Storm and Stone (9 page)

‘Geez. Is this revenge for disturbing you last night?’

‘Don’t be silly, Raven. It’s just time to wake up.’

Like hell it was. Raven pushed up from her pillow. Gina was already dressed, her hair curled up in a French twist, make-up applied. She was wearing what Raven could only call a sober suit. She looked like someone’s PA, not in the least like the normal casually-clothed Gina.

‘Got an interview?’ teased Raven. ‘I’ve never seen you so smart.’

Gina gave her a cool look and bent over to make her bed.

Raven put her hands under her head, elbows spread on the pillow, grinning at her friend. ‘Where’ve you been, Gina? I was really worried about you.’

‘My course overran. My absence was cleared with the head teacher.’

So she had been fretting about nothing. ‘Why did no one tell me?’

‘Why should they have told you?’ Gina wasn’t meeting her eyes.

‘Because I’m your best friend, duh. Us screw-ups have to stick together—remember the pledge?’

Gina stood up, back stiff. ‘I see. Well, I’m afraid we can’t be this term.’ She fiddled with the thin gold chain around her neck, running the pearl droplet to and fro.

A heavy weight settled in Raven’s stomach. ‘Can’t be what?’

‘I’m sorry but I can’t be your friend again—not like we were. I’ve asked that you move rooms today.’

Raven sat up. ‘Whoa. Gina? Are you joking? You’ve had me kicked out of our room?’

‘You have to understand: I can’t keep my eyes closed to your little problem, can’t live with the stress—it’s not good for me.’

‘My little problem? What the heck are you talking about?’

‘You know what you do. Toni told me last night about what happened in the changing rooms. If you carry on you’ll end up in trouble with the police. I don’t want to see it happen.’

‘You what? You don’t believe the rumours about the bag, do you? That’s rich coming from you, seeing you’re always borrowing stuff without asking!’

Gina frowned, the comment not hitting home. She looked like she had never heard of such a thing. ‘I’ve worked hard on the course to get myself into a good place. No offence, Raven, but my course tutor showed me that you’re a negative influence. I must surround myself with only positives if I’m to succeed. Mrs Bain agrees. I must stick to my new resolutions so the good work isn’t undone.’

‘What kind of negative influence?’ Raven felt sickened. It was happening again: her foundations crumbling from under her.

‘To succeed in life, you must seek the best, emulate the most worthy examples, strive for excellence.’

‘What is this crap? Who’s got you believing lies about me?’

‘And avoid all displays of low behaviour, like swearing.’ Gina did up the buttons of her jacket. ‘I know it’s hard—hard for us both—we were so close before it all came out, but if you just pack your things and go without a fuss, your grandfather will move them to your new room this morning during classes. Mrs Bain thinks it best if you have a room on your own. She’s moving Hedda in with me.’

‘Do you even realize you what you are saying? You don’t even like Hedda!’ Raven pushed back the covers and grabbed Gina’s arm to shake her. ‘It’s me—Raven. I am your friend. You are my friend. That has to mean something, surely?’

Gina’s eyes skated away. She wasn’t enjoying this confrontation any more than Raven but was determined to see it to the end.

Raven began to feel frightened as she grasped that Gina wasn’t going to stop wrecking their friendship. ‘Remember how I was there for you when you split up with Nathaniel?’

‘That was stupid of me to get so upset. Relationships that divert energy away from the goal of personal success are also a mistake.’

‘Stop talking like that. It didn’t feel like a mistake at the time—you said it felt like the end of the world. You cried. I cried for you.’

‘Indulging in emotional displays over minor adolescent dramas is selfish and detracts from the positive drive forward.’

‘I hope this is some sick joke of yours. If it is, Gina, I’m gonna kick your ass for this!’ Raven sounded fierce, but she hurt.

Something flashed in Gina’s eyes. Raven had the weird impression that her friend—ex-friend—was scared of her. ‘If you attempt any physical abuse, you’ll be immediately reported to the school authorities. Now, I have a meeting to go to. I hope you can be packed up before breakfast?’

‘A meeting? At this time?’

Gina walked out without replying. Raven stared after her, stunned. Cold. Had that been real or was she dreaming? How had the wheels just come off that relationship so spectacularly?

There came a soft tap on the door. It would be Gina. She’d come back in and say ‘Fooled you!’ or something like that. Raven would hit her with a pillow until she made an apology and they’d be OK again.

‘Yes?’

Her grandfather poked his head round the door. ‘Sorry to disturb you so early, Raven, but I’ve been asked to take your things to a room in D corridor. Can you box them up for me?’

Tears rushed to Raven’s eyes. She brushed them away, reaching for anger to help her through this. So it wasn’t a joke; someone had poisoned Gina against her. ‘Granddad, what the heck did I do wrong? I don’t get it: why doesn’t Gina like me any more?’

He looked down. ‘I’m sure it’s not your fault, sweetheart. How can anyone not think you are wonderful?’

She couldn’t worry him; he was supposed to avoid stress in case it brought on another heart attack. ‘And you’re not biased?’ She smiled sourly.

‘Exactly. Come here. I need a hug even if you don’t.’

She got out of bed and dashed into the sanctuary of his embrace.

He patted her back affectionately. ‘You know girls of your age, Raven—mood swings, petty squabbles—all part of growing up. Gina’s just got a bee in her bonnet today and Mrs Bain thinks it best to separate you. It seems a big deal now but in a year or so you’ll laugh about it. Do you want a hand packing?’

Raven reminded herself that he was in an awkward spot, being both grandfather and employee obeying orders. Bottom line was she knew he was on her side. She leant back and tapped his chest to show she was OK. He could let go. ‘I’m fine. It won’t take long. And if Gina doesn’t want me, I sure don’t want to be near her.’ Act brave and maybe the feelings inside would match one day: that was her motto.

He nodded. ‘That’s the spirit. Foolish female will see sense soon enough. She’ll be apologizing tomorrow.’

She switched on her sass. ‘Abjectly? On her knees?’ How could Gina think she was a thief?

‘Naturally.’

‘Love you, Granddad.’

‘You too, sweetheart.’ He picked up her fist and knocked his knuckles against hers. ‘Don’t let the blighters get you down.’

Her mouth wrinkled up at the corners. ‘Thanks. I won’t.’

‘It’s too late, you know.’ Hedda shoved her tray in Raven’s back as they lined up by the cereals.

Raven took a deep breath and decided to ignore her. Cornflakes or muesli? Choices, choices.

‘We all know you stole them.’

OK, so maybe she couldn’t pretend she hadn’t heard. ‘What have I stolen this time? Do tell. I so enjoy your little fantasies.’

Hedda put her tray down, hands on hips in a commanding gesture. She made sure she had the attention of everyone in earshot. ‘All those things you stole last term? They turned up in reception this morning with a note saying you wanted to return them to their owners and were very sorry for having taken them.’

Adewale barged past, making her stagger. ‘I thought you were OK, Raven, but it turns out you’re a dirty little thief. You knew how much that watch meant to me.’

‘Hey!’ Raven called after him. He’d always been her friend before. A nightmare—she was stuck in a daytime nightmare. ‘I didn’t steal anything!’

Hedda gave a vicious smile of satisfaction. ‘See, everyone knows now that you stole from them.’

‘Impossible—as I didn’t take anything from anyone. Your logic is way off, Hedda.’

‘Pretend all you like, but we know the truth.’ Hedda picked up her tray and stalked past. ‘No wonder even Gina doesn’t want to share a room with you.’

‘It wasn’t me,’ she called after her.

The little crowd around her broke up, no one meeting her eyes. She stood staring at the cereals, reeling from Adewale’s hurtful accusation. She felt horribly alone. It was like reliving how she felt being dumped in a new school after her dad’s death, battling the rumours put about by her foster brother that she had the morals of a drugs slut. It had taken months of fighting to kill off that gossip; would she have to do the same here?

‘I think muesli is the healthier option.’ Kieran put a packet on her tray, steering her on to the next counter. ‘What was that about?’ He looked past her to where Joe was putting his tray next to Hedda at the table over which she presided. Adewale was sitting with Gina.

‘Your friend gone over to the dark side too?’ Raven asked bitterly.

‘No, Joe just likes to get on with everyone.’

‘Good luck to him then.’ She searched for a spot where she would receive a welcome.

‘I like this place here.’ Kieran nudged her towards a small table half hidden by a cutlery stand. He watched her toy with her packet. ‘Not feeling hungry?’

‘No.’ She felt sick—sick of everything.

‘You need to eat.’ He opened her muesli for her and tipped it in the bowl. She said nothing to stop him so he then sliced half his banana on top and poured on some milk, his jade green eyes flicking over to glance at her. ‘There: the perfect breakfast. Nutritionally balanced. Eat.’

‘My friend, Gina, is back,’ she blurted out, much to her own surprise. Something about his refusal to probe helped free her up to speak.

‘And how is she?’ A strand of his chestnut hair swung on to his forehead as he dipped his head to concentrate on stirring his mug of tea. He brushed it back irritably, expression now fixed on his drink as if he was reading the secrets of the universe in the surface.

‘All right—if you think “complete bitch” is acceptable. She’s had me kicked out of our room on the top corridor.’

‘I see.’ He extracted the teaspoon, tapping it on the edge with two precise knocks to shake off the drops. His carefulness in table manners was that of a scientist at a workbench, each movement calculated.

‘You might but I don’t. Maybe she bought into Hedda’s mad accusations that I’m a thief—that was what that little scene was about just now.’

He replaced the banana peel on his tray, making the edges match so it looked as if it had never been opened. That could have been annoying but oddly this morning she found it reassuring. She had the crazy idea that if she spent long enough with him he would sort things out and make the messy parts of her life as neat and tidy. She still didn’t know why he paid her any attention: maybe he saw her like one of his puzzles that needed solving?

‘I’m not, you know. Not a thief.’

‘Of course not.’ His calm acceptance was a huge help. ‘Tell me what Gina said.’

‘Do I have to?’

He shrugged. ‘Only if you want to.’

‘She wasn’t her old self at all—kind of like an evil twin had taken her place, one that believed every bad thing about me.’ Raven frowned, reviewing what she remembered. ‘It is her, isn’t it?’

‘I don’t know—I’ve not met her yet.’

‘It has to be her—physically at least. But it’s like she’s had her personality removed. She’s suddenly become a neat freak and using words that don’t seem her own. She spouted some nonsense about having to separate herself from negative influences. That would be me, apparently.’

‘And she’s never acted like this before?’

‘Never. She was always so funny. We dubbed ourselves “Westron’s screw-ups”, you know, like, one for all and all for one, the messed-up musketeers. She even gave me a jewellery box with that inscribed on the lid.’

Kieran smiled.

Encouraged, she continued. ‘We would get into trouble together and she’d laugh about it—in fact, she was the one who caused most of it. She was always, always untidy, scatterbrained, would swear like the rest of us. This morning she was Miss Prim, butter-wouldn’t-melt-in-her-mouth.’

‘Why are you the one having to move if she’s had a change of mind about sharing with you?’

‘Good question but the answer’s simple. Mrs Bain has never really liked me and if one of her paying pupils has a problem, the scholarship student has to give way.’

‘Interesting.’

She scooped up a mouthful of cereal, plucking up the courage to ask. ‘Can I hang with you today, Kieran? You and Joe, I mean?’

‘Why would you want to do that?’

O-K. Not a very flattering response. Kieran seemed perplexed by the request, not gushingly pleased as she would be if he had said the same to her. She wished she hadn’t asked, as she had just revealed that she needed someone: weakness always invited a kick in the teeth. ‘Forget I asked.’

‘No, explain.’ He trapped her hand under his large palm, long fingers stilling her attempt to leave the table, then quickly pulled back. It was like brushing against an electric fence, the tingle shooting up her arm.

‘It’s just that I … er … I seem to be rather short of allies at the moment.’

‘I see. And having allies is important to you?’

She almost smiled. ‘Kieran, most people like to surround themselves with friends. You know, Woody and Buzz, Frodo and Sam, Batman and Robin?’ Why was she languishing after a guy who didn’t get the basic need for companions? It was like a fish longing for a giraffe: a relationship doomed from the start.

‘I’ve always found people to be very unreliable.’

‘I’m with you there, Ace, but that’s the chance you take.’

‘If you don’t mind risking it, then of course you can “hang” with us—though I find that phrase a bit unfortunate, recalling the fate of partners in crime on the scaffold.’ His eyes twinkled with amusement.

‘Don’t agree if it’d be a bore.’

‘No problem. I’d say having you “hanging” with us would be entirely our pleasure.’

Mine too
, she thought.

After breakfast, Kieran snagged Joe’s arm before they went their separate ways for class. He gave him the quick headlines of Raven’s news.

Joe rubbed his newly shorn hair—he’d met with one of Isaac’s colleagues at the barber in town at the weekend to collect his car keys and was still getting used to the cut. ‘So she thinks her friend’s acting like a different person?’