My Sister Jodie Read online

‘No, it’s too awkward, and the littlest ones are up on the first floor. I’m not up for that sort of stuff any 328

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  more anyway. I just can’t make the effort. But maybe . . .’ She smiled at me. ‘I’ve had a little idea.

  I’ll mull it over. Now off you go. Bravely beard Matron in her den and ask if you can play with Harriet.’

  Beard was the appropriate word for poor Matron.

  She didn’t have a real beard, but she had whiskers on her chin and heavy down on her upper lip. She was fat, but she squashed her very large chest and stomach and bottom into some kind of corset so that she didn’t wobble when she walked. She had surprisingly slim legs with elegant ankles and little pointy shoes. She looked like a well-upholstered sofa on tiny wheels.

  I’d always scuttled out of her way, imagining she’d be ultra-scary. The door to the girls’ house was open so I wandered in uncertainly. I knew Sakura’s bedroom was upstairs but I didn’t have a clue where to look for Harriet.

  I could hear laughter and a television somewhere but I didn’t like to barge in uninvited. I stood shifting from one foot to the other until Matron suddenly shot out of a room at the end of the corridor, balancing an enormous pile of pillowcases and sheets and duvet covers. She peered at me from over the top.

  ‘Ah! You’re Mr and Mrs Well’s little girl . . .

  Jodie?’

  ‘No, I’m Pearl.’

  ‘Yes, that’s right, Jodie’s the one with startling hair. Lucky she’s not boarding with me. I’d have held her under a hot tap until I’d scrubbed all that purple out.’

  ‘Mum tried that,’ I said.

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  ‘Oh dear. Perhaps it’s indelible, like those pencils.

  They’re purple, aren’t they? Anyway, my darling, how can I help?’

  I wondered if I could play with Harriet?’ I asked timidly.

  ‘Of course you can, you silly sausage! Her dorm’s on the second floor. You’ll find it easily because it’s the noisiest, what with Harriet gassing and poor little Freya grizzling and Sheba singing and Clarissa showing off.’ She laughed fondly. ‘You can carry these sheets up for me and pop them in the airing cupboard, there’s a darling.’

  I staggered up the stairs, found the airing cupboard, stuffed the sheets in as best I could – and then listened. Matron was right. I could hear all the girls laughing and playing very loud music. I went over to their door, wondering whether to knock or just stick my head in. I licked my lips, rehearsing in my head what I was going to say.

  Can I play with you? sounded so young, like I was six and wanting to play with Barbies. In the end I tapped once on the door. The music stopped. I heard squeals and giggles and a lot of scuffling. I waited, heart beating. Then Harriet opened the door a few centimetres.

  ‘Oh, Pearl, it’s only you! Come in, come in,’ she said, grabbing hold of me and pulling me into the dorm. ‘We thought you might be Matron!’

  Harry had a dressing gown on and the other three were in bed, their duvets up to their chins.

  ‘Oh, sorry! I didn’t realize you went to bed this early,’ I stammered.

  ‘We’re not in bed. We’re hiding,’ said Clarissa, jumping up from under her duvet. She wore her 330

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  knickers and a silk scarf tied round her chest and fishnet stockings on her skinny legs. I stared at her open-mouthed.

  ‘We’re playing at being lap dancers,’ she said.

  ‘Well, I’m a fan dancer,’ said Sheba, kicking off her duvet. She was wearing her swimming costume and had a big feathery fan in her hand.

  ‘I’m a dancer too,’ said Freya. She wore a proper bikini and she’d crayoned roses and hearts around her belly button.

  ‘Tra-la!’ said Harry, flinging off her dressing gown. She was wearing her school knickers and a little lacy bolero over her flat chest. She twirled around, bumping and grinding her hips. ‘You do it like this, don’t you, Pearl? Funny old Freya thought lap dancing was actually dancing in someone’s lap, but they’d get all squashed, wouldn’t they?’

  ‘You don’t think we’re terribly rude, do you, Pearl?’ Freya asked anxiously.

  ‘Don’t tell Matron!’ said Sheba.

  ‘Of course I won’t. Look, my sister Jodie and I often mess around like this. Hey, it was soooo embarrassing when we first moved here. We were painting our room and getting all messy so we stripped off down to our knickers, and guess what, Harley walked right in and saw us!’

  ‘Harley saw you in your knickers!’

  They all exploded with laughter.

  ‘Did he see your sister too?’ asked Clarissa.

  ‘Yes, but she didn’t mind. She doesn’t get fussed about stuff,’ I said.

  ‘I’ll say,’ said Clarissa.

  I swallowed. ‘What do you mean by that?’

  ‘She didn’t mean anything, Pearl,’ said Harriet.

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  ‘I just meant that your sister truly doesn’t seem to care about anything. My cousin Anna’s in Year Eight and she says she’s . . . incredible.’

  ‘Yeah, well, that’s Jodie,’ I said.

  I stared hard at Clarissa, silently daring her to say any more.

  ‘You’re so different from your sister,’ said Freya.

  ‘I know,’ I said. ‘I wish I was more like her.’

  ‘I’m glad you’re like you,’ said Harry. ‘OK, are you going to lap dance too, Pearl?’

  I felt a total fool, but I dared to whip off my skirt and shoes, and then I pranced about a bit, winking and wriggling, copying the way Jodie danced. The others all laughed and clapped and joined in.

  When we got tired of lap dancing, I suggested we pretend we were a new girl band and we made up our own dance routine. Matron really did come knocking on the door because of all the thumping, but she didn’t come in, she just called out for us to quieten down because she was starting to put the little ones to bed.

  I decided I’d better get back myself. Harry begged me to come and play with them the next day.

  ‘It’s such fun when you’re here, Pearl,’ said Harry, giving me a hug. ‘I wish you were a proper boarder and could sleep in our dormie.’

  I almost wished it too. I skipped back along the path, waving at the bungalow in case Mrs Wilberforce could see me. I slowed down when I got near the little trail to the badger set. There was a brown smudge on the lane which might have been blood from the poor badger cub. I went to see if Harley was crouching by the set, but there was no one there. I went and knelt by the main entrance.

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  ‘I’m so sorry,’ I whispered into the darkness. ‘You must be missing your cub so much. I hope you have lots and lots more children and they all live long happy lives.’

  Then I went back to our flat. Mum had a bad migraine headache and had gone to bed early. Dad was watching sport on the television, his shoes kicked off, his belt unbuckled. He was sipping beer straight from the can and eating a packet of salted peanuts.

  ‘Don’t tell Mum!’ he mouthed.

  Jodie wasn’t in our bedroom. I didn’t know where she could be. I wondered if she might be taking Old Shep for another walk. I waited and waited. It was past our bedtime now. Mum was asleep, thank goodness. I crept into the living room and saw that Dad had nodded off too, his hand lolling over the arm of his chair so that the dregs of his beer can dripped onto the carpet.

  I wanted to climb up onto Dad’s lap, but if I woke him, he’d fuss about Jodie, maybe even wake Mum.

  I tiptoed back to our bedroom, worrying about the back door. When Dad woke up, he’d bolt it and then Jodie would be locked out all night. It was raining outside. I could hear raindrops pattering steadily against the window. I thought of Jodie trud