why did Jo want to bound round to his house in her bunny jumper and twitch her nose at him?
‘Are you planning to go round to Lisa’s or Angela’s on Friday night?’ Jo said that evening.
‘Maybe. I don’t know. I’ve got a bit fed up with them recently,’ I said gloomily, chucking my school copy of
Victorian Life
on the floor. None of Miss Beckworth’s books went into the sort of detail I wanted. ‘I might just go round to Jamie’s house because he keeps telling me he’s got all these Victorian books he’ll lend me.’
‘Oh, round to Jamie’s house, eh?’ said Jo.
‘So?’ I said fiercely. ‘It’s just to borrow a book.’
‘OK, OK. But if you stay for tea or anything, can his mum or dad run you home? I can’t come and fetch you because . . . I’m babysitting for Robin.’
I stared at her. So Mark was going out?
‘Who’s this Mark going out with?’ I asked.
Jo shrugged uneasily. ‘I don’t know. Look, he just asked if I could – could come round and babysit, so I said OK, but I won’t be back late, and I can always say no if it’s not all right with you, Charlie.’
‘It’s fine with me,’ I said. It obviously wasn’t fine with Jo. I felt a bit sorry for her. But I was also thrilled for me. The wimp had got himself some girl-friend so he couldn’t be interested in Jo. He just wanted her to look after little Robin.
Or so I thought
.
I was so stupid! I didn’t twig at all. Not that first Friday, or even the Friday after. I was so pleased and relieved I was extra nice to Jo.
We had a wonderful Sunday, having a really long lie in and then a dozy hour or two snuggled up in bed playing Magic Lands and then, when we eventually got up, I made us special little fairy cakes. We ate them hot out of the oven for breakfast and then later when they’d cooled down I iced them pink and then changed to white in my little icing bag and piped funny messages over them – HELLO and I LIKE YOU and FUNNY FACE – like those little love heart sweets.
I took them to school the next morning. There was a lot of silly teasing about Cakehole making cakes – but everyone seemed dead impressed when they saw them. Everyone wanted one, but they were only for a select few. I gave Lisa an I LIKE YOU and told her what to do with it. She giggled and blushed and protested and wouldn’t give it to Dave Wood outright – but he saw her leave it on his desk, so the message got through.
I gave Angela another I LIKE YOU and she pretend-fed it to the grinning faces on her T-shirt and then gobbled it up herself.
I gave more cakes to the girls I’d liked best in our old gang, and then Lisa and Angela and I had another two each. There was just one left by the time we went back into school.
‘Did you make those little cakes yourself, Charlie?’ Jamie asked.
‘Yup.’
‘They looked ever so nice. Really tasty,’ said Jamie wistfully.
I looked at him. And then I sighed and reached in the tin and gave him the last one. It didn’t say HELLO . It didn’t say FUNNY FACE . It said I LIKE YOU .
COURTSHIP
IT WAS BITTERLY cold in the park today. Louisa cried because she could not feel her feet inside her boots and baby Freddie’s nose kept running in a most unattractive way. Victor ran ahead with his hoop to get warm, so I stuck Louisa into the pram beside Freddie and ran too. We raced all the way home, careering round the corner and practically running over the butcher’s boy. He did not seem to mind.
‘Whoops-a-blooming-buttercup!’ he said. ‘Mind what you’re doing with that perambulator, Miss. It’s a dangerous weapon!’
No-one has ever called
me
Miss before. I must admit I liked it, though I stuck my nose in the air and called the butcher’s boy a saucepot.
Trust Victor to hang back at that precise moment. ‘What were you saying to that errand boy, Charlotte?’ he enquired.
‘It’s none of your business, Master Victor,’ I said haughtily.
‘Is he going to be your gentleman caller?’
‘Are you planning to go round to Lisa’s or Angela’s on Friday night?’ Jo said that evening.
‘Maybe. I don’t know. I’ve got a bit fed up with them recently,’ I said gloomily, chucking my school copy of
Victorian Life
on the floor. None of Miss Beckworth’s books went into the sort of detail I wanted. ‘I might just go round to Jamie’s house because he keeps telling me he’s got all these Victorian books he’ll lend me.’
‘Oh, round to Jamie’s house, eh?’ said Jo.
‘So?’ I said fiercely. ‘It’s just to borrow a book.’
‘OK, OK. But if you stay for tea or anything, can his mum or dad run you home? I can’t come and fetch you because . . . I’m babysitting for Robin.’
I stared at her. So Mark was going out?
‘Who’s this Mark going out with?’ I asked.
Jo shrugged uneasily. ‘I don’t know. Look, he just asked if I could – could come round and babysit, so I said OK, but I won’t be back late, and I can always say no if it’s not all right with you, Charlie.’
‘It’s fine with me,’ I said. It obviously wasn’t fine with Jo. I felt a bit sorry for her. But I was also thrilled for me. The wimp had got himself some girl-friend so he couldn’t be interested in Jo. He just wanted her to look after little Robin.
Or so I thought
.
I was so stupid! I didn’t twig at all. Not that first Friday, or even the Friday after. I was so pleased and relieved I was extra nice to Jo.
We had a wonderful Sunday, having a really long lie in and then a dozy hour or two snuggled up in bed playing Magic Lands and then, when we eventually got up, I made us special little fairy cakes. We ate them hot out of the oven for breakfast and then later when they’d cooled down I iced them pink and then changed to white in my little icing bag and piped funny messages over them – HELLO and I LIKE YOU and FUNNY FACE – like those little love heart sweets.
I took them to school the next morning. There was a lot of silly teasing about Cakehole making cakes – but everyone seemed dead impressed when they saw them. Everyone wanted one, but they were only for a select few. I gave Lisa an I LIKE YOU and told her what to do with it. She giggled and blushed and protested and wouldn’t give it to Dave Wood outright – but he saw her leave it on his desk, so the message got through.
I gave Angela another I LIKE YOU and she pretend-fed it to the grinning faces on her T-shirt and then gobbled it up herself.
I gave more cakes to the girls I’d liked best in our old gang, and then Lisa and Angela and I had another two each. There was just one left by the time we went back into school.
‘Did you make those little cakes yourself, Charlie?’ Jamie asked.
‘Yup.’
‘They looked ever so nice. Really tasty,’ said Jamie wistfully.
I looked at him. And then I sighed and reached in the tin and gave him the last one. It didn’t say HELLO . It didn’t say FUNNY FACE . It said I LIKE YOU .
COURTSHIP
IT WAS BITTERLY cold in the park today. Louisa cried because she could not feel her feet inside her boots and baby Freddie’s nose kept running in a most unattractive way. Victor ran ahead with his hoop to get warm, so I stuck Louisa into the pram beside Freddie and ran too. We raced all the way home, careering round the corner and practically running over the butcher’s boy. He did not seem to mind.
‘Whoops-a-blooming-buttercup!’ he said. ‘Mind what you’re doing with that perambulator, Miss. It’s a dangerous weapon!’
No-one has ever called
me
Miss before. I must admit I liked it, though I stuck my nose in the air and called the butcher’s boy a saucepot.
Trust Victor to hang back at that precise moment. ‘What were you saying to that errand boy, Charlotte?’ he enquired.
‘It’s none of your business, Master Victor,’ I said haughtily.
‘Is he going to be your gentleman caller?’
Similar Books
