‘Calm down, man, I was just taking a closer look.’
‘Ah,’ Geoffrey said, clearing his throat again. ‘Apologies, it’s just things have to be very precise.’
Luke and he rearranged the furniture so that everyone could sit down and rest if standing got too much. Arjun was humming an obscure tune, Grandad was peering at him over his glasses and Howard kept picking up a glass to drink from, huffing, and finding the one with his wine in.
‘Bloody confusing.’
‘Should have stuck with the gin.’ Grandad laughed.
Luke had barely glanced in my direction, actively setting himself up on the other side of the semi-circle. I sneaked a look across at him, his mouth turned down, his eyes duller. Had I done that to him? Or was it guilt? He seemed less buoyant than normal, his tone dull, sentences shorter.
‘Right, let’s see how this goes,’ Geoffrey began, holding up both hands. ‘The circled numbers correspond to the glass you need to play. I have ensured the glass will play the correct note.’
‘How clever,’ Arjun said.
‘Did England win today, by the way?’ Howard interrupted.
‘Win what?’ Grandad asked.
‘The cricket.’
Geoffrey was staring at them. I had that uncomfortable feeling I used to get in the classroom as a teenager when the teacher was staring at a pupil who was completely oblivious.
‘Who were they playing?’
‘Pakistan.’
‘When you have quite finished,’ Geoffrey said in a stern voice.
‘You’re in trouble,’ sing-songed Arjun, nudging Grandad.
Grandad looked up. ‘Sorry, sorry, although Howard started it.’
‘I just wanted to know the score, should have known he wouldn’t know. What is the point of having the Sky package if you don’t watch it?’
‘I do watch it.’
‘Pah.’
Geoffrey refused to be drawn into the row, asking everyone to hold up the glass that corresponded to the first number on their sheet. ‘Then dip your finger into the water and run your finger round the rim until you need to change glass with another number.’
Dipping my finger into the glass I left it poised over the rim, staring at Geoffrey and awaiting my cue, not convinced anything would really happen. For a strange moment I imagined this was how a cult started. Would it be the Emperor’s New Clothes and we would all have to pretend we had heard the music? Geoffrey didn’t seem the usual cult leader type but you never knew what lurked beneath that quiet surface. The whole semi-circle seemed to be holding their breath now, even Howard had fallen completely silent and was ready for the next instruction.
Then we began, with a sound that built like a chorus of pan pipes in the small living room. It surprised me, my mouth turning up as I realised we were all making music together. Geoffrey was nodding, pointing at me now so that I bent to pick up the next glass before starting again. The tune changed as Geoffrey directed people to start their new note. There were a few huffs, Howard panicking over whether to come in or not, but you could hear the tune underneath, building if enough of us joined in at the same time.
Then halfway through the song Geoffrey was shaking his head at me as the wrong note emerged – I had picked up the wrong glass. Then another note jarred and I looked towards Howard, who was wiping his mouth.
‘I thought it was my wine.’
Arjun had put his own glass down and had picked up another one. ‘I liked the taste.’
Grandad was searching his table. ‘I put one of the glasses down somewhere. I can’t find Number 3.’
I felt a giggle build in my throat. Geoffrey was looking a little boot-faced as he called us to a halt.
‘Is it with yours, Arjun?’ Grandad asked, still searching.
‘Not sure.’
‘Tidy up your tables,’ Geoffrey said, his voice rising. ‘Stop drinking from the glasses, Howard, and we will begin again in sixty seconds.’
We started the piece again but this time it was all going horribly wrong, the notes flat: clashing hideously so that Geoffrey shut his eyes, his conductor hands falling to his side.
‘This wasn’t Glass Two, I think it was Five.’
‘Did you take my glass?’
‘I haven’t touched your table.’
‘Well, one of them has gone.’
‘Oh my God, will you stop drinking from them! You are ruining the sound,’ Geoffrey burst out in a most out-of-character display of emotion.
Howard paused, glass to his lips. ‘I forgot where I put my drink,’ he said.
‘It does look very like his wine,’ Grandad said. ‘Maybe you should have coloured them with dye?’
‘I didn’t think I would need to,’ Geoffrey blasted. ‘I didn’t think I would be surrounded by so much idiocy.’
Grandad started stuttering, ‘Well, this is my first time and there is a lot going on: paper, glasses, Arjun poking me in the ribs every two seconds—’
‘I haven’t poked you in the ribs.’
‘You made me spill Glass Four!’
‘Be quiet, both of you,’ Geoffrey said. ‘Only Luke and Lottie are behaving.’ Luke looked a little happier at these words, mouth twitching, shaking his head slowly at the older men.
‘I saw him nearly drink one,’ Howard said disloyally.
Luke leaned over to pat Howard’s knee. ‘Nearly. But remember only Lottie and I are behaving.’
I felt a surge of camaraderie: had I been forgiven? I looked up at Luke, who didn’t return my gaze, and felt my shoulders droop again.
The others continued to bicker over water levels, food dye and whether Geoffrey had made the letters on the sheet clear enough, as Luke sidled over to me. I licked my lips, trying to act nonchalantly as he stood in front of me.
‘We probably need to talk at some point,’ Luke said, a serious tone to his voice, one I wasn’t used to hearing. It was the same tone he used when he had first discussed the new recycling system for our block of flats, the same tone he had used when telling me about mortgage rates.
‘Yes.’
He sipped his drink and looked at me carefully. ‘Things haven’t been great—’
‘We probably shouldn’t talk right now,’ I said, cutting him off, trying to keep my voice down so that no one could overhear what we were saying. I couldn’t bear to have a public showdown.
Luke’s eyes flashed as he opened and shut his mouth. I rarely saw him anything other than cheery and relaxed. Now he was clutching his drink, a muscle going in his cheek.
‘We can’t keep on like this, with you snapping at me every time you want to lash out at something.’
That stung. I gritted my teeth, still trying to talk out of the side of my mouth. I could see Arjun and Grandad glance up at us, sticking a smile on my face in response.
‘I don’t lash— look . . . let’s not do this now. We can talk later.’ I could feel the room shift as the others had perhaps cottoned on to the fact Luke and I weren’t in deep discussion about Glass Four in the second song.
‘I’m going to stay at Adam’s actually. He’s got a spare room. I thought it might give us a bit of time and space.’
My hand froze over my glass, the fixed smile slipping from my face. ‘Right.’