Diamond Girls (24 page)

‘For God's sake, stop nattering, Dixie, you're driving me daft,' Mum said. ‘Go and play and leave me in peace.'

I marched out of her room. ‘I was only trying to
help
,' I said to Jude.

‘I know, babe.' Jude was putting her own hoodie jacket on.

‘Are you going out too?' I asked.

‘Oh yeah, I've got a hot date in McDonald's with a guy with a diamond earring –
not
!' said Jude.

‘You're not going to get in any more fights, are you?'

‘Don't worry, I'm fully trained in all the martial arts by our chum Kung Fu Brucie,' said Jude.

‘Less of the cheek, girl,' Bruce called from his mattress. ‘I might be an old crock with a dodgy back but I could take you on any day of the week. You stay here and look after your little sister, do you hear me?'

‘Yes, Bruce, I hear you,' said Jude, but she went straight out the front door.

‘Don't you girls
ever
do as you're told?' Bruce asked.

I thought about it. ‘Jude doesn't. Or Rochelle. Or Martine. But
I
do. Sometimes,' I said. ‘Can I get you anything, Uncle Bruce? Cup of tea?'

‘No thanks, Dixie. It's such a struggle to get to the flipping toilet I'd better severely limit my liquid intake, sweetheart. But you could turn the telly on for me if you like. I got it working before I did my back in.'

‘You've got
everything
working, Uncle Bruce.'

‘Except myself! That's a good little lass.'

‘Any special channel?'

‘Afternoon telly's all a bit rubbish,' said Bruce, as I flicked through the channels. ‘Hang on, is that woman doing flower arranging? I'd better watch it. Iris hasn't got much clue – she just dumps each bunch in a vase, willy-nilly. I can't say I'm much cop at it either. It was always Mum's department until she got poorly. She'd got her Interflora and all sorts.'

‘My mum's ace at arranging flowers,' I said.

We both looked at the flowers Bruce had brought us. The roses were arranged in the rosy china milk jug and sugar bowl, the freesias were clustered in the coffee pot, and the tall lilies were in water in the metal wastepaper bin.

‘Well, she's certainly unconventional in her approach,' said Bruce.

‘We haven't got any vases, see. People don't usually give us flowers.'

‘I'll send you flowers when I'm on my feet again, Dixie. Flowers every week, eh? That'll make your boyfriends jealous.'

‘Boyfriends!' I said, giggling.

‘We could maybe start taming that jungle out the back too, plant your own flowers, eh?'

‘But could we keep some of it like a jungle so I can play there?' I said.

I left Bruce to his flower-arranging programme and went out into the back garden. I felt for Bluebell. She was a bit bent over and squashed from staying shoved up my cardie sleeve for so long. I groomed her carefully, tickling her under her beak until her head stopped lolling and she started cheeping cheerily.

It was windy out in the garden. The long grass rippled like green waves. I played that I was sailing a ship in a storm, and Bluebell was a seagull flying ahead, showing me the way across the seven seas. After a year and a day's long sailing I sighted dry land at last. The seagull circled my ship three times in farewell and then flew away back to sea … and I stuffed Bluebell back up my sleeve because I'd got to the Great Wall of China at the end.

I leaped up and hauled myself up onto the top of the rough bricks. I sat there, peering over the alleyway into Mary's back garden. She wasn't on the swing today. She was just standing still in the garden, head bent, sucking her thumb.

‘Hey, Mary!'

She smiled when she saw me, put her finger to her lips and peered round cautiously. Then she ran towards her gate.

I jumped down from the wall and ran to meet her. She was in her school clothes: a little grey pinafore skirt and a dazzlingly white shirt. She had matching bright white socks and big brown shiny sandals.

‘Are you all right, Mary? Did you choke on those horrid crusts?'

‘I was a bit sick.'

‘No wonder! Your mum's so horrid to you. I hate her.'

‘Ssh!' Mary whispered, looking shocked.

‘Where's your mum now?'

‘She's doing this big spring clean. I've got to play by myself until tea time.'

‘I'll come and play with you.'

‘She might hear us! She says you're not to come again. She says you're … dirty and rough.'

‘I
am
dirty, sort of, but I'm not a
bit
rough,' I said. ‘Everyone says I'm much too soft.'

‘I'm sorry,' said Mary anxiously.

‘No, it's OK. I wouldn't mind being rough. Anyway, how about you coming to play in
my
garden?'

‘Mummy wouldn't let me.'

‘She won't find out! Come on. I'll help you over the wall.'

‘But I'll get all dirty.'

‘No you won't. Look.' I stuck Bluebell in my teeth and shrugged off my cardigan. ‘I'll drape it over the top and then you won't even touch the wall. Come on, Mary.'

‘What if Mummy comes to see what I'm doing?'

‘You can always pretend you were playing Hide and Seek. And if you're gone a long time your mum will get really worried and think something's happened to you. Then she'll be so pleased to see you safe she'll give you a big hug and forget to be cross.'

Mary looked at me pityingly. ‘Mummy doesn't ever forget to be cross,' she said.

‘Well. OK. Maybe you'd better not then. I don't want to get you into trouble.'

Mary thought about it. ‘I'm already in trouble,' she said. ‘I'll come, Dixie. I so want to see your house and what your bedroom's like.'

‘I haven't really got a
proper
bedroom yet,' I warned her. ‘Maybe we can pretend one?'

Mary looked baffled, but nodded happily. She carefully unlatched her gate. The spring was stiff and she scraped her hand, but she didn't flinch. Her little fingers were still red-raw at the tips.

‘Why are you in trouble, Mary?'

‘Mummy checked my bedroom when I was at school and she said it was an untidy disgrace. She said I didn't deserve to have such lovely toys if I couldn't look after them. She found my teddy under my bed and now she's thrown him away because she says he's all dirty and I'd catch germs off him.'

‘She won't have
really
thrown him away.'

‘She did! She put him in the dustbin and she tipped tea bags and milk and potato peel all over him so he's all spoilt now,' said Mary, sniffling.

‘I think your mum should be shoved in the dustbin, she's so mean to you,' I said. ‘Why didn't you tell your dad?'

‘He's not home till I'm in bed. And when I've tried to tell him stuff Mummy says I'm telling silly stories to get attention. Mummy always twists things round. She'll say I threw my teddy away myself.'

‘Still, maybe your dad will get you a new teddy?' I said, helping Mary up onto the wall. ‘That's it, sit on my cardie. It's easy-peasy. Hang on, I'll climb up too. Let me get down the other side first, then you can jump into my arms.'

I swung myself up and over quickly. Mary clung fear-fully to my cardigan on top of the wall.

‘It looks a long way down,' she said.

‘That's just because you're so little. It's all right, I promise you. You just have to give a little jump and I'll catch you.'

‘I can't! I'll fall. Oh Dixie, I'm stuck.'

‘No, you're not. Don't cry. Just jump. Look, Bluebell will help you.'

I stood on tiptoe and held her out to Mary. She grabbed her and clutched her against her chest.

‘There! That's it, hold her tight. Now, all you have to do is jump into the air and Bluebell will flap her wings and you'll both fly straight into my arms. Just try it!'

Mary tried. She jumped into the air, clutching Bluebell, and I caught them both. They knocked me over onto my bottom but the grass was so thick it was like a cushion and we rolled around in a giggly heap until Mary started fussing about her clothes getting dirty.

She stood up, carefully brushing herself down. I helped her pull little bits of grass out of her hair. She smiled up at me.

‘You're so kind to me, Dixie. I wish you were my sister.'

‘I wish you were my sister too, Mary. I'd swap you with Rochelle any day of the week! Yes, you come and be a Diamond girl with us.'

‘I wish I could,' said Mary. ‘But I can't, can I?'

‘Don't you worry, Mary,' I made Bluebell say. ‘Any time you want to come and play with Dixie just hold me tight and I'll fly you there quick as a wink.'

She flew round and round her head while Mary laughed and tried to catch her. When Mary started to grab a little desperately I made Bluebell slow right down
and
give her an affectionate peck on her nose.

‘She's tickling!' said Mary. ‘The grass is tickling too!'

‘Well, we're in the jungle, aren't we, so what do you expect? Let's look for animals, eh?'

Mary looked nervous, but nodded.

‘Look over there, behind that bush!' I whispered. ‘See the lions? What about that big fierce one with the mane? Let's hope he stays asleep! Watch out if he wakes up, he might be hungry.'

Mary peered at the old doormat I was pointing at. ‘You can't have a real lion in your garden,' she said, but she gripped my hand tightly.

‘I've got a whole
pride
of lions! There's a mother lion, see – she's with her little cubs. Look, they're having a pretend fight. Aren't they cute?' I pointed at an upended shopping trolley.

Mary blinked several times, waiting for the lions to materialize.

‘What's that trumpeting sound? Oh, elephants! See their great flappy ears? Shall we give them a bun?' I showed her a broken umbrella caught in a tree. I reached up to feed the ‘elephants' and Mary copied me, though she looked baffled.

‘Is this a jungle, Dixie, or is it a garden?'

‘Well, it's a jungle now. But maybe when his back gets better my Uncle Bruce will turn it into a real garden. Do you want to come and meet him?'

‘I've got an uncle. And an auntie. They took me to Alton Towers and we went on scary rides and I screamed and screamed. It was my best day ever but I ate too much ice cream and I was sick in my bed,' said Mary.

‘I bet that annoyed your mum,' I said.

I led Mary through the back door. She stared all round the kitchen, looking astonished.

‘Where are all your units?' she asked.

‘We haven't got any. Come on through.' I knocked at the living-room door politely. ‘Hey, Uncle Bruce, can we come in? I've brought my friend Mary to meet you.'

‘That's nice, dear. Of course you can come in. It's your house, sweetheart, not mine.'

I led Mary in and out the furniture towards the mattress. She peered around, looking dazed. She jumped when she saw Bruce flat out on the mattress.

‘How do you do, Mary?' said Bruce. ‘Please excuse my looking such a sight. I'm a bit of an old crock at the moment as I've done my back in.'

I squatted at the edge of Bruce's mattress. Mary huddled up beside me. Bruce tried hard but she wouldn't say a word to him.

‘You're not very chatty, are you, Mary?' said Bruce.

‘Never mind. I chat enough for both of us, Uncle Bruce,' I said. ‘Do you want me to change channels on the television for you? We're going to play now.'

‘Yes, I think I'll watch a spot of
Richard and Judy
,' said Uncle Bruce. ‘I feel terrible hogging your mum's mattress and your mum's telly. Ask her if she'd like the television upstairs. I'm sure Jude could carry it up for her.'

I took Mary out into the hall. ‘He's lovely, isn't he, my Uncle Bruce?'

‘Is that a living room or a bedroom?' Mary asked.

‘Well, it's kind of an everything room at the moment. We're not sorted out yet because Mum's just had the
baby
. I'll show you Sundance. I'm allowed to look after her.' I clapped my hand over my mouth, hoping Mum hadn't heard.

‘I thought Sundance was a baby boy,' said Mary.

‘He is. Well. For the moment.' I put my mouth very close to Mary's ear. ‘But he might turn into a girl soon.'

Mary nodded. She seemed to be getting used to extraordinary things.

‘We'll take a peep,' I said.

But as we went upstairs I could hear Mum talking in her bedroom. She was leaving another phone message for Martine. It sounded as if she was crying.

‘She's a bit upset just now,' I whispered to Mary. ‘We'll leave her in peace, eh? Come on, we'll go in my bedroom.'

Mary looked at the bare floorboards and the cardboard boxes. She walked round them warily as if she thought they might be jungle animals too. She sat on the very edge of the bed, dangling her legs. ‘This is your bedroom, Dixie?'

‘I know it's not very clean and tidy. I bet your bedroom's ever so pretty. But my Uncle Bruce is going to paint it for me when his back is better. And perhaps we'll get some new furniture. Jude and I want bunk beds. This bed's all rickety because we used to play trampolines.'

‘Trampolines?'

‘Yeah, haven't you ever played it?'

I jumped up on the bed and bounced up and down. Mary stared at me, shocked.

‘Won't your mum mind you jumping on the furniture?'

‘Well, the springs are mostly bust now, so it doesn't really matter,' I said. ‘Come on, you have a bounce too.'

I pulled Mary up, holding her by her wrists because
I
didn't want to rub her sore fingers. I gave a big bounce. Mary squealed, nearly wobbling over, but then she steadied herself.

‘Shouldn't I take my shoes off?'