Laurie Ellingham - One Endless Summer - Heartwarming and uplifting the perfect holiday read

‘All you need to do is wear it and make sure it’s switched on at all times.’ He flicked a switch on the side of the box and handed it to Jaddi. ‘Starting now.’

‘Great, thanks, Ben,’ she said with a another grin, taking the microphone. ‘Or do you prefer Sherlock?’

‘Ben’s fine,’ he said, already unzipping a side pocket on a large leather holdall hooked over his shoulder. ‘I’ve also got a smaller camera here for you to take, Lizzie,’ he said. ‘For your video diaries. Apart from mine, it’s the only camera we’re taking with us, so please look after it.’

‘What video diaries?’ Lizzie asked, ignoring the object in Ben’s outstretched hand.

Ben turned to Caroline and raised his eyebrows. ‘You haven’t told her?’

‘I’m sure I mentioned it,’ Caroline said with an airy laugh. ‘It’s not a big deal, Lizzie. We thought you could do a video diary before you go to sleep each night. Just a few minutes talking about your day and how you feel. A way to get the audience into your head and make them feel part of your journey.’

‘The camera has Bluetooth and Wi-Fi,’ Ben said. ‘Once you’ve pressed ‘save’ it will automatically send the file to my laptop. If we’re not in a signal area, I’ll take the camera and load the video manually. Then I’ll edit it, along with the other footage, and send it on to the Channel 6 studio.’

‘We’re breaking ground in documentary-making here,’ Caroline said. ‘Due to the … er … sensitive timeframe and current media coverage surrounding you, Lizzie, we’ll be airing your travels weekly, as they happen.’

‘Well, if you’re breaking ground,’ Lizzie said, her tone biting, ‘then by all means, yes, I’d be more than happy to share my inner most feelings with the world.’ Lizzie grabbed the camera and dropped it into her satchel.

‘Look—’ Ben said, glaring at Lizzie.

‘Shall we go then?’ Jaddi flashed a smile at Ben and hooked an arm around Lizzie. He would learn soon enough to let Lizzie’s sarcasm wash over him. The last thing they needed was to start their trip with a falling-out.

‘Are you all right with this?’ Jaddi asked Lizzie, as they scooped up their backpacks.

Lizzie shrugged. ‘It doesn’t feel like I have a choice. I just want it be us, that’s all.’

‘I second that,’ Samantha said, moving closer. ‘How can we be ourselves with a cameraman tagging along?’

‘It will be us. We’ll get used to the camera in no time, that’s what they always say on those reality shows, but look, we’re in this together. If you don’t want to do it, if you want to go home, figure something else out, then say the word and we can.’

Jaddi could sense Caroline’s panic as she hovered behind them and willed the producer not to jump in. This had to be Lizzie’s choice.

‘Promise it’ll feel like it’s just us?’ Lizzie asked, pulling her lower lip between her teeth.

‘I promise.’ Jaddi smiled, wrapping her arms around them both and dipping her head forward. She hoped it was a promise she could keep. Lizzie and Samantha did the same, their three foreheads touching. They stayed like that for several seconds, their fears passing between them without needing to be voiced.

A commotion from across the terminal caught Jaddi’s attention. They stepped out of each other’s arms and turned to watch as a figure ran towards them, darting in and out of people, jumping over suitcases and waving his arms in the air.

‘Lizzie!’ a voice shouted, as a head jumped up above a queue of people next to them.

Lizzie gasped as the athletic frame of her younger brother sprinted into view. ‘Aaron, what on earth are you doing here?’

‘I couldn’t let you go without saying goodbye,’ he said, gulping in long mouthfuls of air. ‘My train was delayed. I thought I’d missed you.’

Without a word, Ben unzipped his shoulder bag and pulled out a camera the size of two shoe boxes. He pressed a button and lifted it with ease onto his right shoulder, obscuring half of his face as one eye stared down a black scope.

Lizzie pulled her brother towards her and wrapped her arms around him. ‘You didn’t need to come all this way. We said goodbye last night.’ She looked up, her eyes scanning the terminal. ‘Are Mum and Dad with you?’

Aaron shook his head. ‘They didn’t want to make it harder for you. They do understand what you’re doing. I know it doesn’t seem that way, but they do. We all do.’

Tears filled Lizzie’s eyes as she continued to hold onto Aaron.

‘How are you going to get home?’ Lizzie asked him, stepping away and tilting her head up a fraction to meet his gaze.

Aaron laughed. ‘Oh, you know, I thought I’d hitchhike back to Aldeburgh. There’s bound to be some lorries heading that way.’

‘Hey, doofus –’ Lizzie punched him on the arm ‘– I was being serious.’

Aaron sighed and ran a hand through the short waves of his brown hair. ‘I’m not eight-years-old anymore. I’m more than capable of using public transport, you know?’

Lizzie smiled. ‘I know, I know. but you’ll always be my little brother, no matter how old you are.’

It took another few minutes before the watch-tapping prompts from the man behind the check-in desk became too frequent to ignore.

As Aaron turned to leave he touched Jaddi’s arm and leaned closer. ‘Look after her.’

He had the same piercing blue eyes as Lizzie. They stared into hers with a fierceness she’d have expected from Lizzie’s father, not a cute eighteen-year-old with nothing but a bright future ahead of him.

‘You know I will.’ She smiled through the pang of guilt radiating out from the pit of her stomach. For the first time since she’d created the website, Jaddi wondered how much of what she’d done was for Lizzie, and how much of it was for herself.

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