and I gnawed at a chicken leg like Sammy the dog. She said While we’re on the subject, there’s something I should tell you . Dad dropped his fork. I’ve got a boyfriend .
Dad stared down at the table. Jas cut a carrot into tiny pieces. I dipped my fingers in the gravy on my plate. I was just sucking them clean when Dad said Okay without looking up. And Jas squeaked Okay , and Dad sighed Okay , and I felt left out so I said it too. But no one heard ’cos Jas had jumped up and she’d wrapped her arms around Dad and was giving him the first hug I had ever seen. And Jas’s face was flushed and happy, but Dad’s was tight with a sadness I didn’t understand.
Jas sang as she washed up. I stopped drying the plates and looked right at her. You really have got a good voice . She replied I’m not entering that crap contest and I said I know and she said So tell me about this girlfriend of yours . I thought about Sunya’s freckle and her shiny hair and sparkling eyes and laughing lips and brown fingers and I said She is beautiful before I could stop myself. Jas pretended to be sick into the washing up bowl so I whipped her with the towel and then we were laughing. Dad came into the kitchen to put the pots away and tell us off for being silly. We were like a proper family and for once I didn’t miss Mum. The silver lion stared at us through the cottage window. It may just have been Roger, but I thought I heard a purr.
T HERE WERE THOUSANDS of stars above the cottage, no clouds and the moon was fat. It looked like a saucer of milk and I showed it to Roger. He’d followed me outside and was sitting on my lap, staring at the sky with his clever green eyes. Neither of us could sleep and I was glad he was there to keep me company. My fingers were keeping warm in his fur and I could feel his heart beating against my knees. The night smelled cold and secret like the storeroom and I wondered if Sunya was asleep underneath the blue duvet I’d seen in her bedroom two days ago. And then I felt guilty for thinking about her so I shook my head and blinked three times and stared into the pond, remembering the rules on the rock that God threw at this weird man called Moses.
Today Mrs Farmer said that if we wanted to go to Heaven, we all had to follow The Ten Commandments. She said God gave them to Moses on a stone up a hill and they are the rules that we should all live by . At first I wasn’t really listening ’cos to be honest Heaven doesn’t sound that great. As far as I can tell it is just full of angels singing carols and everything is a bit too bright so I am going to make sure that I am buried with some sunglasses. But then Mrs Farmer said Number five is one of the most important: respect your mother and father , and all of a sudden I felt bad. Having triangle sandwiches with a Muslim is not respecting Dad one little bit.
There was a tinkle of bracelets as Sunya’s hand shot into the air. What happens if you break the rules she said, before Mrs Farmer had asked her to speak. Don’t interrupt the teacher said. Do you go to Hell Sunya continued, her eyes wide. And is the devil there . Mrs Farmer went pale and folded her arms. She glanced at the clouds on the notice board and then at Daniel. He stared at Sunya as if he couldn’t believe she was bringing it all up again. She ignored him and scratched her temple. What does the devil look like she asked sweetly and the class started to laugh. Sunya didn’t even smile. She kept her eyes all huge and curious. Daniel’s mouth was a big black O in his bright red face. That’s quite enough Mrs Farmer said, and the words sounded strange ’cos they were being pushed through the tiny gaps in her clenched teeth and made me think of cheese being grated. Let’s look at the other commandments .
Sunya winked at me and I did it back but rule five made me feel guilty. Respect your mother and father . That’s what God said. And there I was winking at a Muslim, like it was okay to
Dad stared down at the table. Jas cut a carrot into tiny pieces. I dipped my fingers in the gravy on my plate. I was just sucking them clean when Dad said Okay without looking up. And Jas squeaked Okay , and Dad sighed Okay , and I felt left out so I said it too. But no one heard ’cos Jas had jumped up and she’d wrapped her arms around Dad and was giving him the first hug I had ever seen. And Jas’s face was flushed and happy, but Dad’s was tight with a sadness I didn’t understand.
Jas sang as she washed up. I stopped drying the plates and looked right at her. You really have got a good voice . She replied I’m not entering that crap contest and I said I know and she said So tell me about this girlfriend of yours . I thought about Sunya’s freckle and her shiny hair and sparkling eyes and laughing lips and brown fingers and I said She is beautiful before I could stop myself. Jas pretended to be sick into the washing up bowl so I whipped her with the towel and then we were laughing. Dad came into the kitchen to put the pots away and tell us off for being silly. We were like a proper family and for once I didn’t miss Mum. The silver lion stared at us through the cottage window. It may just have been Roger, but I thought I heard a purr.
T HERE WERE THOUSANDS of stars above the cottage, no clouds and the moon was fat. It looked like a saucer of milk and I showed it to Roger. He’d followed me outside and was sitting on my lap, staring at the sky with his clever green eyes. Neither of us could sleep and I was glad he was there to keep me company. My fingers were keeping warm in his fur and I could feel his heart beating against my knees. The night smelled cold and secret like the storeroom and I wondered if Sunya was asleep underneath the blue duvet I’d seen in her bedroom two days ago. And then I felt guilty for thinking about her so I shook my head and blinked three times and stared into the pond, remembering the rules on the rock that God threw at this weird man called Moses.
Today Mrs Farmer said that if we wanted to go to Heaven, we all had to follow The Ten Commandments. She said God gave them to Moses on a stone up a hill and they are the rules that we should all live by . At first I wasn’t really listening ’cos to be honest Heaven doesn’t sound that great. As far as I can tell it is just full of angels singing carols and everything is a bit too bright so I am going to make sure that I am buried with some sunglasses. But then Mrs Farmer said Number five is one of the most important: respect your mother and father , and all of a sudden I felt bad. Having triangle sandwiches with a Muslim is not respecting Dad one little bit.
There was a tinkle of bracelets as Sunya’s hand shot into the air. What happens if you break the rules she said, before Mrs Farmer had asked her to speak. Don’t interrupt the teacher said. Do you go to Hell Sunya continued, her eyes wide. And is the devil there . Mrs Farmer went pale and folded her arms. She glanced at the clouds on the notice board and then at Daniel. He stared at Sunya as if he couldn’t believe she was bringing it all up again. She ignored him and scratched her temple. What does the devil look like she asked sweetly and the class started to laugh. Sunya didn’t even smile. She kept her eyes all huge and curious. Daniel’s mouth was a big black O in his bright red face. That’s quite enough Mrs Farmer said, and the words sounded strange ’cos they were being pushed through the tiny gaps in her clenched teeth and made me think of cheese being grated. Let’s look at the other commandments .
Sunya winked at me and I did it back but rule five made me feel guilty. Respect your mother and father . That’s what God said. And there I was winking at a Muslim, like it was okay to
Similar Books
