Kitabı oku: «The Glitter Collection», sayfa 12
“Her name’s Rosebud,” he says. And we all agree.
Chapter 28
i eat my cake in little nibbles…
Indigo and I always race home from school, and guess what? She always wins. Except today is different. We’ve had these freak snowstorms and the whole island is kneedeep in snow. It’s all right for tractors because they can plough through it without any trouble, but for us it means we have to slip and slide and crunch our way home. Max is busy making massive snowballs and keeps trying to drop them down the back of my coat. I get my own back by sending a big one flying through the air that lands on his head. His red cheeks are dripping with tiny bits of ice, and snowflakes flutter and dance on his eyelashes and hair.
“Got you,” I squeal.
He slides towards me with a handful of frosty flakes that’s heading for my face.
“And I got you back,” he cheers, covering me in snow.
“Glet’s make snow gangels,” says Indigo. And we all collapse on the floor laughing and giggling and making angel wings in the snow with our arms.
When Indigo and I get home, Uncle Dan is waiting for us with steaming mugs of hot chocolate, thick slices of honey cake, a roaring fire and a white envelope for me.
My heart leaps about in my chest. I know it’s from my mum because of the stamp on the front that says HMP Henmoore. And I know that the rest of my life will be changed by the words she’s written inside. If she says we have to go back to London it means that I’ll have to leave my new family and my friends and, worst of all, Stardust behind, and that doesn’t even feel possible right now. I suppose at least I’d have Chelsea and my old school back, but London life actually seems boring compared to here. But if my mum says we can stay here on Sark, forever…Well, I’ll burst with excitement and squeal for joy.
I eat my cake in little nibbles to make it last longer and sip my drink in long, slow sips. The letter keeps winking at me, waiting to be opened, waiting for me to discover what my future will be.
“Go on,” encourages Uncle Dan. “You won’t know until you open it,” he says.
“I’m scared,” I say. “What will I do if she says we can’t stay?”
“Well, you won’t know until you open it, will you? You might not even have to worry about it. Go on.”
So I pick up the envelope and slowly open it.
Hi, babe,
I hope you and Indigo are enjoying all the snow. I’ve seen it on telly and it looks amazing. Remember to wrap up warm so you don’t catch any nasty chills.
I’m having second thoughts about London, Tiff. I know you say you’re missing it and I’m sure you must be missing Chelsea loads, but I’m not so sure that moving back is such a good idea. I hope you won’t be too disappointed.
I have had this brilliant idea, though, I hope you like it. Anyway, here goes. I get released from here on March 6th, only twelve days to go. Yay! And I was thinking that I could come straight over and start working in the hotel kitchen. You know, we could try it out, no promises to stay forever, but it would be a good place to start. I’ve told my cookery teacher my brilliant plan and she’s got me going on all the special sauces and types of hotel food, so I’ll be well prepared when I arrive. Show this letter to Auntie Cass and Uncle Dan and write back soon to let me know what you all think. I’m so excited; I hope you all say yes! And tell them to say no to Mandy, she’s not a good idea.
And you’re right, Tiff, I did hurt a lot of people, but they loved me once and I hope they’ll be prepared to give me a second chance. I’ll have to work hard to earn their respect, but this prison experience has changed me, Tiff, for the better. You’ll see when I get home. I’m so nervous and excited all at once, I can’t stop dancing about. The girls all think I’ve gone crazy – nothing new there then!
I love you millions and millions and more and more.
You and me, babe. You and me.
Love Mama xxx
P.S. There’s nothing much to know about your dad, Tiff, except that he was the love of my life. He did a runner before you were born, and I haven’t heard from him since.
P.P.S. His name’s Billy.
The smile that’s spreading its way across my face and lighting me up like a lighthouse tells Uncle Dan everything he needs to know.
“Brilliant news, Tiff?” he asks.
“Brilliant news!” I smile.
Auntie Cass comes in from the snow, throws off her boots at the door and tumbles into the sitting room.
“So?” she asks. “What did she say? Please tell me she said yes.”
“She said yes,” I smile. “She said yes and she’ll actually be home in twelve days.”
Auntie Cass is almost more excited than me. She dances Indigo around the room, gives Uncle Dan a big wet kiss on the lips and hugs me tight.
“I never want to lose you, Tiff, I’m the happiest woman alive.”
And I’m the happiest girl alive. Except for one thing: Holly. She’s still hassling me now that we’re back at school, making comments and blackmailing me to do her homework. But I don’t even care about her right now. I run out to Stardust to tell her my good news and run up to my bedroom to write a speedy reply to Mum. This letter is easy. I draw a big pink heart on the page and in the middle write “YES” using my special silver pen. I stuff the letter in an envelope, quickly finish off Holly’s homework, then swish my icy way to the post box. I still feel weird addressing a letter to my mum in prison, but hopefully this will be the last time. Sometimes, in the pit of my stomach, I still feel like it’s me that’s done something wrong, like it’s me who should be feeling guilty.
I slide over to Max’s tree house wishing I could spill my news, wishing I could tell him that my brilliant plan to get my mum to live here has worked. But I can’t because nobody knows about what’s happening with my mum, except Holly of course. I squish my happy, excited sparkles into my heart and I wonder if you can see them glowing from the outside.
“Hi Max,” I say, peeping my head through the trap door. “Anyone at home?”
“I’m here,” he says, “and so’s Isla.”
I climb up into the tree house. Isla’s face turns bright red and Max jumps up and starts busying himself with his insect collection. I suddenly feel a bit awkward but I don’t know why.
“I’m not interrupting anything, am I?” I say.
“Er, no,” says Isla, looking more like a tomato every minute. “I just popped over ’cause I left my jumper here at the weekend.”
Everyone goes quiet. Max starts cleaning out his stick insects and Isla starts gazing at him, like she’s suddenly superly interested in what he’s doing. Her eyes go all misty and dreamy and take on that faraway look that my mum gets when she’s watching a romantic film. My mind suddenly makes the connection. Max and Isla! Never! This is too weird for words.
“I had a letter from my mum today,” I say to break the spell. “She’s finishing her job and coming over to Sark in twelve days time. She says we can stay here, on the island. I won’t have to go back to London, ever. I’m so excited.”
And the three of us jump up and down and dance around like crazy people until Max’s mum comes to tell us to be quiet, because she can hear us from the field.
Chapter 29
D.O.N.T…
My mum arrives on Sark in three days’ time and I’m actually really starting to panic. I’ve kind of got used to not having her around and used to asking Auntie Cass and Uncle Dan if I need help with anything, or if I can go out with my friends and stuff like that. And I’m worried that when my mum gets back everything’s just going to feel all confusing again. When my mum knows that I have a routine and I go up to bed at nine and read for half an hour, she’s just going to burst out laughing at me. She’ll think it’s a ridiculous thing to do because she’ll want me to stay up late and keep her company and have fun watching movies and eating snacks. Then I’m going to be stuck not knowing what to do, or who to please. And I really hope that she’s not going to be embarrassing all the time and all loud and attention-seeking, like she was in London. I feel really guilty feeling like this, but I like my new life and although I miss her and want her to come home, in some ways it would be much easier if she could just stay where she is and not interfere.
For some reason we all decide it’s a good idea to have a grand clean up before Mum comes home. Everyone’s a bit nervous and edgy and we find that keeping busy helps to calm us all down. We start on the downstairs and move our way up like a big cleaning machine, dusting, Hoovering, washing and straightening. Uncle Dan finds a spare mattress in the hotel storeroom and we put it in my room for Mum. The barn’s not quite finished, so she’ll have to share with me for a few weeks, until it’s ready for us to move in.
Me and Indigo head out into the field and we give Stardust and Cupcake their very own pony makeovers. We brush them until they’re gleaming and smooth, make loads of little plaits all along their manes, and brush their forelocks straight and long. We pick up all the poo in sight and make sure there’s no rubbish in the field.
When we’re finished I go inside, run up to the bathroom and lock myself in. I stare in the mirror and a worried-looking girl stares right back at me. It’s easy to make the house and the ponies and the field look smart and clean, but what about me? What will my mum think of me being all covered in mud all the time, with grubby nails and scruffy hair? Look at you, says my reflection in the mirror, you’re a state. Your hair’s grown all wonky and your face always seems to have either mud or cake crumbs all over it. And your clothes, just look at them; you look like you’ve been dragged through a hedge backwards. What will your mum say? You’re a mess Tiffany Morris and there’s no getting away from it.
“Shut up,” I shout at my reflection, “shut up, shut up, shut up, it doesn’t matter, none of that stuff matters any more. I’m tired of keeping her happy all the time. I need to keep myself happy too and say what I want for my life sometimes, like Isla needs to. And anyway, I like being like this. I like being muddy and cakey and tangly. And I don’t even care what you say.”
Do.
“Don’t.”
Do, do, do.
“I don’t,” I shout. “Do you get it? D. O. N. T. spells DON’T! And if she gets in a mood then it’s her problem, not mine.”
Chapter 30
toffee slipped on the ice…
Only two days to go, it’s Saturday, and I need some fresh air and some time alone. I tell Auntie Cass I’m going for a walk and head off towards the woods. The snow is still thick in places, and bright sunshine sparkles through the winter trees. Brave little snowdrops peep their hats above the soil, and snowy silence drifts on the wind. School is fine, except for Holly who still hangs over me like a bad smell. She knows my mum’s coming home soon and is threatening to leak our secret to the whole island. I told her she was taking things too far. But she’s not letting up. “A deal is a deal, Tiffany Morris,” she’d said, pushing me against the wall.
Max has gone off somewhere with his mum and wouldn’t say where. And poor Isla has gone to an open day at her expensive boarding school. Obviously, she didn’t tell her parents that she really doesn’t want to go and somehow I don’t think she ever will. I’ve promised to take Indigo to a jumble sale in the Island Hall at two o’clock. Indigo and me love rummaging through all the old stuff and cycling home with our bike baskets full. It’s even more fun than shopping in actual shops because there are so many treasures waiting to be discovered. But right now I just need some thinking time alone.
Since living on Sark I’ve discovered that walking is a good way of getting rid of my life worries. Every step usually makes them float away on the breeze, far, far out to sea where they belong, helping to clear my mind. But today it’s not working because my worries are big. Very big. I’m really panicking now about how things are going to be when my mum comes home. It’s a weird feeling. Like I’m meeting my mum for the first time, or something. Then I go off on some daydream about what it would be like to meet my dad for the first time.
My snowy silence is broken by a loud snapping twig, which makes me jump. Then a heavy thud noise travels on the air. I hear a pony neighing somewhere ahead of me and a girl screaming and I freeze, not knowing what to do.
“Help,” calls the girl’s voice. “Please somebody, help me.”
I charge forward in the direction of the girl’s voice. She sounds frightened and keeps on calling and calling.
“Hang on,” I shout. “I’m coming.”
I come to a clearing in the trees, and there on the wet, snowy ground is Holly, clutching her ankle and whimpering with pain. She has a massive bump on her forehead and a bleeding cut on the side of her face.
“Oh,” I say, backing off, “it’s you.”
“Toffee slipped on the ice and I fell off. I think he’s really badly hurt his knee and my ankle’s killing me. I don’t think I can manage to get up.”
“Holly, what are you doing out here on your own in the ice? Where’s your mum?” I’m frozen to the spot and I don’t know what to do.
“I had a really bad argument with her and needed some time to think. I was stupid to come out in this weather and now it’s all my fault that Toffee’s hurt,” she cries. “Please, I need your help, Tiff.”
“Well, you’re right, you are stupid to ride alone in this weather, and why should I bother with you anyway? You’ve been so mean to me, Holly, and if I had any sense I’d walk away right now and leave you to freeze.” I grab Toffee’s reigns and try to calm the pony down.
“Please don’t leave me, Tiff,” she cries, “I might die out here if you go.”
“And if I help, then what happens, you get better and then carry on bullying me like nothing’s changed?”
“No,” she whimpers, feeling the blood on her face. “I’ll stop. I’ll leave you alone, anything you say, just don’t leave me, Tiff, please. I need to get home.”
“Of course I’ll help but you have to tell me why you and your mum hate me and my mum so much.”
“I promise,” she cries, wincing with pain.
“And you need to stop trying to own Isla, she’s her own person you know, with feelings, she’s not a toy.”
She nods. I move closer to her.
“OK, Holly,” I sigh. “I’m here. Do you think you can stand?”
“I’ll have a go,” she says, taking my arm. I pull her up and put her arm around my shoulder, taking her weight. Toffee’s looking nervous and he’s walking with a limp.
“Right, hold on tightly to me and let’s give it a go.”
And together we slowly hobble and slide back through the woods, out towards Holly’s house. Toffee’s taking his time and Holly’s really worried that his injury is bad. She can feel her ankle swelling up inside her boot, so we try taking it off to have a look, but it hurts her too much so we keep on going.
“D’you think it’s broken?” I ask.
“I don’t think so,” she says. “I’m more worried about poor old Toffee, it’ll be terrible if he’s hurt his knee. If he goes lame my mum might even force me to have him put down.”
I rub her shoulder to make her feel better, then I remember that she was going to tell me what happened to make our mum’s hate each other. “I want to know everything,” I say. “All the details.”
“Well, I don’t really know much myself,” she says, “but I think it all started years ago when our mums were best friends. Your mum kept stealing things from mine. And it was OK when it was small stuff, but it just got bigger and bigger until your mum ran off with my mum’s boyfriend. And then a few months later I came along and it’s just been me and her ever since. That’s why she’s so mad. Your mum stole the love of her life and he was my dad too. So I’ve never even seen him. And I don’t even now his name. I keep asking my mum but she never says.”
“Well, you’re not the only one, you know. That’s exactly what my mum says about my dad too. He ran off just before I was born and I’ve never seen him either. It’s always been just Mum and me. That’s why I had to come here when she went away.”
Now I can understand why Mandy is so angry. “I’m sorry, Holly. My mum does get herself in a mess sometimes. But she’s changed, you know.”
“I’m sorry too,” says Holly.
I can’t believe Holly is apologising to me!
“I didn’t want to be mean to you,” she’s saying. “I just followed my mum instead of thinking for myself. We always look out for each other. And I’m sorry about your mum and prison and everything. It must have been really scary.”
“Yeah, it was,” I say. “Well, it looks like we’ve got more in common than we thought, Holly Hutchinson. Come on.” And then we start laughing, but that makes Holly’s foot hurt even more so we smother our giggles and hobble on home.
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