*Yeah, you are," said Khaden.
*That"s not true. I-"
Sas snorted and bobbed under the water. She slipped around us like a seal and surfaced where she started, water droplets clinging to her eyelashes.
*I"m not chicken. Honest."
*Prove it," she said. *Duo bomb."
*Excellent idea," said Khaden. *Only made better if it"s a trio bomb."
Sas and Khaden high-fived each other. Water sprayed off their hands.
*And if we get kicked out?"
Khaden ignored me and fired directions. *Sas, bomb by that ladder and Ruby, you go opposite Sas. I"ll be at the deep end. We bomb on my signal, right?"
*Okay, but-"
*Stay under for as long as you can. It"ll make it tougher for them to catch us. Meet back at the towels," said Khaden.
Before I could ask how we"d know it was safe to go back to the towels, Sas ducked-dived away. The water made her look shimmery.
*Close your mouth, Ruby," said Khaden. *It"ll be fine."
*What"s the signal?" I asked.
*Just watch me." He swam towards the deep end.
*Great! Just great." I dived under the lane-ropes, staying close to the bottom of the pool. Once I reached the other side, I climbed out, readjusted my top and boardies and looked around. On the path, wet kids lay stomach-down on the concrete, towels draped over their backs. Under the light pole, the gorilla and his mates laughed and sucked on energy drinks.
I turned and stared across the water at Sas. She sat on the edge of the pool, squeezing water from her hair. She reminded me of a mermaid.
To my right, Khaden heaved himself out of the water and onto the pool edge. He shook his head and banged his ear, the water-in-my-ear dance.
I glanced at the lifeguard. He was chatting to a girl in a yellow one-piece that didn"t cover much more than a bikini would. The other lifeguards were by the kiosk, helping a little boy with a foot problem.
Sas stretched and stood. She stepped off the deck to the path. I felt my muscles tense. She wasn"t taking a run up, was she?
Khaden fiddled with the cord in his boardies and stepped off the pool deck too. His dark skin stood out against the white pump-building.
Not him too. No way was I taking a run up.
Khaden"s nod was more of a twitch. He and Sas burst into action, sprinting towards the pool. My heart was a drumbeat in my throat, ears and head. I tensed, ready to leap.
Their feet hit the pool deck at the same time. As they tucked their knees to their chest, I jumped too.
I heard their bodies smash the water a split-second before mine did. In my panic, I stuffed the bomb and did a ma.s.sive bellywhacker. I sunk to the bottom of the pool, curled in a ball, burning pain shooting across my stomach. Voices gurgled and echoed through the water. A forest of legs surrounded me.
I uncurled and rolled onto my back, blowing big silver bubbles at the shimmering surface, expecting a lifeguard to haul me from the water. My lungs burned and still no lifeguard, so I rolled back onto my stomach and kicked off the bottom. I swam under the lane rope and burst from the water, sucking in air.
Above me, the speakers crackled. *Absolutely. No. Bombing." Each word was like a gun shot. *Bombers WILL be evicted."
I scanned the pool, water lapping at my shoulders and throat. Stern lifeguards stood on each corner, glaring. People in the water bobbed, squealed, chatted and dived as though nothing had happened. A kid about Archie"s age climbed up the ladder and stood on the pool deck, grinning.
*Don"t even think about it," bellowed the lifeguard nearest me.
The kid"s shoulders dropped. He slumped on the pool lip and slipped back into the water. His two mates, waiting in the pool, whistled and clapped.
That"s when Sas"s boardies caught my eye. She was in the lap-lane, her stroke smooth and powerful. She tumble-turned at the deep end and swam back towards me. Calm, cool.
Khaden was back at our towels, doing his water-in-the-ear-dance again.
The lifeguards focused on the group of three younger boys.
I grinned and waded to the ladder. This time, my heart raced with excitement, not fear. We did it! A triple bomb. And we got away with it. Best of all, that bubbly, excited feeling made the air clearer and the voices around me sharper. Instead of shrinking away from the world, I was part of it again, and it felt good.
Sas.
Dear Angelo, Mum says I have to write to you to say thanks for the new clothes, but she didn"t say I had to POST it, so I"m writing the letter in my journal. Technically, I"m still doing what Mum asked, so that should shut her up for a while.
So, thanks, I guess, but don"t think for a minute the money or new clothes changes anything. I still don"t want to talk to you, especially not after tonight.
This is stupid. Beyond stupid. Mum can stick her letter, and so can Dad.
Why should I write a thank you letter? He was trying to buy me, couldn"t Mum see that?
On the way home after the pool, I felt fantastic, as though the whole world was perfect. Before Ruby arrived, Khaden and I had just hung out. We mucked around in the water and lay side-by-side on the concrete, holding hands. I"d been worried maybe Khaden didn"t feel the same way that I did, and that being alone with him would feel weird, but it just felt right. Being with Khaden is easy. And fun.
Then Ruby arrived all uptight about her dad, work, the heat, everything. I did what friends are supposed to do, I listened, but right in the middle of me telling her about my plan for my own room-which may not be a big deal to her, but it is for me-she went all white and sweaty and bolted for the pool. What"s that about?
I"m over her and her stupid moods. She"s annoying, paranoid and scared, all the time. I couldn"t believe her face when I dared her to do a bomb. You"d think I"d dared her to detonate a bomb, not do one!
But even with Ruby being a complete idiot, our triple bomb ruled.
I swum laps to avoid being caught by that hot, no HOT, lifeguard. Man, I miss swimming. Not competing, just swimming lap after lap. No noise, no responsibility no nagging sisters or mother, and no lying father.
But I digress, to quote Ms Dimasi. I was about to explain why my life sucks.
While I was at the pool, Mum failed to supervise Eliza and Grace. They found the Napoleon Perdis nail polish set Dad gave me last Christmas and somehow spilt pink, red and yellow nail polish over the matching doona covers Mum bought only a couple of weeks ago. I yelled, which summoned Mum, who went ballistic.
And guess who she went off at? Me! And when I asked how it could be my fault, she yelled even louder because I should have kept the nail polish out of the girls" reach. Is she for real? The stuff was hidden in the back of my knickers" drawer-what right did they have to go in there?
Anyway, I cracked it and sulked.
And did Mum care? She giggled and flirted on the phone to the new mystery man for HOURS, like a twelve-year-old. I could hear her from my room. Disgusting! Bet he has red arm hair.
Dad isn"t the only one with changes on the love-front.
Khaden.
Taj and Khaden lounged on the sofa watching The Matrix. The black tarp covering the broken window crackled and snapped in the night breeze.
*Hey, push pause," said Taj. *Wanna grab a drink."
The screen froze on Trinity"s stern face. Something about the arch of her eyebrow made Khaden think of Anika. His mother.
Taj handed him a can of c.o.ke and flopped back in the sofa, cracking open a beer. The pungent smell filled Khaden"s nostrils. It reminded him of his father.
Taj wiped his mouth after taking a swig. *Did you want a beer?"
*Nah."
Taj nodded at the frozen screen. *Well come on, push play.
Khaden lifted the remote, but then lowered it again. *Taj, can I ask you something?"
*Yeah." It was more a sigh than a word.
*It"s about..." Khaden shifted in his seat, trying to find the right words. *Do you remember..." He glanced at Taj, who frowned. Khaden closed his eyes. *Do you remember her?"
*Who? Trinity? Are you serious? We"ve watched this about a billion times. Like I"d ever forget Trinity."
*Not Trinity. Anika." Khaden whispered her name as though the sound of it would cause the room, the house, to crumble around them. He stared at the condensation on his can, wishing he could take the word back.
*Mate, don"t go asking Dad about-"
*I"m not stupid. That"s why I"m asking you."
Taj sighed and stared at the ceiling. *You know the smell of that hippy shop, up near the supermarket?"
Khaden nodded.
*Well, that reminds me of her. Don"t know why." Taj"s face twisted in concentration, then relaxed. *I can remember her hands were soft and her skin was darker than mine-ours-really dark, but that"s about it. I was only four or something." He gulped beer.
*It"s more than I remember."
*What about the photos at Nan"s place? Remember the ones on the mantelpiece? There was a picture of Anika sitting on Santa"s knee, nursing us. You would have been about one, I guess. And there was one of her with her mum, dad and brother. She kind of stood out, you know, with the rest of her family being so Irish-red hair, freckles..."
Khaden frowned, working hard to remember the photos. *Wonder what happened to them, the photos, you know, after Nan died."
Taj shrugged. *Who knows, mate. Think Nan"s sister cleaned the place up. It"s not like Dad was welcome after that fight."
Khaden shuddered at the memory of sitting out the back under the lemon tree with Taj. Inside the house, angry shadows had paced and pointed behind the thin curtains. Harsh words had battered the windows. Taj had tried to play Eye-Spy, to distract Khaden. *What was that even over?"
*Nan had heard from Anika and hadn"t told Dad." Taj sipped his beer. *You were mucking around with Nan"s chess set in the lounge when they started."
*Do you think they ever spoke again, before Nan died?"
Car lights filled the lounge room. A door slammed.
Khaden pressed play on the remote control.
Taj leaned towards him. *Khade, don"t ask Dad about this stuff, okay?"
Khaden nodded.
Keys rattled on the concrete. Mike swore.
Khaden took a slow, deep breath.
*You should clear off," said Taj. *He"ll be blind."
*It"ll be right," said Khaden.
Mike flung the door open, looked his sons up and down and swayed. *I"m going to bed."
Taj didn"t speak until the bedroom door slammed. *Must be windy in the doorway."
Taj and Khaden broke into quiet laughter.
IM Chat.
Sas: Victory!
Khaden: Better be good. Watching Matrix Sas: Again?
Khaden: :P Ruby: Did Operation Own Room work?
Sas: So you were listening!!
Ruby: Meh...
Sas: Tell you all about it when you get here tomorrow. My place at 10. Wear old stuff xoxo Khaden: I"m not painting Sas: Suck it up, KD!
Ruby.
You"re up early," said Dad. He was wearing pyjama pants and a face full of sleep-wrinkles.
*Could you put on a dressing gown or something?" I said, staring at my bowl of banana and yoghurt.
*I slept well, Ruby, thanks for asking." Dad dumped Corn Flakes and a carton of full-fat milk on the table.
I tutted and shook my head.
*What?" he asked.
*At your age you should be cutting out sugar and fat. And eating more fibre."