Twin Tales (12 page)

‘They're lovely,' said Connie, enchanted. ‘Let me hold one, please.'

‘Well, be careful. Don't drop it!'

‘Of course I won't.' Connie held her hands out over the fence and Gerald gently dropped a soft little baby gerbil into her palm.

‘Oooh, it's so
sweet
!' Connie whispered.

‘You can have one if you promise to look after it properly,' said Gerald.

‘I don't think my mum would let me. I don't think she likes gerbils. She's mad. They're the cutest little animals ever. But ever so tickly!' The gerbil was running up her arm and into the tunnel of her T-shirt sleeve. ‘Hey, come back!' said Connie, giggling. ‘Gerald, it's escaping!'

Gerald sighed. ‘I told you to hold on to it. Wait a minute. I'll have to secure the others before I can help.'

Connie's gerbil was whizzing down her leg and was off up the lawn before she could stop it.

‘Come back, little gerbil!' Connie called, running.

The gerbil scampered across the patio and in through the open back door. There was a sudden scream. A very loud frantic s-c-r-e-a-m.

‘That's Mum,' said Connie, running harder.

Mum was in the kitchen, climbing right up the cupboards, her head nearly banging the ceiling. She was yelling her head off.

The gerbil was on the tiled floor, peering up at Mum. It didn't look such a baby now. In fact it seemed very big for an adult gerbil. It seemed to be growing rapidly. It was a good cat-size now, with huge pointed teeth and an immense quivery tail.

‘Run!' Mum shouted desperately to Connie.

The gerbil heard the word ‘run' and decided to obey. It went charging across the kitchen, its claws gouging great tracks across the floor. It grew at every stride. It skittered to a halt at the kitchen unit. It could almost get its huge head over the edge.

‘Aaaah!' Mum yelledhysterically, hopping up and down.

‘Calm down, Mum,' said Connie cheerily. ‘I know you're very scared. It must be horrible for you. I do understand, honest. But you must see that there's really nothing to be scared of. It's only a little baby gerbil!'

As soon as Connie spoke the gerbil started shrinking.

‘Come here, little gerbil,' said Connie, bending to pick it up. The gerbil shrivelled right back to its meek mild self, far smaller than Connie's hand.

‘See?' said Connie, holding it up to show Mum.

‘Take it away,' Mum whispered hoarsely.

Connie did as she was told. Then she went back to the kitchen and helped Mum down from the cupboard. Mum was still shaking like a jelly.

‘Nothing to be scared of now, Mum,' said Connie reassuringly.

‘Oh, Connie! You were so
brave
,' said Mum. ‘The bravest girl in all the world.'

6. Exploding Video

Gerald said the baby gerbil could be Connie's special pet, even though it would have to live in a cage in Gerald's back garden. She told everybody at school about George Gerbil.

It was art first lesson so Connie drew a portrait of George. She drew him looking rather big and fierce, almost filling up the entire sheet of paper. Then right at the top Connie drew Mum shrieking and climbing up the kitchen cupboards.

‘That's very good, Connie,' said Miss Peters. ‘But I think you've got the proportions all wrong. You've made your gerbil look much too big.'

‘He did look as big as that, Miss Peters,' said Connie. ‘Mum thought he did too!'

Connie wrote about George Gerbil in the English lesson and she chose gerbils as the animal for her nature project.

‘You seem to have a one-track mind today, Connie,' said Miss Peters. ‘Well, it's PE last lesson. I suppose you're going to run as fast as a gerbil, right?'

‘Maybe,' said Connie, laughing. She wasn't very good at running. Or jumping or catching a ball. But it didn't really matter, because Connie's best friend Karen wasn't very good either. They were generally partners and puffed along together. Today Connie and Karen were nearly last in the race.

‘Slowcoaches!' said Angela. ‘Honestly, you two, you're hopeless.'

Angela had come first, even beating the boys.

‘Who wants to run like
you
?' said Connie.

Angela did ballet and was always sticking her feet out sideways. Connie did a funny imitation and everyone laughed.

‘Now then, Connie,' said Miss Peters. ‘Don't be silly, or I'll make you run the race all over again.'

‘Oh, Miss Peters! I hate running,' said Connie.

‘I know. Ah well, I don't suppose you can be good at everything. Andmaybe you'll come into your own next term.'

‘What are we doing next term, Miss Peters?' Karen asked.

‘It's a special treat,' said Miss Peters.

‘Is it dancing?' Angela asked hopefully.

‘Yuck! I hope not!' said Connie.

‘No, it's not dancing. We're going to go swimming.'

‘Swimming!' said everyone excitedly.

Everyone but Connie.

‘Swimming!' she whispered, appalled.

‘Yes, we've fixed it all up with the local swimming-pool. Our class can go once a week – in the big pool too!'

Connie closed her eyes. That terrible blue watery world seemed to be swirling all around her. What was she going to do now? Could she manage a terrible cold/stomach ache/headache every single swimming lesson? It might work once or twice, but Miss Peters was no fool.

‘Oh help,' Connie mumbled.

‘What's up, Connie?' said Karen.

‘Nothing,' said Connie quickly.

‘It's great about swimming, isn't it?' said Karen. ‘Heaps better than boring old PE. You go swimming with your dad, don't you?'

‘I . . . used to,' said Connie. ‘We haven't gone much recently.'

Connie started to feel sick. She could see their whole class at the swimming-baths. Everyone showing off and teasing each other. She saw herself, shivering, scared, screaming. She'd never ever ever be able to live it down.

She was still feeling sick when she came out of school. Gran had come to meet Connie.

‘Hello, dear. What's the matter? What's happened? You look dreadful, Connie!'

‘It's nothing, Gran,' said Connie, hurrying to get away from all the other children.

Gran was in a hurry too, not wanting to miss her favourite quiz programme on television.

‘Why don't you set your new video so that it records it while you're out?' said Connie.

‘Oh,
I . . . I didn't think of that,' said Gran, sounding odd. ‘Come on, then, dear.' They were passing the ice-cream van. ‘I think we can make time for an ice-cream,' said Gran. ‘Would you like a giant ninety-nine with strawberry sauce?'

Normally Connie would say YES, PLEASE. But she was still feeling so sick about swimming that she simply shook her head.

Gran stared at her.

‘Connie, there's something
really
the matter, isn't there?' Gran put her arm round Connie and held her close.

‘Tell me what it is, darling,' said Gran.

Connie screwed up her face. Her eyes were stinging and she was terribly scared she might cry. She took Gran's hand and hurried her down the street and round the corner. Then she blurted it out.

‘Miss Peters said we've got to go swimming with the school next term,' she wailed.

Gran looked at her blankly.

‘But that's good, isn't it, dear? You've got yourself in a silly state about going swimming with Mummy and Daddy. Now you can go with all your friends and learn properly.'

‘Oh, Gran! You don't understand. I
can't
go swimming. I'm
scared
!'

‘But it's so silly to be scared, Connie,' said Gran, sighing. ‘I don't know. I can't understand the way you children are brought up nowadays. Your mum shouldn't give in to you so. We just had to put up with things when we were kiddies. Nobody bothered to ask whether we were scared or not. We just had to do as we were told.'

Connie was extremely annoyed with Gran.

Gran hurried along the road. Connie trailed after her, twiddling the blue beads on her plait. As she went into Gran's house they gave a little blue spark.