“Gymnastics display finished.” April took a bow. “Your turn.”
“Where’s Dad?”
“Oh, he just had to pop into the office for a bit to sort things out there.” Her mother shook her head.
Would they really see more of him now that his office was so close?
April stood at the base of the stairs. “Come on Steph. Dance.”
Stephanie refused, denying herself the chance to dance, and ran back upstairs. She swallowed. Her stomach churned.
“Don’t you want to dance?” her mother called after her.
Of course I want to dance, but you can’t seem to find the money.
Stephanie closed her bedroom door and leaned against it. She cried until she’d saturated all the tissues in her hand. Flinging her wardrobe open, she dug out any dancing gear she could find and threw it all into the bin. Done. Over. Gone. Season of life finished.
Her mother’s words still stung. ‘We might have to check the cost.’ Gah! It seemed the star gymnast’s fees came first.
She needed to hide. From the world. From her parents. From her sister. Climbing into bed she pulled the covers over her head. She drifted between awake and asleep until she startled awake. Light shone through her doorway. Musk, the scent of her mother, tickled her nose. Her body stiffened as she closed her eyes—the last thing she wanted was a conversation with her mother.
“Lord, watch over her as she sleeps,” Diane whispered.
Stephanie held her breath until her mother padded out of the room and clicked the door closed. She cried until her tears stopped flowing, then she took a breath and tears rolled again until she slept.
#
Stephanie pounded her fist on the vanity. Great! Just great! Look what I’ve done. She splashed cold water on her face hoping to calm her red, puffy eyes.
“Girls, we’ll be leaving in ten minutes,” her mother called from downstairs. “Coffee’s waiting on the bench, Steph.”
April leant on the doorframe.
“What do you want? Go. Can’t you see I’m getting dressed?”
Stephanie wished her parents had allowed them a week to settle in instead of insisting they start their new school straight away. Her mother was so keen for them to start, she’d pre ordered their uniforms.
“It’ll be okay, Steph,” April said.
“Get out!” What would a stupid ten-year-old know?
She closed the door in Aprils face, put on her new uniform and brushed her hair into a loose ponytail before heading downstairs.
As she grabbed the coffee cup from the kitchen bench, her school bag slipped off her shoulder, jerking her elbow. The entire cup splashed down the front of her blouse.
“AHHH!” She clenched her teeth, fighting against another fury of tears.
Her mother clicked her tongue over and over. “You have another uniform hanging in your wardrobe. Go and get changed. I’ll have to clean this up before we leave.”
She ran the bathroom tap and sponged the coffee off her arms and chest, now pink from the hot drink. She pulled on the clean blouse, stomped back down the stairs and climbed into the car.
