‘Are you all right Lily?’ Anne asks me when she realises that I don't want to let go of the hug and hold her even tighter. 

‘Yes, sorry,’ I say quickly and let go of her. 

I can feel my cheeks turning red and I look away. 

‘Lily.’ Anne puts her hand on my shoulder and I feel her warmth again. ‘You don't have to apologise. What`s going on?’ 

When I notice that my cheeks are back to their normal colour, I turn around and sit down on the bench. Anne sits down next to me and looks at me with concern. 

‘Thank you for thinking about me and the dinner with my grandparents yesterday. I thought it would be easier to tell you about it in person than over text. Is that okay?’ I say questioningly. 

‘Yeah, of course. And I'm glad to be out of the house anyway. My parents are celebrating their 20th wedding anniversary next weekend and are planning a big party. And I'm happy to get out of the party planning for a bit,’ she says with a smile on her face. 

‘Wow, 20 years, romantic and impressive,’ I reply. 

‘Yes, that's probably what the party will be like. Romantic and impressive. Just the way my dads like it. They'll make my little brother and me give a speech and rave about what a great family we are.’ she says, rolling her eyes.

 ‘You haven't even told me about your family yet. They sound great and if you need help with your speech, I'll be happy to read it.’ 

As we sit on the bench, the sun slowly disappears behind the gathering clouds and it gets colder. Anne notices that I'm starting to shiver, opens her rucksack and takes out a picnic blanket. 

‘Never leave the house without a blanket. Here.’ She holds the blanket out to me and I lay it over my legs. 

‘Thank you,’ I reply and examine the colourful blanket. It's knitted and has little suns in different colours on it. It feels as if all the little suns are keeping me warm. 

‘Did you make this yourself?’ I ask her and run my index finger over a green sun. 

‘No, my grandma knitted it for me for my twelfth birthday. Since then, I've always had it with me everywhere I go. But enough about me. You wanted to tell me about your day yesterday. How is your grandfather?’ she asks me.

‘I think he's doing well so far. He definitely says he's doing well. But I don't buy that. He tries to be strong for everyone. But I notice that he's more tired than usual and is absent from conversations more often. That scares me,’ I say quietly and pull the blanket a little tighter around my legs. 

‘I understand that. Have you talked to him about your worries?’ Anne asks me and I can see her shaking a little too. 

‘Here, you're getting cold too. We can both be under the blanket,’ I say to her and lift the blanket. 

Anne hesitates at first, but then she scoots closer and slips under the blanket. Anne is sitting so close to me that our legs and arms are touching and I feel my body start to tingle again and the warm feeling returns. I look at the blanket and the suns and when I look up at Anne again, she is looking at me with a questioning look. 

‘Oh, yes, I spoke to him about it. He says I should try to live in the moment and enjoy it. I'm trying to do that, but I'm finding it very difficult. I think I'm just someone who always worries about the people who are important to me. And at the same time, I don't want to burden him with my worries, so I try to enjoy the moment when I'm with him. What I'm saying doesn't make any sense, does it?’ I ask Anne and look down at the green, red, blue and orange suns again. 

‘Oh yes, Lily. It makes sense to me. I think everyone has their own strategies for dealing with difficult situations. The way your grandfather deals with it is right for him but maybe not for you. I think you have to find your own way and if you need support, I'm always here for you. Buddy Promise.’ Anne says and leans against me. ‘Okay?’ 

I'm almost on the verge of tears again and reply in a whisper, ‘Thank you.’ 

Anne puts her arm around me and I lean towards her. 

‘I'm here,’ she says and we just sit there for a while, watching the sun set behind the clouds and the park slowly empty. 

Suddenly I feel a drop on my nose and look up. Huge rain clouds have formed above us and four more drops hit me in the face. 

‘Oh no,’ I say to Anne as I put the blanket away and stand up. ‘We have to go. Otherwise we'll get dripping wet.’

 Anne just laughs and quickly stows her blanket in her rucksack. 

‘Let's go then,’ she says and sprints off as the rain gets heavier and heavier. 

We have no chance of arriving anywhere dry. It seems as if someone is emptying a huge pot of water. 

‘Come on Lily,’ Anne calls to me and holds out her hand. 

‘You know I'm not that fast,’ I reply and take her hand. 

We run through the park and out onto the pavement. 

During the race, Anne asks me ‘Which way do you have to go?’ 

‘Up ahead, I have to go right and you?’ I reply, panting and dripping wet. 

‘I have to go left,’ she says, just as out of breath. 

When we reach the junction, I let go of her hand and shout to her through the rain: ‘Then I'll see you at school tomorrow’. 

Anne stops and waves to me. I wave back and run to the next pedestrian crossing at a crossroads. The pedestrian lights are red so I have to wait in the rain. But as my clothes are dripping wet anyway, I don't mind. As I wait, I can feel myself getting cold again. Suddenly I hear quick footsteps behind me. 

‘Lily!’ As I turn round, I see Anne running towards me. 

‘What's wrong?’ I shout to her.