The Butterfly Club Read online

  ‘Yes, but I suppose it’s true,’ said Phil.

  ‘And maybe if she hadn’t tied all the paper butterflies to the plants, the real ones wouldn’t have come too. Selma has to come with me. Besides, she’s my best friend,’ I said.

  Mum sighed. ‘I don’t know why you’re so keen on her. I feel sorry for her myself, but she’s the same little girl who used to be so nasty to you, and stole your china dolly.’

  ‘She didn’t steal Baby, she only borrowed her, and now I’ve got her back,’ I said, taking Baby out of my pocket and waving her about.

  ‘So you’d sooner go on television with Selma than with Phil and me?’ asked Maddie.

  ‘I wouldn’t sooner, exactly – but it’s only fair that I do,’ I said.

  ‘Yes, but won’t you need us to do some of the talking for you?’ said Phil. ‘What if you have to read something out? You know you need us when you get nervous.’

  ‘I won’t be nervous. I want to meet Ruby Red. And I like talking about butterflies and my garden,’ I said.

  As it turned out, I felt very, very nervous all the way to the studio. The television people sent a big car to take us there. It was a good job it was big because there were a lot of people squashed inside. There was Mum. There was Selma. Selma’s mum said she couldn’t come, but nobody minded, not even Selma. There was me. I didn’t take up too much room, so Mum said Phil and Maddie could come too, just to watch. She’d bought us matching butterfly T-shirts all the same. Phil’s was pink, Maddie’s was blue and mine was green. She bought one for Selma too – a red one.

  ‘You look really nice in it, lovey,’ Mum said when Selma put it on.

  Selma just shrugged and didn’t say thank you properly, but I could tell she was really pleased. ‘I’m glad mine’s red,’ she said, and she kept stroking the soft new T-shirt material.

  She was wearing her friendship bracelet, and that had red beads too, so she matched. She had New Baby in her jeans pocket. I had my dear old Baby in mine. I soon fished her out and clutched her tight for comfort.

  It was quite a long way to the studio and the traffic was very bad, so we kept stopping and starting. I already had a weird feeling in my tummy. The feeling got worse and worse, until I was scared I was going to be sick.

  ‘Aren’t you feeling well, Tina?’ Mum asked anxiously.

  ‘I’m fine,’ I said in a tiny voice.

  I was squashed between Selma and Phil and couldn’t really move. What if I was sick all over them?

  The driver looked a little like Grandad. He peered at me in his rear-view mirror, and then pressed a button to wind down the windows. ‘Let’s have a little air in the car,’ he said. ‘We’ll blow those cobwebs away.’

  It felt a bit better in the breeze, but the wobbling in my tummy was still bad. I kept fidgeting.

  ‘Are you sure you’re all right, Tina?’ Phil hissed.

  I nodded.

  She and Maddie started playing a game of I Spy. I didn’t join in. Neither did Selma.

  ‘What’s up?’ she whispered in my ear.

  ‘My tummy feels all fluttery and weird,’ I whispered back.

  Selma paused. Then she grinned. ‘You’ve got butterflies in your tummy!’ she said.

  I couldn’t help bursting out laughing. I felt quite a bit better then, though the weird feeling didn’t go away. I started rubbing my tummy, muttering, ‘Painted lady, peacock, brimstone, Adonis blue . . .’ picturing them all, adding exotic butterflies from overseas too – ‘green swallowtail, blue morpho, postman . . .’ – imagining them all fluttering together in my tummy and then swirling up, escaping out of my mouth and flying around the car, out of the open window, and up into the blue sky above.

  Then we got to the studios and the weird feeling got worse and worse. I hung onto Selma’s hand. Even Phil and Maddie looked a little worried, and they didn’t even have to do anything.

  ‘Look out for famous people!’ said Maddie as we went inside.

  ‘Our Tina’s going to be a little bit famous!’ said Phil. ‘Imagine!’

  We had to announce our names to the receptionist, and then we were all given special name badges to wear around our necks – even Mum and Phil and Maddie. Then we had to wait on a big sofa for someone to collect us.

  It was a girl in amazing rainbow boots.

  ‘Hi, everyone. Mrs Maynard? And let me guess – Tina? And you must be Selma. And, oh my goodness, twins!’

  ‘Triplets actually,’ said Phil.

  ‘We’re Tina’s sisters. I’m Maddie, she’s Phil.’

  ‘Wonderful!’ said the rainbow girl. ‘Well, come with me, folks, and I’ll take you upstairs.’

  ‘Did you write the letter? Are you Garnet Baker?’ Mum asked.

  ‘No, no, you’ll meet her in a minute. I’m Jane, I’m just the runner,’ she said.

  ‘Wow, can you get a job in the studios as a runner?’ said Maddie. ‘I’d like to do that. How far do you have to run?’

  ‘I don’t really have to run. I just whiz up and down the corridors collecting people and going for coffees and taking people to their dressing rooms and just generally making myself useful,’ said Jane.

  ‘That would be brilliant!’ said Maddie, her eyes shining.

  ‘Is Tina going to have her own dressing room?’ asked Phil.

  ‘She’s dressed already. I bought those butterfly T-shirts specially,’ said Mum.

  ‘“Dressing room” is just a figure of speech,’ said Jane. ‘It’s just a private room where you can all hang out until we need you in the studio. Tina and Selma might have to pop along to make-up first.’

  ‘Make-up!’ said Phil. ‘Oh, you lucky things!’

  ‘I hope that’s another figure of speech,’ said Mum. ‘They’re much too young to wear make-up!’

  ‘I’m not,’ said Selma quickly. ‘I’m much bigger than Tina. I want to wear make-up.’

  ‘It’s not a proper full make-up. Just a little powder to stop the girls looking shiny under the studio lights,’ said Jane.

  She led us in and out of lifts and along many corridors, and at last we came to several dressing-room doors. To my astonishment, the nearest door had a placard saying

  ‘Oh my!’ said Maddie. ‘See, you’re famous already!’

  The dressing room wasn’t particularly grand inside – it was just a small room with an oldish sofa and chair and a big mirror.

  ‘Would you like a coffee, Mrs Maynard?’ Jane offered. ‘And what would you girls like? Coke or orange juice?’

  ‘Coke!’ we all chorused.

  ‘Orange juice,’ said Mum firmly.

  Jane laughed, and when she brought a tray of drinks five minutes later there were little cartons of orange and four cans of Coke. ‘So you can choose,’ she said. ‘Well, I’d better pop back to the studio now. Garnet will be along in a minute to talk you through the show. Enjoy yourselves!’

  I still had a host of butterflies in my tummy but I was starting to enjoy myself. I was just taking a long slug of Coke when the door opened and someone very familiar walked in. I was so surprised I forgot to swallow and the Coke spurted down my T-shirt.

  ‘Oh, Tina!’ said Mum, dabbing at me with a tissue. ‘All over your new T-shirt!’

  ‘It’s Ruby!’ I spluttered, awestruck.

  She looked slightly different. She didn’t have her mad pigtails with the red ribbons and she wasn’t wearing her red-and-white striped T-shirt or her red dungarees. She’d cut her hair to shoulder length and she was wearing black jeans and a black T-shirt – but I’d have known her anywhere.

  But I was wrong!

  ‘Are you OK, Tina? Sorry to give you a fright! Actually I’m not Ruby – I’m Garnet,’ she said.

  We all stared.

  ‘But you do look ever so like Ruby Red!’ said Phil.

  ‘I know. So why do you think that is?’ Garnet looked at Phil and Maddie. ‘You two girls should guess straight away!’

  ‘Oh my goodness – are you Ruby Red’s twin?’ asked Maddie.