Clementine Rose and the Special Promise 11 (5 page)

Clementine hardly slept a wink that night. She had stared at the ceiling for what seemed like hours on end, imagining all sorts of terrible things. When she had finally dropped off to sleep, she'd had the most awful dream. Clementine yawned and rubbed her sleepy eyes.

Roderick Smee looked over at the child. ‘Were you up late last night, Clemmie?'

The girl nodded and yawned again. ‘Sorry, Mr Smee, I can't seem to stop,' she sighed.

‘We went to Clementine's hotel for a barbecue,' Saskia said. She was sitting beside Clementine in Sophie's old seat.

‘How nice,' the man said.

Saskia made a face. ‘Her mum didn't cook anything I liked to eat.'

Clementine was about to say something mean back when she remembered what her mother always told her about saying not-nice things. She closed her mouth and remained quiet.

Mr Smee wondered whether seating the new girl beside Clementine had been the right decision. He scanned Clementine's answers to the subtraction questions and smiled. ‘Well, for someone who's tired, you're doing a very good job,' he said. He moved on and was surprised to find Saskia's page had barely been touched. ‘Would you like some help?' he asked.

Saskia smiled sweetly. ‘No, thank you. I can do it. It's just that my pencil broke and I couldn't find the sharpener.'

‘This is too hard,' Joshua grumbled loudly. ‘I hate subtraction. It's stupid.'

‘Wait a sec, Josh – I'm coming,' the teacher said, and walked across to the other side of the room.

Saskia leaned over and hurriedly copied Clementine's answers onto her own page.

‘That's cheating,' Clementine said.

Saskia plastered on a fake smile and emptied her pencil shavings all over Clementine's desk.

Clementine gasped. ‘Don't do that.'

‘Do what?' Saskia blew the shavings onto the floor.

‘I saw you copy me,' Clementine said.

‘No, you didn't,' Saskia snipped. ‘I was just checking that you had the right answers.'

Clementine pulled a book out of her desk and used it to cover her work. Saskia glared at her.

There was a loud rapping at the door and Mrs Bottomley barged in. ‘Good morning, Year One,' the old woman said. ‘Mr Smee, I trust that everything is back to normal in here after last Friday's shenanigans.'

Clementine could hardly believe Sophie's party had only been a few days ago. So much had happened since then.

‘Children, we need to talk about the arrangements for Friday,' Mrs Bottomley said. ‘Now, has everyone remembered to invite their grandparents along for the special concert and classroom activities?'

All but one child nodded. Saskia put up her hand. ‘I don't know what we're doing because I'm new,' she said importantly.

Mrs Bottomley looked at her. ‘That's all right. Mr Smee will give you a note and hopefully you have grandparents who are not too far away.'

The child's eyes instantly began to fill with tears. ‘But Fifi and Dodge died,' she blubbered.

‘Who's that?' Clementine asked.

‘My grandparents,' Saskia sniffed.

Mrs Bottomley clasped her hands in front of her. ‘I see. Well, you can invite an elderly friend. There are lots of children doing that. Clementine is bringing her Aunt Violet and Uncle Digby.'

‘But I don't know any old people,' Saskia whined.

‘You can borrow my nan,' Angus said cheekily.

‘I don't want your nan,' the girl snapped. ‘She's probably got blue hair and wrinkles and smells funny.'

There was a ripple of giggles around the room. Mrs Bottomley's mouth opened and closed like a goldfish and Roderick Smee did all he could to stifle a laugh.

‘
She's
his nan,' Joshua said with delight, pointing at Mrs Bottomley.

‘You tricked me!' Saskia screeched in the most unforgiving manner, then promptly burst into tears.

Roderick Smee walked over to the girl. ‘It's all right, Saskia. I'll speak with your mother this afternoon. I'm sure we can work something out.'

Ethel Bottomley offered the child a handful of tissues. ‘No need to cry about it. There are plenty of other children in the same boat.'

‘Yeah, my granny kicked the bucket,' Joshua said. ‘Before I was even born.'

Lester nodded. ‘Same.'

‘Enough! Please, have some respect, boys,' Mrs Bottomley ordered. ‘I want everyone in the hall straight after lunch for a full rehearsal. We have songs to practise.' The woman proceeded to read out the names of the children who were to recite stories and poems on the day. Clementine was among them. ‘And remember that I still have to choose the host of the show,' Mrs Bottomley reminded them.

All of a sudden Saskia stopped her bawling. ‘I could do that,' she said, perking up, ‘seeing as though I don't have anyone.'

‘Well, you can try out at the rehearsal,' the woman said.

Clementine stared at the girl next to her. She wanted that part and Saskia knew it.

Clementine grabbed the soccer ball as the rest of the children raced down onto the oval. ‘Do you want to play?' she called out to Saskia. The
girl had so far spent the whole of lunchtime complaining about the yucky fish fingers they'd had for lunch and telling the children how much better things were at her old school.

Saskia shook her head. ‘I told you yesterday that I don't like soccer.'

Clementine shrugged, somewhat relieved, and jogged away with Poppy. She waved to Will, who was running around with some of the older kids in Year Two.

‘She's a bit bossy,' Poppy whispered.

Clementine nodded. ‘She's worse than that.'

It wasn't long before there was a giant game of soccer underway. The children raced up and down the oval shouting and cheering. After a while of sitting on her own, Saskia slunk over to the sidelines.

‘Do you want to be on our team?' Joshua asked the girl.

‘I suppose,' she said, and wandered onto the field.

‘I thought she didn't like soccer,' Poppy said to Clementine.

Will raced along, dribbling the ball. He then booted it to Clementine, who broke free of the pack. Joshua sped across from the other side of the field. Just as Clementine was about to go for the goal, the boy raised his leg and kicked as hard as he could – right into Clementine's shin.

‘Ow!' she screamed, and fell to the ground.

‘Sorry,' Joshua yelled, sprinting away with the ball. He kicked it out to Saskia just before being tackled by Lester. The girl charged up the field and booted the ball straight past Evie, who was playing with her doll in the dirt, and into the back of the net.

Joshua high-fived Saskia and ran back to the middle of the field, where Clementine was still sitting on the ground holding her leg. She was trying her hardest to stop the tears from spilling. Will knelt down beside her and put an arm around her shoulder.

‘Hey, Angus,' Joshua shouted, ‘Clemmie's got a new boyfriend.'

Angus gave the lad a dark look. ‘She's not my girlfriend!'

‘Ooh,' Saskia called in a singsong voice. ‘His dad is her mum's boyfriend too. He'll be her brother when they get married.' The girl smiled smugly as if she knew a secret no one else did.

‘Is your mum getting married?' Poppy asked.

Clementine's face flushed. She stood up and pushed Will out of the way. ‘No, she's not!' she shouted.

‘Her mum loves his dad and they're going to get married and have a baby,' Saskia teased.

Joshua laughed.

‘It's not true!' Clementine said, her eyes brimming with tears.

Will stalked towards the new girl. ‘Stop saying that!'

‘Why? What's the matter? You said so yourself they were in love,' Saskia said, feigning innocence. ‘People in love get married and have babies.'

Roderick Smee noticed the small crowd of children in the middle of the oval. He walked over to see what was going on. ‘Is everything
all right here?' he said, noticing Clementine's face streaked with tears.

‘Clemmie got kicked in the shin by Joshua,' Tilda said.

‘Do you want to get an icepack?' the man said kindly. ‘Tilda can go with you.'

Clementine nodded and took the girl's hand.

‘Did anything else happen?' the teacher said, glancing around at the group.

‘Joshua was teasing Clemmie and Will and then Saskia joined in too,' Poppy said. She was already fed up with their new arrival.

Mr Smee scratched his head. ‘I see. I hope that's not true.'

‘I didn't do anything,' Saskia said in a trembling voice.

‘Try to be kind to one another,' the teacher said. ‘You've only got a few minutes until the bell – I suggest you get out there and have a good run around.'

Angus picked up the ball and jogged away. Roderick Smee stood on the sideline to watch over the rest of the game. Saskia had only
been in his class for half a day but he already had a sneaking suspicion the girl was going to rival Joshua in the trouble stakes.

Clementine studied the page, then glanced up. Ethel Bottomley and the children were gathered in the assembly hall to watch the audition for the role of host. Clementine was up first. She wished she could stop thinking about what Saskia had said, but the girl's voice was stuck in her head like an annoying tune. Clementine's eyes wandered over to the girl, who shot her tongue out at her like a lizard. Clementine frowned and looked back at the page.

‘We don't have all day, Clemmie,' Mrs Bottomley urged.

The girl nodded and stepped up to the microphone. ‘Welcome to our Grandparents' Day celebrity,' Clementine stumbled. ‘Oops, I meant celebration.'

‘Thank you, Clementine, that's enough,' the teacher said. ‘Joanna, you're up next.'

Clementine's cheeks burned and she felt as though she might cry. ‘But I can do it better,' she said.

Mrs Bottomley looked at her watch. ‘I'm afraid we don't have time.'

Joanna was jigging up and down on the spot as if she needed the toilet. At the mention of her name, she stepped forward and took the script. Eager to prove herself, the Year Two girl read the first three lines so quickly it all sounded like mumbo jumbo. Mrs Bottomley thanked her and then passed the page to Saskia, who read the entire opening without making a single mistake.

‘Thank you, girls,' the teacher said. ‘Given
that Clemmie already has a poem to recite and Joanna is a member of the dance group, Saskia can be the host.'

Clementine felt her eyes sting. It wasn't fair. She knew she could have done it perfectly if she hadn't been distracted by Saskia and all the mean things the girl had said at lunchtime.

‘Bad luck,' Saskia whispered as they made their way to sit down. She flicked her hair back and preened.

Clementine sniffled and went to sit next to Poppy.

The rest of the afternoon dragged on. Clementine was so flustered she also fluffed the lines of her poem, which made Mrs Bottomley very cross. Saskia giggled at her and made a face when no one was looking. Clementine usually loved school but she would rather have been anywhere else that afternoon.

When the school day finally came to an end, Will joined Clementine at the gate. ‘Are you okay?' he asked.

Clementine rubbed her shin and nodded. The spot where Joshua had kicked her had already swelled into a big bump.

‘There's Dad,' Will said, pointing at the four-wheel drive pulling up to the kiss-and-drop area.

Lady Clarissa stepped out of the passenger seat. ‘Hello there,' she called to the pair. ‘Hop in.'

Clementine spotted Saskia walking past with a smirk on her face. She was with her mother, who was wearing even taller heels than the ones she'd had on the evening before.

‘Hello Saskia, how was your first day?' Clarissa asked.

‘I'm the host for Grandparents' Day,' the child boasted.

Clarissa smiled. ‘Goodness, that's exciting,' she said. She hoped Clementine wasn't too upset at the news.

Clementine clambered into the back of Drew's car without saying goodbye. She shuffled over as Will hopped in beside her.

‘We'd better run,' Mrs Baker said. ‘Sassy's getting her hair coloured this afternoon. She's as brown as a fieldmouse without it. Lucky I got an appointment, seeing that she has the main part on Friday!' The woman giggled and threw them all air kisses before whisking her daughter along the street.

Drew looked at Clarissa as she climbed back into the car. ‘Did Mrs Baker just say what I thought she said?'

‘She certainly did,' Clarissa replied.

Drew grimaced. ‘How old does she think Saskia is? I want our kids to stay kids for as long as possible.' He smiled at Clarissa and reached across to squeeze her hand.

Clementine thought back to what Saskia had said and went pale. The girl might have been right after all.

‘We've got a big surprise for you two,' Drew said, glancing at the children in the rear-vision mirror. ‘Are you all right, Clemmie?' he asked, noticing the expression on the girl's face.

‘I've got a tummy-ache,' she lied, and leaned her head against the window.

‘Oh, that's no good,' the man said. ‘We were going to go for a milkshake and a treat at Pierre's.'

‘It's not Pierre's anymore. It's Roger's,' Clementine huffed. ‘Can we just go home?'

Drew frowned at Clarissa, who turned around and patted her daughter's leg. ‘Did something happen at school today?' she asked. ‘Are you sad about not being picked to host Grandparents' Day?'

‘No, I just want to go home,' the child said. ‘Can you help me with my homework, Mummy?'

‘I can give you a hand,' Drew offered.

Clementine shook her head. ‘I want Mummy to do it.'

‘Okay, sweetheart,' Clarissa said. ‘I guess our big surprise will have to wait.' She put away the envelope she had pulled out of her handbag.

‘Don't you want to know what it is?' Drew asked.

Clementine shook her head again.

‘What about you, Will?' Drew asked.

‘I don't feel like any surprises at the moment,' Will mumbled.

And that was that. The children didn't say a word the entire way home, despite Drew and Clarissa's best attempts. Once Drew turned into the gravel drive, Clementine seemed to breathe a little easier.

‘When are you moving into your house?' she asked Drew as the engine shut off.

‘On Sunday,' Drew replied. ‘The builder still has a few more things to do and I have a bit of painting to finish before then. That reminds me, Clarissa – can we have a look at that cupboard this afternoon?'

Clementine sat up straight in her seat. ‘What cupboard?' she asked.

‘You know the one,' her mother said. ‘It was a servant's bedroom a long time ago. I don't imagine we'll need to use it as a bedroom again, so I suggested that Drew store his things in there.'

‘Never say never,' Drew said with a grin.

Clementine had heard enough. She jumped out of the car and scampered through the back door. She dropped her bag on the floor and collected Lavender from her basket.

‘I need to talk to you,' she said, and carried the little pig up to her bedroom. Lavender nuzzled into Clementine's neck as the child told her everything.

Lady Clarissa was perplexed. As far as she could tell, there was nothing particularly tricky about Clementine's homework and it certainly wasn't anything the girl couldn't manage on her own. Perhaps she was missing Sophie even more than Clarissa had first thought.

‘It looks like you're all finished, darling. Well done.' Lady Clarissa kissed the top of her daughter's head and pushed back her chair. She walked to the sideboard and pulled out the cutlery drawer. ‘I just need to set the dining-room table and then I'll be right back.'

‘Why are we eating in there?' Clementine asked. The dining room was usually reserved for guests and special occasions, like birthdays and Christmas.

‘Well, it's a special occasion,' Clarissa said.

Clementine and Will glanced at each other and frowned. Drew opened the oven door and pulled out a large leg of pork nestled in among roasted vegetables. He placed the baking dish onto the bench and pierced the joint of meat with a long skewer.

At that moment Violet Appleby walked into the kitchen. She inhaled deeply and sighed. ‘If that tastes anywhere near as good as it smells, Drew, I'd suggest you put a tenant into Crabtree Cottage and stay here permanently,' she declared.

Clementine's eyes widened at the thought.

‘Do you need a hand with anything?' Aunt Violet offered.

‘Goodness me. If I knew you were going to become such an enthusiastic assistant, I'd have asked Drew to move to the village months ago,' Clarissa teased.

‘Everything's under control,' the man replied. ‘I'll just get this back into the oven. I might even have a little surprise for you all later tonight.'

Clementine blanched. ‘What surprise?'

‘It wouldn't be a surprise if I told you now, Clemmie,' Drew said. He was pleased to see the child had regained her curiosity.

‘I'd better get that table set,' Clarissa said.

‘I'll help you.' Clementine hopped off her chair and followed her mother to the door, slipping her hand into Clarissa's.

The woman looked down and smiled. ‘Are you sure everything is all right?'

Clementine nodded. ‘I love you, Mummy.'

A crease ran across the top of Clarissa's nose. ‘And I love you too, sweetheart.'

Clementine tightened her grip on her mother's fingers as the pair walked down the hall. Clarissa felt the warmth of her daughter's little hand in hers and felt like the luckiest woman in the world.