by Judi Curtin
I didn’t answer. Losing a badminton match isn’t the biggest tragedy in the world, but being first up against Andy and being totally humiliated in public – that’s just rotten. I wondered if it was too late to pretend to be sick. Come to think of it, I did feel kind of sick at the thought of the match ahead.
‘Hey, Mr Holland,’ I said, trying to sound weak. ‘I think……’
But before I could finish, Andy was in front of me, strumming his badminton racquet like it was a guitar. He probably thought he was cool, but he really looked like an idiot
‘Hey, Eva,’ he said. ‘I’ve never played you before. Are you sure you’re ready for this?’
And suddenly, even though I knew it was pathetic, I really, really wanted to beat him. I jumped up from my bench. ‘Sure I am,’ I said. ‘Bring it on.’
The first shuttle flew past my ear like a rocket. I didn’t even see the second one, and the third one hit me on the head. The game was over in about a minute and a half – and I hadn’t won a single point.
Andy jumped up and down, like he’d just beaten the Olympic champion.
‘Yesss!’ he said. ‘Now who’s next?’
Ella put her arm around me as I came off the court.
‘Don’t feel bad, Eva,’ she said. ‘Remember no one’s ever got the better of that boy.’
Next to her, Aretta was smiling, and swinging her racquet to warm up. Suddenly I felt like I could read her mind.
‘Don’t even think about it,’ I said. ‘He’s just too good.’
But Aretta kept on smiling. ‘I’m not so bad myself,’ she said.
By the time the final between Andy and Aretta came around, the class was going crazy. We were all jumping up and down on the benches, screaming for the person we wanted to win. (That meant most of the class screaming for Aretta, and a few of the silly girls screaming for Andy because they like his hair and think he’s cute.)
Andy and Aretta walked on to the court, and everyone clapped, like it was the final of Wimbledon or something.
‘Quiet, please,’ said Mr Holland, and amazingly, everyone obeyed. The sudden silence was weird, and a bit scary.
Andy was jogging on the spot like a mad thing. On her side of the court, Aretta stood up straight and tall. She looked calm and confident.
‘OMG,’ I whispered to Ella. ‘Maybe she can do this.’
‘Really?’ asked Ella. ‘You really think she can beat Andy? I know she’s already won five matches … but Andy?’
I smiled and squeezed her hand. ‘Let’s just hope.’
I wasn’t feeling so hopeful when Andy won the first ten points. In between jumping up and down, and doing stupid practice swings, he was grinning like his face was going to explode.
‘Come on, Aretta!’ I called. ‘Don’t let us down.’
And then it was like Aretta turned into a different person. She raced around the court, and no matter where Andy hit the shuttle, she was there, ready to hit it back. It was like she knew where he was going to hit it before he even swung his racquet.
Andy won a few more points, but basically the game was over. When Mr Holland called the final score 21-14 to Aretta, most of the class screamed and ran onto the court.
‘You genius!’ I shouted in Aretta’s ear. ‘You absolute genius! Why didn’t you tell us you were so good?’
‘I didn’t know it was such a big deal,’ she said, looking a bit embarrassed. ‘Badminton is only my second favourite sport.’
‘So what’s––?’ I began, but I couldn’t finish as more people came over to hug Aretta.
I turned and saw Andy slipping away towards the boys’ changing room.
‘Do you feel sorry for him?’ asked Ella.
‘Nearly,’ I said. ‘But not quite.’
When Aretta finally got into the changing room, she sat next to Ella and me.
‘We’re going to stop for hot chocolates before going home,’ I said, when we were nearly dressed. ‘There’s a really cool place just down the road from here. The hot chocolate is totally yummy, and you can have all the marshmallows you like. Do you want to come with us?’
‘I can’t,’ said Aretta. ‘Thanks anyway.’
Suddenly I felt stupid. I looked at Aretta’s shabby uniform and old-fashioned shoes and realized that she probably couldn’t afford to pay for a hot chocolate.
‘Our treat,’ I said quickly.
‘To welcome you to our school,’ said Ella, smiling.
I hoped that smile meant she could pay for half of Aretta’s hot chocolate, as I knew for sure that I only had 2.50 in my pocket – and some of that was supposed to be for a new maths copy.
‘That’s very nice of you,’ said Aretta. ‘But I’m busy. I’ve got a ballet class in a few minutes. Thanks for asking though. See you on Monday.’
And then she grabbed her bag and was gone.
‘Busy girl,’ said Ella.
‘Have you seen the way she’s dressed?’ I said. ‘I’m not being mean or anything, but her uniform’s ancient, and her schoolbag is falling apart. If she can’t afford to get proper school stuff, where’s she getting the money for piano and ballet lessons?’
‘We’ve seen how good she is at badminton. Maybe she’s amazingly talented at ballet and piano too, and she’s getting some kind of scholarship for gifted kids?’
‘Possibly, but I don’t think that’s it. Trust me, Ella, there’s something weird going on with that girl, and I’m going to find out what it is.’
Chapter Seven
Most Friday nights I sleep over at Ella’s place – it’s a tradition we’ve had since we made friends. Her parents were just going out when I got there.
‘Why does Alyson have to babysit?’ Ella was saying. ‘Why can’t you trust me and Eva to stay here on our own? In some countries, I’d be working for a living by now – or I could be married.’
Ella’s dad used to be my teacher, and it took me ages to get used to seeing her arguing with him. By now I’d had plenty of practice, though; Ella had the exact same argument with her mum and dad every single Friday night. I knew most of the lines off by heart.
‘We know you’re not a baby,’ said her mum.
‘And it would be nice if you did get a job,’ said her dad. ‘We could do with a new car.’
‘And I’d love one of those new high-tech tennis racquets,’ said her mum.
Ella rolled her eyes,‘I’m serious.’
Her mum hugged her. ‘I know you are, darling,’ she said. ‘And you’re a good girl, but you’re still young. If we left you alone, and something bad happened, we’d never forgive ourselves. So the argument is over – again. OK?’
Ella gave a big loud sigh, but she didn’t argue any more. Her parents are really nice, but once they’ve made their minds up about something, nothing will ever change it. I don’t know why she bothers with the Friday night row – habit I guess.
Her mum and dad hugged her, then waved at me.
‘Be good, girls,’ her mum said. ‘We’ll be home at midnight.’
Then they left, closing the door behind them.
‘Where’s Alyson?’ I asked.
‘Where do you think? She’s watching TV as usual. That girl is addicted.’
I went and stood at the door of the living room. ‘Hey, Alyson,’ I said. How’s it going?’
‘Hey,’ she said without even looking up.
‘We’re going up to my room,’ said Ella. ‘Is that OK?’
‘Sure,’ said Alyson. Once again she didn’t look up.
‘Or we might go to a night club,’ I said. ‘And hang out with a few older boys for a bit.’
Ella giggled, but Alyson didn’t react at all. ‘Sure,’ she said. ‘Give me a shout if you need me.’
I wondered how much Ella’s mum and dad were paying her to mind us. I hoped it wasn’t very much, because Alyson was a waste of space as a babysitter. She just watched TV and ate crisps and let Ella and me do whatever we wanted. Luckily it didn’t matter though – Ella and I are to
tally sensible.
Usually.
‘How’s Gigi?’ I asked when we got to Ella’s room.
‘Not so good,’ said Ella. ‘It was nice of you to bring Jessie to see her, but I think it only made her sadder than before. She kept saying what a beautiful dog Jessie was and how much she wanted to cuddle her. She said that hugging a dog makes you feel good in a way that nothing else can.’
‘That’s so sad.’
‘I know. I can’t stop thinking about her. I can’t believe that wicked Nurse Witch sends her to her room at eight o’clock.’
‘And what’s she meant to do for the rest of the night? Is she allowed visitors?’
‘Since Nurse Witch showed up, all visitors have to leave at 7.30 – and Gigi has nothing to do after that.’
‘Does she like reading?’
‘She used to love it, but now she finds it hard, because her eyes are so weak.’
‘What about TV?’
‘There’s a TV in her room, but Gigi has always hated TV. She says she wants to live life, not watch other people pretending. She says there should be a law against reality TV.’
‘So how does she pass the time?’
‘She just goes to bed and lies there for hours.’
‘She goes to bed before eight o’clock?’
Ella nodded. ‘Yeah, there’s nothing else for her to do – and it’s really awful for poor Gigi. When she was at home, she always stayed up until one or two in the morning.’
‘That’s cruelty to old people if you ask me.’
‘I agree. But what can we do?’
‘We can definitely do something,’ I said. ‘I’m just not sure yet what it’s going to be.’
After that, we listened to music and chatted for a while. I couldn’t enjoy myself though.
In the end I jumped up. ‘I can’t take this anymore,’ I said. ‘I can’t stop thinking of Gigi lying alone in her room, staring at the ceiling. It’s not like she’s a prisoner. She hasn’t done anything wrong.’
‘I know,’ said Ella, giggling. ‘The only crimes Gigi’s ever committed are crimes against fashion.’
‘So let’s go.’
‘Where? What do you mean?’
‘Let’s go see Gigi. Let’s see if we can cheer her up for an hour.’
Ella looked at her phone. ‘But it’s nearly ten o’clock.’
‘Exactly. We’d better hurry up – we’ve only got two hours before your parents get back.’
‘But…..’
‘Come on,’ I said. ‘There’s a few things I need to bring, so there’s no time to waste.’
Chapter Eight
Alyson didn’t even look up as Ella and I tip-toed past the living room. We let ourselves out the back door and circled around to the front of the house. A few minutes later we were standing behind a bush in front of the nursing home.
‘Nurse Witch is there,’ said Ella, looking through the glass at the woman sitting in the reception hall. ‘Why does it have to be her every single day? Doesn’t she ever go off duty?’
‘Maybe she’s not even human,’ I said. ‘Maybe she’s a robot nurse.’
We giggled for a while, trying not to make any noise.
‘So what are we going to do?’ asked Ella.
‘We’re going to wait,’ I said. ‘Sooner or later, someone will ring their bell and Nurse Witch will have to go and see to them. Then we can let ourselves in, and go see Gigi.’
‘Let’s hope it’s sooner rather than later,’ said Ella. ‘I’m freezing, and hanging around a car-park isn’t exactly my idea of—’
Before she could finish, we saw a red light flash on the wall next to Nurse Witch’s head. She made a grumpy face, and slowly got to her feet.
‘Now’s our chance,’ I said. ‘Be ready to run.’
Nurse Witch set off down the corridor, and Ella and I raced across the gravel. Ella keyed in the code and the door clicked open. We stepped inside and Ella headed for the lift.
‘Stop,’ I whispered. ‘Nurse Witch will hear the ping as the lift opens, and she’ll call the guards or shoot us or something. We’ve got to take the stairs.’
‘But I don’t know where …’
She stopped talking and her face went pale. ‘Nurse Witch is coming back,’ she whispered. ‘We’re dead. We’re totally dead.’
There was no time to escape by the front door. I grabbed Ella’s hand and dragged her towards the only other door nearby. I pulled it open and saw that it was a cupboard full of walking sticks and walking frames. We threw ourselves inside and pulled the door almost-closed behind us.
I hardly dared to breathe as the squeak-squeak of Nurse Witch’s shoes on the vinyl floor came closer and closer. I wondered what she’d do if she discovered us. Would we have to fight her off with the walking sticks?
Would we end up as headlines on the front page of the local newspaper? – BIZARRE TWIST AS YOUNG GIRLS SNEAK INTO NURSING HOME!!
But luckily, Nurse Witch hadn’t noticed anything strange. I peeped through a crack in the door and watched as she sat behind the desk, picked up the phone and pressed some numbers.
‘Hi, Mammy,’ we heard her say a second later. ‘It’s me. How are you? Yes, I‘m fine, thanks…. Yes, I’m doing what you told me and eating lots of fruit and vegetables … Yes, I remember to wear my warm coat when I go out … Yes, Mammy, I’m getting enough sleep.’
In the cupboard, Ella and I tried to keep our giggling quiet.
‘Mammy sounds like a total pain,’ I whispered.
‘Now we know where Nurse Witch got her bullying ways from,’ Ella whispered back.
Nurse Witch’s boring conversation went on for ages and ages. It was hot and uncomfortable in the tiny cupboard, and my head started to hurt.
After a bit, Ella edged a walking frame towards the back of the cupboard and made a bit more room for us.
‘Hey,’ I said, as I peeped out through the crack in the door again. ‘Don’t get too settled. We’re not staying long. Next time someone presses a bell, we’re out of here.’
‘But how are we going to find the stairs?’
‘You know how people get obsessed with health and safety. I’m guessing there’s a stairs at the end of each corridor, so whatever way Nurse Witch goes, we go the other way. Easy!’
I didn’t feel as confident as I sounded, and when the red light flashed again, and Nurse Witch stood up, I noticed that my legs were a bit wobbly. Still though, we had to move – a whole night in a cupboard full of walking sticks wasn’t exactly my idea of fun.
‘Good-bye, Mammy,’ said Nurse Witch. ‘Yes, love you too. Talk tomorrow.’
‘Get ready,’ I whispered as she put down the phone. ‘We’re out of here.’
As soon as Nurse Witch’s squeaky footsteps had faded away, I pushed the cupboard door open, and Ella and I raced in the opposite direction. We turned a corner, and I started to feel a small bit better when I saw a wide stairs at the very end of the corridor. Luckily, there was a thick carpet, and our feet made no sound as we scrambled up the stairs. When we got to the top, Ella recognised where we were, and led the way to Gigi’s room. She pushed the door open and we slipped inside.
The room was in darkness, and as I closed the door I could just about see the shape of Gigi curled up in the bed.
‘Nurse?’ she said in a quiet voice. ‘What’s wrong? I didn’t ring my bell.’
‘It’s not the nurse,’ said Ella. ‘It’s me, Ella, and Eva’s with me too. We’ve come to visit you.’
There was a fumbling sound, and then Gigi clicked a switch next to her bed. A pool of weak, yellowish light spread around us. Gigi looked at Ella and me for a long time.
‘Am I dreaming?’ she asked. ‘If I am, it’s the nicest dream I’ve ever had.’
‘No, Gigi,’ said Ella, leaning forward to hug her. ‘It’s not a dream. And anyway, you shouldn’t even be asleep. It’s not much after ten o’clock.’
‘You’re right,’ said Gigi. ‘I’m a grown woman, not a naugh
ty child.’
She pulled herself up in the bed, threw off the covers and stood up. Her bony knees and long, knobbly toes were a bit sad, but I had to laugh when I saw that her nightie had a picture of a rock band, and a big slogan – Here Comes Trouble!
Gigi made her way across the room, and as she sat on her armchair, a huge smile spread slowly across her face.
‘This is such a lovely surprise,’ she said. ‘And it’s so kind of your mum and dad to let you out so late, Ella.’
Before Ella could answer, the smile faded from Gigi’s face. ‘What about Nurse Witch? Her rules are written in stone. How come she let you in here at this time?’
Ella looked at me, and I made a quick decision. Lies are usually wrong, and lies to an eighty-nine year old are probably worse than most.
‘Actually, Nurse Witch doesn’t know we’re here,’ I said. ‘We sort of sneaked in.’
‘Sort of sneaked in?’ asked Gigi.
‘We actually sneaked in,’ said Ella, and she went on to describe our little adventure in the walking-stick cupboard.
Gigi laughed so much, I thought she was going to have a heart attack. ‘You girls,’ she said, wiping tears of laughter from her wrinkly cheeks. ‘You’re
better than any medicine.’ ‘Does Nurse Witch ever come up stairs at night?’ I asked.
‘Sadly, yes,’ said Gigi. ‘And when she comes up, she pokes her ugly face into every single room to be sure that we’re not getting up to mischief.’
‘So she could come in here at any second?’ said Ella, looking scared.
Gigi laughed. ‘Not likely. Sometimes Nurse Witch’s army training is a good thing. She comes up here to check on us at ten o’clock and at midnight. Otherwise, she stays downstairs unless someone on this floor rings their bell.’
‘And how often does that happen?’ asked Ella.
‘Pretty much never,’ said Gigi. ‘Why would anyone want that wicked witch snooping around more often than necessary?’
