by J. C. Burke
'Yeah?'
'Yeah,' she said, nodding.
'How was your Swiss ball session?'
'Hard,' Micki answered. 'I don't know how my abs are going to feel tomorrow but I already have a tummy ache.'
'Me too.'
'Jake was telling me that the girl from Sydney, Laura someone, is pretty good. I think she's another one of those big power surfers like Georgie and Ace. It's getting nerve-racking,' Micki said, rubbing her hands together. 'We've got twenty-four hours left, then they're going to really turn it up. I can feel it.'
'Yeah, I know.' Patiently I had waited to squeeze it into the conversation. 'So Micki, seeing we only have twenty-hours left with just us four I thought tonight we'd talk it out.'
Micki sat back in the chair.
'It'll be okay,' I told her. 'I don't think you need to tell Ace anything about your dad. Just have it out with her about the diary.'
'I'll never tell Ace about my dad.'
'That's up to you.'
'What does Georgie think about this?'
'She's fine about it.'
'Oh.' Micki's tone was flat.
So she wasn't angry but she wasn't happy. So what was she? My churning tummy told me that whatever Micki was, it wasn't good.
'I better get to the kitchen. I'm on dinner prep duty.'
'Micki?' Not that I knew what I was going to say next.
Micki touched my arm. 'Kia, I know you're trying to do the right thing. But you can't force it.'
'What am I trying to force?'
'Us.'
'Us?'
'The Starfish Sisters.'
Suddenly, tonight didn't feel like the right night. In fact, it felt so wrong that I wanted to pinch myself for opening my big mouth.
From dinnertime onwards the tension grew and grew until I felt like my head was going to explode. It was pretty much no talkies while we were eating, except for me. I had to become the table's motor mouth. At first I tried to get the other three involved but I got so sick of their 'No', 'Yes', 'Maybe' answers that I gave up and settled for my own voice.
To make matters worse, our night's entertainment became the 'Georgie and Jake' show.
Jake played and replayed and re-replayed the footage of Georgie surfing. Then he did like a mock interview with her asking how she felt about each wave, what she was thinking, how she visualised it. On and on he went and on and on Georgie followed. By the end of it, I swear she was speaking in an American accent.
Maybe Ace'd been right when she asked about heads getting too big 'cause I was surprised Georgie could fit hers through the doorway of the Starfish Bungalow after that.
But what made me the most nervous was the way Georgie was speaking to Ace. It was the same way she spoke to Megan. It was almost like Georgie hadn't realised that Megan had gone and that the girl standing by the wardrobe, changing into her pyjamas was Ace.
Ace had her mobile out. Her thumb pressed up and down as she searched for something. She shook her head and muttered.
'You okay?' I asked.
'Jules hasn't answered any of my texts,' Ace grumbled. 'He must be training.'
I opened my mouth to say something nice when Georgie went, 'Jules is home. I just got a message from him.'
Even Micki stopped what she was doing.
'You got a text from Jules?' Ace spat out each word like she'd bitten a sour plum. 'Excuse me?'
'Relax! We're just going for a surf tomorrow morning,' Georgie answered with a 'Duh, that's what I do every day' tone in her voice. 'If you read the timetable you'd see that we don't have anything scheduled till after breakfast.'
'I have read the timetable!' Ace snapped. 'I just assumed we'd all –' Ace paused. About now, her pink cheeks were matching her nail polish. 'We'd all go for a fun surf together. It might be the last time, before the news girls get here. 'Cause then it's just going to be contest after contest.'
'You can do that with Micki and Kia. Jules and I surf down the other end of the beach.'
Ace shot me a look that said, 'See what I mean?'
'Think I'll brush my teeth,' I said.
'Kia?' called Georgie. 'What about the discussion we were supposedly having tonight?'
'Um. Er, I, um.' I ran the dry toothbrush across my teeth. 'Well, Georgie, er . . .'
'You said the four of us were going to have a big talk.'
Ace's words were so quiet they would've slipped under the carpet if the room hadn't fallen even quieter: 'I don't think Micki's talking these days.'
'What did you say?' Georgie was walking towards Ace. 'That you don't think Micki's what?'
'I heard what Ace said,' Micki spoke. 'But Ace, I can talk, I just don't really want to talk to you.'
Ace's forehead looked like it would cave in. 'What's that supposed to mean?'
This was terrible. It wasn't what I'd planned. It was all wrong.
The four of us were meant to take our doonas off the bed and make a campsite on the floor like we used to. Then one at a time, we'd have a go at saying what we were upset about.
'You read Micki's diary,' Georgie spat. 'That's where you got your info about Micki going to live with Kia.'
'What? What? What are you talking about, Georgie?'
'Don't lie, Ace. Just admit it.'
'Micki?' Ace's hands were reaching out to her. 'Micki?'
'I know you did, Ace,' Micki said. 'It only makes it worse if you deny it.'
'Do you know how Micki knew?' Georgie whispered but it felt like a shriek. 'Do you?'
Ace looked terrified.
'You left a bunch of long blonde hairs in the pages.'
Ace squealed and ran into the bathroom.
MICKI
'She took it to the beach,' I told Ace.
Ace didn't even have time to close Georgie's drawer. She'd been so busy rummaging through it that she hadn't heard me come out of the bathroom.
'I think I have a right to read the texts from my boyfriend, don't you?' Ace asked.
'I thought texts were private,' I answered.
'Micki, I'm sorry.' Ace sat on the floor between my and Georgie's bed. 'I really, really am. Like I said last night, the only way I can explain it is . . . is I always think we know everything about each other.'
'Well, we don't.'
'I'm sorry. I will never do anything like that again.'
But she just had. Only this time to Georgie.
There were Aces all over the place. I could think of at least two just in my year at school. When they were born they had more than the usual ten fingers and ten toes. They had luck too.
That didn't mean I thought I wasn't lucky. I'd been to enough family group programs where the kids I'd played with had ended up being fostered out, or worse.
But what I'd learnt was that there were different types of luck.
People with Ace's kind of luck knew about foster care and parenting programs only from A Current Affair or the headlines of a newspaper. I'm sure they saw people like me and Dad as being contaminated – nothing like them.
That was why I'd never tell Ace about Dad. Ace'd be nice about it. She'd say 'That's awful' and maybe even squeeze out a tear. She'd mean it too. But she'd end up looking at me like I was a bit of leftover takeaway. That mouthful of hamburger with the soggy lettuce sticking out of it – that was how she'd see me.
What Ace didn't know about people like me was that we were still proud. It was important to me that wherever I went I could hold my head high. No friendship was worth that compromise.
Meeting Ace in January and then actually becoming friends with her was almost like a crush becoming real. Before that, I'd spent hours in the library reading magazines. So I'd seen the pictures of her and read interviews and stories. Courtney McFarlane, the Ocean Pearl girl, Tim Parker's girlfriend, model, surfer. Wow, she was everything you could ever dream of being.
We'd spent three weeks together. Twenty-four/seven for three whole weeks. We became friends. In fact, we became more than friends. We became sisters, Starfis
h Sisters. At least, that's what I'd believed.
But girls like Ace were fickle. You had to offer them something in return for their friendship, whether it was drama and fun, a shoulder to cry on, someone to make them look prettier, slimmer, better dressed. Someone like me couldn't be there just for the ride. That wasn't the way it worked with Ace.
I would not let my story become Ace's entertainment.
I wasn't defined by the fact that my dad was a drug addict. I was my own person with my own life and dreams. Someone like Ace wasn't going to psych me out.
Megan's boards were still stacked up in the shed. Jake told us they were being sent back on the plane next week. The green stripy one was a beauty. It'd been custom-made by Dorian Mannix, who was one of the best shapers in Australia. It would've cost a bomb.
Still, it wasn't as nice as mine. Nothing could beat my pink designer fins. The day I paid my board off with the five hundred dollars I'd won last camp definitely rated as one of the top ten days in my life.
Georgie was standing in the doorway of the shed, wet and shivering.
'You look like a goanna your lips are so blue,' I said, chucking her my towel.
'I walked back along the road,' Georgie told me. 'It's twice as far but I didn't feel like dealing with Ace.'
'She didn't have a surf,' I replied. 'She went to the gym.'
'Bummer! Now I'll die from pneumonia for nothing. Absolutely nothing.' Georgie buried her face in my towel and groaned. 'Why am I such an idiot, Micki?'
'Why? What happened?'
'He didn't show,' she said. 'Jules didn't show. I waited and waited and waited. Then I thought "stuff him" and I went for a surf on my own. At least this time I didn't have to carry my other board and wetsuit all the way there and back. That was the only thing that stopped me from totally flipping out.'
'Did?' – I almost didn't want to ask this – 'did you give him one of your boards and wetsuits?'
'Just to borrow.'
'Cut.' I whistled.
'Yep, cut, big time,' Georgie answered. 'And isn't Ace going to love it!'
Georgie was right. It was a double blow 'cause Ace'd be gloating when she found out Jules had stood her up.
'There must be a reason Jules didn't turn up.'
'Yes, Micki,' Georgie spat. 'And that reason is that he's Ace's boyfriend and not mine. Therefore, I don't rate!'
'Georgie? Do you . . .?'
The way Georgie's big eyes blinked as she looked at me gave me my answer.
'I won't say anything. If I was Jules I'd much rather go out with you,' I said.
Georgie hugged me. This strong girl wrapped her arms around me yet I could sense that she wanted to melt and disappear into the floor.
'As if Jules'd ever go for me,' she moaned. 'He only likes me as a friend. Like all the guys I know. Georgie, everyone's friend but never anyone's girlfriend! The stupid thing is, I thought that maybe, maybe there was just a teeny weeny thing between us. You know what I mean?' Georgie groaned and slumped into my arms a bit more. I staggered a little but I managed to hold her up. 'Now I've got to deal with Ace. Urggghhhhh! Someone kill me!'
If Ace was gloating at breakfast then she was quadruple gloating after breakfast. Andy Wallace, the Ocean Pearl man himself, had made a surprise visit to camp.
Kia had walked into the dining room pointing at something behind her and gulping at the air.
'What?' Georgie and I'd asked.
'Georgie! Andy Wallace is out there,' she gasped. 'He's here to watch us surf.'
Now I was gulping at the air. 'What?'
But all Georgie did was grunt. 'Big deal.'
Ace and Andy Wallace were walking down to the beach arm in arm towards us. The nice side of Micki reminded me that Ace was the one and only Ocean Pearl girl and that was probably the way a sponsor and his star walked together, like on the red carpet at the Logies.
The not-so-nice side of me, the side that was having trouble forgiving Ace, thought she was being a total poser and doing it mostly to rub it in Georgie's face.
I took a deep breath in and blew it out. I'd thought the competition between Georgie and Megan had been tough. Whoa! Georgie and Ace were in a whole different league. Each minute, the stakes were getting higher and higher.
Ace was strutting around like she was winning the war but she didn't know that Andy Wallace was interested in Georgie. Only Kia and I did.
What would happen if Andy Wallace and Jules were both interested in Georgie? I took another breath in. I knew I was imagining it but I could feel the sand under my feet rumbling.
While Jake gave us the spiel on how Andy was here to see us surf, I had a staring competition with the ground. My nerves were making it difficult for me to even lift my head.
I risked one tiny peep and saw Andy Wallace looking at Georgie while Ace stood by him, resting her elbow on his shoulder, thinking it was all about her.
It was Andy's turn to speak. His squeaky voice didn't suit his broad shoulders and big hands. I glanced at Kia to see if she'd noticed but she was too busy rocking back and forth on the soles of her feet. I don't know why she was worried. Kia already had a sponsor.
'It's great to finally meet you all,' Andy said and then did the unthinkable. He nodded and smiled at me like we had some secret. I went back to emergency sand-staring. 'And let me add that it's a wonderful surprise to have our number one girl here. It's all good. As Jake told you, I'm the OP regional manager. I look after what's called the Australasian market. Ocean Pearl is looking to expand its product range, so that means we're also looking for new faces.'
Ace's smile seemed to crack at the corners. But Andy kept going. 'OP is after girls who are dynamic, confident and present well in and out of the surf.' Ace's smile recovered. 'The all-round healthy, Aussie surfer girl who'll be a good role model, that's an OP girl.' Andy turned to Jake. 'That's all from me. Let's see some surfing.'
We seemed to paddle out in couples. Georgie and me in front. Kia and Ace just behind. The tide was low but a solid left was breaking way out the back in the deep water. That's what we were heading to.
'He's probably here to see you surf,' I quietly said to Georgie.
Georgie shook her head and made a grunting sound. I wasn't sure if it meant 'I'm too nervous to talk' 'cause that's how I'd be feeling if I was her.
'You'll be fine,' I offered.
'Nothing'll happen. It never does. I truly don't mean to sound like a brat, Micki. I'm just – just still feeling really flat about Jules not turning up this morning. Flat and humiliated. Ace is loving it too. I seriously can't stand that girl.'
'Did Jules message to say why he didn't show?'
'I haven't checked my phone. I've purposely been keeping away from it, 'cause there'll be nothing there.' Georgie sighed. 'Why am I always the rejected one?'
Georgie's calculations were sure different to mine. Some cute guy not interested in you versus a huge sponsor very interested in you was an equation that to me equalled, fantastic. Not rejection.
Naturally no one expected Ace to be nervous about Andy Wallace watching her and Kia looked like she'd got over her mute attack from an hour ago too. But then things were sweet. They both had sponsors.
They were chatting and laughing away. Now and then a word floated across before the rest of the sentence was sucked up by the waves.
Did I want to hear it though? Would it be Ace telling Kia how much she thought I'd overreacted to her reading my diary?
Georgie must've channelled my thought. 'It sure looks like Ace has recovered from last night,' she scoffed. 'I still can't get over Kia wanting me to bash down the bathroom door!'
'That would've been interesting.'
'Oh, Miss Micki, it always ends up being about Ace, doesn't it?'
Last night, Ace locked herself away in the bathroom and howled. Kia had sat outside trying to coax her into talking or coming out. But she wouldn't do either.
'I can't believe you told them, Georgie,' Ace had finally said through the blubbering
tears. 'You promised me. You know how hard it is for me to protect my privacy. I'm like public property.'
I felt the skin on my face tighten. If Ace was so conscious of her own privacy then why hadn't she been conscious of mine? She was a joke. The only problem was, she couldn't see it and she never would.
'What's she on about?' Kia whispered to us, then loudly said, 'Talk to us, Ace. What's wrong, sweetie?'
'Don't pretend you don't know!' Ace howled.
Kia looked at me. I shrugged. I didn't have a clue what this thing was that Georgie was meant to have told us.
'Have you told Jake or Carla or Shyan? 'Cause if they've said anything to – to –'
'Shut up, Ace!' Georgie shouted. 'I haven't told anyone. Not a soul.'
No talking, at least on Ace's side of the door. On our side Kia was mouthing, 'What – is – Ace – on – about?'
'You may as well tell them now,' Ace squeaked. 'Go on. They just about know anyway.'
'Ace's hair's been falling out,' Georgie told us, rolling her eyes and shaking her head. 'She didn't want anyone to know because of OP and stuff.'
Kia's hand flew over her mouth and stayed there for about five minutes.
What did I do?
I went to bed.
There were Aces all over the place. The biggest thing in their world was themselves.
Last night, Ace's first tear-choked words that drifted under the door weren't, 'Micki, I am so sorry for reading your diary.' They weren't even, 'Georgie, you know I love Jules. How could you make an arrangement behind my back?'
No. Last night, Ace's first words had been about Ace.
ACE
When I woke up this morning I felt like I'd been run over by a semi-trailer. It had reversed back over me then forwards again just to make sure I was absolutely and totally flattened.
It seemed this year I was setting quite a record for the worst days and nights of my life. But yesterday, day and night, broke any record of probably any seventeen-year-old girl in the whole of Australia.
Luckily, today was a new day, although it didn't start too well. I hadn't even got out of my pyjamas and Micki had already busted me going through Georgie's things, searching for her phone. But I was dying to read the texts Jules had sent her.