the air and barked again. Come on, Bee, I thought. I didn’t ruin the song that much.
I plucked out some more notes and tried to make the melody flow more smoothly from my fingers. ‘Your lessons with me must have stuck, don’t you think, Floyd?’ I’d never talked to my brother out loud before but it seemed all right in front of our dog and out here. ‘It’s sad you didn’t know him, Bee. You two would have got along like a –’
Bee sat down very deliberately and howled. It was sad and insistent and directed across the water to the bank on the other side of the creek.
Over there, a twig snapped. I looked away from Bee and saw a boy stumbling backwards and landingawkwardly. There was someone else here? But that side of the river was rough and tangled with trees and shrubs. There was no path over there that I could see.
The boy seemed confused. Shocked, even – I could tell from his movements. I watched as he stared up at the canopy of trees. He looked along the creek each way and then behind him into the brambles and long grass.
I was frightened.
Bee and I stood up together and I put my hand on her back. This boy looked like he was in trouble. Maybe he was hiding from someone. I had a horrible feeling that I’d stumbled into someone else’s drama and should get out of there as quickly as possible.
As I struggled to get off the rock I could hear the boy muttering quite clearly, even though he was over the other side.
‘What the …? Holy … I must be dreaming. Please let me be dreaming.’
I tried to stop staring at him. My fingers fumbled with the guitar strap as I struggled to get it on my back. Bee was dancing on her toes. She looked from me to the boy, me to the boy. As I started to get away, she sat down stubbornly and made a strange whining noise.
‘Come on, Bee!’ I whispered.
In her eyes I saw longing and sadness. Or did I? That was silly. What did I know about dogs? And what did dogs know about a situation like this? I was in charge here. I had to make a decision, and that was to leave. Dad and Wren didn’t even know I was here – no one on Earth did.
But I couldn’t help myself; I looked over again. The boy had stepped out of the trees’ shade and onto a rock that was in direct sunlight. Now I saw him properly, and a sound halfway between a gasp and a cry came out of my mouth as it hit me: I’d seen that face before.
‘Who are you?’ said the boy across the water. But that was my question. ‘What is this place?’ He looked more terrified than I was, as if he honestly had no idea where we were.
‘It’s called Wurun Creek.’ I felt for Milo’s map but decided not to show the boy I had one. The uncertainty of being new around here suddenly hit me. ‘It’s only a minute from the road on this side. I don’t know it very well, I’m from … somewhere else …’
At first I thought he hadn’t heard me but then he looked right at me again. ‘I’ve heard of it. But I don’t think I’ve ever been here before.’ He sat down on the rock and put his head in his hands.
This spooked feeling I had reminded me of all the times I’d seen the spitting images of Mum and Gran and Mal since we’d been here, and that pocket of time in which I’d truly believe it was them. Why did this boy at the creek make me feel that way? If I had seen him before, he’d just be someone I’d seen on a tram, at school or in the supermarket. I’d seen a thousand new faces since we’d arrived.
My brain still said run. But adrenalin had drained down my legs and into the rock I was standing on, gluing my feet to it like stubborn whelks. My heart was pounding. Bee lay down on her belly, panting happily. Some guard dog she turned out to be.
‘Do you go to Fairfield High?’ I said.
The boy was still looking down when he muttered an answer, so I didn’t hear it.
‘What did you say?’
He looked up as if he’d forgotten I was there. ‘I said no. Is this a dream?’
‘Um, n-no?’
He looked
I plucked out some more notes and tried to make the melody flow more smoothly from my fingers. ‘Your lessons with me must have stuck, don’t you think, Floyd?’ I’d never talked to my brother out loud before but it seemed all right in front of our dog and out here. ‘It’s sad you didn’t know him, Bee. You two would have got along like a –’
Bee sat down very deliberately and howled. It was sad and insistent and directed across the water to the bank on the other side of the creek.
Over there, a twig snapped. I looked away from Bee and saw a boy stumbling backwards and landingawkwardly. There was someone else here? But that side of the river was rough and tangled with trees and shrubs. There was no path over there that I could see.
The boy seemed confused. Shocked, even – I could tell from his movements. I watched as he stared up at the canopy of trees. He looked along the creek each way and then behind him into the brambles and long grass.
I was frightened.
Bee and I stood up together and I put my hand on her back. This boy looked like he was in trouble. Maybe he was hiding from someone. I had a horrible feeling that I’d stumbled into someone else’s drama and should get out of there as quickly as possible.
As I struggled to get off the rock I could hear the boy muttering quite clearly, even though he was over the other side.
‘What the …? Holy … I must be dreaming. Please let me be dreaming.’
I tried to stop staring at him. My fingers fumbled with the guitar strap as I struggled to get it on my back. Bee was dancing on her toes. She looked from me to the boy, me to the boy. As I started to get away, she sat down stubbornly and made a strange whining noise.
‘Come on, Bee!’ I whispered.
In her eyes I saw longing and sadness. Or did I? That was silly. What did I know about dogs? And what did dogs know about a situation like this? I was in charge here. I had to make a decision, and that was to leave. Dad and Wren didn’t even know I was here – no one on Earth did.
But I couldn’t help myself; I looked over again. The boy had stepped out of the trees’ shade and onto a rock that was in direct sunlight. Now I saw him properly, and a sound halfway between a gasp and a cry came out of my mouth as it hit me: I’d seen that face before.
‘Who are you?’ said the boy across the water. But that was my question. ‘What is this place?’ He looked more terrified than I was, as if he honestly had no idea where we were.
‘It’s called Wurun Creek.’ I felt for Milo’s map but decided not to show the boy I had one. The uncertainty of being new around here suddenly hit me. ‘It’s only a minute from the road on this side. I don’t know it very well, I’m from … somewhere else …’
At first I thought he hadn’t heard me but then he looked right at me again. ‘I’ve heard of it. But I don’t think I’ve ever been here before.’ He sat down on the rock and put his head in his hands.
This spooked feeling I had reminded me of all the times I’d seen the spitting images of Mum and Gran and Mal since we’d been here, and that pocket of time in which I’d truly believe it was them. Why did this boy at the creek make me feel that way? If I had seen him before, he’d just be someone I’d seen on a tram, at school or in the supermarket. I’d seen a thousand new faces since we’d arrived.
My brain still said run. But adrenalin had drained down my legs and into the rock I was standing on, gluing my feet to it like stubborn whelks. My heart was pounding. Bee lay down on her belly, panting happily. Some guard dog she turned out to be.
‘Do you go to Fairfield High?’ I said.
The boy was still looking down when he muttered an answer, so I didn’t hear it.
‘What did you say?’
He looked up as if he’d forgotten I was there. ‘I said no. Is this a dream?’
‘Um, n-no?’
He looked
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