in, Mum was in bed again . All the windows were closed and the sink was piled high with two days’ worth of plates and cups. The only sign she’d been up at all was the puzzle. She’d practically finished the sky; hundreds of tiny blue pieces covering every centimetre of the old, wooden table.
I had the whole journey to Farnsbury to tell Mack I couldn’t swim. We were meeting his friends there, so it was just the two of us on the bus, but by the time we arrived I still hadn’t said anything. He chatted away, showing me things out of the window and filling me in on what he’d been doing for the past few days, while I sat there rehearsing the words over and over until they didn’t even make sense in my own head. Telling someone you can’t swim and that you’re terrified of water when you’re twelve years old felt like the ultimate embarrassment.
“You’re going to love this place,” he said as we got off the bus. “It’s got slides and a wave machine and—”
“Hang on a minute, wait !” I pulled his arm. “You didn’t say anything about slides .” My voice was so high-pitched it was practically off the scale. “I don’t like slides or wave machines or—”
“Woah! Calm down, Becky, don’t stress. There are two pools here – the fun pool and the swimming pool. If it’s Olympic swimming you’re after, you’ve come with the right person! I was practically born in a swimming pool. My favourite stroke is the butterfly. Most people can’t do it properly, to be honest, but it’s all in the breathing.”
Mack gabbled on, but I froze, unable to take another step. It was hearing the word “butterfly”. Suddenly all I wanted was to be back at the Garden with Rosa May, lying in the grass together, hidden away from the rest of the world. She was probably on the bridge right that minute, waiting for me to arrive – if she’d bothered to show up after our row.
“Earth to Becky! What’s the matter?” Mack waved his hand in front of my face.
“Look, I’m sorry but there’s something I need to tell you.” I swallowed hard. “I know I should’ve told you before but the thing is, well the problem is, I’ve never been swimming, so you see I can’t really swim, I mean I want to learn, but...”
I broke off, totally mortified, my face burning up.
“But that’s fantastic!” cried Mack.
“ What? ”
“You see, when I said ‘Olympic swimming ’ what I meant to say was ‘Olympic swimming teacher ’. I kid you not, Becky. I might not have the certificates to show for it, but I’ve never failed to teach someone to swim.”
I couldn’t believe it, it was too good to be true. “How many people have you actually taught then?” I asked, pressing my hands to my flaming cheeks.
“None yet.” He grinned. “But that means I’ve never failed, right? Come on, I won’t make you do anything you’re not comfortable with, I promise. Scout’s honour.”
The leisure centre was on the outskirts of town, next to a bowling alley and cinema. The smell hit me the second we walked in. It was horrible. I had to breathe through my mouth to stop myself retching. And it wasn’t just the smell. There was something about the whole place. It was familiar. Like the Butterfly Garden, and Butterfly Rock. That same strange feeling. I’d never been swimming in my life and I’d certainly never been to Farnsbury before yesterday, but somehow I knew this place.
Mack’s friends were waiting for him just inside – Stevie and Ajay. He introduced me and I tried to smile. They seemed okay but there was no point trying to chat to them, the noise was deafening. It seemed to echo through the entire building. I kept my eyes on the door, ready to run at the first opportunity. There was a queue to pay, but Mack waved a pass at the man behind the desk and he let us straight through.
“The girls’ changing rooms are over there,” he said. “Meet us back here when you’re ready. And seriously, Becky, it’s going
I had the whole journey to Farnsbury to tell Mack I couldn’t swim. We were meeting his friends there, so it was just the two of us on the bus, but by the time we arrived I still hadn’t said anything. He chatted away, showing me things out of the window and filling me in on what he’d been doing for the past few days, while I sat there rehearsing the words over and over until they didn’t even make sense in my own head. Telling someone you can’t swim and that you’re terrified of water when you’re twelve years old felt like the ultimate embarrassment.
“You’re going to love this place,” he said as we got off the bus. “It’s got slides and a wave machine and—”
“Hang on a minute, wait !” I pulled his arm. “You didn’t say anything about slides .” My voice was so high-pitched it was practically off the scale. “I don’t like slides or wave machines or—”
“Woah! Calm down, Becky, don’t stress. There are two pools here – the fun pool and the swimming pool. If it’s Olympic swimming you’re after, you’ve come with the right person! I was practically born in a swimming pool. My favourite stroke is the butterfly. Most people can’t do it properly, to be honest, but it’s all in the breathing.”
Mack gabbled on, but I froze, unable to take another step. It was hearing the word “butterfly”. Suddenly all I wanted was to be back at the Garden with Rosa May, lying in the grass together, hidden away from the rest of the world. She was probably on the bridge right that minute, waiting for me to arrive – if she’d bothered to show up after our row.
“Earth to Becky! What’s the matter?” Mack waved his hand in front of my face.
“Look, I’m sorry but there’s something I need to tell you.” I swallowed hard. “I know I should’ve told you before but the thing is, well the problem is, I’ve never been swimming, so you see I can’t really swim, I mean I want to learn, but...”
I broke off, totally mortified, my face burning up.
“But that’s fantastic!” cried Mack.
“ What? ”
“You see, when I said ‘Olympic swimming ’ what I meant to say was ‘Olympic swimming teacher ’. I kid you not, Becky. I might not have the certificates to show for it, but I’ve never failed to teach someone to swim.”
I couldn’t believe it, it was too good to be true. “How many people have you actually taught then?” I asked, pressing my hands to my flaming cheeks.
“None yet.” He grinned. “But that means I’ve never failed, right? Come on, I won’t make you do anything you’re not comfortable with, I promise. Scout’s honour.”
The leisure centre was on the outskirts of town, next to a bowling alley and cinema. The smell hit me the second we walked in. It was horrible. I had to breathe through my mouth to stop myself retching. And it wasn’t just the smell. There was something about the whole place. It was familiar. Like the Butterfly Garden, and Butterfly Rock. That same strange feeling. I’d never been swimming in my life and I’d certainly never been to Farnsbury before yesterday, but somehow I knew this place.
Mack’s friends were waiting for him just inside – Stevie and Ajay. He introduced me and I tried to smile. They seemed okay but there was no point trying to chat to them, the noise was deafening. It seemed to echo through the entire building. I kept my eyes on the door, ready to run at the first opportunity. There was a queue to pay, but Mack waved a pass at the man behind the desk and he let us straight through.
“The girls’ changing rooms are over there,” he said. “Meet us back here when you’re ready. And seriously, Becky, it’s going
Similar Books
