Lana's voice and the long, long, very long goodnight.
When sixteen-year-old girls are deeply, deeply in first love with seventeen-year-old boys, goodnight is not a straightforward thing. Lana and Andrei were now wrapped around each other in the hallway kissing, kissing and kissing some more.
Her hands were wrapped round his neck, then running through his hair, his hands were stroking the small of her back, rubbing up and down her sides, while their tongues rolled over and over and over together as if this was the best thing they'd ever tasted.
Annie, lying in bed beside Ed, knew why the front door hadn't yet closed on Andrei.
'First love,' she whispered, turning to Ed. 'Do you remember that far back? The sex is probably the worst you're going to have but the foreplay is unforgettable . . . I can still remember what it feels like to kiss like that.'
'Can you?' Ed leaned over her face and seemed to be offering to remind her.
'Oh yeah,' she said, but just kissed him lightly on the lips.
'I don't remember my first sex being bad,' Ed said, leaning back on the pillow and running his hands over his face.
'No, but that's because you're male,' Annie reminded him, 'and sex is never bad for men. Ever. Is it?'
'Ermmm . . .' Ed cast his mind back over a not extremely long and varied sex life and came to the conclusion that, 'No. Hardly ever. Not unless you're feeling really, really guilty.'
'Yeah . . . as in you came over to chuck her and thought you'd just have sex first,' Annie teased.
'Oh God,' Ed groaned, 'chucking people is a nightmare. I've only done it once. Since then, I've always been the chuckee. So there you go, you never, ever have to worry about me chucking you. If this is ever going to end, you'll have to do it.'
She turned onto her side and put an arm across his stomach before asking with a teasing smile: 'But it's never, ever going to end, is it?'
'No-oh,' he assured her, with something of a laugh and then rubbed her nose with his very fondly, looking deep into her eyes.
'I have to go to the bathroom,' she said abruptly, 'and remind Lana to come up for air and send that poor boy home to rest.'
'Annie?' Ed asked. 'Do you think maybe Lana should move her bedroom?'
'Huh?'
'Well, her bedroom is right above ours and right beside Owen's. It's not exactly private.'
Annie rolled onto her back and looked at the ceiling as she considered what Ed was suggesting.
'Are you thinking Lana should have a room of her own downstairs in the basement? Next to my office?'
Ed looked at her and nodded.
'A room she can take Andrei to and be undisturbed?'
Ed nodded again.
Suddenly Annie felt irritated: 'Don't you think that's just a little bit irresponsible?' she asked. 'Don't you think it's a good thing that she's kissing him in the doorway rather than rolling all over the sofa with him? Don't you think it's quite healthy that if she were to take him upstairs to her bedroom, she would have to worry about what we thought and what we heard? I think being newly sixteen with your GCSEs ahead of you is too young for undisturbed rooms on your own with your boyfriend.'
'OK,' Ed quickly agreed, 'OK, that's fine. It was just an idea. But . . . totally up to you. Just keep talking to her, though. She'll want some guidance from you.'
'Ha!' Annie laughed, 'what on earth gave you that idea?'
'She does! She's just being teenage and pretending to hate you.'
Annie really wasn't so sure about that. Sometimes when Lana was in one of her blackest moods, she could shoot her mother a look so vicious and hateful it made Annie gasp. But then, like stormy weather, the moods would pass, leaving Annie wondering what she had done to make Lana so angry with her.
'Just for my information, Annie,' Ed began, 'how old were you when you first . . .'
'Nearly eighteen,' she broke in just a little sternly. 'What about you?'
'Er . . . twenty-two,' Ed admitted a
When sixteen-year-old girls are deeply, deeply in first love with seventeen-year-old boys, goodnight is not a straightforward thing. Lana and Andrei were now wrapped around each other in the hallway kissing, kissing and kissing some more.
Her hands were wrapped round his neck, then running through his hair, his hands were stroking the small of her back, rubbing up and down her sides, while their tongues rolled over and over and over together as if this was the best thing they'd ever tasted.
Annie, lying in bed beside Ed, knew why the front door hadn't yet closed on Andrei.
'First love,' she whispered, turning to Ed. 'Do you remember that far back? The sex is probably the worst you're going to have but the foreplay is unforgettable . . . I can still remember what it feels like to kiss like that.'
'Can you?' Ed leaned over her face and seemed to be offering to remind her.
'Oh yeah,' she said, but just kissed him lightly on the lips.
'I don't remember my first sex being bad,' Ed said, leaning back on the pillow and running his hands over his face.
'No, but that's because you're male,' Annie reminded him, 'and sex is never bad for men. Ever. Is it?'
'Ermmm . . .' Ed cast his mind back over a not extremely long and varied sex life and came to the conclusion that, 'No. Hardly ever. Not unless you're feeling really, really guilty.'
'Yeah . . . as in you came over to chuck her and thought you'd just have sex first,' Annie teased.
'Oh God,' Ed groaned, 'chucking people is a nightmare. I've only done it once. Since then, I've always been the chuckee. So there you go, you never, ever have to worry about me chucking you. If this is ever going to end, you'll have to do it.'
She turned onto her side and put an arm across his stomach before asking with a teasing smile: 'But it's never, ever going to end, is it?'
'No-oh,' he assured her, with something of a laugh and then rubbed her nose with his very fondly, looking deep into her eyes.
'I have to go to the bathroom,' she said abruptly, 'and remind Lana to come up for air and send that poor boy home to rest.'
'Annie?' Ed asked. 'Do you think maybe Lana should move her bedroom?'
'Huh?'
'Well, her bedroom is right above ours and right beside Owen's. It's not exactly private.'
Annie rolled onto her back and looked at the ceiling as she considered what Ed was suggesting.
'Are you thinking Lana should have a room of her own downstairs in the basement? Next to my office?'
Ed looked at her and nodded.
'A room she can take Andrei to and be undisturbed?'
Ed nodded again.
Suddenly Annie felt irritated: 'Don't you think that's just a little bit irresponsible?' she asked. 'Don't you think it's a good thing that she's kissing him in the doorway rather than rolling all over the sofa with him? Don't you think it's quite healthy that if she were to take him upstairs to her bedroom, she would have to worry about what we thought and what we heard? I think being newly sixteen with your GCSEs ahead of you is too young for undisturbed rooms on your own with your boyfriend.'
'OK,' Ed quickly agreed, 'OK, that's fine. It was just an idea. But . . . totally up to you. Just keep talking to her, though. She'll want some guidance from you.'
'Ha!' Annie laughed, 'what on earth gave you that idea?'
'She does! She's just being teenage and pretending to hate you.'
Annie really wasn't so sure about that. Sometimes when Lana was in one of her blackest moods, she could shoot her mother a look so vicious and hateful it made Annie gasp. But then, like stormy weather, the moods would pass, leaving Annie wondering what she had done to make Lana so angry with her.
'Just for my information, Annie,' Ed began, 'how old were you when you first . . .'
'Nearly eighteen,' she broke in just a little sternly. 'What about you?'
'Er . . . twenty-two,' Ed admitted a
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