hemisphere
to another, to the place her parents and Mog had talked about so often.
Of course, in her daydreams about such
an adventure, she’d always imagined having someone with her, not doing it
alone. She might have new clothes to wear, money to spend and people meeting her at
Southampton, but it was so very scary.
She managed to find her cabin easily as
her father had brought her down here when they first arrived at the ship. When she
saw how tiny it was – two bunks with just a couple of feet of space next to them –
she’d understood why she needed to pack clothes for the voyage in a small
suitcase and let her trunk go in the hold.
But, as she opened the cabin door, she
saw her cabin mate didn’t appear to know this, because the entire floor space
was strewn with clothes. Picking her way gingerly through the clothing, she saw a
dark-haired girl lying on the bottom bunk with her face buried in the pillow, and
crying.
‘Hello,’ she ventured.
‘I’m sharing with you.’
‘There isn’t room in here to
share, it’s no bigger than a coffin,’ the girl said, her face still
buried in the pillow and her voice muffled. ‘And I wish I was dead.’
Seeing another
girl prostrate with grief had a galvanizing effect on Mariette. As much as she could
easily have taken to her own bunk to cry at leaving home and family behind, she
thought the girl looked and sounded drippy, and she wasn’t going to copy
her.
‘That’s a daft thing to say
when we are less than a mile from land,’ Mariette said. ‘I’m sad
at leaving my family too, but there’s no point in wallowing.’
With that, the girl turned her head and
stared at Mariette with eyes that were red and swollen. She looked as if she was in
her mid twenties.
‘Who the hell are you to say
I’m wallowing?’ she asked aggressively.
‘Because your stuff is all over
the cabin, and it seems to me more sensible to put it away before you lie down and
feel sorry for yourself. I’ve got to share this cabin too.’
‘There isn’t enough room in
here for one person, let alone two. It’s not what I’m used to at
all.’
‘Well, it wouldn’t be – not
unless you’d spent your whole life on a ship.’ Mariette was beginning to
be irritated. ‘You’ll have to pack some of this stuff away and let the
steward put it in the hold, like I did.’
‘I need everything,’ the
girl said in alarm. ‘I’m not taking it anywhere.’
Mariette paused for a second. She
didn’t like the girl’s superior tone or even how she looked. She was
big, and her face was as mottled as corned beef. But she didn’t want to start
the voyage with a row.
‘What’s your name?’
she asked.
‘Stella Murgatroyd,’ she
said.
‘Well, I’m Mariette Carrera,
usually known as Mari. So, Stella, we’re in this cabin together for several
weeks. And, as you point out, there isn’t much room. That means we have tobe tidy. There’s a drawer under
each bunk, a very narrow cupboard to hang stuff in and two shelves. So you’d
better start stowing your stuff away, because otherwise I’ll be trampling on
it all as I unpack.’
‘Who the hell do you think you
are?’ Stella got up from the bunk and stood several inches taller than
Mariette, so close to her that her big breasts were almost touching her. ‘I
don’t expect a child to tell me what to do.’
‘Excuse me, you are the one
that’s behaving like a child,’ Mariette said with indignation.
‘And a very rude one at that. Put your case on your bunk, fold some of this
stuff up and put it back in.’ She bent down, picked up an armful of clothes
and dumped them on the bunk. ‘We’re getting off on the wrong foot here.
Just sort it all out, then perhaps we can go and get a cup of tea and make
friends.’
With that, the girl’s face
crumpled and she began to cry again. ‘You don’t understand,’ she
said through
to another, to the place her parents and Mog had talked about so often.
Of course, in her daydreams about such
an adventure, she’d always imagined having someone with her, not doing it
alone. She might have new clothes to wear, money to spend and people meeting her at
Southampton, but it was so very scary.
She managed to find her cabin easily as
her father had brought her down here when they first arrived at the ship. When she
saw how tiny it was – two bunks with just a couple of feet of space next to them –
she’d understood why she needed to pack clothes for the voyage in a small
suitcase and let her trunk go in the hold.
But, as she opened the cabin door, she
saw her cabin mate didn’t appear to know this, because the entire floor space
was strewn with clothes. Picking her way gingerly through the clothing, she saw a
dark-haired girl lying on the bottom bunk with her face buried in the pillow, and
crying.
‘Hello,’ she ventured.
‘I’m sharing with you.’
‘There isn’t room in here to
share, it’s no bigger than a coffin,’ the girl said, her face still
buried in the pillow and her voice muffled. ‘And I wish I was dead.’
Seeing another
girl prostrate with grief had a galvanizing effect on Mariette. As much as she could
easily have taken to her own bunk to cry at leaving home and family behind, she
thought the girl looked and sounded drippy, and she wasn’t going to copy
her.
‘That’s a daft thing to say
when we are less than a mile from land,’ Mariette said. ‘I’m sad
at leaving my family too, but there’s no point in wallowing.’
With that, the girl turned her head and
stared at Mariette with eyes that were red and swollen. She looked as if she was in
her mid twenties.
‘Who the hell are you to say
I’m wallowing?’ she asked aggressively.
‘Because your stuff is all over
the cabin, and it seems to me more sensible to put it away before you lie down and
feel sorry for yourself. I’ve got to share this cabin too.’
‘There isn’t enough room in
here for one person, let alone two. It’s not what I’m used to at
all.’
‘Well, it wouldn’t be – not
unless you’d spent your whole life on a ship.’ Mariette was beginning to
be irritated. ‘You’ll have to pack some of this stuff away and let the
steward put it in the hold, like I did.’
‘I need everything,’ the
girl said in alarm. ‘I’m not taking it anywhere.’
Mariette paused for a second. She
didn’t like the girl’s superior tone or even how she looked. She was
big, and her face was as mottled as corned beef. But she didn’t want to start
the voyage with a row.
‘What’s your name?’
she asked.
‘Stella Murgatroyd,’ she
said.
‘Well, I’m Mariette Carrera,
usually known as Mari. So, Stella, we’re in this cabin together for several
weeks. And, as you point out, there isn’t much room. That means we have tobe tidy. There’s a drawer under
each bunk, a very narrow cupboard to hang stuff in and two shelves. So you’d
better start stowing your stuff away, because otherwise I’ll be trampling on
it all as I unpack.’
‘Who the hell do you think you
are?’ Stella got up from the bunk and stood several inches taller than
Mariette, so close to her that her big breasts were almost touching her. ‘I
don’t expect a child to tell me what to do.’
‘Excuse me, you are the one
that’s behaving like a child,’ Mariette said with indignation.
‘And a very rude one at that. Put your case on your bunk, fold some of this
stuff up and put it back in.’ She bent down, picked up an armful of clothes
and dumped them on the bunk. ‘We’re getting off on the wrong foot here.
Just sort it all out, then perhaps we can go and get a cup of tea and make
friends.’
With that, the girl’s face
crumpled and she began to cry again. ‘You don’t understand,’ she
said through
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