Wearing only a thin white tank top and khaki shorts I felt like I was melting from the heat. I couldn't do anything more than just look out of the window of this packed bus and hope no one near me would sneeze in my face.
Holding onto the back of a seat, I looked out over the Bay of Naples as we drove along the winding roads of the Amalfi Coast, taking in the majestic sight of Vesuvius, in awe of where I was and all the sights I had yet to see. Both the sky and the water below were the same shimmering turquoise.
Eventually the bus finally stopped, overlooking the beautiful town of Positano but unlike most of the passengers, this was not my stop. I took an empty seat as people walked off and a small handful walked on. I pulled out my holiday guide, a sure sign that I was most definitely a tourist and the fact I was 'fifty shades' paler than any of the locals. I simply sat and read, hoping everyone would get on the bus quickly so we could leave sooner. I absorbed myself in my book. A few minutes passed before the last of the passengers boarded, as I could tell by the sounds going on around me. As I closed my book and began to put it in my rucksack, I suddenly heard a deep but friendly male voice ask me if the seat by me was taken. I quickly grabbed my rucksack and placed it on the floor. "No, no, this seat is free." I replied, as I smiled lightly over at him. The man smiled back at me with a quiet 'Thanks', though his smile seemed friendlier than mine.
We sat there side by side for about a mile or so, as I looked out at the window, counting how many rocks I could see edging the side of the road, when my head snapped around as he asked me. "Your name isn't Sophie Cooper by any chance?" He seemed excited but how did he know my name if we had never met before? It then suddenly dawned on me who he was and I couldn't believe it. I didn't even bother to answer him as I hugged him in the most uncomfortable position you could think of. My mind was quickly filtering out his school nickname to save us both from embarrassment.
"Tim! Wow. I haven't seen you in...in ages. How have you been?" I slid my arms away from around him, relief swept over as I was glad I didn't call him 'Tiny', the cruel irony being, that this was the first time I had ever seen him looking so...good. I just couldn't believe that this was the same Tim from school. It was so good to see him.