A Bit More of You

Chapter Ten: Give It a Whirl

(Photo from scrapbook: Dad and his bandmates, 1962)

I wasn't exactly comfortable on car ride to George's place in the London suburbs. My mind kept wandering to Mum and her sodden state on the bed. My heart ached for her; how I longed to be with her, holding her close and whispering that everything was going to turn out all right. Yet here I was, trapped in the backseat of my father's car, with my pretty, pink half sister perched beside me. Serenity noticed my anxious expression and did the very last thing I'd expect her to do. She reached across and took my hand in her own. She held my hand all the way to our destination, and I gladly held onto her.

Serenity, despite being a pink and prissy daddy's girl, wasn't as bad as I had initially thought. She was a genuinely kind-hearted person. I didn't want to pull her into a grateful hug as I felt too shy, but I smiled brightly and hoped she got the message.

"Here we are, kiddies!" George cried as we pulled into a long street, the sides studded with row after row of sweet suburban houses.

"It's... It's lovely," I said slowly. It was indeed lovely. Compared to my home on a run down estate, George and Serenity's home was practically a palace.

"I'm glad you think so," said George, parking the car in the driveway. "Now, let's file out and get you organised."

I jumped out of the car and hurried to get my luggage out of the boot. Serenity followed along behind me. Just as I'd slung my duffel bag over my shoulder, a sound rang out from behind me. It sounded like someone giggling... then someone else shushing the giggler, but just ended up giggling twice as hard herself. I turned around and spotted two girls peering over the neighbouring fence. One was pale, with golden hair and hazel-green eyes. The other was the colour of coffee that had been largely diluted with milk, and her large eyes were the colour of hazelnuts. They were staring at both me and Serenity with some interest.

"Hi, Serenity!" the pale girl called. "Where have you been?"

"I told you I was going away for a few days," Serenity answered. She glanced at me. "Oh, um... Georgia, these are my friends, Luna and Lacey. They live down the street, except for Luna. She lives next door."

Luna (the coffee coloured girl) smiled at me. "Hi, Georgia. Nice to meet you."

I mumbled something back and hoped it sounded sincere.

"Are you a friend of Reeny's, too?" Lacey (the pale girl) inquired.

I tensed up. It didn't seem like a very wise idea to tell these girls I was Serenity's sister. If they knew that George had an illegitimate daughter, surely they would tell someone. Mum had told me that society didn't take kindly to single parents or children of unmarried couples. Then how would that reflect back on George? It didn't seem fair to place him in an awkward situation like that.

"I'm just a friend," I said quickly. "At least, for now, anyway."

"Oh, that's... that's nice," said Luna, but she didn't sound convinced.

"Yeah, real nice," said Lacey.

"Oh, Serenity, we have something to tell you!" Luna cried, her brown eyes glittering. "I nearly forgot!"

"What's up?" Serenity asked.

"Adam has been looking for you. He's been coming over every day, twice a day, and bashing on the door. Your poor uncle has to keep shooing him away!"

"He's been bugging us, too," Lacey added. "Asking if we've seen you and stuff. Seriously, Reeny, it's like Adam's obsessed with you!"

"Oh, well..." Serenity stammered, her already pink cheeks flushing violently. "Let him know I'm home. I'd let him know myself, but I have to help Georgia get settled in."