She looked like a cornered rat, looking for a fast escape route.
‘Why d’you do it?’ frowned Liam.
‘None of your business.’
‘You can dish it out but you sure can’t take it, can you?’ said Liam. ‘How come you can ask me personal stuff, but not the other way round?’
‘Because you’re a ghost and ghosts don’t have personal stuff,’ Nova raged at him.
‘Which ghost manual did you read that in?’ asked Liam.
Nova clenched and unclenched her fists, desperately trying to find something to say.
‘Why d’you keep making yourself sick? Is your mum’s cooking really that bad?’
‘It has nothing to do with Mum’s cooking.’
‘So what is it about then?’
‘You wouldn’t understand.’
‘Try me.’
‘It’s nothing.’
‘You make yourself puke morning, noon and night after every meal – but it’s nothing. I believe that all right!’
‘Liam, keep your nose out of my business.’
‘No can do. Sorry’
‘Get out of my room.’
‘No.’
‘Get out of my room. Now!’ Nova was fifty shades of furious.
‘No!’ Liam folded his arms across his chest.
‘I’m not surprised you’re dead!’ Nova screamed at him. ‘It wouldn’t surprise me if someone had murdered you!’
A deathly chill flooded through Liam at Nova’s words. She started to stride past him but, incensed, he grabbed her arm and yanked her back. ‘Don’t you ever, ever, as long as
you live, say that to me again. D’you hear?’ he hissed, fire dancing in his brown eyes.
Nova glared at him, but he scowled right back. She was the first to drop her gaze. ‘I’m sorry. That was out of order.’
Liam’s scowl didn’t disappear by any means. If anything, it got worse.
‘Jeez! If looks could kill. . .’ Nova shot out, only to bite her Up. ‘Sorry! I didn’t mean that the way it came out.’
‘You don’t mean a lot of things, but it doesn’t stop you from saying them.’
‘Sorry. OK? I’m sorry. Sometimes my mouth kicks in before my brain switches on,’ said Nova.
Moments ticked by as Liam struggled to control his feelings. He closed his eyes and took a concentrated deep breath. Only when he was sure he wouldn’t bite her head off did he speak.
‘Look, Nova, I want you to promise you’ll stop all this vomiting rubbish. Apart from making your teeth rot and trashing your insides, you’re too smart for all that.’
Nova pulled away from his grasp. ‘What d’you know about it?’
‘I know—’ But Liam got no further.
‘You don’t know anything. People like you and my sister make me sick,’ Nova interrupted harshly. ‘You’re all drop-dead gorgeous and you’ve never had to worry
about more than the odd pimple. You don’t know what it’s like to hate every tiny bit of yourself.’
‘What’re you talking about?’ Liam shook his head, bewildered. ‘There’s nothing wrong with you.’
‘Yeah, right,’ Nova scoffed. ‘That’s why when my aunts and uncles and grandparents come round, they all rave on about how beautiful Rainbow is and how sweet and cute the
twins are and no one says a word about me – except maybe about how much I’ve shot up. “Nova, haven’t you grown!”, “We should call you bamboo, Nova!”,
“Nova, you’ll soon be taller than me!”’
‘What’s wrong with that?’
‘I hate it – OK? I hate it!’ Nova shouted at him.
She ran for the door. Liam tried to grab her arm again but his hand passed right through her. He ran to get to the door first, standing in front of it to block her way. No t being able to
control when he became solid was more than frustrating. Now that his initial burst of anger was over, he was back to being intangible, truly ghost-like. ‘Look, I know what it’s like to
be compared all the time to someone else in your family,’ he told her. ‘I was always being compared to my younger brother, Josh. Everyone thought the sun shone from his one eye and the
rest of the stars sparkled out the other.’
‘And how did
‘Why d’you do it?’ frowned Liam.
‘None of your business.’
‘You can dish it out but you sure can’t take it, can you?’ said Liam. ‘How come you can ask me personal stuff, but not the other way round?’
‘Because you’re a ghost and ghosts don’t have personal stuff,’ Nova raged at him.
‘Which ghost manual did you read that in?’ asked Liam.
Nova clenched and unclenched her fists, desperately trying to find something to say.
‘Why d’you keep making yourself sick? Is your mum’s cooking really that bad?’
‘It has nothing to do with Mum’s cooking.’
‘So what is it about then?’
‘You wouldn’t understand.’
‘Try me.’
‘It’s nothing.’
‘You make yourself puke morning, noon and night after every meal – but it’s nothing. I believe that all right!’
‘Liam, keep your nose out of my business.’
‘No can do. Sorry’
‘Get out of my room.’
‘No.’
‘Get out of my room. Now!’ Nova was fifty shades of furious.
‘No!’ Liam folded his arms across his chest.
‘I’m not surprised you’re dead!’ Nova screamed at him. ‘It wouldn’t surprise me if someone had murdered you!’
A deathly chill flooded through Liam at Nova’s words. She started to stride past him but, incensed, he grabbed her arm and yanked her back. ‘Don’t you ever, ever, as long as
you live, say that to me again. D’you hear?’ he hissed, fire dancing in his brown eyes.
Nova glared at him, but he scowled right back. She was the first to drop her gaze. ‘I’m sorry. That was out of order.’
Liam’s scowl didn’t disappear by any means. If anything, it got worse.
‘Jeez! If looks could kill. . .’ Nova shot out, only to bite her Up. ‘Sorry! I didn’t mean that the way it came out.’
‘You don’t mean a lot of things, but it doesn’t stop you from saying them.’
‘Sorry. OK? I’m sorry. Sometimes my mouth kicks in before my brain switches on,’ said Nova.
Moments ticked by as Liam struggled to control his feelings. He closed his eyes and took a concentrated deep breath. Only when he was sure he wouldn’t bite her head off did he speak.
‘Look, Nova, I want you to promise you’ll stop all this vomiting rubbish. Apart from making your teeth rot and trashing your insides, you’re too smart for all that.’
Nova pulled away from his grasp. ‘What d’you know about it?’
‘I know—’ But Liam got no further.
‘You don’t know anything. People like you and my sister make me sick,’ Nova interrupted harshly. ‘You’re all drop-dead gorgeous and you’ve never had to worry
about more than the odd pimple. You don’t know what it’s like to hate every tiny bit of yourself.’
‘What’re you talking about?’ Liam shook his head, bewildered. ‘There’s nothing wrong with you.’
‘Yeah, right,’ Nova scoffed. ‘That’s why when my aunts and uncles and grandparents come round, they all rave on about how beautiful Rainbow is and how sweet and cute the
twins are and no one says a word about me – except maybe about how much I’ve shot up. “Nova, haven’t you grown!”, “We should call you bamboo, Nova!”,
“Nova, you’ll soon be taller than me!”’
‘What’s wrong with that?’
‘I hate it – OK? I hate it!’ Nova shouted at him.
She ran for the door. Liam tried to grab her arm again but his hand passed right through her. He ran to get to the door first, standing in front of it to block her way. No t being able to
control when he became solid was more than frustrating. Now that his initial burst of anger was over, he was back to being intangible, truly ghost-like. ‘Look, I know what it’s like to
be compared all the time to someone else in your family,’ he told her. ‘I was always being compared to my younger brother, Josh. Everyone thought the sun shone from his one eye and the
rest of the stars sparkled out the other.’
‘And how did
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