“So what’s your problem?” says Deevya.

Can a girl not have a moment to have a quiet sulk to herself without being called on it?

“Nothing.”

“Ja right,” says Deevya. “This is exactly what I was trying to warn you about last night. I told you that Simon was trouble for you.”

“I really don’t know what you’re talking about Deevya.”

“No Hope,” Deevya says “I think it’s more like you don’t want to hear what I’m talking about. You’ve got all these ideas about meant-to-be love and you’re totally star struck by Simon. But I’m telling you this – if you’re imagining for one second that he’s The One, then you’re setting yourself up for a big fall. And that’s the simple truth.” 

I feel a rush of blood to my head. It’s so typical that Deevya thinks she can be so certain about my love life and it’s so annoying! Did I tell you that Deevya had a boyfriend called Prakesh for a year? They broke up six months ago and with that it seems that Deevya decided she had the education required to graduate with a doctorate in L.O.V.E. She thinks she knows it all and that she is the relationship expert, while we know nothing. 

The timing is not good for her to administer her ‘expert’ advice on love and life. Right now I’m bruised, tired and confused. It feels like for the last 24 hours Deevya has done nothing but tell me what I should be thinking, feeling and doing. And she doesn’t seem to understand that I just want her to keep her nose out of my business and leave me to make my own choices in my own time. I’m so over her right now! In fact, I crack.

“Sorry Deevya, but who are you to be preaching the “simple truth” to me?” I explode. “If it wasn’t for you I wouldn’t have been in that stupid club last night, I wouldn’t have broken the law, met Simon, hurt my ankle, nor ended up in a position where I’m lying to my own mother! Can you possibly understand that if you hadn’t started trying to take over control of my life we wouldn’t be sitting here having this conversation right now?  So don’t you start preaching to me about simplicity and truth when it’s quite obvious that your handle on both is a little shaky right now.”

Deevya’s eyes go wide and then to my horror they brim with tears. 

“I … I think I’m going to go for a swim,” she chokes out in a small, strangled voice.

And then she gets up and runs blindly into the sea with all her jewellery on.

I stare after her in dismay, not least because it seems that Deevya has forgotten that she doesn’t know how to swim. But still, she just keeps wading in deeper, clumsily banging into swimmers as she goes. I see the learner surfer fall off his surfboard before she does and as his board flies into the air I know what’s going to happen next. 

“Deevya!” I scream, and leap to my feet, running despite the pain in my ankle. 

And then the surfboard comes crashing down, its sharp nose hits her on the back of the head and Deevya disappears beneath the waves. 

WHAT DO YOU THINK? Has Deevya gone overboard by interfering in Hope’s life? Or is she just trying to do what’s best for her friend?