Making Waves by Susannah McFarlane Page B

people. No one was exactly sure why but everyone was sure it wasn’t nice. Nema would make fun of people. She seemed to sense when people were feeling a little unsure but rather than make them feel better, she would make them feel worse. Like the time she had teased Elle about her new glasses. Elle actually looked pretty cool in them but they were new and they embarrassed her. Nema seemed to know that and made fun of her anyway. It was just mean. Emma couldn’t stand people being mean to anyone, but she especially couldn’t stand it when they were mean to her friends. She had learnt tostand up to Nema but she still found it hard. There were times when it just seemed too hard, when Nema seemed too mean. Now, when Nema had blurted out her secret fear in front of everyone, was one of those times.
    Emma could feel a sort of burning sensation on her skin, a heat spreading from her neck to her face. She knew her face was turning red. She turned her head and looked out the bus window. She could feel her eyes prickling but she blinked them tight—there was no way she was going to cry on the school bus, in front of everyone.
    Hannah put her hand on her friend’s knee and gave it a little squeeze just as Nema called out again.
    â€˜Sorry Emmy, I couldn’t hear you,’ Nema cried. ‘Did you say you are still afraid of the deep end?’
    This time some other girls behind Nema laughed.
    Emma blinked her eyes tightly again and clenched her fists. Why does Nema do this? she thought. I have to answer her. I can’t let Nema think I am upset, even if I am!
    Emma took a deep breath. ‘No,’ she said, but the word came out so softly that for a moment she wasn’t even sure she’d said it.
    â€˜I’m sorry,’ said Nema, again in a voice you knew meant she wasn’t sorry at all, ‘I still can’t hear you.’
    â€˜She said no, Nema,’ shouted Hannah. ‘Haven’t you got some hair to brush?’
    Emma smiled a little at that and Nema stopped but it was too late. The damage was done. Everyone would think Emma was a scaredy-cat baby.
    â€˜Well,’ continued Hannah, in a voice the whole bus could hear, ‘I’m scared of puppets.’
    The bus went silent, that is until Nema started speaking again.
    â€˜OMG!’ she exclaimed. ‘Are you all babies? How can you be scared of puppets?’
    â€˜I saw a bit of this really scary movie my sister was watching,’ said Hannah to no one in particular in a voice the whole bus could hear. ‘There were these wooden puppets with mouths that moved and they all came alive and started stalking humans.I know it’s silly and it was only a movie but now when I look at puppets, they still freak me out.’
    â€˜I know!’ called out someone else from the back of the bus. ‘Those puppets are sooooo creepy! It makes you wonder about all your other toys too.’
    â€˜Do you think our old Barbies might turn on us?’ cried another girl, laughing.
    Emma gave Hannah a grateful look. Her friend had taken all the attention away from what Nema had said and now the whole bus was talking about freaky puppets and other toys coming alive. That was such a Han thing to do. She was a good friend; she wouldn’t ever tell a secret.
    Emma and Hannah had also been at kinder together and had stayed friends all the way through primary school. In many ways, they were the opposites of each other: Emma had long, light hair, Hannah’s was short and dark; Emma had blue-green eyes, Hannah’s were brown; Emma was quite tall, Hannah was shorter; Emma loved dogs, Hannah was a cat person. But in lots of other ways they were like twins: they both liked gym and swimming, they were both good at art and maths, and they both loved animals and chocolate—but, then again, who didn’t love chocolate? Together with Isi and Elle, they formed a little group of friends who liked doing the same things and