my legs are fine.’ ‘Yeah, of course. Sorry.’ I heard Ethan get to his feet. I stood up, ignoring the hand he put out to help me. ‘Let’s walk downstream towards the car
park, then cross the stream and walk round behind the tennis courts,’ I suggested. ‘Fine with me.’ We started walking. Ethan stuffed his hands in his pockets until I placed my hand on his bare forearm. And there it was again, that strange humming through my fingers. Ethan’s arm started to flap about like a fish out of water. He didn’t know what to do with it, where to put it so I could rest my hand on it. I stopped, withdrawing my hand as I waited for him to figure it out. After a moment or two, he took my hand and placed it on his forearm, which was now steady. We carried on walking in a strangely amiable silence. ‘So tell me what you can see,’ I said. ‘Huh?’ ‘Describe what you can see.’ I smiled at Ethan. Unless, of course, you’d rather not.’ ‘No, I don’t mind. I just … Ok …well, we’re walking beside the stream now and there are oak trees on either side of the stream and over there is the car park and over there is the school and –’ My hand gently squeezed his arm. ‘Tat’s not what I meant. Tell me what you can see.’ ‘But I just did.’ I gave him a hard look. ‘Ethan, are you wearing your school tie?’ ‘Yes. Why?’ ‘Could you take it off and put it around your eyes?’ ‘Come again?’ I smiled. ‘You heard me right the first time.’ ‘Why d’you want me to do that?’ Ethan asked. ‘I’m going to take you around the school grounds.’ ‘With my eyes blindfolded?’ Ethan asked, aghast. I laughed at the panic in his voice. ‘Tat’s right. You’re going to have to trust me.’ ‘But you … you can’t see.’ ‘Oh my God! Tanks for telling me. I hadn’t noticed!’ I teased. ‘So are you going to do it, or are you too much of a chicken?’ Slowly, Ethan removed the tie from around his neck and tied it around his eyes. ‘You’ve got to do it so you can’t see anything,’ I told him. ‘I have.’
