“It is,” Sky muttered back.
“But…”
“I’m not going there.” Sky looked down.
“Oh. So where are we going?”
“Shoreditch.”
“Shoreditch?” Rose’s mind started working overtime. She liked Shoreditch. With its arty vibe and quirky coffee shops, it reminded her a bit of Brooklyn – but the thought of going there with Sky, who clearly would rather have been watching paint dry than be with her, wasn’t appealing at all. And then she had a terrible thought. “You’re not going on a date, are you?”
Finally, Sky made eye contact. “What?”
“A date. Tonight. You’re not dragging me along on a date, are you?”
“I’m not dragging you along on a date, or anywhere else,” Sky hissed.
A few of the surrounding commuters looked at them. Rose leaned a little closer and lowered her voice. “If it wasn’t for me, you wouldn’t even be allowed out tonight.”
“Oh, really?”
“So where are we going?”
Sky gave a sigh. She looked really embarrassed. “To a meeting.”
“A meeting?” Rose had not anticipated this answer. “What? Like an AA meeting?”
“No!” Sky practically yelled, causing more commuters to look over at them. This was the thing Rose hated most about commuter zombies – they were so starved of anything interesting in their lives, the slightest sign of activity on the tube caused them to practically orgasm.
“OK, chill. I was only asking. It would be kind of nice to know where I’m going to be spending this evening.”
Sky’s face flushed bright red. “It’s a surprise,” she said, in the least enthusiastic voice Rose had ever heard.
Maali lifted the hatch in the counter and slipped out into the front of the shop.
“Don’t be too late, pet,” her mum said, straightening a tray of pistachio burfi.
“I won’t,” Maali said, a guilty queasiness stirring in her stomach. This was the first time she’d ever lied to her mum, and it didn’t feel good. She’d told her she was meeting some girls from school to do their science homework. Maali felt a stab of panic. What if there were girls from her school at the meeting?
Maali wasn’t exactly unpopular. It was more that she was invisible. Ever since she’d started secondary school she’d trained herself to be a chameleon, blending into the background to avoid drawing attention to herself. Her two best friends, Praya and Preethi, had also developed this ability, and between them they’d managed to avoid becoming targets for the scary kids, but the threat was always there. Maali almost did a U-turn back up to the flat, but then she thought of the girl who’d given her the postcard. Amber. She hadn’t seemed at all like those scary girls. And anyway, this was too important. She had to take the risk: the entire future of her romantic life was at stake.
“Er, excuse me, aren’t you forgetting something?” her mum said, just as she reached the shop door.
Maali froze. “What?”
Her mum smiled and opened her arms.
Maali laughed with relief. Her mum didn’t let any of them go anywhere without a hug. She went over and hugged her tightly. “Here you are,” her mum said as she let go, handing her a white confectionery box. “Some burfi, to help you girls with your homework.”
Maali felt another stab of guilt as she took the box. “Thanks, Mum.” Lying was really horrible. She said a quick prayer to Lakshmi in her head, asking for forgiveness, and vowed that as soon as she’d found the confidence to talk to boys she would never lie to her mum again.
Amber took a sip of her camomile tea and glanced at her pocket watch. It was 6.29. One more minute until the others were due to arrive, unless of course they were late – or not coming at all. Amber checked her emails for the millionth time. No new mail. She breathed a sigh of relief. But they might not bother letting her know that they weren’t coming. They might have forgotten all about it. They might—
“Hello.”
Amber looked up from her phone to see the dead pigeon girl standing on the other side of the table. Her hands were clasped in front of her and she looked about as nervous as Amber felt.
“Hello!” Amber shot to her feet and held out her hand. Why was she holding out her hand? That was the kind of thing Gerald did. She quickly withdrew it, just as the girl held hers out. “Oh, er, sorry.” Amber grabbed her hand and gave it a shake. “Sit down. Make yourself comfortable.” What was wrong with her? Why was she talking and acting like such an idiot?
The girl sat, or rather, perched, on the edge of the armchair opposite Amber’s, as if she might flee at any moment. There was a second’s silence, which seemed to stretch into an hour.
“I’m Maali,” the girl said.
“Oh yes, sorry, I’m Amber.”
“Nice to meet you.”
“Nice to meet you too.”
“Well, to meet you again.”
Amber nodded. “Yes, of course. The pigeon.”
Maali shifted awkwardly and looked into her lap.
“I like dead things too.” Amber’s face flushed as soon as the words left her mouth. What was wrong with her!
“Do you?”
“Yes. I mean, I don’t like them, as in, have an obsession with them or anything.”
“No, me neither.”
“I just don’t think we talk or think about death enough – you know, as a society.”
Maali looked at her.
“Of course, it might be different for you – in your – your culture.” Oh great, Amber thought, now you sound like you’re obsessed with death and a racist.
Thankfully Maali only nodded thoughtfully. “In Hinduism we believe in reincarnation.”
“You’re Hindu?”
“Yes.” A look of defensiveness flickered into Maali’s huge brown eyes, like she was expecting Amber to say something negative.
“Cool. Yeah, I guess the thought of reincarnation must help. It must be reassuring to believe that you’ll be coming back, you know, after you die.”
Amber’s inner voice began to wail. This was why she had no proper friends; she was absolutely rubbish at conversation. Most girls talked about their latest make-up purchase or what they’d watched on YouTube, but not her. She launched straight into an in-depth discussion about death – after a firm and hearty handshake.
“It helps a bit, I guess.” Maali settled back in her chair. “But it still makes my head hurt when I try to imagine not actually being here any more – as me.”
The tension in Amber’s chest began to ease a little. “Me too,” she said with a smile. “Can I get you something to drink?”
“Oh, yes, please, that would be great, could I—”
“Er, hello.”
Amber looked up to see the poet girl from the shop standing right behind Maali. She looked really stressed. Another girl was standing behind her – the kind who instantly put Amber on her guard. Thin and beautiful, with a bright scarlet rosebud of a mouth. She reminded Amber of the OMGs at school. Amber looked at Sky questioningly.
“I hope you don’t mind but I’ve brought…” Sky glanced at the girl behind her. “This is … Rose.”
“Hi,” Maali chirped. “I’m Maali.”
“Hello,” Sky said. She looked back at Amber anxiously.
“Hi, no, that’s fine. The more the merrier. I’m Amber.”
Rose raised one of her perfectly plucked eyebrows. Amber was completely unprepared for this nightmarish turn of events. She’d assumed that by making it invite-only, she’d be able to control who came.
“So, what exactly is this all about? What are you guys doing here?” Rose said, staring at Amber.
She was American. Amber wasn’t sure whether this made things better or worse. She searched for something to say, but it felt as if her tongue was tied up in a tight knot. What if this girl laughed at her? What if she called her a freak? Then, randomly, one of Amber’s favourite Oscar Wilde quotes popped into her head: “Be yourself; everyone else is already taken.
” She took a deep breath.
“We’re here for the first meeting of the Moonlight Dreamers,” she said, way more confidently than she actually felt.
Chapter Sixteen
“The Moonlight Dreamers?” What the heck were the Moonlight Dreamers? Rose stared at Sky. But Sky kept her gaze fixed firmly on Amber.
“Yes,” Amber said. “It’s a group for teenage girls who are sick of being told who to be and how to look, and who want to find the confidence to live their dreams. It’s supposed to be secret.” She looked at Sky pointedly. Sky’s face flushed.
Rose’s brain started working overtime. Far from dragging her to a dullsville poetry event, Sky had brought her to the meeting of some kind of secret society. She hated to admit it, but it sounded pretty cool. Amber looked pretty cool too. Rose loved the way she’d styled her hair into a quiff and the whole men’s suit thing looked awesome.
“Cool,” Rose said, barging past Sky and sitting down next to the shy-looking Asian kid.
“Really?” Amber looked at her like she didn’t quite believe her. “I mean, you do understand that you mustn’t tell anyone about what goes on here tonight.”
Rose nodded and settled back into her armchair. “Sure. I won’t say a word.” This night out with Sky was shaping up to be way more interesting than she ever could have imagined.
Sky sat down next to Amber, not knowing what to think. She’d been certain that Rose would make fun of the whole thing and had been hoping that she would leave, but from the way Rose was staring at Amber, the very opposite was happening; she seemed engrossed. Sky shifted back in her squishy armchair but didn’t take off her coat, just in case Rose did or said something embarrassing and they needed to make an emergency exit.
“So,” Amber said, reaching under the table and pulling out a battered leather briefcase, “I wrote some rules to give us some kind of guidelines, but please feel free to add your own.” She took out some leaflets and handed them out. “I’ll go and get some drinks while you have a read. What would you like?”
“Diet Coke, please.” Sky fumbled in her bag for her purse.
“It’s OK, they’re on me,” Amber said with a tense smile.
“I’ll have a cappuccino,” said Rose, taking off her jacket.
“Could I have an orange juice, please?” Maali asked, sitting bolt upright on the edge of her chair. She reminded Sky of a little bird about to fly away at any moment.
As Sky took a leaflet Maali smiled at her, and a pair of dimples appeared either side of her mouth, making her look even sweeter. They settled back and began to read.
MOONLIGHT DREAMERS ~ THE RULES
1. The Moonlight Dreamers is a secret society – members must never speak a word of its existence, or of what happens at the meetings, to others.
2. Meetings will begin with members reciting the “Moonlight” quote from Oscar Wilde.
3. This quote is the Moonlight Dreamers’ motto and must be memorized by members – and NEVER forgotten.
4. All members must vow to support the other Moonlight Dreamers in the pursuit of their dreams – always.
5. Moonlight Dreamers are proud of being different. They would rather die than be the same as everyone else. Being the same as everyone else is a crime against originality; the human equivalent of magnolia paint.
Sky shivered with excitement as she read the words. It was all so mysterious and poetic. But then she thought of Rose reading the leaflet. She didn’t seem like the kind of girl who wanted to be mysterious or poetic – or different. She glanced across the table. Rose was studying the leaflet, her face etched into a frown. Sky’s heart sank. Amber headed over to them with a tray of drinks. “So?” she said as she placed the tray down. “What do you think?” She looked at Sky anxiously.
“I really like it,” Sky said defiantly, wanting to get in before Rose could say anything to ruin it.
“Me too!” Maali exclaimed, her brown eyes gleaming with excitement. “Especially the last bit.”
They all looked at Rose, who was still staring at the leaflet. “What’s the quote and who’s Oscar Wilde?” Rose asked, finally looking up at them.
Sky’s throat tightened as she noticed Amber’s expression harden.
“He’s a writer,” Amber said curtly. “One of the greatest writers who ever lived.”
Rose shrugged. “So, what did he write?”
“The Importance of Being Earnest,” Amber said.
Rose frowned. “I thought that was Shakespeare.”
“No!” Amber looked horrified.
Sky started wracking her brains for some way to get Rose to leave without causing a massive scene.
“He also wrote The Picture of Dorian Gray,” Maali said. She turned to Amber and smiled. “I googled him after you gave me the postcard.”
“Oh, I love that one!” Rose exclaimed with a grin.
“You do?” Amber and Sky said at the same time, sounding equally surprised.
“Uh-huh, my dad was in it.”
Amber frowned. “What do you mean, your dad was in it?”
“It’s about the dude who makes a pact never to get old, right?” Rose asked. “So he has a portrait of himself painted and that gets old instead.”
“That’s right.” Amber raised her eyebrows, looking about as shocked as Sky felt.
“My dad was in the play.” Rose looked down, as if she’d suddenly thought of something sad. “He’s an actor.”
Sky felt a prickle of curiosity. In all of her obsessive hatred for Rose’s mum, she’d totally forgotten that her dad was the actor Jason Levine.
“It was an awesome play,” Rose said wistfully.
Amber smiled and Sky breathed a sigh of relief.
“So, what’s this mysterious quote, then?” Rose said, picking up her leaflet.
Maali turned to her. “It’s ‘Yes: I am a dreamer. For a dreamer is one who can only find his way by moonlight, and his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world.’ ” Maali looked at Amber. “I’ve read it so many times I know it off by heart.”
Amber was beaming now.
“It’s a really cool quote,” Sky said.
“ ‘And his punishment is that he sees the dawn before the rest of the world,’ ” Rose echoed, looking thoughtful. “What does that mean?”
“What do you think it means?” Amber said, watching Rose carefully.
Rose frowned. “That dreamers stay up all night? But how is that a punishment? I mean, whenever I’ve stayed up all night I’ve loved seeing the sunrise. It makes me feel lucky. Like I’m seeing something no one else is, cos they’re all asleep.”
“Exactly!” Amber said, nodding sagely.
“So it’s not really a punishment at all,” Maali said. “He was being sarcastic.”
“Oh!” Rose nodded. “I like sarcasm.”
“So, what do you think?” Amber looked around the table hopefully. “Are you in?”
“I am,” Maali said straight away.
Sky nodded. “Me too.”
They all looked at Rose.
“Why not?” Rose said casually, flicking her hair over her shoulder.
Chapter Seventeen
Maali glanced around the table at the other girls and said a quick silent thank you to Lakshmi. She was so glad she’d plucked up the courage to come. She could hardly believe she was sitting here in this café, with these girls, having just joined a secret society. It was like she’d been pulled from her boring, nothing-ever-happens life and plonked straight into a movie.
At the table across from them a skinny white guy with dreadlocks started talking loudly into his mobile phone. “I’m flying to Cuba tomorrow,” he said. “We’re shooting a documentary about the Havana dance scene.”
Maali pinched her leg underneath the table to check she wasn’t dreaming.
“So,” Sky said, undoing her coat, “do you think we ought to do some kind of ice-breaker? You know, to get to know each other a little better?”
Rose ya
wned. “What, like one of those naff ‘if you were an animal what would it be’ things?”
Sky’s face flushed. “No – well – yes. But not as stupid as that.”
Maali couldn’t quite work Sky and Rose out. Sky had brought Rose, so they had to be friends, but there was definitely tension between them.
“What, then?” Rose said, staring at Sky.
“Well, we could tell each other what we really love.”
Rose frowned. “What we really love?”
“Yes. You know, like what our passions are.” Sky looked at Amber hopefully.
Amber nodded. “That sounds good. And we should say what our dreams are.”
“Definitely.” Sky sat back in her chair.
“Can we say what we really hate, too?” Rose asked. Maali couldn’t stop staring at her lips. They were so full and so red. Rose noticed and raised her eyebrows. Maali quickly looked away.
“OK. We’ll each share what we really love, what we really hate and what our dreams are,” Amber said, pulling a notebook and pen from her briefcase.
“Good idea,” Maali said, wanting to add something to the conversation. She took the box of burfi from her bag and put it on the table. “My mum gave us these—” She broke off. What was she doing, mentioning her mum? It made her sound like such a kid.
“You told your mum about the meeting?” Amber frowned.
“What is it?” Rose said, staring at the box.
“They’re sweets,” Maali said. Her face felt hot enough to melt. She glanced at Amber. “I didn’t tell her about the meeting. I told her I was seeing some friends to do homework.”
Rose laughed. She leaned across the table, her golden curls tumbling forward, and opened the box. “What kind of sweets are they?”
“Indian,” Maali said.
“I like the colours.” Rose grabbed a bright green square of pistachio burfi and took a bite.
Maali looked at her anxiously.
“Wow! This is awesome!” Rose’s eyes widened and she took another bite.
Amber coughed loudly and tapped the end of her pen on the table. “Right, who wants to start?”
“You should,” Sky said. “This was your idea.”
The Moonlight Dreamers Page 8
