Snake Bite

by Christie Thompson

  ‘Yeah, cool, I guess. I don’t know how you can do it, though.’

  ‘What? Strip? Easy. It’s just like dancing, except naked. It’s a total buzz, too.’

  ‘Meh. A bit icky, I reckon.’

  ‘Why?!’

  ‘Stripping is a bit sluzza, that’s all.’

  ‘There’s nothing sluzza about making a fat lot of cash, honey!’

  I cringed. There was that old ‘honey’ chestnut again.

  ‘Pull my finger.’ Casey shoved her index finger in my face.

  ‘Fuck off!’

  ‘Do it!’ she cried. ‘DO IT!’

  I pulled her finger and she farted loudly. We both giggled helplessly for several moments.

  ‘Alright, deary. I’m gunna go get freshened up.’ Casey sashayed out of the living room, hips moving as though she was on a runway.

  I spat out my gum and ripped out a page of Who Weekly to wrap it in. Then I tore open the box of Jatz and bag of cheese and started washing down the salty chunks of snack with swigs of Coke.

  ‘Nice eating style, Jezza.’

  I almost choked on a cracker.

  SIX

  ‘Cash!’ I exclaimed, clearing my throat and blowing a chunk of half-chewed food across the room. ‘What are you doing here?!’

  Cash slung his green canvas army bag off his shoulder and leaned against the kitchen counter. ‘Got back yesterday. Been up north working on fishing boats and that. It’s been good. Hard work, but.’ He grinned, his eyes twinkling light blue against his deeply tanned face.

  Cash, Casey’s big brother, had the same bleached white-blond hair as Casey, shaved but longish around the collar, giving him a punkish kind of look. Cash. On anybody else it would have been a total bogan name, but he wore it well. I didn’t know Cash very well; he’d left home when me and Casey were still kids, stolen his dad’s car and driven it across the Nullarbor before the cops caught up with him in Perth. Ever since, as far as I knew, he had never stuck in the same place for more than six months at a time.

  ‘Is that my fucking feral brother?!’ Casey screeched from the bathroom. She skidded across the tiled family-room floor, a towel around her chest, still dripping wet.

  ‘AAAAAHHHHH!’ she screamed. ‘You motherFUCKER! I didn’t know you were coming back!’

  ‘Don’t get too excited, only till Christmas.’

  Casey leapt on Cash, kissing him full on the mouth and hugging him. Cash looked mildly embarrassed as he detangled himself from Casey’s clinch-hold. He raked his fingers through his hair.

  ‘You’re still one crazy girl, huh?’ He grinned down at his sister and then up at me.

  ‘What the fuck are you wearing?’ Casey examined Cash’s clothes, wrinkling her nose. ‘You look like Mad Max.’

  He was wearing ripped black jeans and a blue wife-beater that revealed tanned and heavily tattooed arms and chest, and a denim jacket that had the sleeves cut off, with patches sewn all over it. I thought he looked super rad.

  ‘How’ve you been, Jezza?’ Cash smiled at me. ‘You’ve grown up heaps.’

  ‘Of course she has!’ Casey exclaimed, throwing herself down on the couch next to me and squeezing my leg. ‘It’s been two freakin’ years since we’ve seen you, you bastard!’

  ‘I wanted to surprise you. I got here last night but you were out.’

  ‘Where’re you staying?’

  ‘Here. I was catching up with old mates last night, but I’m gunna pitch my tent in the backyard tonight.’

  ‘Tent?’ Casey shrieked with laughter. ‘You can sleep in the house, y’know?’

  Cash shrugged, grinning. ‘It’d be weird sleeping in a bed. I like it outdoors.’

  ‘We need beer!’ Casey was up again. ‘Go get a case, Cash! We are gunna get smashed!’

  Cash smiled at me again. ‘She hasn’t changed.’

  ‘Nah, not much.’

  ‘I’m gunna get dressed!’ Casey yelled over her shoulder, already bouncing down the hall to her room. ‘Backyard beers! Fuck yeah!’

  Cash pushed himself off the kitchen counter. ‘You wanna come get this case? You’re gunna have to. I’ll need you to hold it on the back.’

  ‘That’s right, you have a bike.’

  ‘Moto Guzzi,’ Cash said, proudly. ‘Let’s go.’

  Cash’s motorcycle was parked in the driveway. I hoped my mum wouldn’t come out the front of our house; she’d probably have totally flipped her rag if she’d seen me on the back of a bike. Cash handed me his passenger helmet and helped me strap it under my chin.

  ‘I’m kind of nervous,’ I confessed. I was more excited than nervous. I felt like a little kid on Christmas morning.

  ‘You’ll be right,’ Cash assured me. ‘Just hold on to me and lean in with me on the turns.’

  I nodded. Cash kick-started the bike and I climbed on behind him. I could feel the power of the engine beneath my body as Cash revved a few times. As he accelerated I felt my stomach lurch backwards. I threw my arms around his waist and pressed my cheek against his shoulder. The denim of his jacket was stiff with motor oil and sweat. The combination of smells and the vibrating machine made my heart beat a million times faster. The wind whipped against my face.

  ‘The best, huh?’ Cash yelled over one shoulder.

  I couldn’t stop grinning. I hoped we would ride past somebody I knew so they would see me riding with Cash. Well, anybody but my mum.

  We pulled up at the local shops. I loitered out the front while Cash bought us a case of beer. He emerged a few minutes later and nodded towards the park over the street.

  ‘Let’s have one now. Casey will be ages getting ready.’

  A concrete path led from the shops to a tunnel that passed under the road. It stank of piss and shit and had a giant cock and balls spray-painted on the wall. At the park we sat on the dried-up yellow grass next to a derelict children’s playground that was covered in scrawls of texta and graffiti, under a gum that did nothing to shield us from the sun.

  Cash opened the case, cracked open a stubby and handed it to me.

  ‘Thanks.’ I took a long sip.

  ‘Tell me what’s been going on in Jez World.’ Cash took a stubby for himself.

  ‘Not much. Same old.’

  ‘You still kickin’ with little Lukey Johnson?’

  ‘He’s not so little anymore. He’s taller than you.’

  ‘For real?’ Cash raised his eyebrows. ‘He your boyfriend?’

  I shook my hair into my eyes. ‘Nah. He’s kind of hanging with this chick, Laura.’

  ‘Yeah? What’s she like?’

  ‘Short. Kinda chubby. Big boobs. Piercings.’

  ‘I mean, what’s she like?’

  ‘Oh. Um . . . I dunno. Nice. Real friendly and that.’ I didn’t want to sound bitchy.

  ‘Sounds like a sweet chick, man. Good on him.’ Cash grinned lazily and stretched back, propping himself up on his elbows. ‘So what about you, Jezza?’

  ‘What?’

  ‘Got a boy?’

  ‘Nooooo . . .’ I shook my head.

  ‘You’re kidding?’ Cash took a gulp of beer and wiped his mouth with the back of his hand. ‘Casey had a bunch of boyfriends when she was your age.’

  ‘I pashed Martin Carroll at the Year 10 formal,’ I said. ‘It was gross. Spearmint gum breath. I hate spearmint, it makes me wanna vom.’

  Cash laughed. He had an awesome laugh, like a dry-throated cackle kind of thing. His whole face changed and you could see all the little wrinkles around his eyes and his front tooth, chipped on one corner.

  ‘What about you?’ I asked.

  ‘Girls?’

  ‘I mean, when you were my age.’

  ‘Fuck, Jez. I’m not that much older than you am I?’

  ‘Nah, not at all. I didn’t mean that,’ I assured him.

  ‘I wasn’t heaps into girls. I was into motorbikes and punk rock and getting myself into shit.’

  ‘Yeah.’ I laughed. ‘I can remember. So what about now?’

/>   ‘I like girls.’ Cash grinned.

  I laughed again. ‘I wanna hear about your travels. Must be sweet just travelling around and that.’

  ‘It’s unreal. I mean, I was working the fishing boats for a while but before that I was just cruising up the coast with my swag, crashing on beaches, meeting people, busking for cash with my guitar.’

  ‘Wow. Sounds amazing.’

  Cash shrugged. ‘Anyone could do it. Livin’ the good life, saying “fuck you” to the man.’

  ‘I wanna say “fuck you” to the man.’

  ‘Do it.’

  ‘Mum’d never let me. She wants me to get a job, start chipping in for bills ’n that.’

  ‘A job, huh? What kind of job are you gunna get?’

  ‘I have no fucking idea.’

  ‘What do you want to do?’

  ‘I have no fucking idea,’ I repeated, laughing like I didn’t give a fuck.

  Cash nodded appreciatively. ‘Nobody does when they’re your age. I just wanted to get fucked up.’

  ‘Yeah, I wanna do that.’ I smiled.

  Cash finished his beer. ‘You ready to roll?’

  When we got back to the house, Casey was back on the couch, eyes glued to Oprah, in a gold bikini top and denim shorts. Her feet were up on the coffee table with cotton balls stuffed between each of her gold-painted toes.

  ‘Beer!’ Casey exclaimed, not taking her eyes off the telly. ‘Gimme, gimme!’

  ‘Nope.’ Cash started unloading the case into the fridge. ‘Not till you turn that telly off and come outside.’

  ‘Jesus, Cash. You sound like Mum,’ Casey grumbled. She got up and hobbled outside, cotton balls still intact, a magazine tucked under one arm. Her shorts were cut so high I could see a couple of inches of butt cheek peeking out.

  The Hollands’ backyard was shady, with a small paved barbecue area that was lined with ceramic garden animals. Under the pine tree, a huge bullfrog with bulging eyes sat, smoking a cigar, next to a pair of life-sized pelicans whose beaks rested on their chests. Cash handed me a beer and I straddled the tyre and rope swing that hung from the pine tree, facing Cash and Casey who sat at the wooden picnic table. I pushed off with one toe and swung a little way, spinning around.

  ‘I remember Dad putting up that tyre,’ Cash mused, shielding his eyes from the sun as he observed me swinging. ‘I was about ten or eleven. Where are the olds, anyway?’

  ‘At work.’ Casey yawned. ‘They’ll be late tonight, I reckon.’

  The Hollands owned a bathroom installation business, Bathing Beauty, and worked long hours out in Fyshwick. Mum says the Hollands are ‘cashed-up bogans’, but I reckon she’s jealous because they own their own house while she’s in a govvie.

  Casey started flipping through her magazine. ‘Jesus fucking Christ! Givenchy heels!’ she screeched, stabbing a page with her finger. ‘Why must you make me so wet when I will never be able to afford to wear you!’

  ‘Yeah, that’s the key to happiness, Casey, a pair of fucking shoes,’ Cash teased.

  ‘Oh, screw you and your anti-consumer bullshit. This is 2009, bro! Get with the program. A pair of Givenchy heels is more important than you realise.’

  ‘It’s just a pair of shoes,’ I agreed with Cash.

  ‘If I wore this pair of heels, then people are gunna look at them and think, who is that rad bitch who knows how to dress and can afford to wear designer shit. I will therefore attract other people who know how to dress and can afford designer shit. Success abounds!’

  ‘That easy, huh?’

  ‘Ah, fuck it.’ Casey chucked the magazine down on the table.

  ‘I’m not gunna bother explaining the importance of couture to you two fucking ferals!’

  ‘I’m not the one who smelled like a football player’s crotch this morning!’ I retorted.

  ‘You weren’t the one on a football player’s crotch this morning!’ Casey crowed.

  Cash held up both hands. ‘I don’t wanna know.’

  ‘Oh, brother dear. Don’t act so innocent!’ Casey’s grin was wicked.

  My mobile vibrated. I dismounted the tyre swing and fished in my pocket. A text message from Lukey: Sup? Keen for hangz?

  I typed back: Already drinking with Casey and Cash.

  ‘Who’s messaging ya?’ Casey asked. ‘That Lukey? Tell him to come over.’

  ‘He’s hanging with this chick, Laura.’

  ‘No shit? I can’t picture Lukey with a girl! That is too funny!’

  ‘I’m a girl,’ I pointed out.

  ‘You know what I mean! A girlfriend. He is such an emo fairy!’ Casey shifted her weight on the wooden bench seat. ‘Hey, Jez, did I tell you I seen him out the front of his house washing his dad’s ute with no shirt on and I rode past on my bike on the way to the shops and was all like, “Woot woooo!”. Oh, my God, Jezza, you should’ve seen how fuckin’ red he went. So fuckin’ funny.’

  ‘Too funny . . .’ I murmured, still playing with my phone.

  ‘Invite him over! It’ll be hilarious. I reckon he used to have a crush on me, y’know.’

  ‘You think every guy has a crush on you, Casey,’ I observed.

  ‘Lukey did! I caught him staring at my tits so many times. Ring him up!’ Casey urged.

  ‘Maybe Jez doesn’t want him to come over,’ Cash commented, glancing at me.

  I looked up at him quickly. ‘Nah, that’s cool. I’ll text him.’ I started a new message and typed, Come over to Casey’s.

  ‘So what’s Laura like anyway?’ Casey wanted to know.

  I sighed. I didn’t want to talk about Laura. ‘She’s alright. From Melbourne and she’s got two mums. Lesbo mums.’

  ‘GET FUCKED!’ Casey’s eyes widened. ‘Just like on Dr Phil today!’

  ‘Jesus, Casey.’ Cash shook his head.

  ‘I dunno, Case. I’ve never met them.’ I sighed again.

  ‘That is far out, but!’ Casey said eagerly. ‘I’ve never met anyone with lesbian mums. That is so fucking now, hey? Like, you wouldn’t have got that twenty years ago.’ Casey let her eyes settle on some distant point, deep in thought.

  Cash and I looked at each other and laughed.

  Twenty minutes later, the back sliding door opened and Lukey and Laura turned up, hand in hand. Laura beamed at his side, with pink bow hairclips on either side of her head and a purple sundress cut just above the knees.

  ‘LUKEY PUKEY!’ Casey squealed and bowled him over with a hug, messing up his hair with her acrylic-nailed fingers. ‘I can’t believe you’ve finally lost your freakin’ cherry, you bad boy!’ She smacked him on the backside.

  ‘Fuckin’ hell, Casey!’ Cash exclaimed. ‘You’re fucking unbelievable.’ Cash got up and shook Lukey and Laura’s hands. ‘I’ll get you guys a beer.’

  ‘Hey, Jez.’ Lukey smiled at me, embarrassed.

  Laura came and perched on the other end of my wooden bench seat. She squeezed my shoulder and grinned.

  ‘How are you?’ she asked, way too brightly.

  ‘Fine.’ I looked at her levelly. ‘And you?’

  ‘Aaaawesome,’ Laura drawled before meeting Lukey’s gaze. ‘Really, really sweet.’

  ‘Oh, well that’s sweeeet,’ Casey said, narrowing her eyes slightly.

  I glanced at Casey who was busy sizing up Laura, giving her a twice-over. Suddenly I felt myself warming up to the idea of putting Casey and Laura at each other for several hours. Casey would totally rip Laura a new one.

  Laura addressed Casey’s evaluating gaze. ‘So, Casey, what are you into?’ She smiled eagerly.

  ‘Oh, you know . . .’ Casey shrugged, coolly, and shot me a look that said, tell no one. ‘Bit of this and that.’

  ‘Bit of lying on the couch gasbagging on the phone and watching telly?’ Cash said, emerging from the house with another six-pack.

  We all laughed.

  ‘Owned,’ Lukey said, punching Casey on the arm.

  Casey poked out her tongue at Cash. ‘Not everyone can be a walkabout bum l
ike you, brother!’

  ‘Whew. How hot is it?’ Laura observed, fanning her face with her hand.

  ‘Stinking,’ I agreed. ‘You guys been for a swim yet?’

  ‘Nah, we were just sitting in the air con watching Foxtel,’ Lukey said. ‘Lazy day.’

  ‘Come over later for a swim if you want, Jez,’ Laura offered. ‘You guys, too,’ she added, turning to Casey and Cash.

  ‘Jezza’s hanging with me today! Ain’t that right, Jezza?’ Casey ran around the table to my side and plonked herself in my lap, hooking an arm around my neck.

  ‘It’s too hot, Casey. Get off!’ I complained.

  ‘Well don’t wear stupid tight black jeans in thirty-five-degree weather!’

  ‘Fuck you!’

  ‘Kiss this!’ Casey bent over and backed her butt up near my face.

  I pretended to make a grab for her butt and she shrieked and leapt away, squealing, ‘Fucking lezzo!’

  Casey and I glanced at Laura quickly, and I’m pretty sure I blushed a little. I wasn’t sure if that was a super uncool thing to do, to make lesbian jokes when Laura had two mums. But Laura just laughed.

  We sat in the afternoon sun, drinking, talking and smoking cigarettes. It was another searing hot day, and the beer was going straight to my head, making me drowsy and slurring my speech. Casey was becoming louder and looser. She brought out a portable iPod dock and put on The Black Eyed Peas. Casey started dancing around, writhing her hips to ‘My Humps’.

  ‘C’mon, Cash, dance with me!’ Casey shrieked, pulling Cash to his feet, despite his protests.

  ‘I’ll dance!’ Laura jumped up, her arms and legs jiggling.

  Lukey looked at me and smiled wryly. We weren’t the dancing type. He shifted seats closer to me.

  ‘So . . . you seemed kind of pissed off at me and Laura when you left her house yesterday . . .’ he began, looking at his hands.

  ‘Nah. I was just heaps hung-over, hey. Needed to go home and have a vom and crash.’

  ‘Yeah, right.’

  ‘So what’d you guys get up to last night?’

  ‘Not much, chilled out and watched movies. Got a bit maggot.’

  ‘Did you sleep with her?’ The words slipped out of my mouth before I gave myself time to think about it, and I immediately wanted to take them back. Don’t answer, I don’t want to know! the voice inside my head screamed.