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  ‘Solid gold!’ Alexander whispered.

  ‘Well. Plated. Still cost a fortune. It’s my dad’s most precious possession. His mates gave it to him for his twenty-first birthday. He’s never without it, my dad.’

  ‘He seems to be without it now,’ I chipped in.

  ‘That’s the point,’ said Football. ‘He’s given it to me.’ He flicked it on and off, on and off, on and off. It was like watching those flashing Christmas tree lights.

  ‘You’ll be waving it around at a rock concert next,’ I said.

  ‘You shut your face,’ said Football, irritated that I wasn’t acting dead impressed. ‘You haven’t even got a dad.’ He kicked the ball hard. It bounced on the television set and ended up inside it.

  ‘I wish I didn’t have a dad,’ said Alexander, standing up and attempting repairs. ‘Or I wish my dad would go off with a girlfriend. I wish wishes would come true. What would you wish for?’ He looked shyly at Football. ‘That you and your dad could be together?’

  ‘Yeah,’ said Football, looking amazed that Alexander could possibly have sussed this out. ‘And to play for United,’ he added.

  ‘What about you, Tracy?’ asked Alexander.

  ‘I don’t want a dad,’ I said quickly.

  ‘What about your mum?’ Alexander persisted. ‘Would you wish you and your mum could be together?’

  ‘That would be a totally wasted wish, wouldn’t it, because I’m going to be with her anyway.’

  But I’ll still wish it even so. Let me be with my mum. Let me be with my mum. I’m wishing with all my heart. And my lungs and my liver and my bones and my brains. All the strings of my intestines are tied in knots I’m wishing so hard.

  Mum’s Home

  WISHES COME TRUE. My fairy godmother has been working overtime! She made it come true. I spent the whole weekend with my mum and it was WONDERFUL and she says she wants me to go and live with her for ever and ever and ever, just as soon as Elaine gets it all sorted out officially.

  Elaine didn’t think my mum would turn up. She didn’t say anything, but I’m not daft. I could tell. Cam dumped me off at Elaine’s office. She said she would wait with me if I wanted but I didn’t want. It’s kind of weird being with Cam at the moment. She’s still not making a big fuss and begging me not to go. Though I heard her crying last night.

  I heard these little muffled under-the-duvet sobs – and I suddenly couldn’t stand it and stumbled out of bed and went running across the hall. I was all set to jump into bed with Cam and give her a big hug and tell her . . .

  Tell her what? That was the trouble. I couldn’t tell her I wouldn’t go because I’ve got to go. My mum’s my mum. Cam isn’t anybody. Not really. And I’ve known my mum all my life while I’ve only known Cam six months. You can’t compare it, can you?

  So I didn’t go and give her a cuddle. I made out I needed a wee and went to the bathroom. When I padded back the sobs had stopped. Maybe I’d imagined them anyway.

  I don’t know why I’m going on about all this sad stuff when I’m HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY. My mum didn’t let me down. She came for me at Elaine’s.

  She was a little bit late, so that I had to keep going to the toilet and Elaine’s bottom lip started bleeding because she’d nibbled it so hard with her big bunny teeth – but then suddenly this taxi drew up outside and my mum got out and she came running in on her high heels, her lovely blonde hair bouncing on her shoulders, her chest bouncing too in her tight jumper, and she clutched me tight in her arms so that I breathed her wonderful warm powdery smoky smell and then she said all this stuff about over-sleeping and missed trains and I didn’t take any of it in, I was just so happy she was really there.

  Though I didn’t exactly act happy.

  ‘Hey, hey, don’t cry, kid, you’re making my jumper all soggy,’ Mum joked.

  ‘I’m not crying. I never cry. I just get this hay fever sometimes, I told you,’ I said, helping myself to Elaine’s paper hankies.

  Then Mum whisked me off and instead of bothering with boring old buses and trains we got into the taxi and drove all the way home. To Mum’s house. Only it’s going to be my house now.

  It was miles and miles and miles and it cost a mega-fortune but do you know what my mum said? ‘Never mind, darling, you’re worth it!’

  I very nearly had another attack of hay fever. And my mum didn’t just fork out for the longest taxi ride in the world. Just wait till I write about all the presents! She’s better than a fairy godmother! And her house is like a fairy palace too, even better than I ever imagined.

  OK, it’s not all that wonderful outside. Mum lives in this big block of flats on an estate and it’s all car tyres and rubbish and scraggy kids outside. Mum’s flat is right on the top floor and the lift swoops up faster than your stomach can cope. That’s why I suddenly felt so weird – that and the pee smell in the lift. I got this feeling that the walls of the lift were pressing in on me, squashing me up so small I couldn’t breathe. I wanted someone to come and hoick me out quick and tuck me up tight in my black bat cave. I didn’t give so much as a squeak but Mum saw my face.

  ‘Whatever’s up with you, Tracy? You’re not scared of a lift, are you? A big girl like you!’

  She laughed at me and I tried to laugh too but it sounded more like I was crying. Only of course I don’t ever cry. But it was all OK the minute I stepped out of the smelly old lift and into Mum’s wonderful flat.

  It’s deep red – the carpet and the velvet curtains and the cushions, just as I’d hoped. The sofa is white leather – s-o-o-o glamorous – and there’s a white fur rug in front of it. The first thing Mum made me do was take my shoes off. I didn’t notice the amazing twirly light fitting and the pictures of pretty ladies on the walls and the musical globe and the china figures at first because my eyes just got fixated on the sofa. Not because of the white leather. Because there was a pile of parcels in one corner, done up in pink paper with gold ribbon.

  ‘Presents!’ I breathed.

  ‘That’s right,’ said Mum.

  ‘Is it your birthday, Mum?’

  ‘Of course it isn’t, silly. They’re for you!’

  ‘It’s not my birthday.’

  ‘I know when your birthday is! I’m your mum. No, these are special presents for you because you’re my own little girl.’

  ‘Oh Mum!’ I said – and I gave her this big hug. ‘Oh Mum, oh Mum, oh Mum!’

  ‘Come on then, don’t you want to open them?’

  ‘You bet I do!’ I started tearing the paper off.

  ‘Hey, hey, that cost ninety-nine pence a sheet. Careful!’

  I went carefully, my hands trembling. I opened up the first parcel. It was a designer T-shirt, specially for me! I ripped off my own boring old one and squeezed into my BEAUTIFUL new status symbol.

  ‘I could have got you a size or two bigger. I keep forgetting how big you are,’ said Mum. ‘Give it here, I’ll change it for you.’

  ‘No, no! It’s wonderful! It’s exactly the right size. Look, I can show my belly button and look dead sexy!’ I did a little dance to demonstrate and Mum creased up laughing.

  ‘You’re a right little card, Tracy! Go on then, open the rest of your pressies.’

  She gave me a fluffy pink rabbit. It’s lovely if you like cuddly toys. Elaine would die for it. I decided to call it Marshmallow. I made it talk in a shy little lispy voice and Mum laughed again and said I was as good as any kid on the telly.

  The next present was a H-U-G-E box of white chocolates. I ate two straight off, yum yum, slurp slurp. I wanted Mum to have one too but she said she was watching her figure, and they were all for me and I could eat as many as I liked. So I ate another two, yum yum, slurp slurp, same as before – but I started to feel a bit sickish again. They were WONDERFUL chocolates, and I bet they were mega-expensive, but somehow they weren’t quite the same as Smarties. I know they’ll be my favourites when I’m a bit older.

  The last present wasn’t for when I’m older. It was the biggest