think if she said her new English teacher’s voice was so soothing that it achieved what nothing else ever had.
When she heard him turn on the shower, she switched her lamp back on and lay staring at the ceiling.
She tried to remember if there were any girls at school with the initials CC. She couldn’t think of any, so she dug out last year’s school magazine and pored over the class photos, looking for a possible match. She even examined the girls in the year below, but didn’t find anyone with a name that fit. Then she noticed there was a guy called Chris Collins in Year Ten. Well, he’d be in Year Eleven this year. But that didn’t make any sense. Unless… no. Gabe wouldn’t ask her to be his girlfriend if he was really interested in guys, would he?
She almost laughed out loud. CC must be someone else. But she might mention Chris’ name in passing next time she saw Gabe, just to gauge his reaction.
She set up her iPod and headphones with Orion’s Head and turned off the light. Lizzie’s favourite song was called Interstellar , which was about a guy wishing he could experience a fledgling relationship in outer space with his new lover, away from prying eyes and other peoples’ judgement.
Lizzie liked to pretend he’d written it about her, even though the song was two years old. She wondered if it was based on an actual past experience.
She listened to the song, and waited for sleep to come.
It only took a couple of minutes, and then she was out.
***
The roar of the lawnmower woke her up. Lizzie still found it strange that she now didn’t open her eyes before seven. She wondered if the neighbours would appreciate her father getting an early start in the garden.
She pulled on a faded pink t-shirt and a pair of grey running shorts, and headed out into the back yard.
Robert temporarily turned off the mower.
‘Hey sweetie. Early night last night?’
‘Yeah. I was a bit wiped out from the week.’
‘Weren’t you going out with some boy?’
‘We had dinner, but he dropped me home around nine.’
‘I like him already. When are you going to introduce me?’
‘Next weekend maybe?’
‘Sounds good. Are you still free to help me out here this morning?’
‘Yes, of course.’
‘Great. How about you grab some breakfast and then we can tackle the weeding together after I’m done with the grass?’
‘Cool.’
Robert turned back to the mower. Lizzie went inside to make herself a coffee and a piece of toast with peanut butter.
She’d become addicted to caffeine at fourteen when her dad had given up trying to ban it. Since she was sleeping so well these days, she found she didn’t really need it during the day anymore, but it was such a comfortable habit that she didn’t see any point in quitting.
She put a heaped teaspoon of instant and a large serving of sugar into a mug, and then topped it up with boiling water. She didn’t like polluting her drinks with milk, so she gulped it down black, burning her tongue and throat in the process.
She carried her piece of toast out into the garden and watched as her dad finished up with the lawn. She looked around at the plants. Her gaze was drawn as always, to the frangipani tree. It was in full bloom right now, and its flowers emitted a lovely tropical perfume. Robert told Lizzie that her mum had been a huge fan of frangipanis and had helped plant that exact tree. So every year when the first buds appeared, Lizzie pretended it was her mum saying hello. She knew it was cheesy, but it was her way of maintaining a connection.
Jenny White had died from ovarian cancer at the age of thirty. Lizzie’s dad didn’t talk about it very often, but he was always willing to answer questions about their life together and all the memories they shared. This helped Lizzie build a picture of the woman who had given birth to her.
She knew that her mum had loved movies, and that her favourites were Pretty Woman and Titanic . She had listened to a lot of eighties
When she heard him turn on the shower, she switched her lamp back on and lay staring at the ceiling.
She tried to remember if there were any girls at school with the initials CC. She couldn’t think of any, so she dug out last year’s school magazine and pored over the class photos, looking for a possible match. She even examined the girls in the year below, but didn’t find anyone with a name that fit. Then she noticed there was a guy called Chris Collins in Year Ten. Well, he’d be in Year Eleven this year. But that didn’t make any sense. Unless… no. Gabe wouldn’t ask her to be his girlfriend if he was really interested in guys, would he?
She almost laughed out loud. CC must be someone else. But she might mention Chris’ name in passing next time she saw Gabe, just to gauge his reaction.
She set up her iPod and headphones with Orion’s Head and turned off the light. Lizzie’s favourite song was called Interstellar , which was about a guy wishing he could experience a fledgling relationship in outer space with his new lover, away from prying eyes and other peoples’ judgement.
Lizzie liked to pretend he’d written it about her, even though the song was two years old. She wondered if it was based on an actual past experience.
She listened to the song, and waited for sleep to come.
It only took a couple of minutes, and then she was out.
***
The roar of the lawnmower woke her up. Lizzie still found it strange that she now didn’t open her eyes before seven. She wondered if the neighbours would appreciate her father getting an early start in the garden.
She pulled on a faded pink t-shirt and a pair of grey running shorts, and headed out into the back yard.
Robert temporarily turned off the mower.
‘Hey sweetie. Early night last night?’
‘Yeah. I was a bit wiped out from the week.’
‘Weren’t you going out with some boy?’
‘We had dinner, but he dropped me home around nine.’
‘I like him already. When are you going to introduce me?’
‘Next weekend maybe?’
‘Sounds good. Are you still free to help me out here this morning?’
‘Yes, of course.’
‘Great. How about you grab some breakfast and then we can tackle the weeding together after I’m done with the grass?’
‘Cool.’
Robert turned back to the mower. Lizzie went inside to make herself a coffee and a piece of toast with peanut butter.
She’d become addicted to caffeine at fourteen when her dad had given up trying to ban it. Since she was sleeping so well these days, she found she didn’t really need it during the day anymore, but it was such a comfortable habit that she didn’t see any point in quitting.
She put a heaped teaspoon of instant and a large serving of sugar into a mug, and then topped it up with boiling water. She didn’t like polluting her drinks with milk, so she gulped it down black, burning her tongue and throat in the process.
She carried her piece of toast out into the garden and watched as her dad finished up with the lawn. She looked around at the plants. Her gaze was drawn as always, to the frangipani tree. It was in full bloom right now, and its flowers emitted a lovely tropical perfume. Robert told Lizzie that her mum had been a huge fan of frangipanis and had helped plant that exact tree. So every year when the first buds appeared, Lizzie pretended it was her mum saying hello. She knew it was cheesy, but it was her way of maintaining a connection.
Jenny White had died from ovarian cancer at the age of thirty. Lizzie’s dad didn’t talk about it very often, but he was always willing to answer questions about their life together and all the memories they shared. This helped Lizzie build a picture of the woman who had given birth to her.
She knew that her mum had loved movies, and that her favourites were Pretty Woman and Titanic . She had listened to a lot of eighties
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