a bite. It wasn’t her favourite, but it would definitely do.
‘Better?’ said Daddy.
She nodded.
‘Good. Hold that,’ he said, and handed her the can and pulled back on to the road towards home.
As they drove, he held out his hand now and then, and Ruby gave him the can. It emptied quickly and she put it in the well behind his seat.
As they left Bideford, they passed a woman standing at a bus stop.
‘That’s Miss Sharpe!’
‘Who’s Miss Sharpe?’
‘My teacher. Can we give her a lift?’
‘Maybe she doesn’t want a lift, Rubes. Women can be a bit funny about taking lifts.’
‘But it’s raining.
Please
, Daddy!’
Daddy trod on the brakes and peered in his rear-view mirror. ‘All right,’ he said. ‘Get in the back.’
The car didn’t have back doors so Ruby scrambled between the seats as he reversed up the road to the bus stop. When he was level with it, Daddy leaned over and wound down the window a few inches.
‘Want a lift?’ he said.
Miss Sharpe peered at him from under her umbrella with a suspicious look on her face. ‘No, thank you,’ she said. ‘I’m waiting for the bus.’
‘Hello, Miss,’ said Ruby, leaning forward between the seats.
Miss Sharpe’s face cleared. ‘Oh, hello, Ruby! I didn’t see you there!’
‘We can take you home, Miss,’ said Ruby eagerly.
‘It’s all the way in Fairy Cross,’ said Miss Sharpe. ‘I don’t like to put you to any trouble.’
‘It’s on our way,’ said John Trick.
Miss Sharpe still seemed uncertain. She looked back up the road towards Bideford, as if she might see the bus coming, but it wasn’t.
‘Well, OK then…’ She got into the front seat and shook her umbrella into the gutter. She also had a gym bag and a badminton racquet.
‘Thank you,’ she said. ‘You’re very kind.’
‘No problem.’
They drove for a bit, with only the sound of the wipers clicking back and forth on the windscreen. Ruby hung between the front seats so she could smile at Miss Sharpe whenever she looked around.
‘Did you like my diary, Miss?’
‘Yes, Ruby, it was very good.’
Ruby looked at Daddy eagerly, but he didn’t give any indication of having heard her.
‘Is that a tennis bat, Miss?’
‘No, it’s for playing badminton,’ said Miss Sharpe.
‘What’s bammington?’
‘Well, it’s a bit like tennis, but you don’t play with a ball, you play with a thing called a shuttlecock.’
‘What’s a shuttlecock?’
‘It’s like a little cone made out of feathers.’
‘Does it fly?’ said Ruby, and Miss Sharpe laughed.
‘Only when you hit it.’
‘Oh,’ said Ruby. She found it difficult to picture that. Hitting one of those with a bat must be like swiping a cartoon bird – with all the little feathers floating down to earth afterwards.
They passed the sign that said FAIRY CROSS AND FORD. From the other direction, Ruby knew it said FORD AND FAIRY CROSS , just to be fair.
Miss Sharpe said, ‘You can drop me just past the pub. Thank you.’
‘But it’s raining,’ said Ruby.
And her father added, ‘It’s no problem to take you to the door.’
‘You’re very kind,’ said Miss Sharpe again.
John Trick followed two more brief instructions, and then stopped the car outside a short terrace of whitewashed cottages.
‘Thank you very much, Mr Trick,’ said Miss Sharpe, getting out. ‘And I’ll see you on Monday, Ruby, bright and early.’
‘Bye, Miss.’
Miss Sharpe put up her umbrella and waved back into the car with her racquet, and they set off again.
Ruby hung between the front seats and told Daddy about the diary.
‘Miss Sharpe said it was excellent,’ she lied, but it was wasted anyway, because Daddy had gone quiet again, so Ruby went quiet too, because she realized that things couldn’t be all better just because they’d been for a drive.
Daddy sipped from another can of cider, so Ruby got back in the front and dozed the rest of the way. She knew the route so well from her bus ride to
‘Better?’ said Daddy.
She nodded.
‘Good. Hold that,’ he said, and handed her the can and pulled back on to the road towards home.
As they drove, he held out his hand now and then, and Ruby gave him the can. It emptied quickly and she put it in the well behind his seat.
As they left Bideford, they passed a woman standing at a bus stop.
‘That’s Miss Sharpe!’
‘Who’s Miss Sharpe?’
‘My teacher. Can we give her a lift?’
‘Maybe she doesn’t want a lift, Rubes. Women can be a bit funny about taking lifts.’
‘But it’s raining.
Please
, Daddy!’
Daddy trod on the brakes and peered in his rear-view mirror. ‘All right,’ he said. ‘Get in the back.’
The car didn’t have back doors so Ruby scrambled between the seats as he reversed up the road to the bus stop. When he was level with it, Daddy leaned over and wound down the window a few inches.
‘Want a lift?’ he said.
Miss Sharpe peered at him from under her umbrella with a suspicious look on her face. ‘No, thank you,’ she said. ‘I’m waiting for the bus.’
‘Hello, Miss,’ said Ruby, leaning forward between the seats.
Miss Sharpe’s face cleared. ‘Oh, hello, Ruby! I didn’t see you there!’
‘We can take you home, Miss,’ said Ruby eagerly.
‘It’s all the way in Fairy Cross,’ said Miss Sharpe. ‘I don’t like to put you to any trouble.’
‘It’s on our way,’ said John Trick.
Miss Sharpe still seemed uncertain. She looked back up the road towards Bideford, as if she might see the bus coming, but it wasn’t.
‘Well, OK then…’ She got into the front seat and shook her umbrella into the gutter. She also had a gym bag and a badminton racquet.
‘Thank you,’ she said. ‘You’re very kind.’
‘No problem.’
They drove for a bit, with only the sound of the wipers clicking back and forth on the windscreen. Ruby hung between the front seats so she could smile at Miss Sharpe whenever she looked around.
‘Did you like my diary, Miss?’
‘Yes, Ruby, it was very good.’
Ruby looked at Daddy eagerly, but he didn’t give any indication of having heard her.
‘Is that a tennis bat, Miss?’
‘No, it’s for playing badminton,’ said Miss Sharpe.
‘What’s bammington?’
‘Well, it’s a bit like tennis, but you don’t play with a ball, you play with a thing called a shuttlecock.’
‘What’s a shuttlecock?’
‘It’s like a little cone made out of feathers.’
‘Does it fly?’ said Ruby, and Miss Sharpe laughed.
‘Only when you hit it.’
‘Oh,’ said Ruby. She found it difficult to picture that. Hitting one of those with a bat must be like swiping a cartoon bird – with all the little feathers floating down to earth afterwards.
They passed the sign that said FAIRY CROSS AND FORD. From the other direction, Ruby knew it said FORD AND FAIRY CROSS , just to be fair.
Miss Sharpe said, ‘You can drop me just past the pub. Thank you.’
‘But it’s raining,’ said Ruby.
And her father added, ‘It’s no problem to take you to the door.’
‘You’re very kind,’ said Miss Sharpe again.
John Trick followed two more brief instructions, and then stopped the car outside a short terrace of whitewashed cottages.
‘Thank you very much, Mr Trick,’ said Miss Sharpe, getting out. ‘And I’ll see you on Monday, Ruby, bright and early.’
‘Bye, Miss.’
Miss Sharpe put up her umbrella and waved back into the car with her racquet, and they set off again.
Ruby hung between the front seats and told Daddy about the diary.
‘Miss Sharpe said it was excellent,’ she lied, but it was wasted anyway, because Daddy had gone quiet again, so Ruby went quiet too, because she realized that things couldn’t be all better just because they’d been for a drive.
Daddy sipped from another can of cider, so Ruby got back in the front and dozed the rest of the way. She knew the route so well from her bus ride to
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