Ophelia Adrift (4 page)

Adam nodded. “You could do worse. He’s a really nice guy your uncle.” They had reached the Surf Life Savers Club and he turned to walk back. So did I as I stayed with them.

They stopped momentarily to watch several board riders taking on a sizeable wave. Two were smashed, rolling head-over-heels as their boards surfaced before them; one surfer rode the wave in. He jumped off in the shallow water and grabbed his board. Seeing he had an audience, he smiled at Ophelia, and gave Adam a begrudging nod. No love lost between those two, never has been.

“Know him?” Ophelia asked watching the tall, blond surfer head back out into the ocean.

“Yep. Ready to walk back?” Adam said.

Ophelia grinned.

“What? Adam asked, smiling at her.

“Clearly you don’t like him.”

He shrugged. “Chayse Johann—he’s alright, a bit full of himself. He lives in Warrnambool and usually surfs there, don’t know why he’s down here.”

“Better waves?” she suggested.

Adam shrugged. “There’s a bit of family history stuff with him ... more a grudge on his side than ours.”

Ophelia looked out to sea; the hairs on her arm stood on end. Not far from the beach the water became a dark blue, menacing and deep. I loved it like that. She would too one day, hopefully.

“It’s amazing to think there are ships still lying out there,” she shuddered.

“Even freakier to dive around them, or so I’ve heard,” he laughed but it sounded hollow.

They walked on until the track to the house came into sight and Ophelia called the dogs closer. They could see Sebastian looking out to sea at the attic window, watching the sunset on the horizon.

“I could pull anything over Uncle Seb, he is not sure what I’m supposed to do at my age. He even offered me his car keys,” she said.

Adam laughed. “So you have to apply your own curfew and send yourself to your room?”

“Apparently.”

“Could be fun,” he flashed her a smile. 

Ophelia blushed and they finished the walk in silence.

Don’t fall for him Ophelia I whispered as I walked beside them.

Chapter 5

OPHELIA

I couldn’t sleep; back to my old routine. I rarely slept right through the night since Mum and Dad ...  you know. I miss them so much my chest aches sometimes and then I won’t think about them for a few hours and then I feel terrible that I’ve forgotten them. I have a photo of each of them in a locket—I know it is old-fashioned but I can keep them close, against my skin.

It’s funny this new life; Uncle Seb is so lovely and seems really okay with me being here. School was better than I thought and Adam ... it’s kind of good to have a big brother, someone who has my back. I’m glad he’s not at school; it is good to have friends from different worlds. I still feel like I’m in a spotlight at school, I guess that will stop when everyone is used to me.

I heard the clock in the hallway strike three. The room was so lit; moonlight streamed in around the curtain edges and filtered through the netting around my bed. The moon must have been hanging right outside my window. I rose and went to the window, pushing back the curtains. It was a full moon and I was right, it was spectacular and just tipping the edge of the ocean. It was so bright it might as well have been a street light.

I sat on the wide timber window seat in the bay window and pulled my legs up, hooking my arms around my knees. I looked out to sea—it was both beautiful and scary. The dark ocean, the waves crashing closer to shore and the ghostly glow of the moon and then, I saw him. I thought I had imagined it the first day but no, it was the same figure I saw for just those few moments.

I jumped up and reached for the curtain pulling it almost shut again, but he wasn’t looking up at me, he hadn’t noticed the curtains open—he was looking amongst the rocks. I studied him through the gap in the curtain; he looked about the same age as me, maybe a few years older. His hair was light—tasselled and wind-swept, short at the sides—he wore dark pants, black boots and a big navy knitted jumper. What was he doing down there on the rocks at three ... I looked to the clock beside the bed ... three-fifteen in the morning? I watched him sit on the largest rock and stare across the ocean. Must be so cold out there.

If Mum and Dad were still here, I would never have considered going down to the beach to meet him—I guess if Mum and Dad were around I wouldn’t be here anyway. But maybe feeling numb over the last few months increased my sense of risk, after all, what’s the worst that could happen? Death. Yeah, I’ve met that and it doesn’t scare me much anymore.

I was still contemplating going down to meet him when he looked straight up at the window at me. I jumped back—it gave me a hell of a fright. Well, might as well go down now that he’s seen me spying. I tentatively peeped out from between the curtains again and he was gone! I glanced around the beach and the rock area, and up the path to the house but he was gone, disappeared like a ghost.

*****

I must have gone back to sleep after watching the guy on the beach, because I woke up at seven o’clock. I went to the bathroom, showered, dressed and headed down to grab some toast. I dropped my school bag near the front door. Uncle Seb was up and sitting at a bench along the kitchen window where he could see the ocean. His hair was still slightly damp from the shower and he was dressed in jeans, and a long sleeve shirt—his usual work wear. He had an empty bowl in front of him and the cereal packet was still on the kitchen bench counter. Agnes and Argo trotted over to greet me and I kissed them both on the head. Adam was nowhere in sight, probably already gone to work.

“Sleep well?” Uncle Seb asked.

“Nope. And you?”

“I usually do,” he answered. “A combination of too much thinking during the day and the smell of salt air at night ... delightful. Want me to cook you some eggs?”

“No, but thanks. I’m good with toast. Want some?”

He shook his head. “Are you worried?” Uncle Seb asked.

“About what?”

“Anything? Is that why you are not sleeping?” he rose and going to the kettle flicked it on. He reached for a second cup for me and threw a tea bag in his and mine.

I shrugged. “No, I just don’t sleep a lot.”

“But you used to?” Uncle Seb persisted.

“I guess so.”

He nodded and poured boiling water into our cups. I reached past him and pushed a piece of bread down into the toaster.

“I’m sorry Lia. I wish I could help more.”

“You don’t have to Uncle Seb, you’ve done plenty. I love being here.”

“Do you?” he grinned. “That’s a relief.”

I smiled and looked away. I was a bit blown away that he seemed genuinely happy to have me here.

“I thought I might have cramped your style,” I said accepting the tea from him, after he added the milk.

Uncle Seb scoffed. “I think you can see I have no style. Argo and Agnes are my kids and we just hang here with the house don’t we kids?”

Argo barked on cue again on hearing his name, and Agnes appeared to nod.

“Now,” Uncle Seb continued, “we’re a family of five, hanging with the house.” He returned to his bench seat near the window and I spread some butter and Vegemite on my toast.

“You know there are counsellors and doctors who deal with grief if you wanted to chat to someone who knew what they were doing,” Uncle Seb offered. “It would be no trouble to organise it.”

“I’ve had some counselling,” I told him. “They gave it to me before I came here. Have you ever had counselling before?” I sat down on a stool near him with my breakfast.

Uncle Seb nodded. “I was married once.”

“Really? I didn’t know that,” I said.

“I was only about twenty-two. But my wife, Meg, she died and I had a bit of counselling.”

The house howled and the windows upstairs shook.

Uncle Seb looked up the staircase. “Thank you,” he said to the house. Yep, positively weird.

“How did she die? If it’s okay to ask?” I sipped on my tea.

“She drowned,” Uncle Seb swallowed and glanced out the window. “Out there,” he said.

I gasped without thinking, his answer was a shock.

“Very early one morning,” Uncle Seb explained. “I don’t know why she was on the rocks or what happened but someone saw her fall in and when they raced to help her, they couldn’t find her. It was still dark, just before dawn,” he shrugged.

“That’s awful,” I said looking out to the treacherous rock. “Did you find Meg, eventually?”

“Oh yes, later that day she washed ashore. So very strange, she was a capable swimmer.”

“She must have slipped, perhaps hit her head ...” I struggled to say something right. I knew from personal experience it was hard to say the right thing. “How long were you together?”

“We started dating in the last year of high school, got married after Uni and she died two years after that,” Uncle Seb said. He delivered the words without emotion, like he had said this a thousand times.

“That’s terrible,” I said, “terrible.” There was not one photo of Meg or the two of them in the house.

“A long time ago now,” Uncle Seb said, as he rose. “But I understand why you are not sleeping, Lia. But you will again, I promise.”

We heard a commotion at the door and Argo and Agnes jumped up and began to bark. Their tales wagged furiously as Harry and Holly appeared in the window. Holly waved and Uncle Seb let them in.

“Hey, thought we’d all walk to the bus station together,” Harry said.

“Great idea,” Uncle Seb said. “Leave those dishes, Lia,” he directed me as I started to the sink. “I’ve got plenty of time.”

Holly was playing tug-of-war with Argo.

“It was my idea,” she said. “We walk by every day this time, if you want to meet us at the gate.”

“It would have been my idea if you hadn’t beaten me to it,” Harry interrupted his twin sister.

I grinned and looked to Uncle Seb who was shaking his head at the two of them.

“See what I have to put up with everyday,” Holly rolled her eyes. “Where’s Adam?”

“He’s left for work,” Uncle Seb said.

“Got your lunch?” Harry asked me, as I picked up my school bag near the door.

“Ah, lunch! I didn’t think of it. I haven’t prepared anything for you yet, Lia.” He started for the kitchen.

“It’s okay Uncle Seb, really. I haven’t had a packed lunch since primary school, but thanks,” I assured him.

“I’ll have a packed lunch if you don’t want it,” Harry piped up.

“Money then, you’ll need to buy lunch,” he headed towards his office.

“I’m good, really, I’ve got cash,” I called after him stopping him in his tracks. “Bye Argo, bye Agnes, see you Uncle Seb.” I pushed Harry out the door in front of me and stopped to let Holly go next.

“Yeah, bye Uncle Seb,” Harry called.

I heard Uncle Seb laugh. I bet he wonders what he got himself into. At the bottom of the driveway, I looked back and saw him watching through the windows, a dog on each side and the house looking surprised—I gave him a wave.

HOLLY

She looked tired, the new girl—funny how the new person is always the new person until someone else comes along. Anyway, her eyes were dark. I put pencil on mine to get the dark look but she was so pale, that her eyes just stood out. We sat next to each other on the bus and Harry dropped into the seat in front of us, extended over it and turned side-on so he didn’t miss the conversation. I could tell he liked her already; I couldn’t read Ophelia but I don’t think Harry was in her zone. I decided to find out who was in her zone.

“So did you talk with Adam?” I asked her.

“Pretty hard not to when he lives there with her,” Harry piped up.

Ophelia nodded and said in a low voice. “We took the dogs for a walk along the beach last night.”

“Really? I’m so jealous.” I think I squealed then lowered my voice. “I’ve had a crush on Adam Ferrier since ... well forever! He’s gorgeous—those dreamy, deep blue eyes and cute smile,” I daydreamed for a moment then remembered I wasn’t alone. “Half the girls in school have a crush on him or did when he was at school anyway. He was seeing Vanessa Jones in the year above us, but they split.”

“What do the chicks see in him? I mean what’s he got that I haven’t?” Harry interrupted us. I looked at my twin brother with his ginger hair and freckles, his green eyes and slightly out of proportion nose. Whatever, someone would fall in love with him eventually. I ignored him and turned my attention back to Ophelia. “Do you like him?”

“Sure,” Ophelia answered. “He said to think of him as my big brother and that he would have my back. I like that.”

“I’d rather think of him as a boyfriend,” I said. “If you want my advice, don’t let him see you first thing in the morning yet ... you don’t want to scare him off too early.”

“But we’re all living together ... kind of like Uncle Seb’s extended family of strays,” she smiled.

“And I’m sure Lia’s head is better than yours in the morning,” my brother added. I continued to ignore him.

“I wish I could be that close to him,” I sighed again. “I even love the name Adam. Adam ... Adam and Holly, Adam and Holly Ferrier.”

“Give it up,” Harry said bringing me back to earth.

Ophelia started laughing and I joined in.

“Just make sure you don’t keep him out near midnight,” Harry muttered.

I nudge Harry and give him a warning look. I don’t think Ophelia saw it.

OPHELIA

Harry, Holly and I were in the same class for nearly every subject except I did accounting while they took biology and we were all in different sport houses. I felt a bit sorry for Holly—her two best friends left at the end of year ten; one took up an apprentice chef role and the other went to Sydney with her parents when her father changed jobs. She still saw Sally, the apprentice on weekends, but she was almost as lost as I was—good for both of us that we bonded.

I came from biology class and when I entered the history classroom Holly and Harry hadn’t arrived. I drew a deep breath and continued walking in; I dreaded entering a room and having to find a seat and try not to take someone else’s seat or look pathetic and sit on my own.

I was relieved to see Peggy sitting in the corner and she waved me over and pointed at the seat next to her.

“I know what you’re thinking,” Peggy started talking before I could say hello. I smiled a greeting and dropped down beside her.

“What am I thinking?” I asked. I was pretty sure Peggy wouldn’t guess I was thinking about Adam and that guy I saw on the rocks at three o’clock this morning. Who was he?

Peggy drew a deep breath and said with confidence, “you’re thinking what project topic should you pick this term? Me too, but I think I’ve worked it out.”

“Of course. I was definitely going to be thinking about that soon,” I agreed, any day now for sure. Peggy was about to continue when a well-rounded, stocky man entered the room. Half a dozen students including Harry and Holly raced in behind him before he closed the door. Holly waved in my direction and dropped into a seat near the door.