We finally arrived at Selsey three hours later. You could tell my dad was exhausted. First we broke down ten minutes after we’d started, then three missed turns, and then we lost the Removal Van! I fell asleep half-way only to wake up by my dad shouting and cursing. By the time we got to the house I was S.T.A.R.V.I.N.G!!! Too hungry to say it so I had to spell it. “Muuumm. I’m hungry!” I whined.
“All right darling. But think about your father! He hasn’t eaten anything all day!”
“But nor have-!” I started to say but my dad cut in “It was your own fault for waking up late!’ he glared at me, ‘but I suppose your mum could fix us up with an English breakfast!” He twinkled his eyes at mum and she started laughing.
“Of course!” She sighed. Then we drew up to the house.
Although mum and dad had both gone up to it lots of times, I hadn’t seen it once. They said they wanted it to be a surprise... and it certainly was! I stared at it for what seemed like hours. What caught my eye at first was the jungle - garden - in front of the house. There were weeds overgrowing onto the road, vines crawling up the house and a massive tree right next to one of the upstairs windows. I couldn’t believe it! My dad wouldn’t even let me play out in the garden at home (well, Old home) because ‘I would stamp on a flower and then the whole garden would look messy!’ He would never accept a garden like that! “Do you like it dear?” My mum asked.
“How come there’s a jungle in our garden?” I tried to joke. My dad didn’t take it.
“JUNGLE? WHAT JUNGLE?’ he thundered. ‘I love this garden!”
I stared at him in disbelief. A jungle for a garden? Whatever next? And then I had a good look at the house. My jaw practically dropped down past the pavement and through the underground. What a house! The front door was scratched and mucky, the downstairs windows were in need of serious repair and there were vines creeping halfway up the building! The upstairs windows were measurably in better condition to say the least.
“Well? What do you say?” A distant voice asked. I just stared dumbly at the house. My home!
“Clare??? Answer!” That voice could never be too distant. I turned back to my mum and dad. I tried to think of the right things to say. It’s wonderful! Brilliant! The best home I could ever have! Somehow they just wouldn’t come out my mouth. Our old house had been small but new. This house was big but, by the look of it, really old.
“She loves it so much she’s shocked!” My dad chuckled. “Isn’t that right Clarissa?” I nodded my head, not trusting myself to speak. By using my full name I could tell he was pushing me to agree. “Well then! I can tell you want to go inside and take a look!” My mum brightly (maybe a bit too brightly) said. In an instant we all jumped out of the car and grabbed our little rucksacks. “The Removal Men should be here!’ My dad thundered, ‘It’s been about ten minutes since we arrived, they should be seen coming up the road!” But there wasn’t a van in sight. I screwed my eyes up to look at the beach just half a mile away. It looked deserted! There was no-one on the sand. Not even a sandcastle or towel anywhere. How strange, I thought, it’s boiling out here so surely everyone would be in the sea? It was a bit strange but I was feeling quite ravenous by now so I walked after my mum to the house.
YOU ARE READING
Dolphin Island
Fiksi RemajaClare has always felt just a little different. So when her and her family move to Selsey, why is she immediately attracted to the beach? And, more importantly, why is it deserted, it's only inhabitant an old man prone to disappearing?
