Post by sophie on Dec 28, 2009 16:47:36 GMT
This is probably a stupid thing to ask, but if I were to put this up on Nfans should I put it all up at once or do it a chapter at a time so people can leave comments?
Sorry it's a slightly shorter update!
She could hardly believe it, the year was over. A long summer holiday which always felt interminable (but in a good way) and then she'd be starting another year of high school, carrying on the tradition of looking down at the first years and getting closer to Year Twelve, though India couldn't imagine that, they looked almost grown-up, almost from another existence, as they glided through the corridors barely noticing the other years. At eighteen where would she be? She couldn't think.
She left the building with the other screaming classmates. As she had predicted, the Friday had been pandemonium, and even though she had begun the detention of gum-removal in another room, a kindly teacher had stopped her and said, "It's only another half-hour, why don't you leave it? I shouldn't be letting you but it's the last day after all. The gum can stay there a little longer."
India could have hugged him, but instead she had thanked him, thrilled, and nearly thrown down the ancient ruler she was using to remove the gum. And now she, Rachel and Hannah were leaving school, best friends since kinder and hopefully always would be. They turned down a smaller road, away from the school, and towards the cafe for a celebratory milkshake.
"What are you doing when you get home?"
"I have to start packing for Queensland."
"How long will you be gone?" Hannah asked, stirring her shake.
"Four weeks."
"It's nearly the whole summer!" Rachel wailed. "Do you promise to text us?"
"My mobile never works very well there," India replied, "but I'll try every day."
"Are you packing all night?"
"Pretty much."
"Will you try and get away at some point? Everyone's going to the field."
The field was a big stretch of grass on the edge of the small town.
"I will, but Dad might not let me."
"I wish you weren't going," Hannah said in a mournful voice.
"I'm not gone all summer." India put her arms round her two best friends.
Declan was wrestling with a zip on his bag.
"Come on," he yelled at it, trying to hold it together and zip it and the same time. He lost his grip. "Oh, you BA-"
"I'm back!"
Declan heard his daughter's sunny announcement and repressed the swear word.
"The high school survivor!"
She came into his room and laughing, said, "I haven't survived high school yet, Dad, I've got years left!"
"Well, you survived this one, and I'm very proud."
India continued into her room. "I'm going to get this evil dress off!"
"Don't kick it and leave it on a heap on the floor," Declan warned, knowing his daughter. "Hang it up."
"I'm not going to wear it again until next year!"
"That's not the point. It doesn't need to be on the carpet gathering dust."
Rolling her eyes, India hung it up.
"I know you're rolling your eyes!" Declan called. "Stop it!"
She got changed and came back. "You can stop fretting Dad, it's on a hanger now."
"Good. Make sure it stays there." He couldn't believe how much he was sounding like his mother and indeed, India complained, "you're sounding just like Nan or Grandma, you know that, don't you?"
"Being a nag is part of job description," he shot back. "But as it's summer now, I probably won't be nagging so much!"
India grinned. "Dad, there's a party on the field, can I go?"
"We've got all this packing to do! And what kind of party?"
"Just the kids from school," she whined. "And I'd only go for an hour."
"I don't think so."
"You just said you wouldn't nag!"
Declan was desperate to avoid having yet another row.
"There's a difference between being a nag and exercising my parental duties," he said, knowing much like his mum he was sounding again. "If you went, it would only be for half an hour and I'd go with you."
"NO WAY!"
"I'm not letting you go to some party on the field by yourself!"
"But Rachel and Hannah are going!"
"I don't care!" Nearly-teenage daughters would be the death of him one day, he was sure!
"Dad, please let me go." India put the puppy-dog eyes on.
"All right," Declan said, feeling very tired, "how about this? I'd go with you - no, don't start arguing, listen - I'd go with you, but I'd be in the cafe opposite. That way I can keep an eye on you and no one will know that your boring old dad's there."
India bit her lip. It wasn't perfect but a lot better than him actually being on the field with her.
"All right," she agreed.
"Good," Declan said, a bit disappointed that she hadn't told him that he wasn't boring at all. "Now go and get started on sorting your clothes out. I've got your suitcase sorted already."
Off she went.
A few hectic hours later, just after they had eaten dinner, India asked if they could go. Declan agreed and they set off.
"I'll be in this cafe," Declan told her. "And if I lose sight of you I'll call you. Deal?"
"Deal," she said grudgingly and stomped off to the field.
Daughters! Declan thought irritably. She should have been grateful he'd let her go!
Indai found Rachel and Hannah sitting down on some blankets with bottles of Sprite. On another blanket she could see some teenagers with beer and decided that she would never repeat it to her dad.
"Jamie's over there," Rachel said, nodding in his direction. "He split up with Stephanie."
"I don't want to talk to him." India took a bottle of Sprite offered to her and drank a large gulp sho she wouldn't have to speak.
All too soon, the half-hour was up and was stretching into an extra five minutes. She would have stretched to an extra ten had Dad not told her that he would go and get her if she was any longer than forty minutes.
She got up to leave, hugged Rachel and Hannah goodbye with promises of texts she would try and send, started to walk away when suddenly out of nowhere Jamie was at her elbow.
"What do you want?" She'd been so sure she wouldn't let him spoil it and now here he was.
"I'm sorry I went out with Stephanie over you."
She stayed silent.
"She seemed fun, but she's really really boring. All she talks about is her pink nail varnish and new dress. You're not boring."
"Did I seem boring before?" India snapped.
"No, but -"
"But I don't care," India said coolly. "The only thing I'm sorry about is smashing my calculator."
He looked surprised. "But you liked me!"
"But you bought me a sundae, kissed me and went off with her!"
Childishly India pushed him onto a blanket and he looked astonished.
"Have a good summer." She walked off with her head held high as Hannah and Rachel clapped her.
Sorry it's a slightly shorter update!
She could hardly believe it, the year was over. A long summer holiday which always felt interminable (but in a good way) and then she'd be starting another year of high school, carrying on the tradition of looking down at the first years and getting closer to Year Twelve, though India couldn't imagine that, they looked almost grown-up, almost from another existence, as they glided through the corridors barely noticing the other years. At eighteen where would she be? She couldn't think.
She left the building with the other screaming classmates. As she had predicted, the Friday had been pandemonium, and even though she had begun the detention of gum-removal in another room, a kindly teacher had stopped her and said, "It's only another half-hour, why don't you leave it? I shouldn't be letting you but it's the last day after all. The gum can stay there a little longer."
India could have hugged him, but instead she had thanked him, thrilled, and nearly thrown down the ancient ruler she was using to remove the gum. And now she, Rachel and Hannah were leaving school, best friends since kinder and hopefully always would be. They turned down a smaller road, away from the school, and towards the cafe for a celebratory milkshake.
"What are you doing when you get home?"
"I have to start packing for Queensland."
"How long will you be gone?" Hannah asked, stirring her shake.
"Four weeks."
"It's nearly the whole summer!" Rachel wailed. "Do you promise to text us?"
"My mobile never works very well there," India replied, "but I'll try every day."
"Are you packing all night?"
"Pretty much."
"Will you try and get away at some point? Everyone's going to the field."
The field was a big stretch of grass on the edge of the small town.
"I will, but Dad might not let me."
"I wish you weren't going," Hannah said in a mournful voice.
"I'm not gone all summer." India put her arms round her two best friends.
Declan was wrestling with a zip on his bag.
"Come on," he yelled at it, trying to hold it together and zip it and the same time. He lost his grip. "Oh, you BA-"
"I'm back!"
Declan heard his daughter's sunny announcement and repressed the swear word.
"The high school survivor!"
She came into his room and laughing, said, "I haven't survived high school yet, Dad, I've got years left!"
"Well, you survived this one, and I'm very proud."
India continued into her room. "I'm going to get this evil dress off!"
"Don't kick it and leave it on a heap on the floor," Declan warned, knowing his daughter. "Hang it up."
"I'm not going to wear it again until next year!"
"That's not the point. It doesn't need to be on the carpet gathering dust."
Rolling her eyes, India hung it up.
"I know you're rolling your eyes!" Declan called. "Stop it!"
She got changed and came back. "You can stop fretting Dad, it's on a hanger now."
"Good. Make sure it stays there." He couldn't believe how much he was sounding like his mother and indeed, India complained, "you're sounding just like Nan or Grandma, you know that, don't you?"
"Being a nag is part of job description," he shot back. "But as it's summer now, I probably won't be nagging so much!"
India grinned. "Dad, there's a party on the field, can I go?"
"We've got all this packing to do! And what kind of party?"
"Just the kids from school," she whined. "And I'd only go for an hour."
"I don't think so."
"You just said you wouldn't nag!"
Declan was desperate to avoid having yet another row.
"There's a difference between being a nag and exercising my parental duties," he said, knowing much like his mum he was sounding again. "If you went, it would only be for half an hour and I'd go with you."
"NO WAY!"
"I'm not letting you go to some party on the field by yourself!"
"But Rachel and Hannah are going!"
"I don't care!" Nearly-teenage daughters would be the death of him one day, he was sure!
"Dad, please let me go." India put the puppy-dog eyes on.
"All right," Declan said, feeling very tired, "how about this? I'd go with you - no, don't start arguing, listen - I'd go with you, but I'd be in the cafe opposite. That way I can keep an eye on you and no one will know that your boring old dad's there."
India bit her lip. It wasn't perfect but a lot better than him actually being on the field with her.
"All right," she agreed.
"Good," Declan said, a bit disappointed that she hadn't told him that he wasn't boring at all. "Now go and get started on sorting your clothes out. I've got your suitcase sorted already."
Off she went.
A few hectic hours later, just after they had eaten dinner, India asked if they could go. Declan agreed and they set off.
"I'll be in this cafe," Declan told her. "And if I lose sight of you I'll call you. Deal?"
"Deal," she said grudgingly and stomped off to the field.
Daughters! Declan thought irritably. She should have been grateful he'd let her go!
Indai found Rachel and Hannah sitting down on some blankets with bottles of Sprite. On another blanket she could see some teenagers with beer and decided that she would never repeat it to her dad.
"Jamie's over there," Rachel said, nodding in his direction. "He split up with Stephanie."
"I don't want to talk to him." India took a bottle of Sprite offered to her and drank a large gulp sho she wouldn't have to speak.
All too soon, the half-hour was up and was stretching into an extra five minutes. She would have stretched to an extra ten had Dad not told her that he would go and get her if she was any longer than forty minutes.
She got up to leave, hugged Rachel and Hannah goodbye with promises of texts she would try and send, started to walk away when suddenly out of nowhere Jamie was at her elbow.
"What do you want?" She'd been so sure she wouldn't let him spoil it and now here he was.
"I'm sorry I went out with Stephanie over you."
She stayed silent.
"She seemed fun, but she's really really boring. All she talks about is her pink nail varnish and new dress. You're not boring."
"Did I seem boring before?" India snapped.
"No, but -"
"But I don't care," India said coolly. "The only thing I'm sorry about is smashing my calculator."
He looked surprised. "But you liked me!"
"But you bought me a sundae, kissed me and went off with her!"
Childishly India pushed him onto a blanket and he looked astonished.
"Have a good summer." She walked off with her head held high as Hannah and Rachel clapped her.