The Illustrated Mum Read online

  ‘We could stuff them with socks.’

  ‘You’ve always got an answer for everything. Still, it makes a change from all my little kiddies. I like a good argument.’

  Aunty Jane won the argument too. I had to pad along to school in my own shabby trainers. Uncle Eddie had to be off early in the car for his work so it was a problem getting all the babies ready and in the big buggy.

  ‘I can go to school by myself, easy peasy,’ I said, but she wouldn’t hear of it.

  It was weird going to school from the other side of town. When we turned into the school road some of the kids started staring. Yvonne got out of her car at the school gates and looked at the babies open-mouthed.

  ‘Bye-bye, Dolphin. We’ll come and collect you at twenty past three,’ said Aunty Jane, giving my dress a little tug straight.

  ‘Who’s she?’ Yvonne demanded rudely.

  ‘I’m Dolphin’s Aunty Jane,’ said Aunty Jane. She gave me a quick kiss on the cheek and then set off homewards, clucking to the children.

  ‘Are all them babies hers?’ said Yvonne.

  ‘Yes, she’s a miracle of modern science,’ I said.

  I pushed past her because I’d spotted Oliver in the playground. It was too far away for him to see me at first, but then he must have twigged that the black dot moving towards him was me. He started rushing towards me. It was like one of those silly romantic scenes in films. We even had our arms outstretched. But then we stopped at the last moment and stood still, grinning foolishly. We certainly weren’t going to embrace in front of all the other kids in the school playground.

  ‘Are you all right, Dolphin? I’ve been so worried! Where did you stay the night?’

  ‘In a foster home. But it’s OK,’ I said. ‘There are babies. Three of them.’

  ‘I like babies,’ said Oliver.

  ‘Well, maybe you can come round and play with them. Aunty Jane won’t mind.’

  ‘So she’s an aunty?’

  ‘Not a real one. But she’s as good as.’

  ‘Oh, I’m so pleased! So can you stay with her?’

  ‘I don’t know. For a bit. Until . . . until my mum’s better.’

  I didn’t even want to say Marigold’s name because that made it all too real and painful. I couldn’t help thinking about her when lessons started. I kept seeing her lying in that bed drawing all over herself. I wanted to curl up round her and take her biro away and put my hands tight over hers to stop her hurting herself.

  When it was playtime Miss Hill called me over to her desk.

  ‘How are you today, Dolphin?’ she said, her voice all sweet and sticky like she’d swallowed a tin of golden syrup.

  I stared at her.

  ‘You come and have a little chat with me if things are troubling you, dear.’

  Dear???

  Mrs Dunstan nodded at me in a weirdly matey way when she saw me in the corridor and I suddenly twigged. Lizzie must have phoned the school and told them what was going on, so now all the staff were being kind to the poor little kid who’d been taken into care.

  I don’t know if Mr Harrison knew or not. He acted just the way he always did at lunchtime in the library. He gave Oliver and me a little wave when we walked in, but didn’t make a big deal of it. We sat together with our dolphin book. Mr Harrison started rootling in his briefcase. We heard a promising rustle. He was unwrapping one of those wonderful giant bars of Cadbury’s chocolate.

  ‘It’s magic munchie time!’ he said, and he gave Oliver and me a third each.

  School was certainly looking up. At this rate Ronnie Churley would blow kisses at me and Yvonne and Kayleigh would fashion me friendship bracelets and Tasha would beg me to stay over at her house and be her best friend forever.

  Ronnie and Yvonne and Kayleigh and Tasha stayed their usual spiteful selves but the teachers were certainly trying hard. Especially Miss Hill.

  It was story-writing in the afternoon. Miss Hill said we had to pretend to be journalists. One of us would tell a story and the other would write it down. She told us to pair up.

  Ronnie Churley groaned.

  ‘It’s not fair! I’m stuck with stupid old Dolphin who can’t write for toffee.’

  ‘No, you’re not,’ I said, and I darted across the room and bagged Oliver for my partner.

  Miss Hill looked up . . . and said nothing at all! She let me stay with Oliver. So he got to be the reporter interviewing me. All the other kids pretended to be famous actors or football stars and just showed off about how much money they made. I decided to be the only survivor of a tragic accident at sea. I made out I was in hospital and talked about all my horrendous injuries, and how I felt so lonely and guilty being the only one on the ship left living. Oliver scribbled it all down, pages of it.

  The reporters had to read out their interviews. Oliver got picked. Yvonne and Kayleigh started giggling at first when he started talking about this tragic shipwreck and everyone drowning but me, and how my lungs were so damaged I could barely whisper to tell him my dramatic true story but guess what! Miss Hill said it was excellent and gave us both a gold star!

  It was the first time I’d ever been given a star for anything at school.

  ‘That’s just because she’s being so creepy about you today,’ Kayleigh hissed. ‘What’s up, Bottle Nose? Is it your mum? She hasn’t died, has she?’

  I suddenly saw Marigold flipped over on her back in bed in her strange white nightie, her hands clasped on her chest, her face a mask. I felt my eyes fill with tears.

  ‘Oh Kayleigh, that’s an awful thing to say,’ said Yvonne. ‘Is it true, Dolphin?’

  ‘I’m sorry, Dolphin. Don’t cry,’ said Kayleigh.

  They both looked anxiously at Miss Hill. If she saw I was crying they knew they’d be for it.

  I rubbed my eyes.

  ‘She’s not dead. But she’s very ill. In hospital,’ I whispered.

  They stared at me, their eyes round. Then Yvonne reached out. I thought she might be going to pinch me but she patted me on the shoulder instead.

  ‘I hope she gets better soon,’ she said.

  ‘Yes, so do I. I didn’t mean what I said. I wasn’t thinking,’ said Kayleigh.

  It was great to have them desperate to make up to me but I couldn’t get the image of Marigold dead out of my head.

  I knew she’d tried to kill herself once when she was younger. She had two scars across her wrist. You could still feel them if you touched her, but you couldn’t see them. She had twin tattoos covering them up, two horizontal lozenge-shaped diamonds with rays radiating out to show just how much they sparkled. She always said Star and I were her diamonds. But now Star had left her and I had put her in hospital.

  I ran out of school the moment the bell went. I didn’t even wait for Oliver. I thought I’d run right to the hospital but Aunty Jane was waiting for me at the gate with the baby buggy.

  ‘Slow down, slow down, little Miss Speedy,’ she said. ‘Where are you off to? Not running away?’

  ‘Not running away. Running to some place. The hospital.’

  ‘Yes, poppet, you need to see your mum. Well, your dad’s been in touch. He’s coming to take you himself, after tea.’

  I was impressed by this but I argued all the same.

  ‘I’ve got to see her now, Aunty Jane. You don’t understand.’

  ‘I do, sweetheart, but the thing is, I can’t let you skedaddle off to the hospital by yourself. I know you’re a clever girl and could get there no problem at all, but I’m supposed to look after you and that means I’d have to tag along with you. How am I going to do that with a buggy full of babies who are going to start bawling for their tea any second now? Do you see my point?’

  I had to see.

  ‘Well, do you promise I can go to the hospital later? Even if my dad doesn’t come for me?’

  ‘If he doesn’t come Uncle Eddie will take you. But your dad seems a man you can rely on.’

  Oliver came hurrying up then, a little wounded that I’d ab