Annabel's Perfect Party (7 page)

Chapter Ten

The triplets were up early the next morning. Earlier than Mum, who they woke up mercilessly by calling outside her bedroom door (they still weren't allowed in). Mum had warned them not to even think of getting up before seven, or they'd be exhausted by the end of the party. She'd also pointed out there was no reason to get up early, as nothing was happening till the afternoon. She knew it wasn't going to have much effect, though. And she was right – dead on seven o'clock, they were out of their bedroom, bouncing and yelping excitedly to get her up and get the day properly started. They'd spent at least the last half hour awake and chatting curled up on Annabel's bed, and she was beginning to be really glad the pretence wouldn't have to go on much longer. Katie had already accused her of not really being excited about the party as she wasn't saying enough. Annabel had claimed she was just sleepy, and the other two seemed to believe her – after all, she
did
like to sleep in at the weekends.

Mrs Ryan appeared in her dressing gown. “What time is it, for heaven's sake? Two minutes past seven – I might have known. Well, as you're so energetic you can go and put the kettle on and make me some coffee and toast while I have a shower.”

The triplets raced downstairs as Mum shuffled into the bathroom, but stopped halfway as she called after them, “Don't forget! You
can't
go in the living room!” Ten minutes later she appeared in jeans and a jumper looking considerably more awake, and once she'd got a cup of coffee in her hands she was almost human.

“Mum, please will you tell us what's going on today now?” begged Katie, blue eyes like saucers.

“Pleease!” asked Becky beseechingly.

“Your dad and I will tell you at lunchtime. I've got loads to do before then, so get lost please. I need you upstairs and out of the way.”

“You mean we can't be in the kitchen,
either
?”
demanded Katie in horror.

“Not unless you're going to sit blindfolded with a clothes-peg on your nose. Go on upstairs – have baths, wash your hair. Let Annabel do your nails, that should take a good three hours.”

Annabel stuck her tongue out at her mother, but said, “Actually, that's a really good idea, I hadn't thought about nails. C'mon, Katie.”

“We said make-up,” squeaked Katie in outrage. “Nothing about nails!”

“Do you have anything else to do this morning?”

“Nooo, but. . .”

Annabel grabbed her and marched her upstairs, still muttering.

 

By midday the triplets were cleaner and more beautified than they had ever been. Even Katie had had intensive hair conditioner (they'd used an entire new tub between them – they had a lot of hair), a face pack and a manicure that had left her squirming with impatience at having to sit still for so long and Annabel wondering whether she really wanted
to give her sisters a party at all. Katie was stomping about their bedroom like a really wild wildebeest, casting disgusted glances at her perfect “Ice Queen” pale blue nails. She had utterly refused to let Annabel put a small crystal on the tip of each one, in fact she'd threatened to go and clean the whole lot off if Annabel so much as brought a nail jewel within half a metre of her hands.

The triplets were still in everyday clothes – jeans and sweaters. They didn't know (or, in Annabel's case, had to
pretend
not to know) what sort of clothes they needed for the party, so Becky and Annabel had laid out a selection on their beds (and Annabel had laid out Katie's too) and were squabbling pleasantly about who ought to wear what. Annabel's scarlet pleated miniskirt was going head to head with Becky's slightly different and horribly clashing scarlet fluffy sweater when there was a knock at the bedroom door.

“Everyone decent?” called Dad, and Katie raced to open the door. “Can we come downstairs?” she burst out. “I have to get out of here. Those two are driving me mad!”

Dad grinned. “Go and run up and down the garden till you feel better, sweetheart. Come on, you two,” he added as Katie shot past him and thundered down the stairs, “Mum sent me to fetch you for lunch.”

“When did you get here, Dad?” asked Becky, puzzled. “We didn't hear you arrive.”

“I came in the back gate. I needed to help your mum set things up and she reckoned you'd be fussing even more if you knew I was here too.”

 

The kitchen was spotless, with no evidence of party preparation at all. The triplets looked round suspiciously. “Are you sure
you've been doing anything this morning, Mum?” asked Katie.

“It's all hidden away. Right, lunch. Treat food, as today is temporarily your birthday.”

“Nachos, excellent,” cheered Annabel, as Mum brought a mound of tortilla chips, salsa and gorgeous, oozing melted cheese to the table. “Katie Ryan, if you damage those nails I will personally cut your fingers off, got it?”

“You see, this is why I don't wear nail polish,” Katie moaned. “You can't do
anything
.
What am I supposed to do, pick up nachos with my teeth?”

“Just be careful. It's supposed to be chip-resistant, but then it's never met
you
before.” Annabel daintily picked up a nacho, managing not even to get a smudge of grease on her sparkly silver nails.

Dad let them all get well stuck into the nachos and then raised his eyebrows at Mum. “What do you think? Time to spill the beans?”

Becky choked with excitement and had to be thumped on the back, slightly over-enthusiastically as Katie was desperate to know what was going on.

Mum smiled. “Annabel?”

“What are you asking Bel for?” Katie sounded confused. “We
all
want to know.”

“I
'm asking Bel because this was all her idea,” said Mum, leaving Katie opening and shutting her mouth like a very gormless goldfish. “Annabel came up with the theme for a party that all three of you would like, and she's kept it secret from you two all this time.”

“So it's not a surprise party for Bel at all?” asked Becky, looking from Mum to Annabel and back again. “You've been pretending all this time?”

“Are you cross?” asked Annabel.

“No, I'm just really, really amazed – that you managed not to say anything, all those conversations we had about what it was going to be, and you
knew
!”
She sounded quite sorry for Annabel, as she added, “And you're not even getting a surprise party!”

“No, but I get to see you and Katie having it – I'm terrified you won't like it though. And I haven't seen the decorations or the food or anything so that's all a surprise. . .” Annabel faltered to a stop. Katie still hadn't said anything. Was she furious? Did she think Annabel had taken over and organized everything her own way, like she had complained about before? There was no way to tell – Katie's face wasn't giving anything away. Annabel carried on. “Katie, do you remember that drawing I did, of the ice-skating party? The one you really liked? I was trying to think of something that I'd love to do for our birthday, but that you and Becky would like, too. And I thought,
ice-skating
.
I mean, it's kind of girly and fun but sporty at the same time. I know that doesn't really have anything specially for you, Becky, but—”

“But I'd
love
to go ice-skating!” Becky int
errupted. “That's what we're doing? That's so cool! Isn't it, Katie?” she demanded, kicking her sister under the table. Annabel looked so worried that Becky would probably have said, “Yay!” to extra French if that had been the party plan, but she really did love the idea.

Katie swallowed. She had to admit, ice-skating did sound brilliant, and Annabel had made a real effort to make them all happy – but this was Bel! Her dippy sister who spent her life thinking about make-up and clothes and boys and
never
organized anything, least of all herself. It was almost impossible for Katie to believe that Annabel had done all this while she and Becky had just sat around, so in the dark that they were practically asleep. But she had. “It'll be fab, Bel,” she said, getting up and going to give her a hug. “Thanks. You're a star.”

“Anyone want to know what's in those parcels in the hall?” asked Dad in an offhand kind of way.

“Yees,” squeaked the triplets, the difficult moment temporarily forgotten.

“Shall I get them?” asked Katie, who was still on her feet.

“Uh-huh.” Dad was looking very smug.

“Do you know what these are, Bel?” asked Katie, as she came back with her arms full of silvery wrapping paper, a slight edge to her voice.

“Not a clue, honestly,” Annabel promised her, and Katie relaxed. She didn't think she could stand her sister knowing
everything
.

The remains of the nachos were cleared away, and the fabulous parcels laid out on the table. Sparkling paper, metres and metres of fat satiny ribbon in gorgeous colours – the triplets couldn't wait to rip them apart. . .

“Oh wow!” murmured Annabel, who'd somehow managed to untie the ribbon without tying herself in knots like the other two. “Look!” She held up a blue satin skirt, trimmed with fluffy feathers. “It's perfect, it's like the ones I drew – oh, Dad, you are so clever! Come on, you two, I want to see what yours are!”

By this time, Becky had got into her parcel to find a pale pink cardigan with silvery fake-fur at the collar and cuffs, and Katie was just giving up on the untying option and tearing the paper off her present – purple cord jeans, cute but still very Katie.

“OK to wear for skating?” asked Dad anxiously. “I wanted party-ish clothes that you wouldn't freeze in, so I made a detour to Oxford Street on my way home yesterday. Your mum did the wrapping, though. Not sure why we bothered. . .” he added, smiling down at the litter of silver scraps – all that was left of the pretty parcels.

“You'd better go and change,” said Mum, checking her watch. “It's only an hour before you need to leave.”

“No!” gasped Annabel in horror. “Get upstairs now, we have to do make-up and don't you dare try and get out of it, Katie.”

 

An hour and a half later the triplets were meeting the rest of the party at the ice rink and heading off to get their skates. They looked amazing. Mum didn't really like them wearing make-up to school (the school didn't either) and Katie and Becky could never be bothered anyway. Annabel normally just made do with clear tinted nail polish and lipgloss which she knew she could get away with. Dad had been speechless when they came back downstairs – and that was after Mum had warned him not to throw a fit. He wasn't sure he liked his little girls looking so grown-up.

Annabel thought she'd been quite restrained – this was only daytime make-up, they'd get the glitter out later on. . .

The triplets' friends were a bit gobsmacked, too. They were used to telling the three of them apart by a relatively simple method – the one with the nail polish and hair full of clips and braids and whatever was Annabel, the sporty-looking one with no-nonsense hair was Katie, and Beck
y was the one somewhere in between. Now, though, at first glance you had three Annabels with the most amazing blonde curls. Once they thought about it, it was fairly obvious that Katie was the one in trousers, and Annabel was definitely feathery-skirt-girl. David edged up to the triplet struggling with her laces whom he reckoned was Becky. “Um, hello. You look, um, nice. Different. But nice.” Then he decided it would be a good idea to shut up.

Becky blushed. She wasn't used to compliments. “Thanks. It's nice that you could come.”

“Mmm, I really like ice-skating. There was a rink close to where I lived before.”

“I've never done it. I'm not sure I'm going to be able to stand up!”

“I could help you, um, if you like?”

The huge expanse of shiny white ice that they'd seen on the way in had looked so scary and slippery that Becky said yes without even thinking about it. When they got on the ice David turned out to be good enough to skate
backwards
,
so he held her hands and towed her round the ring. It was brilliant. Becky thought back to her fantasy birthday party, polar-bear-watching in the arctic. If she half closed her eyes, that could be a polar bear on that patch of ice. . . By the time they'd got right the way round everybody else had fallen over at least three times and the triplets' dad was choking with laughter. He'd flatly refused to come on the ice with them – he said he needed to take photos, and anyway he liked being in one piece, thank you very much. As Becky arrived back, not a hair out of place, the rest of the girls looked hopefully at David, who went deeply red – they were staring at him!

“That was so cool, you're really good at this,” whispered Becky. “Would you take all the others, too? I think they could do with some help!”

David gulped and nodded, and Becky let go of him
very
carefully. “Bel, do you want David to show you what to do? It really helps you get your balance – ooh!” She wobbled massively and grabbed the safety rail. “Well, OK, I
was
balancing.”

David skated over to Katie, who was clinging on to Fran and Megan for dear life. She grinned at him. “Actually,
that's
Annabel over there, but show me first!”