’ave ze plan. Zis is mon three or four boyfriend plan. Je commence on Saturday at le gig. I am going to make Seth Hinchcliff my plaything.
Au revoir
How can she even think about having anything to do with that family?
At lunch we got togged up in our hats and coats and slouched out through the gates. It was freezing. We linked arms for warmlies as we crunched over the dead leaves and fallen-down branches. The woods have changed since we were last here. Not many leaves on any of the trees.
Suddenly I felt all wistful and autumny and said sadly, “The woods have gone all baldy.”
Jo was scampering ahead. “Baldy-smaldy, it’s just trees. I wonder if the lads will be out and about. Do you think so, do you? I know they are back today because Phil told me it was the same day as us.”
Vaisey said, “It would be really nice to see Jack but maybe it’s a bit too soon. I mean, it’s only the first day … and anyway, does my hair look a bit, a bit …”
I said, “Mad?”
As Vaisey started smoothing down her curls she looked at my head. “Lullah, you’ve got a bit of twig in your hair. Shall I pick it out?”
I let her pick the twig out of my hair not because I wanted to impress the boys. It was just too twiggy.
I said to Jo, “Did Phil say he would meet you today at the tree? At lunchtime?”
Flossie said, “Did you tell him to bring some mates for me? Like a mate should.”
Jo started spontaneously smashing up a big mound of toadstools with a stick. She said, “If someone has been talking to you every day and then didn’t get in touch for two whole days is there a secret boy meaning in that?”
I don’t know.
I said, “My cousin Georgia says that boys are like gazelles. She says they get alarmed when they get close to girls. And have to leap off to the woods like gazelles in trousers. Or have I just made that up?”
Vaisey said, “Gazelles in trousers? But gazelles have got four legs, haven’t they? So that’s two pairs of trousers really …”
Jo put her hand over Vaisey’s mouth.
Flossie said, “Well, what did Phil say when he last spoke to you?”
Jo said, “He said, ‘See you later.’”
Uh-oh. What did that mean? When was later? Was later today? Or was that too early for later?
I found myself rambling out loud.
“I didn’t know that being a girl was such hard work. Did you? I sort of thought you went along looking like a boy for a bit then your corkers started growing, and that was it. I tried to ask Mum once about girl stuff. And she said, ‘Just be yourself’ and went off to the Netherlands to paint bikes.”
Vaisey said, “I know. I didn’t know whether to bring my plectrum or not. And anyway what does giving someone a plectrum mean? It might not mean what a girl thinks it means. It might not be nice. A boy might mean, here’s a plectrum, now go and get your own guitar and play it. It would be good if Honey was here because she knows a lot.”
Jo said, “But we didn’t have a row or anything, I didn’t do any more shouting than normal. Why would he just not phone me?”
I said bitterly, “I don’t know. Why do boys be nice to you and then, er, not be?”
Vaisey said cheerfully, “Maybe Phil, well, he’s quite physical, isn’t he? Maybe he broke his hand when he was helping the police … and couldn’t write or phone with it.”
Flossie looked at her. “He would have to have broken both hands, wouldn’t he?”
Vaisey shook her curls. “Yes, that will be it, he kept on helping the police after he’d broken one hand and then the other one … broke.”
Flossie said, “That’s a bit unrealistic, Vaisey. Maybe, maybe he got sudden eczema of the head and was …”
I said, “Too shy to say?”
Flossie nodded.
I said, “Or, it may have been … boils. Adolescent boils.”
I have just realized I’ve still got my dance tights on. They don’t exactly hide my knees. And what would I do if Charlie was there? Should I ignore him? Perhaps he would ignore
Au revoir
How can she even think about having anything to do with that family?
At lunch we got togged up in our hats and coats and slouched out through the gates. It was freezing. We linked arms for warmlies as we crunched over the dead leaves and fallen-down branches. The woods have changed since we were last here. Not many leaves on any of the trees.
Suddenly I felt all wistful and autumny and said sadly, “The woods have gone all baldy.”
Jo was scampering ahead. “Baldy-smaldy, it’s just trees. I wonder if the lads will be out and about. Do you think so, do you? I know they are back today because Phil told me it was the same day as us.”
Vaisey said, “It would be really nice to see Jack but maybe it’s a bit too soon. I mean, it’s only the first day … and anyway, does my hair look a bit, a bit …”
I said, “Mad?”
As Vaisey started smoothing down her curls she looked at my head. “Lullah, you’ve got a bit of twig in your hair. Shall I pick it out?”
I let her pick the twig out of my hair not because I wanted to impress the boys. It was just too twiggy.
I said to Jo, “Did Phil say he would meet you today at the tree? At lunchtime?”
Flossie said, “Did you tell him to bring some mates for me? Like a mate should.”
Jo started spontaneously smashing up a big mound of toadstools with a stick. She said, “If someone has been talking to you every day and then didn’t get in touch for two whole days is there a secret boy meaning in that?”
I don’t know.
I said, “My cousin Georgia says that boys are like gazelles. She says they get alarmed when they get close to girls. And have to leap off to the woods like gazelles in trousers. Or have I just made that up?”
Vaisey said, “Gazelles in trousers? But gazelles have got four legs, haven’t they? So that’s two pairs of trousers really …”
Jo put her hand over Vaisey’s mouth.
Flossie said, “Well, what did Phil say when he last spoke to you?”
Jo said, “He said, ‘See you later.’”
Uh-oh. What did that mean? When was later? Was later today? Or was that too early for later?
I found myself rambling out loud.
“I didn’t know that being a girl was such hard work. Did you? I sort of thought you went along looking like a boy for a bit then your corkers started growing, and that was it. I tried to ask Mum once about girl stuff. And she said, ‘Just be yourself’ and went off to the Netherlands to paint bikes.”
Vaisey said, “I know. I didn’t know whether to bring my plectrum or not. And anyway what does giving someone a plectrum mean? It might not mean what a girl thinks it means. It might not be nice. A boy might mean, here’s a plectrum, now go and get your own guitar and play it. It would be good if Honey was here because she knows a lot.”
Jo said, “But we didn’t have a row or anything, I didn’t do any more shouting than normal. Why would he just not phone me?”
I said bitterly, “I don’t know. Why do boys be nice to you and then, er, not be?”
Vaisey said cheerfully, “Maybe Phil, well, he’s quite physical, isn’t he? Maybe he broke his hand when he was helping the police … and couldn’t write or phone with it.”
Flossie looked at her. “He would have to have broken both hands, wouldn’t he?”
Vaisey shook her curls. “Yes, that will be it, he kept on helping the police after he’d broken one hand and then the other one … broke.”
Flossie said, “That’s a bit unrealistic, Vaisey. Maybe, maybe he got sudden eczema of the head and was …”
I said, “Too shy to say?”
Flossie nodded.
I said, “Or, it may have been … boils. Adolescent boils.”
I have just realized I’ve still got my dance tights on. They don’t exactly hide my knees. And what would I do if Charlie was there? Should I ignore him? Perhaps he would ignore
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