“Yeab. Haaoowwk. Ah-haaammm. Haaaammm.”
“Ok, maybe you should have texted me.” Sunny sat upright and shook her head.
“Cab yoo gid my ohm-work for me?” Annabel pleaded. “Com visid me after?”
“Uh, sorry! I don’t think I can. I’ve got Othello after school. Look,” Sunny tried to clear her thoughts. She got up and pulled the curtains, and the sunlight made her flinch. “I’ll tell you what; I guess you’ll be out for a couple of days. I’ll come over tomorrow night and bring your assignments. I’ll even bring you soup or something.”
“Danks. Dext be eff yoo do anyding fun.”
“Okay. Take care, okay? Lots of juice and garlic and… um…”
“Drugs.” She had no problem pronouncing that one.
“Bye”
“A-hoooohhha! Hawwwtk, haaaaaakkk…”
Sunny hung up before she had the pleasure of hearing Annabel losing her lungs down the phone. Poor girl. She sounded awful.
She shook off the remainder of her slumber and rolled out of bed. She could hear Archie crying downstairs, and it drilled into her skull like a Black and Decker. Escaping to the shower for a few minutes, she washed and got dressed quickly and headed downstairs.
She found Steph in the kitchen trying to calm a distraught Archie. He was sitting in his high chair, alternately waving his arms around in anguish and trying to stuff a variety of toys into his mouth.
“What’s wrong, my little chubba bubba wubba?” Sunny stroked his red cheeks lovingly.
“Teething,” Steph said tersely. “I’ve given him some homeopathic solution, he’s chewing on his cold teething ring, he’s wearing his amber necklace, I just don’t know what else to do!” She was moving around the kitchen aimlessly, opening cupboards and closing them, putting things away and then getting them out again.
“Give him some proper painkillers, maybe?” Sunny said sarcastically, pouring herself a glass of juice and settling down at the breakfast bar.
Bloody Steph. She was a typical pharma-suspicious nutjob. She was anti-vaccine, which was bad enough. Sunny worried about Archie not having his jabs, but Ben let Steph have her own way after she printed out a dossier of research into the dangers of vaccinations, and rather than have to read it all, he just gave in.
“You know how I feel about giving drugs to kids, Sunshine.”
“Don’t call me that.” Then, looking at Steph more closely, she noticed a bruise darkening her cheekbone. “What happened to you?” Sunny was concerned, despite herself.
“Went to check on him in the dark, walked into the door,” Steph replied in a flat tone.
“Looks pretty bad…” Sunny got up to take a closer look.
“It’s fine.” Steph turned away and busied herself at the sink. “So, you’ll be home in time for dinner this evening, right? You’ve got your first rehearsal today, I hear.”
Damn this small town, Sunny thought. “Yeah. I should be done by five, I think. I’m not really looking forward to it the way I should be, though.”
“Why is that?” Steph turned back to face her.
“No reason.” Which she meant as ‘none of your business.’ She was getting soft with Steph. Next thing you know they’d be doing each other’s hair and telling ghost stories.
“Sunny. You can tell me stuff, you know.” Steph gave her a searching gaze, as if she was putting every ounce of effort into looking concerned about her, but willing to respect her privacy. Sunny gave a sigh, what was the harm?
“I guess it’s that guy, the one playing Othello.”
“Jake Henderson?”
“Yeah.”
“Has he done something?”
Sunny grimaced. “No. He’s just a creep.” She looked down into the fluorescent depths of her juice. “Simon says that he likes me, that’s why he’s being such a jerk. I guess it’s the teenage version of pulling a girl’s pigtails.”
Steph pulled her mouth into a hard line. “It’s not okay, though. If he’s making you uncomfortable, he needs to be pulled into line.”
“It’s fine,” Sunny said, taking a deep breath. “It’s just taking a bit of enjoyment out of the play, that’s all. I can handle him.”
“Okay. Let me know if you need some help.”
Sunny couldn’t find an agenda in her words. So she ignored them instead. She got to her feet and gathered up her books, and wordlessly accepted some chicken wraps and frozen juice in a lunch bag from Steph. She paused for a few moments to let Archie chew madly on her index finger, then gave him a kiss and left the house.
The day had begun grey and with a slight chill to the wind, a glimpse of the winter weather they would soon be expecting. Walking to school, she felt depressed, but couldn’t put her finger on why. Then she realized – today would be the first day in three days that she wouldn’t get to see Hunter. They had left on good terms last night, but Sunny felt justified in being annoyed at him. If he was being close-minded, she was going to call him on it. She didn’t want to admit to herself that it was because she wanted him to consider the possibility of having some romantic feelings for her, no matter how unprofessional it might be.
And she knew she would miss him today. She braced herself for the day to stretch on relentlessly, without even Annabel to lift her spirits. At least she would have Simon around, to provide solid, silent support.
She made it to the school gates and went to the main entrance to where she, Annabel and Simon usually met, but Simon was nowhere to be found. Puzzled, she made her way to her locker and picked up her books for first class, Biology. Sunny had a full day of classes, with not even a free period to look forward to. The day was looking bleaker as the seconds ticked by, she thought; she was alone, with no prospects of enjoyment for the entire day…
She made it to Biology early, despite dragging her feet on the walk to the science buildings on the west side of the campus. She was surprised to see Simon, already in his seat, staring morosely out the window.
Maybe he was even more lost without Annabel than she realized, she thought, and she slid into the seat beside him, Annabel’s usual spot, instead of taking the one on the far left. “Hi,” she said cheerily, trying to lift his mood as well as her own.
He dragged his eyes away from the window reluctantly. “Hi,” he replied flatly. Then he resumed staring out the window.
“Pretty sad about Annabel, hey? She sounds pretty sick,” she said, trying to make conversation. Simon didn’t reply.
He was either ignoring her, or he was so devastated to be without his best friend that he was tapping out for today.
Two classes later, Simon was still ignoring her. She realized she’d never been around him without Annabel, and she wasn’t sure what to talk to him about. As their Trig class wound up, she tried to engage him again.
“Are you feeling pretty sad without Annabel here, Simon?”
“Yes,” he replied quietly. He stared at her, a strange look on his face like it was her fault that Annabel was sick. Sunny chose to let it slide.
“I miss her today too. But I’m trying to make the most of the day,” she said, feeling like she was talking to a toddler. This was stupid. Simon was a grown man.
“What do you do when you’re feeling down?” Simon asked her quietly.
It was a strange question, but she answered truthfully. “I try and do something that makes me happy, maybe go surfing, or play with Archie. He always makes me happier.”
Simon looked thoughtful for a second. “I like to stay in my room, mostly. But there’s a place I like to go; it’s up at the lookout on Cape Hawke. If you jump the barriers at the top and go down the hill towards the cliff, there’s a flat space just before the drop-off. I like to go there, and stare out at the sea.”
Sunny didn’t know how to respond. She gave him what she hoped was a supportive smile, and said goodbye to him as he went to PE, and she headed to Economics.
As the lunch bell went, she collected her chicken wraps and juice and went to sit at her usua
l table, and waited for Simon. She ate her wrap and caught up on some homework that she’d been avoiding, and as the seconds ticked by, she realized that Simon was nowhere to be seen.
She was slightly worried about him. She would never mention it to Annabel, but it was blindingly obvious that Simon loved her, far more than just a friend. Annabel must know that. Annabel was forthright and honest, so they would have had that conversation years ago. Simon had obviously decided that it was better to keep her as a friend, rather than lose her.
But Sunny couldn’t even fathom how hard that must be for him. Her unrequited crush on Hunter was painful, but it was new. Simon must have been in love with Annabel from the very start. It would be like holding onto razorblade every day for thirteen years.
She sent Annabel a message saying that he was not around, and she immediately replied.
He’s already called me. He’s gone home. He’s usually ok without me but today doesn’t look like a good day for anyone. I think I just coughed up a lung.
Sunny sighed, and turned her attention back to her trig homework. As she tried to work her way through one of the trickier problems, a shadow fell over her book.
“All alone today, Sunshine? I can keep you company if you like.” It was Jake, leering over her.
“I’m ok, thanks, Jake. Just catching up on my homework,” Sunny replied, trying to be polite. She gave an involuntary shudder.
“Awww, cute girl like you, all alone, you need someone to look out for you.” He sprawled himself beside her, getting a bit too close for comfort. She stiffened and leaned away.
“Like I said, I’m okay, Jake,” she said firmly.
“Awww, come on,” he drawled. “Give me a bit of polite conversation, at least, hey?” He reached out and pawed at her shoulder.
The touching was too much. “Back off!” Sunny snapped. “Jake, whatever it is that you’re trying to do, stop it. I’m not interested. Please go back to where you came from.”
“Whoa!” Jake laughed nastily and moved away from the table. “Bit touchy today? Don’t worry; we’ll have more time together this afternoon at rehearsal. I’m sure you’ll be in a better mood by then.” He gave her a wink and moved off, leaving her fuming.
The arrogant, sleazy bastard! She couldn’t have been clearer; she was not interested. How was she going to put up with him for the duration of the play? She put her head in her hands, letting her wild mane of hair cover her completely.
The bell sounded, and she gathered up her books, sighing deeply. She couldn’t wait for this day to be over.
Chapter 18
The day outside was still overcast and slightly chilly, it was depressing in the extreme. She began the walk home slowly, not wild about going home, not very keen on staying at school. The play rehearsal hadn’t been that bad – they’d only read the first couple of scenes, so she wasn’t even needed. And she made sure she stayed far, far away from Jake.
But that wasn’t what was bugging her. She was having withdrawal symptoms – she’d managed to go the whole day without seeing Hunter and wasn’t sure if she could last a few more hours even talking to him. Toying with her mobile while dragging herself the twenty-minute walk back to her house, her fingers made the decision for her, and she brought up his number and dialed without even realizing what she was doing.
As soon as it started dialing she contemplated hanging up, but even she wasn’t that stupid. The deed was done. She pressed the phone to her ear and was relieved when he answered.
“Hey Mouse, long time no see.” His voice was playful.
“Are you being sarcastic?” Sunny replied, equally playfully.
“I was beginning to think you’d forgotten about me,” he said, then spoke something unintelligible to someone on his end.
“Sorry, is this a bad time?”
“Ahhh, kind of,” his voice lowered. “We’re organizing the assault on the compound now. It’s difficult; the EMP is making it very hard.”
“That pesky thing. I’m sure I could find it and take it out.”
“Well, if you’re headed that way…”
“I’ll do my best.”
“Oh, and Mouse…” The playful tone disappeared, and he sounded serious. “Don’t get mad at me for telling you to be careful, okay? Please stay invisible, no photos this time.”
“I got it. I don’t have very long, so I’ll let you know as soon as I come back.”
“Just… Just be safe. That’s an order.” His smooth chocolate voice was making her ears turn red.
“Will do, Mr Handler. Talk soon.”
She hung up before she ruined the conversation by saying something stupid. Now, if she could maintain her cool when she was face-to-face with him…
Sunny ducked into a public bathroom; she made sure she was safe and went into the Alternate before she could get too grossed out by the scummy toilet. She flew straight up immediately, headed towards Korea. She’d noticed last time that the pulse got slightly stronger when she moved towards the north, so she started at the border of South Korea and moved slowly up.
It was harder than she thought it would be. Now that she knew what she was feeling, it was easy to pick up the strange thrum when she got over the border, but it was tricky to gauge exactly when it was feeling stronger. She moved more north, then east and west, then she drifted with her eyes closed so she could feel the pulse better without her vision interfering. The longer she concentrated on it, the more she felt she could get the sense of it, and after a few minutes of streaking backwards and forwards across the country, she felt she had narrowed it down to just south of the city of Pyongyang.
The pulse was definitely stronger. Not stronger, just more… tangible. The machine had to be around here somewhere. She floated back and forth over the city, but couldn’t seem to isolate a stronger feeling anywhere in particular.
Frustrated, she glared down at the city and willed the pulse to give up its secrets. It kept going; it was such a strange twang of energy, sometimes beating out of time, every five seconds, every twenty seconds. It seemed like it was taunting her. She zoomed high up in the sky until she could see the whole outline of the coast of Korea, and stared hard at the country, trying to see a disturbance in the air to follow the dull thud of the pulse. There was nothing to see, and with a loud sigh, she turned towards home.
Two minutes later she rematerialized in the walk space between two houses on her cul-de-sac and headed to the front gate. She checked her watch – she wasn’t too late. Ben and Steph weren’t in the habit of asking her where she’d been, and she didn’t want them to start now, so she wasn’t going to give them any reason at all to suspect she hadn’t been where she said she was.
Her little sojourn to Korea had taken only twenty-five minutes – and the walk home from school should have taken her twenty. She pushed open the front door, and hearing Ben’s voice, she headed straight to the kitchen. The scene in the open-plan living area was all wholesome family time, with Steph cooking in the kitchen and Ben cuddling Archie at the dining room table, watching her. They all turned when Sunny walked in.
“Sunshine! Good to see you, darling!” Her father called. Archie gave her a happy squeal, and Steph turned from the stove and gave her a smile which Sunny almost rated as genuine.
She dumped her bag on the floor and joined her father and Archie. “Hello, my chubba bubba wubba,” she cooed to Archie as she stole him from her father’s arms and placed him on her lap.
“How was rehearsal? Was it as bad as you thought?” Steph asked while giving the pot on the stove a stir.
“It was pretty bad. I’m thinking of chucking it in.”
“Was it that boy again?” Steph paused mid-stir.
“Sort of. I told him to fu… I mean I told him that I wasn’t interested. In no uncertain terms.” Sunny was quite comfortable with swearing in front of her father, and did it in front of Steph just to annoy her, which admittedly never worked, but for some reason, she couldn’t bring herself to cuss in front of her b
eloved little brother.
“What’s this? Is some guy giving you grief?” Ben looked at Sunny sharply.
“It’s ok, papa bear. Nothing I can’t handle.” Sunny said flippantly tickling Archie’s toes.
“If some boy is laying a finger on you…” Ben was getting a little gruff, but it was mostly for show. He trusted that his daughter could look after herself.
“It’s all good. I got it covered. Apparently, he has a very misguided crush, I told him to back off, and I think the message has sunk in.” She sighed, and, holding onto Archie with one arm, shook out her hair, combing her fingers through it to try and work out some knots. Archie busied himself trying to grab her long hair and stuff it in his mouth. “But the play is going to be awful; acting is not fun like it was in Sydney. That dickhead Cresants is sucking any enjoyment out of the play. It’s not exciting or innovative or artistic. It’s just reading a bunch of lines while standing on a stage.”
Steph came to the table with a huge casserole dish filled with chicken in her hands. “If it’s not fun, then quit. Simple.”
Sunny sighed again. “I would, but I’m worried that people will think I’m bitter because I didn’t get the role I wanted.”
“Who gives a shit what people think?” Steph replied. “If they think that, they’re not the people who know you, and they’re not the people who care about you.”
Sunny was unexpectedly touched and managed to disguise it by putting her hands over Archie’s ears and admonishing her. “No swearing in front of Archie, pottymouth.”
Time to change the subject. “So, Dad, Annabel’s sick, she’s a bit fluey. I thought I might go over tomorrow after school with her homework and stay the night there, to look after her. Her parents are away again…”
“Those damned parents of hers…” Ben’s mouth mashed into a hard line in disapproval. “They only ever think about themselves. It’s a wonder that Annabel has turned out like she has, and is only slightly screwed up.”
“Aren’t we all?” Sunny sang to her father and gave him an angelic smile.
The Mouse Page 14
