friends and began to talk to the back of our heads.
‘So are you scared of being on your own, then, little boy? You can’t protect him all the time, you know, Carla.’
‘Shut up, Tasha.’
Tasha and her group backed off when we were approached by four boys from the front. Their spokesperson addressed me.
‘You’re going to get dropped.’
‘Don’t say anything,’ said Carla.
A few other things were shouted but we just ignored them, and then we reached number thirty-five. Carla looked at me unimpressed.
‘I think you’re a nice boy, Jackson, but I really can’t see what you want with someone like her. Apart from what her son’s done she’s such a horrible person, she’s a bitch and she’s a witch.’
‘Come on, Carla,’ I replied. ‘Where did you get all that from?’
‘We live here so we know. You are just passing through, but we see what she’s like all the time. I haveto go now. Maybe you can drop by and see us again, but not when you’re coming to see the beast.’
She walked away and for a moment I stood and thought about Carla’s hatred of Miss Ferrier, but then I saw that group of boys heading my way so I rang the bell.
Miss Ferrier shouted through the door again.
‘Who is it?’
‘Me, Jackson,’ I said hurriedly. ‘Can you open up quickly, please? There are some bad people coming my way.’
Fortunately she opened up quickly and I was soon inside. She took me upstairs to her living room, gave me that photo album again, and a small carton of fruit juice. I looked at the photo album and came across a photo of Lionel I hadn’t seen before. He was smiling and I noticed that there was a hand on his shoulder but the photo had been cut in half so I couldn’t see whose hand it was.
‘Lionel looks really happy here,’ I said.
‘Do you think so?’ she replied.
‘Yeah, I think so. But why is the photo cut in half?
‘Because his dad was standing next to him,’ she said abruptly.
‘So is that his dad’s hand on his shoulder?’
‘Yes, and the only reason he’s smiling is because the photographer told him to. Look very carefully and you’ll see it’s a forced smile. Look at his eyes andyou’ll see his eyes don’t match his face.’
I looked, and she was right. His eyes stared beyond the camera and his smile looked as if it was fixed on. His lips were in the right position but his face wasn’t smiling. Miss Ferrier stared at the photo album in my hand and began to speak.
‘Sometimes I look at those photos and wonder what Lionel would have been like if his life was different. Did I just get involved with the wrong type of man? Was I a bad mother? I don’t know. I just wish that I could have a normal son. I really want to see him but I’m scared to go, I’m scared of how he will react if I go to see him. It could make things worse between us.’
‘Do you miss him?’ I asked.
‘I think about him all the time, and I can’t get used to the absolute silence in the house now that he has gone, but I’d rather have silence than violence. I haven’t had peace in my life for a long time, but now that I have some peace and some freedom I don’t know what to do with it. All I do is sit here thinking about what life would be like if things were different. I feel happiest when I’m dreaming about how life could have been. I hardly ever go out and I have no friends. It’s not much of a life, but at least I have some peace now. I don’t know what will happen to Lionel. I just hope that somehow he turns into a better person, but I just don’t think it will happen.’
Miss Ferrier stopped speaking. Now was the time to ask her the big question, but I was nervous.
‘Miss Ferrier, you’ve told me what some people think of you and you know I don’t agree with that rubbish, right?’
‘Right.’
‘And you know that I don’t judge people, right?’
‘Right.’
‘OK. Now that’s agreed I want to ask you something. What are you doing the day after tomorrow?’
She
‘So are you scared of being on your own, then, little boy? You can’t protect him all the time, you know, Carla.’
‘Shut up, Tasha.’
Tasha and her group backed off when we were approached by four boys from the front. Their spokesperson addressed me.
‘You’re going to get dropped.’
‘Don’t say anything,’ said Carla.
A few other things were shouted but we just ignored them, and then we reached number thirty-five. Carla looked at me unimpressed.
‘I think you’re a nice boy, Jackson, but I really can’t see what you want with someone like her. Apart from what her son’s done she’s such a horrible person, she’s a bitch and she’s a witch.’
‘Come on, Carla,’ I replied. ‘Where did you get all that from?’
‘We live here so we know. You are just passing through, but we see what she’s like all the time. I haveto go now. Maybe you can drop by and see us again, but not when you’re coming to see the beast.’
She walked away and for a moment I stood and thought about Carla’s hatred of Miss Ferrier, but then I saw that group of boys heading my way so I rang the bell.
Miss Ferrier shouted through the door again.
‘Who is it?’
‘Me, Jackson,’ I said hurriedly. ‘Can you open up quickly, please? There are some bad people coming my way.’
Fortunately she opened up quickly and I was soon inside. She took me upstairs to her living room, gave me that photo album again, and a small carton of fruit juice. I looked at the photo album and came across a photo of Lionel I hadn’t seen before. He was smiling and I noticed that there was a hand on his shoulder but the photo had been cut in half so I couldn’t see whose hand it was.
‘Lionel looks really happy here,’ I said.
‘Do you think so?’ she replied.
‘Yeah, I think so. But why is the photo cut in half?
‘Because his dad was standing next to him,’ she said abruptly.
‘So is that his dad’s hand on his shoulder?’
‘Yes, and the only reason he’s smiling is because the photographer told him to. Look very carefully and you’ll see it’s a forced smile. Look at his eyes andyou’ll see his eyes don’t match his face.’
I looked, and she was right. His eyes stared beyond the camera and his smile looked as if it was fixed on. His lips were in the right position but his face wasn’t smiling. Miss Ferrier stared at the photo album in my hand and began to speak.
‘Sometimes I look at those photos and wonder what Lionel would have been like if his life was different. Did I just get involved with the wrong type of man? Was I a bad mother? I don’t know. I just wish that I could have a normal son. I really want to see him but I’m scared to go, I’m scared of how he will react if I go to see him. It could make things worse between us.’
‘Do you miss him?’ I asked.
‘I think about him all the time, and I can’t get used to the absolute silence in the house now that he has gone, but I’d rather have silence than violence. I haven’t had peace in my life for a long time, but now that I have some peace and some freedom I don’t know what to do with it. All I do is sit here thinking about what life would be like if things were different. I feel happiest when I’m dreaming about how life could have been. I hardly ever go out and I have no friends. It’s not much of a life, but at least I have some peace now. I don’t know what will happen to Lionel. I just hope that somehow he turns into a better person, but I just don’t think it will happen.’
Miss Ferrier stopped speaking. Now was the time to ask her the big question, but I was nervous.
‘Miss Ferrier, you’ve told me what some people think of you and you know I don’t agree with that rubbish, right?’
‘Right.’
‘And you know that I don’t judge people, right?’
‘Right.’
‘OK. Now that’s agreed I want to ask you something. What are you doing the day after tomorrow?’
She
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