Settling Slowly

Chapter 4 - Max. Or Alfie, or Jasper or Hamish or... something.

After a half term of hard work, coursework and deadlines I got home on Friday afternoon more than ready for the week of we were getting. I changed into dark purple genie pants and a black crop top. I swapped my green glasses for the black ones I had in the same style – chunky frames with big lenses. Dan joked that it looked like I was going into a 3D film every time I put them on, but he had some exactly the same. Both of us were blind as bats without them.

I chucked my uniform in the laundry hamper and half hoped that Dad would ‘accidentally’ shred it in the wash. I knew that he wouldn’t, but it have been nice if he did. I flopped onto my bed with a sigh. Dan walked into the room in his tattiest joggers and an old t-shirt that had a couple of holes in it. He clambered up to his bunk and yawned.

“I’m knackered,” he said.                         

“Me too.”

He yawned. “You haven’t had exams.”

He was doing the three sciences, maths and further maths. It was insane. Over the Christmas holidays he’d turned our room into a revision bunker and posters had been stuck onto every available surface, even the window and they may as well have been in Klingon. Lexie’s room hadn’t been much different as she was taking five subjects too – all of them languages. The Russian posters I understood a little of, but she’d been learning the language since she was four. She knew more technical things about Russian grammar and word types than she did about English ones. Her posters had only been for coursework. It was crazy.

“So you’re going to sleep for a week?” I asked.

“Certainly this afternoon. You just got your next sewing project, didn’t you?”

I nodded though he couldn’t see. “I’m going to die.”

“As much as you did with the coat?” he asked and I could hear the quirk of amusement in his voice.

“Close. We have to make a whole costume with layers this time and its fantasy style and I’m probably going to go overboard but it is going to be awesome.”

“So… sketchbook this week so you have maximum build time?”

I laughed a little at ‘build time’, but agreed with him. I would have preferred to not have to do any work this week, but you had to do what you had to do. At least I wasn’t going to be learning anything. If I worked really hard I might get most of it done in the weekend and only have to do little bits whilst I was making the costume. Had to design it first.

“Oh no,” I groaned. “I’ve got Russian tonight.”

“You do know that you don’t actually have to go, right?” Dan asked and sat up. “Mum and Dad won’t mind.”

I shook my head. “It’s not that. I just forgot that’s all. I was looking forward to doing nothing.” 

“Well, I’m doing nothing,” he said, took his glasses off, closed his eyes and put his hands behind his head.

I rolled my eyes at him and went downstairs, sketchbook in hand. Since I had to go to class in a few hours I figured that I may as well get on with my school work. There were a few designers I had to research so I took my laptop as well. Before I could get carried away I got some lunch together and quickly ate it. Then I worked until Dad came home.

With a dog.

“Dad?” I asked over the sound of the barking that was coming from the hall.

A golden retriever puppy bounded into the room. I just stared at it for a moment, but then it began peeing up the wall.