by Jo Cotterill
‘Sounds exhausting,’ Mari commented. ‘Can’t you just – you know – be yourself around him? I mean, like we’re talking now?’
Megan laughed. ‘Of course not! I can’t relax at all when he’s around! It’s like being next to a really hot fire; bright and exciting but you don’t want to get burned. And besides, I can’t talk about the stuff I like – dancing and that. Because he’s not really interested.’
Mari was shaking her head doubtfully. ‘Doesn’t sound like that much fun to me.’
‘But I get to do all this new exciting stuff!’ replied Megan. Why couldn’t Mari see? ‘Skateboarding and go-karting and BMX riding – I’ve never done any of that before. It’s like a whole new world.’
‘I feel a song coming on,’ said Mari dryly.
Megan felt frustrated. ‘But it is. And it’s really exciting – and he shows me how to do it, and it’s fun.’
‘Dancing is fun.’
‘Yes it is, and I love it, but . . .’
‘You should make him do something you like,’ went on Mari, her voice becoming stronger. ‘I mean, I know me and Sean aren’t perfect, but I don’t let him choose what we’re going to do all the time. If there’s something I want to go to – a concert, say – then he comes with me. Even if it’s not something he’d have chosen. That’s what you do.’
Megan felt a little bewildered. Hadn’t they just been talking about how important it was to fancy someone if you were going out with them? And here was Mari now saying it was more important to share interests. ‘Maybe I will,’ she said defensively.
‘You should. I know!’ Mari’s face lit up. ‘Riverdance is coming to the Parchester Apollo Theatre. You should take him. Then he’ll see the sort of thing you like, and maybe he’ll like it too.’
‘I’m not sure . . .’ Megan began, but Mari interrupted.
‘Look, Megan, do you know how he feels about you?’
‘Not exactly . . .’
‘Then this is a good way to find out, isn’t it? Because if he comes to Riverdance with you and is prepared to give it a go, then he obviously wants to make you happy, doesn’t he? And that’s how you can tell if he fancies you.’
Megan was bursting to tell Jake all about the BMX meet, but he sounded a bit tired. ‘Are you OK?’
‘Yeah, sorry. I just – there’s lots of stuff going on here, Meg. My stepdad’s been made redundant.’
‘What? Oh no, that’s awful!’ Jake’s stepdad Stephen was an architect, like Megan’s dad. Only he mainly designed residential homes rather than office buildings like Bryan. ‘When did that happen?’
‘Three days ago.’ Jake sighed. ‘Turns out they’d been threatening to do it for ages, but he didn’t tell Mum because he didn’t want her to worry.’
‘Why did he lose his job? Did he – did he do something wrong?’
‘No,’ Jake replied. ‘No, it’s just that fewer people are having their homes designed by architects these days. Fewer people are having extensions built. You know, there’s just less work around because people haven’t got much money right now. So the firm decided they’d have to let someone go, and since Stephen was the last one in, he was the first one out. He’s gutted.’
‘I’m so sorry.’ Megan thought about Jake’s stepdad and how much fun he was to be around. ‘Can he get another job?’
Jake made a noise that sounded like a half-snort, half-laugh. ‘Where? There aren’t many jobs for architects, as you know. Your dad was lucky to get his.’
‘Lucky we had to move two hundred miles away?’ protested Megan.
‘At least he’s got a job. Mum says the redundancy money won’t last three months. After that – well . . .’ Jake gulped. ‘Mum says she could go back to being a classroom assistant. But that doesn’t pay so well.’
‘I’m so sorry,’ said Megan again, feeling useless. ‘Maybe things will work out OK?’
‘Yeah, maybe,’ said Jake. ‘And maybe not.’
‘I wish there was something I could do,’ said Megan wistfully.
‘Yeah, me too. Listen, Meg, I’ve got to go. I’ll talk to you soon, OK?’
Megan felt ashamed when she hung up. She had been so wrapped up in her own life, she had hardly bothered to get in touch with Jake recently. Stephen had lost his job three days ago – why hadn’t Jake rung to tell her? But then, she thought, I haven’t rung him for a whole week either. I’ve been too preoccupied with my new friends. When I should have been more concerned about my old one.
Megan’s mind wasn’t really on dancing at the next salsa class. She did the steps almost automatically whilst worrying about Jake. She wished there was something she could do to help, but she was two hundred miles away now – what could she possibly do?
‘Good work, Mari,’ came Corinne’s voice. ‘That’s so much better than last week.’
Mari beamed and turned to Megan. ‘Did you hear that?’
‘What?’
‘Earth to Megan.’ Mari waved a hand in front of her face. ‘Everything OK?’
‘Hmm? Oh – yeah. Just had some bad news from Jake the other evening. His stepdad lost his job.’
‘Oh.’ Mari looked sympathetic. ‘Sorry.’
‘I’m just a bit down at the moment, that’s all,’ Megan said, attempting a smile.
‘Did you book tickets for Riverdance, like I suggested?’
‘Yeah, that’s all done. I told Danny we’re going to the theatre but he doesn’t know what we’re going to see.’
‘Excellent.’ Mari patted her on the arm. ‘Cheer up, then. It’s not all that bad.’
Megan smiled but it made her face ache. It wasn’t just Jake’s news that was depressing her, she knew. She was missing her dancing desperately. Nice though the other girls were, the salsa class just wasn’t up to her standard. She missed the other dance styles too – the precision of the quickstep; the carnival feel of the samba. Megan was beginning to worry that if she didn’t find a more advanced class soon, she’d forget all her skills. And what if she never found one here in Parchester . . .? She missed dancing with a good partner most of all. When they paired up in this class, Megan invariably found herself dancing with Mari, who would be the first to admit she was a complete beginner. Megan longed for a partner who could match her in skill. She missed Jake so much!
‘Come and sit down, everyone,’ Corinne called. ‘I know it’s not yet seven, but I’ve got some things to discuss with you.’
The girls gathered on the floor.
‘Now, I’ve got two ideas to run by you,’ Corinne went on. ‘The first one is this.’ She held up a colourful flyer. ‘It’s for the Ace of Hearts restaurant in Parchester. They’re holding a salsa evening at the beginning of November. You get dinner and dancing included in the price. I wondered if you’d all like to go, as a sort of group outing?’
Excited chatter broke out. ‘That sounds fab,’ said Jackie, her eyes shining.
‘As long as we don’t have to do some kind of performance,’ Alys put in pointedly.
Corinne laughed. ‘No, absolutely not. This is a fun evening out. I didn’t know anything about it until my friend Candy passed this flyer to me.’
‘I’m in,’ said Mari decidedly. ‘If there’s dinner included, I’m there.’ She grinned at Megan, who tried to smile back.
‘Excellent,’ said Corinne. ‘You all need to check with your parents that you’re allowed to go. You’ll need to be dropped off and picked up from the Ace of Hearts. And you’ll need money to pay for the dinner. I’ll book us a table, but please let me know if you can’t come.’ She put the flyer down. ‘Now, the other idea.’ She glanced at Megan and took a breath. ‘I’ve been thinking about giving Megan a bit to do in the class – you know, teaching you guys some different dances, like we discussed.’
Mari grinned at Megan, whose face was turning pink.
‘And I wondered,’ Corinne continued, ‘whether you’d like some kind of end-of-term Christmas party. A dancing party, of course. With family and friends. And Mega
n could teach you the jive – properly, so you could do a short routine to show people. Along with some salsa, of course.’
The chatter erupted into full-blown excitement. ‘A party!’ shouted Jackie.
‘With fairy lights!’ called someone else. ‘And a Christmas tree!’
‘And sparkly costumes,’ suggested Alys.
‘I would love to learn the jive,’ said Mari, her eyes shining. ‘The bit we did the other day was so much fun!’ The other girls agreed.
Megan almost felt like bursting into tears with gratitude. The girls all thought it was a fantastic idea that she should teach them the jive! How lovely of them! It wouldn’t be the same as finding a new class or dancing with Jake, of course, but if she were allowed to choreograph a whole routine . . . what an opportunity!
‘What do you think, Megan?’ asked Corinne, who had been watching her. ‘Would you be up for that?’
Megan smiled from ear to ear. ‘Definitely!’
‘Woo-hoo!’ cried Mari. ‘I love parties! Ooh!’ Her face suddenly changed. ‘You could invite Danny.’
‘Ooh yes,’ said Jackie eagerly.
‘Not Samantha though,’ added Mari, frowning. ‘Just Danny.’
Megan laughed. ‘I don’t think it would be his kind of thing. But I could ask him, I guess.’ And then he could see what I love doing best, she thought with a glow. And maybe he’ll understand, like I understand his passion for racing. She suddenly felt a lot better. And I’m taking Danny to Riverdance at the weekend, she remembered. I can talk to him much more about dancing then.
‘Good,’ said Corinne, getting up. ‘We’ll talk about music and routines next week. I’ll look into hiring the community hall or something. Don’t forget to ask your parents about the dinner at the Ace of Hearts. Take a flyer each so you’ve got all the details.’
Mari swung round to Megan. ‘This is going to be so brilliant! And if you bring Danny . . .’ She waggled her eyebrows up and down.
Megan laughed. ‘We’ll see. I think the only way he’d agree to come was if we were performing the jive on rollerskates.’
The girls bundled out of the arts centre, chatting and laughing excitedly. ‘Can’t wait for the jive,’ Alys said as she waved goodbye to Megan.
‘Me too,’ agreed Jackie. ‘Such a cool dance! I bet Megan will come up with something really amazing.’
Megan felt a rush of affection for them all. She smiled and waved goodbye in return.
‘Glad you’ve cheered up,’ said Mari, nudging her. ‘You looked really down when we arrived.’
‘I was,’ said Megan. ‘But I’m really excited about choreographing a dance. I love that kind of thing. Jake and I used to choreograph our own routines sometimes too.’
‘You should ask him to come to the party,’ said Mari.
Megan shook her head. ‘He lives two hundred miles away, Mari. And it’ll still be term time.’
‘You could ask him,’ persisted Mari.
‘Well, maybe. You should ask Fliss and Victoria.’
Mari’s face lit up. ‘That’s such a good idea! I will, you know. Not sure if Fliss will be doing her filming thing, but I should be able to drag Victoria along.’ She frowned suddenly. ‘But you are going to ask Jake to come visit sometime, aren’t you? I want to meet him.’
‘He’s meant to be coming down in half-term,’ Megan told her.
Mari gave a whoop. ‘Perfect! Can’t wait to meet him – and you have to dance with him. I bet the two of you are just amazing. You could do the jive – we could get the girls together!’
Megan laughed. ‘The jive isn’t our strongest dance. The waltz is our favourite. We won a competition with that one.’
‘The waltz then,’ said Mari. ‘Sounds dreamy. We’ll tell the girls and we can all meet up, since salsa won’t be on during half-term.’
Megan felt a little alarmed. ‘Jake’s not coming down to give a performance, Mari. He’s just coming for a visit.’
‘I know,’ said Mari, ‘but there’s no harm in asking, is there?’
Chapter 11
you look cute when you laugh
DANNY’S JAW DROPPED. ‘How much? For a programme?’
Megan felt anxious. ‘Don’t worry. I’ll get it.’ She fumbled with her purse.
‘Do you really need one?’
‘I like looking at the pictures,’ Megan replied, and then realized how lame that sounded. ‘I sometimes cut them out and put them on my wall.’ Even worse!
Danny was staring at the posters. ‘I didn’t know we were coming to watch a dance show. It’s not really my kind of thing.’
Megan put on an encouraging expression. ‘But it’s good to try new stuff, isn’t it? You might like it, you never know.’
Danny didn’t look so sure.
As soon as they took their seats in the theatre, Megan knew this date wasn’t going to be a success. Danny complained that the seat wasn’t comfortable and that there wasn’t enough leg-room. When the overture started, he was still looking around and whispering. An irritated woman on the other side of him told him to be quiet. Danny made a face at Megan, but she felt so embarrassed she pretended she hadn’t heard anything.
Megan loved the music of Riverdance. She had listened to the soundtrack over and over again at home. It was so evocative; she could almost imagine Irish faeries emerging from the auditorium. And when the curtain rose, she sat forward in anticipation. She had seen snippets of the show on television, but never in a live theatre. The dancing enthralled her. She marvelled at their skill – fancy being able to leap so high whilst your arms were held down by your sides! And the flamenco and tap routines were so complicated, too!
Danny fidgeted. Megan wanted to concentrate on the stage, but he shifted his position first one way, then the other. Then he started to sigh – not loudly, but enough to distract her. ‘Is anything the matter?’ she whispered.
‘My legs are going to sleep,’ he whispered back. ‘When’s the interval?’
‘Not for ages yet.’
He sighed again.
Megan really wanted to enjoy the first half. The show was fascinating. There was so much to see! She felt she could watch the show twenty times and still not notice everything that was happening onstage. But all the way through she was aware of Danny fussing and fidgeting. She was almost relieved when it was time for the interval.
Danny stood up immediately. ‘My feet have pins and needles!’ he said, hopping from one foot to the other. The woman on his other side gave him a poisonous look.
‘We could go and get some ice cream,’ suggested Megan, hoping that the five pounds left in her purse would cover it. ‘They’re selling them down by the stage.’
‘Can’t we get some fresh air?’ asked Danny.
‘If you like.’
They picked up their coats and made their way to the exit. It was a slow business because the theatre was packed.
‘Whew!’ said Danny as they emerged into the street. ‘That’s better!’ He turned and grinned at Megan. ‘It was hot in there!’
She smiled back. ‘I know you’re an outdoorsy kind of person.’
‘Totally. Hate being cramped up like that.’
‘The show’s good though, isn’t it?’ asked Megan hopefully.
Danny shrugged. ‘It’s all right, I suppose. If you like that kind of thing. Could do with more action though. It’s a bit boring in places. And that woman who comes on and sings warbly songs is starting to do my head in.’
Megan hadn’t thought that a single second was boring, but she kept quiet. She was disappointed he hadn’t liked it more though. ‘Didn’t you think those men were amazing? They must have legs made out of muscle!’
‘It’s just a lot of jumping around,’ said Danny dismissively. ‘And then they get a new costume and do it all again.’
‘But they’re using all sorts of different styles of dance,’ said Megan, starting to feel slightly irritated. ‘It’s not the same kind of thing all the time.’
Dan
ny rolled his eyes. ‘Jumping up and down, prancing around a bit. It all looks the same to me.’
Megan bit her lip. Maybe this had been a bad idea, expecting Danny to like a dance show. Maybe she should have taken him to a musical instead . . . or a concert? ‘Never mind,’ she said persuasively, ‘the second half is shorter.’ She shivered in the cold air. ‘Let’s go and get in the queue for ice cream before we have to go back to our seats.’
‘I’ve got a better idea,’ said Danny. ‘Why don’t we go to the ice-cream place down the road?’
Megan stared. ‘We haven’t got time. We’ll miss the second half.’
‘That’s the plan. Come on!’ Danny grabbed her hand, but Megan pulled away.
‘I want to see the second half.’ He surely didn’t mean it?
‘I can do it for you.’ Danny jumped up and down a bit, kicking up his feet in a ridiculous way. ‘There, you see? Come on, let’s go and get warm.’
‘I’ve been looking forward to this.’ Megan felt tears prick at her eyes. She knew the soundtrack inside out; it would be too unfair to miss half the show! ‘And I bought the tickets.’
Danny paused for a moment and looked at her more closely. Then he unexpectedly put his arms around her. ‘Don’t be sad,’ he said softly in her ear. ‘You can see it another time, can’t you? It’s just that my legs are killing me. I don’t think I can spend another hour in those seats. And the woman next to me hates me too. I’ll just get on everyone’s nerves.’
Megan resisted. ‘You could put up with it for my sake.’
Danny sighed and let go of her. ‘You go back in then. I’ll meet you down the road after it’s finished.’
‘What?’ Megan stared.
‘I can’t sit through any more,’ said Danny in a pleading tone. ‘I’m really sorry, Megan. I’ll go and get some ice cream and wait for you.’
‘But . . .’
The bell rang, signalling the imminent start of the second half. Megan felt torn. She really wanted to see the rest of the show. But they were on a date; she couldn’t just let Danny go off on his own, could she? It wasn’t his fault he didn’t like dancing; it was her fault for asking him along to something she should have known he wouldn’t like.