by Ruth Hay
Caroline heard this news in spurts as she quickly brushed her teeth and threw on her jeans and jumper in the bathroom. By the time she emerged, slicking back her damp hair with a comb, Janine had updated the other two girls on their ETA, checked out the stock on the websites of two promising stores in the mall via the internet, and sent an e mail link to Ashley to save time later.
Caroline's mother scarcely got a word in on the drive to town but she was pleased to hear the carefree noise of the two friends as they giggled and whispered in the back seat of the car.
This is exactly what Caroline needs, she thought. A day off will do her good. She did not worry as the girls leaped out of the car with never a backward glance. Caroline knew when and where to meet for the ride home and with a group of them together it was unlikely they would get into too much trouble.
* * *
The afternoon sped by in a dazzle of dresses and dishing gossip. Ashley had the trio in stitches as she deliberately picked out the most outrageous styles for the proposed bridesmaid's attire.
The first item she selected was a Mondrian-inspired mini dress with blocks of lime green and orange on a navy background. Tiffany, Janine and Caroline stared open-mouthed when they saw Ashley in this design. Each was imagining the effect it would have on Ashley's up-tight sister if her bridesmaid appeared in this dress on the big day, but no one wanted to be the first to express her true opinion.
Ashley couldn't keep a straight face any longer and dissolved in hysterics, crying out between her tears, "You should see your faces! I wish I had a camera. Wait right there and I'll get my cell phone. Everyone has to see this!"
From this point on, the afternoon accelerated into a full-fledged "Gals at the Mall" video extravaganza with cell phones flashing photos at every juncture and text from other friends coming in every two minutes as the word spread about their hilarious adventures.
Eventually, they had a crowd of young guys following them just to see what would happen to the quartet next, and the girls hammed it up all the more for their teen audience.
Janine finally calmed herself long enough to check the time on her phone and then brought the proceedings to a halt by exclaiming, "Gang, hold it! We have about 30 minutes left to get this crazy woman a dress to wear. What have we seen that might work?"
The girls recognized a call for help immediately, and put their heads together over a milkshake and muffin in the food court by Fenwick's.
With the infallible memories of fashion-mad teens, they scrolled over all the dresses they had seen on racks or window displays during their exploits in the mall.
Tiffany's preference was for the long, flowing, wine chiffon with the single strap that would compliment Ashley's cool blonde looks but the others rejected this idea in favour of a mint- green satin, strapless, ballerina-length with matching pumps.
Ashley looked doubtful, but was persuaded by Janine's suggestion that it would be ideal for the college graduation ball in May, so there would be no need for further dress shopping.
All that remained was to find the dress, check the size and purchase it as soon as possible.
The frantic rush through the mall to one of the first shops they had visited, resulted in disappointment. The green satin had been sold.
Serious looks replaced the laughter of the day as Ashley reminded them that she had promised to return home with a dress of her choice that very night or risk having to wear her mother's or sister's deadly-dull selections.
Gloom descended, until Caroline found another rack of dresses stowed in a corner of the store and spotted a pair of gowns in a similar style to the green satin. The first was pink and Caroline pushed it aside knowing that Ashley would never think of wearing that colour. Its partner was a beautiful shade of midnight blue taffeta shot through with shimmering emerald highlights in the folds of the skirt. They had just enough time to try this on Ashley and although she protested at first, "Trust me! It's not my colour!" even she had to admit the effect was stunning.
"Holy crap!" she exclaimed to the mirror, and the girls dissolved in giggles once again when they saw the looks from other shoppers.
Janine grabbed Ashley's debit card, and the dress itself, as soon as Ashley shrugged her way out of it in the change room. The bill was made out, the dress was encased in plastic and the quartet dashed to the mall entrance dragging a half-dressed Ashley, to find Caroline's mother's car on only its third circle around the block.
All four piled into the car, placing the dress bag carefully over the knees of the trio in the back seat and regaled Sarah with the adventures of the afternoon. Caroline eventually shushed them into silence as she knew her mother preferred a quiet atmosphere when she was driving in the evening dusk.
Tiffany produced her iPod and shared the ear buds among the girls as they listened to her latest download from the Arctic Monkeys.
A little finger snapping and rhythmic movement with closed eyes distracted the car's occupants until they drew up in the parking lot outside the Harvester restaurant. Tiffany clicked off the iPod and heard Caroline's mother say, "I got a bonus today for a lot of overtime this last month and I want to share it with you four. Let's get a table."
On the way into the restaurant, Caroline whispered a happy thank-you to her mother and was rewarded with a big smile and the disclaimer, "Well, you know I could never resist the ice cream in here, Caro! Promise me you'll share the profiteroles with me, and don't tell Mike or your dad."
On her way up to bed, Caroline felt in such a benevolent mood that she decided to stop by her brother's room and say hello. It seemed like weeks since they had spent any time talking.
Their busy schedules frequently conflicted, and Mike was often with their father at soccer games on the weekend.
First she had to bypass the warnings on his bedroom door. She noticed a new threat,
DOOM TO ALL WHO DARE TRESPASS WITHIN!
This particular sign was surrounded by a tasteful border of skulls, crossbones, and sundry gargoyles, all in a stark black and yellow relief which sprang into glaring white strobe lighting as soon as Caroline touched the door handle. This effect must have acted as an early-warning system as Mike appeared in the doorway in time to hear his sister squeal in surprise.
Catching her breath, she demanded, "What does mum think about this, Mike? You could give her a heart attack with that ghastly sign!"
"Oh, I disconnect it during the day and mum and me have a deal where if I pass the room inspection once a fortnight, I can remain more or less private the rest of the time."
"Well, can I come in, just this once?" Caroline must have caught Mike in a weak moment as he allowed his older sister to walk through the doorway before he could invent an excuse to halt her.
Caroline stopped short when she saw the room's contents. A veritable web of cables snaked along the floor and every surface, except the untidy bed, was covered with a screen or a hard drive or a printer or other devices Caroline did not recognize. The room was dark apart from the blue light cast by the blinking monitors.
"What is all this stuff, Mike? Where did you get it? What on earth are you doing in here, planning world domination?"
"Good one, Caro! Be sure to share that one with your friendly neighbourhood police persons."
"I just might do that, bro, if you don't come clean right this minute. What are you up to?"
"Nothing illegal, I promise! This is a Skype hook up so I can talk to guys about the latest games, and this screen is a download of a movie I want to check out and over here is a virtual library with a school research project."
Mike threaded his way around the room pointing out these features and managing, somehow, to avoid tripping over wires and power bars. Caroline did not dare move an inch for fear of being electrocuted by something lethal.
She was beginning to understand that her sports-mad brother had other interests she knew nothing about. She looked at him in the dim light as if he had been transformed into someone she did not recognize. No, the scruff
y, baggy, clothes were still the same and his army issue haircut was still a greasy, brown stubble. He might have grown a few centimeters since she last checked but the changes she was seeing were much more than external.
"Wait! Is that a 3D picture on your laptop?"
"Yeah, but you still need the dumb glasses to see the effects. I want a 3D TV soon."
Caroline was stunned at the range of equipment her young brother had managed to assemble in his room. The last time she had been in here, the drum set had pride of place and the accompanying noise had kept her away for some months. Now there was a fortune's worth of digital wizardry in here.
"So, how did you score the cash for all this hardware, Mike?"
"I have the paper route, of course, and my pocket money for washing the car and taking out rubbish and……."
"Hold it right there, mister! I may not be a math whiz like you, but it doesn't take a genius to calculate that this equipment was way more than you could possibly afford."
"I was just getting to that!" protested Mike with a hurt expression.
"One of dad's clients has a computer repair service and he lends me reconditioned models to test out and software programs he wants to sell to the younger market. I write reviews for him online and he gives me more stuff to try. It's all above board. Dad knows all about this and keeps an eye on everything for me."
Caroline shook her head in amazement. "And there I was across the hall, thinking you were in here just listening to some gross music group and instead my little baby brother was practising to be a future media tycoon!"
Mike looked to see if Caroline was making fun of him but his sister's raised eyebrows signaled a genuine surprise and admiration.
"Well, I had to dial back on the drumming of course, but the guys in the band don't mind because I can produce basic demo discs with some of this cool stuff."
"I think I'll be coming to you for tech advice for now on, Mikey," said Caroline as she turned and made her way carefully back into the hallway.
The brief encounter had given her plenty to think about, but she suddenly felt fatigue overwhelm her. It had been a long, and exciting day.
"I'll sleep on it," she mumbled, as she shuffled off her shoes and stepped out of her clothes. Pulling on a cozy nightshirt she dropped into bed and dragged the duvet right over her head to blot out light, noise and anything else that might prevent her from sleeping.
* * *
David Fenton's tapping at the door woke Caroline from a deep sleep.
"Come on, little mermaid! Rise and shine! You have 30 minutes to get breakfast and make it to the pool."
A hoarse reply came from his daughter's room.
"All right, dad! I'll be down in a minute."
The regular Sunday morning team practice had escaped her attention with all the events of the day before, but Caroline was not surprised that her father remembered. As she brushed her teeth, it occurred to her that her father gave up his limited weekend time to ensure both his kids' sports interests were supported.
Mike's soccer games were out of town but her practices were close enough to home that she could easily cycle to the pool. Nevertheless, her father attended the early Sunday morning sessions faithfully, and Caroline could do no less than give them her best effort.
* * *
Coach Lawson's rigorous workout was even more demanding than usual. The twelve swimmers were divided into two teams to compete against each other in a test of stamina.
They all knew the coach was looking for his best swimmers to represent the college in the regional swim meet in Eastbourne. Caroline half hoped she would not be chosen with the work load she had facing her in the next few weeks, but once the contest started, she had to concentrate on supporting her team members and all thoughts of going slow disappeared in the excitement of beating the other team.
Each swimmer had to complete one lap in a sprint relay. All four strokes had to be used by each person, meaning the race would not finish until everyone had swum four times.
Caroline looked at the three team members on her end of the pool and waved to the three standing opposite them ready for the second, fourth and sixth legs of the race.
A quick conference with her set, and Caroline decided to start off first. She would have the benefit of smooth water while she struggled through the butterfly length which might give her an advantage. She knew her strength was in the breaststroke and backstroke so she would finish with these two.
The first length of the pool went fast and well. Both teams were fresh at this stage. The challenges would come later when the water was churned up and the swimmers' limbs grew heavy.
Caroline's second length came after she had watched five swimmers battle up the pool and gain a scant metre's distance ahead of their opponents. She launched into the water as soon as her team member touched the side and immediately she felt the difference in starting at the shallow end of the pool. With less depth of water beneath her arms and legs, her crawl stroke faltered in its rhythm and she swallowed a mouthful of water when she should have been smoothly grabbing a lungful of air. It was impossible not to cough the water out and Caroline's forward motion almost died. She could see the thrashing legs of her competition ahead and gulped down air again, fighting through the waves with her head down and arms and legs pounding the surface. This way she could avoid the pool's turbulent water and drive forward as long as her air lasted.
When she was forced to take another breath, she could see the end of the pool almost within reach and she stretched out her arms to touch. The next swimmer dived over her head and Caroline knew it was going to be difficult to pull herself up out of the water this time. With two more lengths to go she would have to save energy. Marianne reached out a hand to help Caroline up and told her they had lost the lead but there was still a chance to win.
As she caught her breath and waited for her next lap, Caroline heard cheering coming from the spectators' benches. Her father and two or three other parents were standing and yelling as if this was an Olympic event instead of a weekend practice exercise. How embarrassing, thought Caroline as she shook the water out of her eyes for the third time.
Coach Lawson paid no attention to the noise. He had a stopwatch and a clipboard in his hands and an intent expression on his face.
Despite herself, Caroline got caught up in the excitement and her breaststroke length was at a decent speed although she was competing against the fastest swimmer in the group, Adam Brown, a tall broad-shouldered lad who had won swimming awards in London before coming to live in Sussex. Her team fought back valiantly but fatigue was catching up with them and it looked like defeat was inevitable.
To give her team a chance to recover the lead, Caroline would have to deliver a length of the pool faster than she had ever swum before. Coach Lawson had told her the backstroke was her best body fit. She knew he was right whenever she stretched out her arms over her head, cupping the water and sweeping it down to her hips. With her head at exactly the right angle so she could just see her feet, every muscle worked in harmony and the feeling was exhilarating. The best part was that her head was out of the water making breathing much less difficult.
The problem might be that the start position for backstroke was in the pool, pushing off from the side, and that could allow an opposing swimmer to gain ground with a dive start.
Whether it was determination or sheer luck, Caroline's final lap gave her team the boost they needed to forge ahead again and win the race by an arm's length.
Most of the swimmers were too tired to celebrate the win but the cheering section made up for it. This time Caroline was glad of the noise and she noticed that the coach was smiling from ear to ear.
* * *
Sunday lunch was a family tradition the Fenton's maintained whenever they could. A roast dinner with a selection of vegetables would be served in the dining room and all family members were expected to attend and eat heartily.
Caroline was ready to do justice to the feast. Deli
cious smells had tempted her from her homework tasks and although she had enjoyed a snack on her return from the morning's exertions at the pool, she was ravenous again.
As her family passed plates, teased each other and chatted about the week's events, Caroline couldn't help contrasting this pleasant meal with her last sight of the nursing home's dining room before she had left on Friday evening. She had not forgotten about her great-grandmother, or the project to make things better for her. In fact, the events of the weekend had clarified her thinking in some respects. She was not yet ready to refine her ideas. That step would take place after her tour of the nursing home, but already she could feel a flutter of excitement.
Wouldn't it be wonderful if she could contribute something worthwhile to the lives of those elderly residents and do it in a completely unexpected way?
Chapter Six
By switching classes, Caroline was able to arrange for a whole morning at the nursing home.
Mary would provide the tour but she was unable to start at the appointed time. One of the residents had pulled the fire alarm earlier, and Mary was needed to calm down a number of older people who were unnerved by the noise and confusion.
"Does this happen often?" asked Caroline apprehensively.
"Not too often, I'm glad to say," replied Mary as she rushed off to her duties.
"Some of our residents have a naughty streak in them. I'll be back as soon as I can. Wait in Mrs. Purdy's room and I'll meet you there."
Caroline found her great-gran was not alone this morning. A young staff person, who Caroline had not seen before, was sitting on a stool beside Gigi's bed trying to persuade her to swallow some pills.