scene.’
My mum appears at the kitchen door. ‘Good morning,’ she chirps, beaming at me. ‘Hey, there,’ she says huskily to Michael, stretching up to plant a kiss on his cheek. He glances my way and looks embarrassed.
‘Blast. I forgot the tea.’ He bounds over to the other side of the kitchen. ‘I got distracted telling Lily about spiders.’
‘I saw a massive one last night,’ I interject.
‘Ew,’ Mum says dismissively as he grabs the kettle and fills it with water.
‘Yeah, I said she should come to work with me one day and check ’em out,’ Michael goes on. ‘I think she’d rather see the koalas though.’
Mum nudges me. ‘You’d like to do that, wouldn’t you?’
I shrug. ‘Maybe.’
In fact, I’d secretly love to. The truth is, I’m dying to get up close to some real Australian wildlife. I adore animals. I once toyed with the idea of becoming a vet, but my grades were never good enough. And Mum wasn’t exaggerating when she said I didn’t want to go on holiday one year because my hamster was ill. I was twelve and I’d had Billy for two years, but the day before we were due to fly to Tenerife he started shivering and shaking. I was beside myself. I stayed up half the night watching over him and told Mum there was no way I was going on holiday and leaving him with our next-door neighbours if he wasn’t better by the morning. I couldn’t keep my eyes open after two a.m. though, and when I woke up at six, bleary-eyed and hopeful, little Billy was dead.
As Mum excuses herself to go to the bathroom, Michael puts three mugs of tea on the table and pushes one in my direction. I stir in a teaspoon of sugar and look across at him.
‘My mum said yesterday that one of the animals at the conservation park was ill. A Tasmanian Devil or something?’
‘Yeah, yeah, poor old Henry was looking a bit dodgy there for a while, but he’s going to be fine.’
‘Oh, good. What is a Tasmanian Devil, by the way?’
‘It’s a carnivorous marsupial which is only found in the wild in Tasmania. You know Tasmania, that island that hangs off the bottom of the mainland.’
‘Yes, of course.’ Yep, I know Tasmania, but what the hell does a carnivorous marsupial look like?
Mum re-enters the room before I can ask. Michael eyes me thoughtfully.
‘What did you and Josh get up to last night?’ Mum asks, pulling up a chair next to me and reaching for her tea.
‘Nothing,’ I mumble. ‘He went out with some mates.’
‘Have you got any plans for today?’
‘I don’t know, Mum.’ I can’t help but sound snappy. What does she think I’ve been doing all night while she’s been getting her rocks off? Going from door to door making friends with the neighbours? I get up, huffily. ‘I’m going to have a shower.’
‘What about your tea?’
‘I’ll take it with me.’ I pick up the steaming mug and try to block out the look of hurt on her face as I leave the room.
An hour and a half later I’m in my bedroom, aimlessly flicking through the pages of a magazine, when there’s a knock at the door. I close my eyes resignedly. I can’t be bothered to talk to Mum right now.
‘Come in,’ I call.
I’m surprised when Michael pokes his head around the door, saying, ‘I’m leaving for work in forty minutes. Do you fancy coming with me?’
‘Oh.’ I sit up, surprised.
‘No worries if not, there’ll be plenty of other opportunities.’
‘No, no, I’d . . . Well . . . is my mum coming too?’
‘Nah, she said she’d be happy unpacking and settling in at home.’
‘Okay, then. If you’re sure.’
‘Sure I’m sure.’
He turns to leave, but I call him back.
‘What should I wear?’
‘Anything you like. But it’s going to be hot today so bring a hat and a bottle of sunscreen.’
I climb off the bed and open the wardrobe. My only two skirts stare out at me, daring me to choose them over the jeans I’m already wearing, but I leave them where they are and even go one further by
My mum appears at the kitchen door. ‘Good morning,’ she chirps, beaming at me. ‘Hey, there,’ she says huskily to Michael, stretching up to plant a kiss on his cheek. He glances my way and looks embarrassed.
‘Blast. I forgot the tea.’ He bounds over to the other side of the kitchen. ‘I got distracted telling Lily about spiders.’
‘I saw a massive one last night,’ I interject.
‘Ew,’ Mum says dismissively as he grabs the kettle and fills it with water.
‘Yeah, I said she should come to work with me one day and check ’em out,’ Michael goes on. ‘I think she’d rather see the koalas though.’
Mum nudges me. ‘You’d like to do that, wouldn’t you?’
I shrug. ‘Maybe.’
In fact, I’d secretly love to. The truth is, I’m dying to get up close to some real Australian wildlife. I adore animals. I once toyed with the idea of becoming a vet, but my grades were never good enough. And Mum wasn’t exaggerating when she said I didn’t want to go on holiday one year because my hamster was ill. I was twelve and I’d had Billy for two years, but the day before we were due to fly to Tenerife he started shivering and shaking. I was beside myself. I stayed up half the night watching over him and told Mum there was no way I was going on holiday and leaving him with our next-door neighbours if he wasn’t better by the morning. I couldn’t keep my eyes open after two a.m. though, and when I woke up at six, bleary-eyed and hopeful, little Billy was dead.
As Mum excuses herself to go to the bathroom, Michael puts three mugs of tea on the table and pushes one in my direction. I stir in a teaspoon of sugar and look across at him.
‘My mum said yesterday that one of the animals at the conservation park was ill. A Tasmanian Devil or something?’
‘Yeah, yeah, poor old Henry was looking a bit dodgy there for a while, but he’s going to be fine.’
‘Oh, good. What is a Tasmanian Devil, by the way?’
‘It’s a carnivorous marsupial which is only found in the wild in Tasmania. You know Tasmania, that island that hangs off the bottom of the mainland.’
‘Yes, of course.’ Yep, I know Tasmania, but what the hell does a carnivorous marsupial look like?
Mum re-enters the room before I can ask. Michael eyes me thoughtfully.
‘What did you and Josh get up to last night?’ Mum asks, pulling up a chair next to me and reaching for her tea.
‘Nothing,’ I mumble. ‘He went out with some mates.’
‘Have you got any plans for today?’
‘I don’t know, Mum.’ I can’t help but sound snappy. What does she think I’ve been doing all night while she’s been getting her rocks off? Going from door to door making friends with the neighbours? I get up, huffily. ‘I’m going to have a shower.’
‘What about your tea?’
‘I’ll take it with me.’ I pick up the steaming mug and try to block out the look of hurt on her face as I leave the room.
An hour and a half later I’m in my bedroom, aimlessly flicking through the pages of a magazine, when there’s a knock at the door. I close my eyes resignedly. I can’t be bothered to talk to Mum right now.
‘Come in,’ I call.
I’m surprised when Michael pokes his head around the door, saying, ‘I’m leaving for work in forty minutes. Do you fancy coming with me?’
‘Oh.’ I sit up, surprised.
‘No worries if not, there’ll be plenty of other opportunities.’
‘No, no, I’d . . . Well . . . is my mum coming too?’
‘Nah, she said she’d be happy unpacking and settling in at home.’
‘Okay, then. If you’re sure.’
‘Sure I’m sure.’
He turns to leave, but I call him back.
‘What should I wear?’
‘Anything you like. But it’s going to be hot today so bring a hat and a bottle of sunscreen.’
I climb off the bed and open the wardrobe. My only two skirts stare out at me, daring me to choose them over the jeans I’m already wearing, but I leave them where they are and even go one further by
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