by SR Silcox
“I just don’t get it,” Will said. “Don't you want to save the festival?”
“Of course I do,” Tess said. “But it’s way too late now to be making changes. It’s only a couple of days away.”
Will picked at the cover on his tablet. Lizzie, obviously sensing the tension, said, “I can see if Dad can do a bit more of a feature in the paper on Friday.”
“Would you?” Tess asked.
“Sure. Why not?” Lizzie said. “A bit of extra publicity might make more people come on the weekend.”
“Power of the press, hey?” Will said.
“Yep,” Lizzie said. “And that’s exactly my point about the band. They could’ve done a press conference, or released a statement or—”
“God, Lizzie, you can turn anything back on to talking about Three’s Company,” Will said, throwing himself melodramatically back into his beanbag.
Lizzie went quiet as she scrolled through her phone. She’d do that for ages, just trolling for bits of information on the band.
Tess let her mind wander and wondered what Maddie was doing. Maddie had messaged earlier to let Tess know that she had another appointment in the morning, but didn’t say whether she’d be able to come to dinner or not.
As if he’d read Tess’s mind, Will asked, “What’s Maddie up to this afternoon?”
“Not sure,” Tess said. “She had an appointment but I’m not sure what else.”
Lizzie said, “We should see what she’s up to this afternoon. See if she wants to come over.”
“And do what? We’re not exactly doing anything exciting,” Tess said.
“We could watch a movie,” Lizzie suggested.
“We just spent all morning inside,” Tess replied.
“We could go swimming up at the dam,” Will said. He gave Tess a little smile.
Tess smiled back and said, “That’s a great idea.”
Will stood up and stretched. “Text Maddie and see if she wants to come. She can show Lizzie how she won judge’s choice last night.”
Tess laughed and said, “She won’t be sneaking that past me again.” She took out her phone and sent Maddie a text. While she waited for Maddie's reply, Lizzie said, “You know, Maddie kind of reminds me of someone, but I can’t quite put my finger on it.”
“She kind of looks like that actress,” Will said. “What’s her name? From Mercury Point.”
“Tiffany McDonald?” Tess guessed. Tiffany would be the only one Will was referring to since she was another of his unattainable crushes. Come to think of it, Maddie did look a little like Tiffany. Though Tiffany had longer hair, and it was darker with a thick red streak through her fringe.
“That’s her,” Will confirmed.
“Maybe,” Lizzie said, “but I don’t think that's it.”
Tess’s phone buzzed. Maddie replied
Will ask Jo Give me 10
“What did she say?” Will asked.
“She has to ask Jo,” Tess said. She stood up and wandered over to the edge of the veranda and leaned on the railing.
“I’ll go get us some towels,” Lizzie said and headed inside.
THIRTEEN
The fact that the phone was Jo’s was the only thing that had saved it from being smashed to pieces. Maddie had decided, obviously against her better judgement, to call her father just to let him know she was fine and Jo had agreed to let her use her phone because Maddie was paranoid her father could trace her own. She hadn’t been talking with him for more than ten minutes and it had turned into another raging argument about her future. More than ever she felt like her life wasn’t her own anymore, and that her opinions and choices didn’t matter.
Jo had let her rant and rave without interruption, and when Maddie had finally calmed down, Jo had suggested they go into town to get out of the house. Maddie had refused, but Jo had gone in any way to get some groceries, leaving Maddie to quietly fume on her own. What was it with her father and wanting to be so controlling? He never used to be like that. Did he? Her mother maybe, but not her dad. He’d been on her side when she was little but then everything changed when they had more money than they knew what to do with. It was great at first. She had a wardrobe other girls her age would kill for and a house straight out of a magazine. It hadn’t taken long for her parents to become a lot more restrictive about everything from what she wore to what she ate. It seemed like every time she turned around, her choices were totally ignored in favour for what her parents wanted.
Despite Maddie’s initial reservations, Jo bringing her to Chesterfield for a break had ended up being one of her best ideas. Being away from her family and away from the pressures of her life had given her some perspective. She still had no idea what to do about her life though, and she didn’t know how much longer she’d be allowed to stay away before the rumours really kicked into overdrive.
She walked to the top of the stairs on the front veranda of the farm house and leaned her head against a post. She was looking out across the cane field, wondering what she was going to do about her life now that she realised how far she’d fallen when she got a text message. It was Tess.
Going swimming at the dam Want to come?
Maddie looked up toward the farm house. Sure enough, though she couldn’t see clearly, she could just make out a couple of people on the veranda. She wasn’t sure Jo would let her out of the house given her latest outburst, but it wouldn't hurt to ask. She replied to Tess, telling her to give her ten minutes to ask Jo.
Then she sent her another text.
Is that u on the veranda?
Yes How do you know?
Can see u
The person on the veranda, who Maddie now knew was Tess, waved. Maddie waved back.
I can see u What r u up to?
Maddie considered her answer.
Can only just see u Considering my future
That’s a bit deep
Maddie laughed in spite of herself.
U haven’t thought about ur future?
Nope What’s to think about? Finish school, go to uni, get a job Simple
Maddie looked up. Tess had moved down to the closest corner, and Maddie could see it was definitely Tess now. Maddie text back.
My life not so simple
Ur on holidays How complicated can it be?
Maddie shook her head. She wished she could explain her situation to Tess but she didn’t know how to.
Let’s just say I have lots to think about
Want to talk about it?
Maddie sighed. She wasn’t sure what else there was to say, but maybe talking to someone who didn’t know about her situation could give her some perspective. She text back
Yeah Maybe I’m not sure
K Here if u need
Maddie looked over at the farm house. She imagined Tess standing there, her blond hair tied back, loose strands falling across her face like they had that morning when she’d been concentrating so intently on icing the cupcakes. Not that she’d been watching Tess too closely. She wondered if Tess knew she stuck her tongue out the side of her mouth when she concentrated. Maddie smiled at the memory and text back
Thanks
How’s your graze?
Scab off Skin is very pink
That’s good How about ur ankle?
Bruising looks worse than it is Starting to go yellow
It’ll be gone in a day or 2
The bruise or my ankle?
Ha ha I meant the bruise
Maddie smiled.
Dr let me get rid of my extra legs :)
But 4 legs suit u :-p
Oh so funny Glad to have my own two back
Heading off now Last chance A swim might clear your head Can come get u if ur ankle still sore :)
Maddie smiled. She could certainly do with the distraction but she had no idea when Jo would be back. She could just call Jo she supposed, but then that would give her a chance to say no. Instead, she replied to Tess’s text with
I'll see u in 5
> and then she sent Jo a text that said
Gone swimming with Tess Might stay for dinner.
∞
Tess decided to take Maddie up to the dam on Chitty, the old VW Beetle that’d had all the panelling taken off. It used to be the farm vehicle of choice, but it didn’?t get used much anymore thanks to getting harder and harder to start. Thankfully though, it didn't embarrass Tess today by deciding to be stubborn and they made it to the dam just in time to see Will launching himself off the rope swing and into the water near the tree house.
“You didn’t tell me you had a tree house,” Maddie said as she pulled herself out of the seat.
“Pretty cool, huh?” Tess said.
“Very,” Maddie said. Tess helped her limp over to the old pontoon that was tied to the bank of the dam, and lowered her down onto a towel. She doubled back to retrieve the Esky and put it down on the bank beside the pontoon.
Lizzie was sitting cross-legged on a towel, her phone in her hand. Tess shook her head. “Can you put that down for one minute?”
“I’m just welcoming the new followers,” Lizzie said. “The post only went live this morning and already it’s been retweeted over a hundred times.”
“Can we expect to have you in the real world any time soon?” Tess asked.
“Just give me one minute,” Lizzie said, her thumbs working furiously over her screen.
Will swam closer and splashed at Lizzie, who pulled her phone away and scowled at him. “You break it, you buy me a new one.”
“If you don’t put it away, I’ll drag you into the dam,” Will said.
Lizzie narrowed her eyes, but put her phone into her bag. “There. Satisfied?”
“Very,” Will said. “Now are you girls coming swimming or not?”
Tess looked at Maddie and said, “Do you want to go in?”
“In a minute,” Maddie said. “I’ll just watch you guys for a bit.”
“Suit yourself,” Tess said. She pulled off her t-shirt and dropped it beside Maddie and then walked up the bank and over to the tree where the rope swing hung. She took hold of the rope and pulled it to her. “See how far you can get?” she called to Will.
“Okay. But don’t be a sook when I beat your ass again,” Will replied.
Tess laughed and launched herself off the bank. She waited until she was at the top of the swing and let go. She flailed in the air, just for effect, and splashed into the brown dam water. When she surfaced, she shook her head and wiped her face. Will was already climbing back up the bank, so Tess swam across to give him some room.
He took hold of the rope, pulled it back as far as it would let him and took a running jump off the bank. He let go and splashed down beside Tess. When he surfaced he looked at Tess and seeing he hadn’t beaten her said, “Best of three?”
“You’re on,” Tess said.
∞
Maddie watched as Will and Tess tried to best each other off the rope swing. She didn’t really want to go swimming in the dam. She had a thing about swimming in water where she couldn’?t see the bottom and hoped Tess wouldn’t push her to get in.
“Bloody show offs,” Lizzie said. She stood up and pulled off her shorts and dropped them onto her towel. “Are you coming in?”
Maddie shook her head. “Nah. I’ll just watch.”
“Time to show those two how it’s done,” Lizzie said. She walked over to the rope swing and called, “Amateurs.” She took hold of the rope and pulled it back. As she ran towards the edge of the bank, her foot slipped in the grass and she careened off the edge. Instead of swinging out into the dam like Will and Tess had, Lizzie screamed as she skidded across the top of the water before she finally let go of the rope. She surfaced, coughing and spluttering and Maddie couldn't help but laugh.
“I meant that,” Lizzie said, as she swam over to Will and Tess.
Maddie watched as the three of them splashed around and dunked each other and thought about Freya and Andy. They were the only friends she had at that moment who knew the real Maddie. Though she could picture Andy jumping off a rope swing into muddy brown water, there was no way Freya would even put a toe in a dam. Despite everything that had happened over the last few months, the two constants in Maddie’s life had been Freya and Andy. And Jo, if she was honest, but Jo was a different story all together. Though she was glad she’d decided to take a break from her hectic life, she decided that calling Freya and talking to her about some of the things that had been running through her head would help her decide what to do next. She needed to talk to her about where they were headed and whether they were all still even on the same page.
Tess swam over and rested her arms on the pontoon. “Sure you don’t want to come in?”
“I’m quite happy watching you guys show off,” Maddie said, nodding over to where Will and Lizzie were trying to dunk each other.
“It’s not often we have someone to show off to,” Tess said.
Maddie found herself blushing. She looked down at the towel she was sitting on and smiled.
“Hey,” Tess said. “You want to see the tree house? It’s probably cooler in there.”
Maddie looked up. “I’d love to.”
“Great,” Tess said. She pulled herself up onto the pontoon, and Maddie bit her lip as she watched the water drip down Tess’s legs. Tess wrapped a towel around her waist and held out her hand. She lifted Maddie to her feet and Maddie didn’t mind a bit that Tess holding her so close to help her over to the tree house made her clothes wet.
FOURTEEN
“Wow,” Maddie said as she ducked through the doorway. “This is really cool. I always wanted a tree house.”
“Sorry about the dust,” Tess said. “We haven’t been up here since September so we haven’t cleaned it up in a while.”
“Do you come up here a lot?” Maddie asked, limping over to the open window on the far side. She leaned out and waved to Will and Lizzie who were laying on the pontoon drying out.
“Not as much as when we were kids. We used to come up here with chips and soft drinks and play cards. Sometimes we’d bring up sleeping bags and stay overnight. We haven’t done that in ages though.”
“It’s a great view,” Maddie said, leaning further out of the window.
“Check this out,” Tess said. She pushed open the skylight she’d installed with Will a few years ago and propped it up with a piece of wood.
“Can you see the stars through that?” Maddie asked, standing underneath it and looking up.
“You can when it gets dark,” Tess said.
Maddie sneezed and shook her head. “Something dropped on me.” She went to wipe it away but Tess realised what it was a second before Maddie smeared black across her face.
Tess grabbed Maddie’s hand and said, “Wait.” She licked a finger on her other hand and pressed it lightly onto the black piece of cane trash that had landed on Maddie's cheek just below her eye. Tess managed to take it off without it crumbling and showed Maddie under the light. “See? It’s a piece of cane trash. Black snow.”
“Black snow,” Maddie repeated, peering at it.
“Yeah, from cane fires. It was probably caught up in the skylight.”
Maddie looked up from the cane trash on Tess’s finger and into Tess’s eyes and her breath caught in her throat. Tess blinked and wiped her hand off on her shorts and turned away. “Do you want a drink?” she asked. “We brought some up in the Esky.”
“Sure,” Maddie said.
“I’ll be right back,” Tess said, and disappeared through the doorway.
Maddie looked around at the weathered wood and old crates and cushions scattered around. Her mother would never let her have anything like this when she was a kid. Her father definitely wouldn’t have been able to make her one. If she’d insisted on having a tree house, they would have ordered it from a catalogue, or in more recent years, had it built specially. It certainly would not have been built out of old bits of wood and doors, like this one was. The fact that the corners
weren’?t square, and the roof leaked little shafts of light made Maddie feel at ease.
∞
When Tess came back, she was holding two cups and had a plastic container tucked under her arm. She handed a cup to Maddie and said, “I hope you like ginger beer. Pop makes it himself.”
Maddie took a cup and said, “Thanks.” She took a sip and smiled. Tess sat down on one of the crates and pulled one out for Maddie. Maddie sat down and Tess watched as she looked around at the tree house. It wasn’t much and she really hoped Maddie would look past the recycled windows and wood.
“You’re so lucky growing up in a place like this,” Maddie said.
“In a tree house?”
Maddie laughed. “No. In Chesterfield. It’s so… quiet.”
Outside, Will whooped and there was a splash and then a squeal from Lizzie. Maddie and Tess both laughed.
“Not too quiet,” Tess said, shifting her weight so she could curl her foot up underneath her.
“There’s nothing wrong with quiet. My life is so busy. So… noisy.”
“Is that what you’ve been thinking about?”
“What do you mean?”
“The texts from earlier. Thinking about your life.”
“I guess,” Maddie said. “Do you ever wonder where you’re heading?”
Tess shrugged. “Not a lot. I knew from when I was little that I’d have to leave Chesterfield to go to uni if I didn’t want to end up working behind a counter at the bakery for the rest of my life.”
Maddie sighed. “I’d give anything to be so sure of where I’m heading. Maybe I should have grown up in a small town.”
“It’s not that great,” Tess said.
“From where I’m sitting, it’s a lot better than where I’ve grown up.”
“It’s okay for a while,” Tess said. “When you're a kid growing up, there’s heaps to do. Now? The cinema closed a few months ago and apart from some workshops the council puts on in school holidays, there’s really not much else to do outside of school.”
“Which is why you like the festival so much?”
Tess nodded. “I love coming out here to help Pop and Gran set up and get the place ready. It’s my happy place.”
Maddie laughed into her cup.
