The One: A moving and unforgettable love story - the most emotional read of 2018

Alex turned his attention back to Lizzie. ‘So, where were we?’

‘You were telling me about your adventures.’

Though they were in the same year at university, Alex was 18 months older, and had spent his gap year in Australia taking part in all kinds of adrenaline-inducing activities. He’d been bungee-jumping in Cairns, climbed the Sydney Harbour Bridge and gone sky-diving in Melbourne. Lizzie found his stories both fascinating and terrifying. She literally couldn’t think of anything worse than jumping out of planes. In fact, she hated even boarding the things ever since a particularly bumpy flight resulted in her barfing halfway across the Atlantic. She had forced herself to get on an aircraft a couple of times since, but could never fully relax, her heart thumping and her palms sweating before it had even taken off.

‘Yeah, that was a fun year. So, where’s the best place you’ve been?’

‘Oh, I … I’m not much of a traveller.’

Alex looked surprised. ‘You don’t want to visit other countries?’

‘No, I’d love to visit other countries, but … I’m not exactly a big fan of flying.’ Ha. That’s putting it mildly.

‘Like a phobia?’

Lizzie hesitated. She had never told anyone besides her family and Megan the full extent of the problem before, and she wasn’t sure if it was something she should confess to a globetrotting boy she really liked. But there was a quiet self-assuredness about Alex that made her want to trust him.

‘Yeah,’ she confided eventually. ‘I guess you could call it a phobia.’

‘Have you always had it?’

‘No,’ she sighed. ‘When I was about 15, we hit some terrible turbulence on the way to Florida and I spent half the flight throwing up. My parents saw the funny side – my dad still calls that plane the “chunder-wonder”. But I think it put me off for life.’

‘That must be tough,’ he said, nodding sympathetically.

‘It’s not the end of the world,’ she said, trying to shake off his pity. ‘There are plenty of other things I enjoy.’

‘Like what?’

‘Loads of things … writing. Reading. Swimming. Not all at the same time.’ Alex laughed, giving her an adrenaline rush of her own. ‘Oh, and I’m totally addicted to The West Wing. Have you seen it?’

‘No, but I heard it’s good.’

‘It’s better than good. Aaron Sorkin is like some sort of writing genius.’

Alex smiled. ‘I’ll have to check it out. What sort of writing do you do?’

Lizzie confessed she’d been trying her hand at fiction, but her efforts so far just made her want to cringe. ‘You’ll get past that,’ he said. ‘You’ve just got to keep putting words on the page. They’ll make their own sense, eventually.’

Now it was Lizzie’s turn to look surprised. ‘You write?’

‘Not really – not like books or anything. But I taught myself to play the guitar a while back, and now I’m trying to come up with some of my own stuff. I could spend all day doing that.’

Lizzie was intrigued. ‘Don’t take this the wrong way, but why study hospitality if your passion’s music?’

Alex leaned forward, his eyes lighting up. ‘Because what I really want to do, one day, is open my own bar,’ he explained. ‘Book some bands, host some cool gigs, be my own boss. That’s the real dream, I guess.’

‘So you don’t want to be a rock star, then?’

‘Nah, I wouldn’t last five minutes being famous,’ he said. ‘I’d hate the whole circus that goes with it. But that’s OK. It’s never been about playing at Wembley. I just wanted to learn the guitar, see what happens …’ He trailed off as a waitress returned with their desserts and plonked them down on the table. ‘So anyway, what about you?’

What about me? It was hard to focus while he was looking at her so intensely. His eyes were distractingly sexy. She dipped her spoon into the soft gelato. ‘Sorry, what?’

‘What do you want to do when you leave here? Write novels?’

Lizzie laughed. ‘Well, that would be amazing, but it’s not as simple as that. The odds of me getting published are pretty slim.’

‘Why?’ asked Alex. He took a bite of his tiramisu. ‘You’ve got as much chance as anyone else.’

She’d never thought of it like that before. ‘Maybe,’ she said. ‘But if that doesn’t happen, there are still some other options I’d like to explore. I could go into journalism, or advertising, or—’

Just then she was interrupted by a shrill cry, which rang out across the restaurant like an alarm.

‘TOMMY!’

She whipped her head around to see the mother of the two boys on her feet, frantically slapping the taller one on his back. His hands were clutching tightly at his neck, and his face was beginning to turn blue.

‘Somebody help me!’ she screamed. ‘He’s choking – my baby’s choking!’

Alex pushed back his chair, leapt to his feet and ran over. He tried to give the boy five firm back blows between his shoulder blades, but the child continued to gasp for air, his eyes beginning to bulge from their sockets. ‘Is there a doctor here?’ shouted Alex. Lizzie looked around the room, her stomach lurching violently. None of the other diners replied, but simply stared on in horror.

‘Please, somebody do something!’ yelled the mother, gesturing to the manager, who had turned a sickly shade of green. ‘Call 999!’

There’s no way an ambulance is going to make it in time. What’s the drill for choking? Lizzie jumped up and ran across to Alex, racking her brain to try to remember the advice she’d been taught for children. She’d done a basic first-aid course while training for her lifeguard qualification, but administering help to a plastic dummy in a leisure centre and trying to do it on a writhing, petrified boy suddenly seemed like two entirely different prospects. Her heart was beating so fast she could barely breathe herself.

‘Let me see,’ she said, opening the boy’s twitching mouth to see if she could spot the obstruction. Nothing. The terror in his tiny eyes was unmistakable.

His mother was standing right next to her, wailing uncontrollably. ‘Please help him!’ she cried. ‘I don’t know what to do!’

‘I need some room,’ said Lizzie, moving behind the lad. She bent him slightly forwards and used the heel of her hand to slap him five more times between the shoulder blades. He made an awful rasping sound, his hands never leaving his throat, but whatever was stuck stubbornly refused to budge.

Shit.

Instinct kicked in and she threw her arms around Tommy’s small waist, forming a fist with one hand above his belly button, and wrapping her other hand over the top. Then she pulled sharply upwards and inwards, the child’s squidgy flesh feeling much softer against her hands than the Resusci Anne she had practised on.

One.

She could feel the boy squirming against her. Try again!

Two.

She gave another thrust, desperately hoping that she was doing it right. Come on, come on, come on, come on …

Three.

The boy made an unnerving noise that sounded like retching, and a half-chewed piece of dough ball shot out of his mouth and across the table. He inhaled loudly, sucking in air in noisy gulps, then burst into frightened tears. His mum rushed forwards and wrapped her arms around him, tears streaming down her face too. ‘Oh Tommy, I’ve got you. I’ve got you. You’re going to be OK. Mummy’s here.’

The diners burst into a spontaneous round of applause, and Lizzie began to tremble. She couldn’t bear to think what might have happened if that hadn’t worked.

‘Hey, are you alright?’ Alex was peering at her closely with those piercing eyes. ‘That was unbelievable. How did you know what to do?’

‘I, er … I …’

‘You know you just saved that child’s life, right?’ His voice was a mixture of shock and awe.

Before Lizzie could speak, Tommy’s mother rushed over and hugged her tightly. ‘Thank you so much,’ she sobbed, her chest heaving. ‘You’re an angel. If you hadn’t been there …’ She couldn’t finish that sentence. ‘I want to do something to thank you both. If there’s anything at all that you’d like, anything you need …’ She pulled her purse from the back pocket of her jeans, her hands shaking.

‘Oh no, you don’t have to do that,’ protested Lizzie. ‘I’m just glad that he’s alright.’ The other diners were still gawping, which was making her feel more uncomfortable by the minute.

‘Well, at least let me buy your dinner,’ said the mother. Her face was all red and blotchy, make-up streaked across her cheeks.

‘That won’t be necessary,’ said Alex kindly but firmly, his eyes hardly leaving Lizzie’s face. ‘I would like to buy this amazing woman dinner.’

Just then the manager came over, the colour slowly trickling back into his face. ‘What you did was incredible,’ he said, pumping her hand vigorously. ‘Dinner is on the house! Pliss. Anything you want.’

Lizzie looked at Alex. He was still staring at her like she’d just walked on the moon. She nodded at the manger. ‘OK, that’s very kind of you. Thank you.’

‘Can I get you some more wine, Miss?’

She glanced back at their table where her glass and half-eaten dessert remained in situ, as if she’d simply stepped away to visit the ladies. The thought of consuming any more food or drink right now made her feel queasy.

‘Actually, I don’t think I could manage anything else,’ she said. ‘Thanks for the offer, though.’

Alex took her arm, his grip firm and strong. ‘Are you OK?’

‘I’m fine, but I could do with a bit of fresh air.’ She hesitated. ‘Do you think we could go somewhere else for a bit?’

‘Anything for the heroine of the hour,’ said Alex, grabbing his leather jacket from the back of his chair and retrieving her wallet. ‘Let’s get you out of here.’

Lizzie felt her sandals sink into Cliffstowe beach, enjoying the sensation of the cool grains tickling her toes. In the distance, the Dorset coastline was flecked with the lights from local houses, illuminating the night sky like tiny stars. A solitary seagull squawked overhead while waves crashed in the background, compiling nature’s own soundtrack.

‘How are you feeling now?’ asked Alex, as they set off along the shore.

‘Better, thanks,’ she said, inhaling that distinctive seaside scent as the wind tugged at her hair. The truth was she was feeling pretty strange: scared and relieved and alive all at once. It was as if she had stepped into the lion’s den and emerged the other side, exhilarated but also aware of how badly wrong things could have gone.

‘OK, good.’ His face relaxed a little. ‘That was way too much drama for a first date.’

‘I know.’ She exhaled loudly, shuddering at the memory. ‘It’s certainly not one we’ll forget.’

‘No, I guess not …’ His deep voice drifted off over the waves, and she could tell he was still shaken up, too. ‘You know, I really thought we were going to lose that kid for a minute there. I was smacking his back, and nothing was happening, and all I could see was that look on his mum’s face.’

‘Yeah, I know what you mean. I was totally starting to freak out.’

‘But you didn’t.’ He turned his head towards her, his eyes finding hers. ‘You kept calm and you saved him. How’d you learn to do that?’

‘I worked as a lifeguard the past two summers,’ Lizzie said. ‘I had to do a first-aid course as part of the training. I have to admit, though, I wasn’t really expecting to have to use it. The pool’s only about a metre deep.’

‘Lifeguard, eh?’ Alex smiled.

‘Yes, but don’t get too excited. We don’t run around dressed like we’re on Baywatch. We have to wear some pretty unflattering orange shorts.’

‘I bet you pull it off,’ he said.

Lizzie blushed and looked away, squinting at the darkening stretch of shore ahead. ‘Are you sure we can get back to yours this way?’ she asked.

‘Of course – I do it all the time,’ he replied, suddenly catching the inference of what he’d just said. ‘Not usually with company,’ he corrected himself. ‘But I prefer to go this way when the tide’s out. It helps me think.’

‘About what?’ asked Lizzie. She had been thinking about him non-stop since Wednesday, trying to work out how he’d got inside her head in a way that none of Megan’s blind dates ever had.

‘I don’t know,’ he said. ‘Nothing … everything. Sometimes I just like to get away from it all for a while.’

As they continued their walk, she stole a sideways glance at his profile in the moonlight, admiring his strong jaw and untamed hair. Just the nearness of him made her feel both excited and nervous. She couldn’t put her finger on it, but he had a worldly confidence that belied his age; she, on the other hand, had been living a pretty sheltered existence for the past 19 years, and had only slept with three guys ever, if those clumsy fumbles could technically count. She wasn’t planning to fall into bed with him tonight, but she was glad she’d worn her favourite undies, just in case.

‘What’s on your mind?’ he said.

‘Er, nothing really. I was just thinking that this evening’s gone fast.’

‘I know. It wasn’t exactly the date I had in mind, though. So I’m hoping you’ll let me take you out for another one?’

Her pulse began to race. ‘Yeah, I’d really like that.’

Just then the autumn breeze wrapped itself around her again, causing her to shiver. It had been a surprisingly sunny day, but the temperature had suddenly dropped and she was starting to feel chilly. She felt a light splash of rain land on her arm and wished that she’d bothered to bring a coat.

‘Are you getting cold?’ Alex asked. ‘Here, take my jacket.’ He shrugged his arms free from the sleeves and wrapped it around her shoulders, pulling her closer as he did so. She felt his thumb brush against the back of her neck, almost imperceptibly, but it was enough to stop her in her tracks. Every inch of her began to buzz with electricity.

‘Alex …’

He fixed those incredible slate eyes on hers, studying her face as though he might be tested on it later. Slowly, he ran one hand through her windswept hair, tucking several runaway strands behind her ear, his fingertips warm against her cool skin. Lizzie could barely breathe, afraid to even exhale in case it shattered the moment.

Just then an almighty rumble broke the spell, as the sky began to spew raindrops with surprising force. ‘We’re going to get soaked,’ yelled Alex. ‘Come on, let’s get back to mine.’ He grabbed her hand and they raced along the shore, running fast and free, not knowing what would happen when they finally stopped.

After minutes that felt like hours, he veered off to the right. ‘It’s just through here,’ he promised, leading the way along a dimly lit path.

Lizzie followed him up a flight of stony steps and watched as he opened a side door, the rain still pounding overhead like the beat of her heart.

5

11 weeks to go …

Irresistible. Sizzling. Orgasmic? Lizzie stared at her computer screen, trying to concentrate on the words floating around in front of her. She was writing a press release about a new cookbook by a top TV chef – the kind of project she usually enjoyed as PR manager for a small publishing house – but today her mind kept wandering mid-recipe, scuttling off to flowers and first dances and whether or not they ought to have favours on the tables.

‘Can I get you a coffee?’ interrupted Phoebe, the new marketing assistant, who had only joined six weeks ago and was still in that phase of sucking up to everybody. She seemed a nice enough girl, but she was a bundle of nervous energy, rushing all over the place and swivelling around on her chair every time she sat back down. It was knackering just watching her.

‘No, thanks,’ said Lizzie. ‘I think I’m alright for the moment.’

‘How about tea, then? Or some water? It’s good to stay hydrated in the office.’

‘Actually, Phoebe, I’d love a drink,’ piped up Naomi, who ran the company’s website. Blunt, ballsy and prone to bouts of swearing, she was by far Lizzie’s favourite person on the entire team, even if she did insist on having the radio turned up distractingly loud while she worked.

‘Of course!’ The youngster scurried over to the next desk, looking thrilled to be making herself useful. ‘What can I get you? Tea? Coffee?’

‘Do we have any fruit smoothies?’ asked Naomi sweetly. ‘Maybe banana and mango? Or some mixed berries? I’m doing a juice cleanse at the moment, you see.’

Really? If she was, it was the first Lizzie had heard of it, and Naomi didn’t usually keep much to herself.

‘Oh, er …’ Phoebe’s smile faltered. ‘I’m not sure we’ve got anything like that in the kitchen.’ Then she perked back up again. ‘Ooh, the café round the corner might have some, though. Do you want me to run down and see?’

‘Would you mind? Thanks so much.’ Naomi reached into her wallet and pulled out a crumpled tenner. ‘I’d prefer freshly blended anyway. Why don’t you grab yourself one, too, if you’re going to the trouble of walking round there?’

Phoebe beamed, like she’d just been tasked with an important assignment for the Queen. ‘That’s really nice of you. I’ll be back as soon as possible.’

‘No rush, take your time,’ said Naomi, watching her go as she trotted off towards the lifts, her auburn hair swinging like a shiny conker.

‘I didn’t know you were into juicing now,’ said Lizzie. ‘How long’s that been going on?’

‘Since about five minutes ago. She’s doing my head in this morning, all that flapping about. I reckon it’ll buy us a good ten minutes of peace.’

‘You’re mean!’ smiled Lizzie. ‘She’s harmless. Remember what it’s like when you start a new job and just want to impress people?’

‘Not really,’ said Naomi drily. She liked to give the impression that she couldn’t care less what anyone thought, but Lizzie knew there was a sensitive core beneath her spiky exterior. ‘Anyway, it’s alright for you. Don’t you have some sort of extended holiday coming up?’

‘If you’re referring to my honeymoon, then yes – yes I do.’ Lizzie couldn’t even try to hide the huge grin that broke out across her face.

‘Where are you going?’

‘Not sure yet.’ That was another thing they still had to finalise, largely because they couldn’t agree on a destination. Josh wanted to go somewhere far-flung and exotic, but Lizzie wasn’t sure if she could cope with a long flight. Even just the thought of it made her palms grow clammy. ‘We’re still deciding.’

‘How long are you off for?’

‘With the wedding as well? Nearly three weeks.’

‘Lucky cow.’ Naomi shook her head enviously. ‘I’d marry psycho Mel for three weeks away.’ Mel was Naomi’s on-off girlfriend. It was easy to keep track of their relationship status, because whenever it was off she always prefixed Mel’s name with ‘evil’ or ‘psycho’.

‘Sorry,’ Lizzie smiled. ‘I’ll miss you, if it helps.’

‘Yeah, well … you’d better bring me back something really good. And some duty-free fags.’

‘I’m not getting you those. I thought you were meant to be quitting?’

Naomi pulled a face. ‘Whatever,’ she said, cranking up her radio another few decibels. ‘Anyway, stop distracting me with all this talk about holidays. I need to upload this before Her Perkiness gets back.’

‘Fine by me.’ Lizzie glanced over at the laminated calendar on the beige wall to her right, counting with glee that there were only 51 working days to go before she could escape. She was desperate for a proper break. While other brides-to-be seemed to enjoy every second of wedding planning, Lizzie was finding the whole thing so stressful that she’d started waking up at 3am, her mind whirring so loudly she was sure it would disturb Josh.

‘Do you think it’s got anything to do with … you know who?’ Megan had asked last week, when Lizzie complained that she was having trouble sleeping.

‘What, Alex? What makes you say that?’

‘Well, you seemed kind of upset when I mentioned it at the dress shop.’ Megan pursed her lips. ‘I know you said you don’t care, but I just wanted to check you were OK about all that.’

‘About what? That he upped and left? Or that he’s back right before my wedding?’

‘Ah,’ said Megan, looking uncomfortable. ‘Do you wish I hadn’t told you?’

‘No, I’m glad you did,’ sighed Lizzie. ‘I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to snap. I guess I’m still a little freaked out. I just wasn’t expecting him to come home after this long.’

‘Look, I get it. I was pretty shocked myself when I heard. And I’m not the one who was madly in love with him.’

‘I’m not sure I was madly in love with him …’ replied Lizzie. Even as she started to protest, she knew it was a lie. ‘I mean, I thought I was at the time – but if our relationship was so great it wouldn’t have ended that badly, would it?’ She could still feel the hurt in her bones, all these years later, like a fracture that had never fully healed. Don’t think about it, she told herself. Josh would never leave you like that.

‘Guess not. I was worried about you back then. You were in a right state.’

‘Don’t remind me.’ The first few months after Alex disappeared had been, without doubt, the most miserable of Lizzie’s life. After the tears and the anger and the guilt subsided, all that was left was a strange nothingness, which in many ways was worse. It had taken the best part of two years for her to feel halfway human again. ‘I must have been a nightmare to live with. I’m so embarrassed.’

‘Stop beating yourself up,’ said Megan. ‘That was a rough time, especially after what happened with—’

‘Please, let’s not go there,’ said Lizzie. She wasn’t ready for a maudlin trip down memory lane, not even with the one person whose turbulent relationship with Alex almost rivalled her own. During university, he’d become one of Megan’s closest friends, the surrogate big brother she’d always wanted. But when it all came crashing down – with Lizzie’s heart among the wreckage – he’d been rebranded as public enemy number one.

By now, news of his return had prompted much gossip among their old crowd, but Lizzie still didn’t know why he was back in the country, or for how long. She found herself wondering whether everything was alright with his family, the not-quite-in-laws she’d once been so fond of.

I hope they’re OK. As if they haven’t been through enough already.

Her musings were cut short by the portly man from the post room, who thrust a huge bouquet of flowers under her nose. ‘Special delivery for you, Miss Sparkes,’ he said, his short fingers gripping the stems tightly.

‘Thanks, Bob. I didn’t know you cared,’ she joked. The arrangement was amazing: large white lilies mixed with yellow tulips and orange gerberas, the citrus shades standing out against the foliage like miniature suns. Their fresh scent reminded her of the displays from the wedding fair.

‘Well, you know you’re still my favourite, miss. But I think someone might be trying to steal you from me.’

‘Nah,’ she said with a smile. ‘That’ll never happen.’

Bob gave her a wink and set off for the rest of his rounds. ‘See you later, kiddo.’

Lizzie admired the bouquet again, which was almost bigger than her head. It’s so sweet of Josh to do this, she thought, especially when I’ve been kind of moody lately. I’ll have to make it up to him.

‘Nice blooms,’ said Naomi, nosily. ‘What’s he gone and done now?’

‘He hasn’t done anything,’ laughed Lizzie. ‘People can send flowers for other reasons, you know.’ Noticing that there was a card attached with twirly yellow ribbon, she ripped open the envelope, eager to read the romantic message inside. Instead, it simply said: Lizzie, I’m in town. Please can we talk? Alex x

A burst of adrenaline shot through her body. Has he been here? She looked around the office furtively, as if half expecting him to pop out from behind the photocopier, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. Glancing back down, she saw that underneath the message was a sprawled mobile number, the last two digits of which were smudged. Lizzie dropped the card and leapt from her chair, chasing after Bob like a champion sprinter.