were changing. Summer might have offered more opportunities for work and riding, but I did enjoy winter and the cold season.

Barbara and I followed the trail down the hill and towards the village which I could see looming over the crest of the hill. Most of the time I would ride down to the village since it was a lot easier than walking, but I didn't mind the walk all that much. It gave me the opportunity to stop and gaze at the place that I had been so lucky to land in and the people that were around me. It definitely made me thankful that my evacuation hadn't gone horribly wrong.

There had been stories of other evacuated children who had ended up in appalling conditions with host families who didn't care all that much. We had been lucky to land on our feet with our host families and I couldn't imagine it any other way. Still, there had also been stories of people returning to London. With nothing happening on the homefront and the war still seeming to be a problem on the continent, parents had welcomed their children home.

Mother still refused to let me return.

After my conversation with Alec, however, I found myself glad that I would be staying for an indeterminate amount of time. It would offer me the chance to find out just where we went next and it was a little exciting.

"What's going on with you and Alec?" Barbara asked as we neared the village.

"What do you mean?"

"I saw you when we bumped into him and his mother in the village a few days ago. You were both rather flustered and a little awkward with one another which is unlike the two of you. Usually, you're insulting each other."

I could feel the heat rise up to my cheeks. "Nothing."

Babara raised an eyebrow at me. "Nothing? Somehow, I don't believe you. Jonathan has this idea that the two of you have admitted you like each other."

"We did," I mumbled, feeling a little awkward at the confession.

Barbara stopped in the middle of the track and stared at me, blinking as though trying to come to terms with what I had just said. In truth, I could hardly believe I said it since I didn't even know where Alec and I would go moving forward. That, and I certainly didn't expect to be telling someone I had known just over a year about my romantic feelings. I always thought I would have that first conversation with Mum, but none of us knew that the war would get in the way of that.

"Well, I didn't expect that." She continued to walk forward. "I thought Jonathan was joking, especially since you have always denied anything between you and Alec."

I shrugged. "I didn't think I felt anything for him, but it was different the other day. It sort of felt like all the pieces of the puzzle just fell together. It's hard to explain."

"These things can sneak up on you, that was certainly the case with Jonathan and I. When we were at school, I thought him to be the most impertinent boy I had ever met, particularly when he was with his friends. They thought they were the funniest people in that building and pulled a lot of practical jokes. To be honest, he was a bit of an idiot."

"Really?"

She nodded and then smiled. "Most definitely. He once climbed onto the roof of the schoolhouse just to walk along the top of it. How he managed to do it and avoid a canning became the talk of the class afterwards. However, he mellowed out the older we got and became a little more interesting in my eyes. He's still an idiot, but at least he no longer climbs onto a roof to show off."

"No, I'm the one who climbs onto the roof."

"Hm, true." Barbara laughed. "You and Alec actually remind me of how Jonathan and I used to be when we first admitted our feelings to one another. We had formed a sort of friendship beforehand and it became incredibly awkward with neither of us really knowing what to do next. There aren't really instructions on what to do."

"I wish there were."

"You will figure it out, both of you. You're young and things can change quickly from day to day. Don't put too much pressure on yourself to decide your next move immediately or move things along too quickly. Enjoy the awkwardness of it a little longer."

"Jonathan will be pleased when he finds out he was right. Eva too."

"Neither of them need to know until you're ready for them to know. After all the teasing, I expect they can wait a little longer."

I laughed and the two of us emerged over the hill and into the village, a thousand different thoughts swirling through my head. Even though Alec and I still had a conversation to have, I intended to follow Barbara's advice and embrace the awkward side of our newfound relationship. Things were never going to be perfect immediately and perhaps they never would be, but we were both still children trying to figure out the next phase of our friendship.

When Mark and Enid had confessed their feelings for each other, there had been no awkwardness or strange behaviours, they just fit together. I knew, however, that Mark and Enid's parents had been somewhat instrumental in what had happened between them and I wondered if that affected how they behaved with each other. Mine and Alec's relationship had crept up on us both, appeared when we least expected it and neither of us knew how we were supposed to behave or act. Perhaps there was never just one way to behave.

One thing was for sure, I didn't intend on telling Jonathan and Eva anything for a little while, especially after how much they had teased me. They deserved to know nothing until I thought they had suffered enough. It was my turn to tease them back.

Barbara and I reached the village without another word of the previous conversation uttered between us. I knew I could trust Barbara not to tell anyone. We moved into the village and started on the long list of errands that Barbara had to run. Most of them involved stopping at a few of the shops for small bits and pieces that we needed around the house. We purchased some string, some more ink and paper, some cloth that Barbara said she was in desperate need of. It didn't take as long as I thought it would, but it definitely took a good chunk out of our morning.

Our final stop would be the Post Office. I could see Eva behind the desk inside with Mrs Williams nearby, talking to someone. Barbara pushed open the door and the two of us stepped inside, the small bell above the door alerting Eva who smiled.

"Good morning, Eva," Barbara said.

"Good morning." Eva smiled at Barbara and then turned to me. "I thought you'd be riding your horse or something."

"Alec is dealing with an escaped chicken problem."

"Escaped chickens?"

"Don't ask."

Eva laughed. Behind us, the bell rang again as the man Mrs Williams had been talking to left the shop with a large parcel under his arm.

"Goodmorning Mrs Goodwin, Sybil."

"Goodmorning. I have a letter I need to post to my brother in America," Barbara said.

"Right, of course." Mrs Williams paused. "Actually, I think I have something here for Miss Sybil. Not a letter, though, a telegram."

I watched Mrs Williams reach under the desk and pull out a yellow envelope that she handed to me. The letter rustled in my hand and I frowned at it, a little uncertain about why I would be receiving a telegram. Glancing at the postmarks, I knew it had come from London and I felt my chest squeeze like it had been placed into a vice. They only sent telegrams out if someone was dead or missing. Yet, if something had happened to Dad, they would have sent it to Mum, not me.

Shaking, I turned the envelope over and pulled out the telegram, trying to convince myself that it was nothing, that it could have been a simple mistake. The words on the page blurred together, making it impossible for me to read despite all the lessons I had had.

"Can you read it?" I said, turning to Barbara.

She nodded, but her face was as white as a sheet, almost as if she had the same thought I did. She took the letter and I watched her eyes follow the words, mouthing along with what they had to say. Barbara placed a hand over her mouth and what sounded like a dry sob escaped her lips. My chest tightened again.

"What does it say?"

"Oh, Sybil." Barbara paused and took a shaky breath. "It says that there was a bombing raid on London a few nights ago. I'm so sorry."

"What? What happened?"

"Your mother was inside the house when the raid started, she didn't make it out."

~~~

A/N - And there's the bombshell... Of course things weren't going to stay all happy and smiley, I'm the one writing it after all xD

Questions! How do you think Sybil will react?

First Published - March 9th, 2022