The True Colour of a Little White Lie

by Gabriel Bergmoser

  The problem, I thought as I wandered back upstairs, was that I liked and trusted Robbie a lot. And if Robbie said Adele was special, I kind of felt like I should listen. Especially as the way Robbie was talking about her seemed more than a little like she was trying to hint at something.

  10

  I was lounging on a couch with Matt and tiny, black-haired waitress, Ash, watching Batman Begins, when Charlie the kitchen hand, tall and thin with a tangle of greasy hair, burst into the Governor’s Lounge. ‘Alright, you guys ready for the good stuff?’

  I was pretty sure what we were currently watching counted as ‘the good stuff’ and said as much.

  ‘Nah, man, this is all serious and boring,’ Charlie replied. ‘The old sixties TV show is where it’s at.’

  Matt and Ash exchanged a weary look.

  ‘This,’ Charlie held up a disc, ‘is the good stuff.’

  ‘It better not be porn,’ Ash said.

  Charlie looked outraged. ‘What do you take me for? I was bumming around in here the other day and I found a pile of DVDs of the last few years’ Whitt races.’

  I sat up a little straighter. ‘Really?’

  ‘I know, right?’ Charlie said. ‘Who would film that?’

  I didn’t know, but I did know it was essential that I saw them. ‘Do you have the DVDs?’

  ‘Sure, up in my room,’ Charlie said. ‘But don’t bother, I’ve got the good stuff right here.’ He shook the disc.

  ‘Charlie, you can’t keep saying “the good stuff” without telling us what the good stuff is,’ Matt said.

  ‘The good stuff,’ Charlie said with a wink, ‘is a compilation of all the best crashes from every recent Whitt.’

  ‘I’m gonna stick with boring Batman.’ Matt returned his attention to the screen.

  My eyes were locked on the disc. I swallowed. ‘People … people crash a lot then?’

  ‘All the time,’ Charlie said gleefully. ‘The race is famous for it. Massive, humiliating crashes. Otherwise why watch the stupid videos? Anyway, I went through and edited them all together. You’re welcome.’

  ‘Is this why you skipped out on drinks at Schulz the other night?’ Ash asked. ‘To make a ski crash video?’

  ‘To entertain future generations of bored staff up here, yes,’ Charlie said. ‘Van Gogh wasn’t recognised in his time either. Come on, I spent ages on this. Let’s give it a watch.’

  I wanted to tell Charlie that his DVD was the last thing in the world I needed to see at that point, but before I could find a way to phrase it that didn’t sound wimpy, Ash had said, ‘Alright, sure, chuck it on.’

  With a groan, Matt paused Batman and a thrilled-looking Charlie swapped the discs. I sank a little deeper into the couch, bracing myself.

  It was my first glimpse of what, in theory, I could be going through in a few weeks’ time. It wasn’t promising. The video, shot mainly from above, had been choppily edited together with a few wipe-cuts that Charlie proudly pointed out as his work, but the moments of impact were crystal clear. Skiers spun out of control and slammed into the spectators lining the run. Poor visibility caused one guy to smash straight into the orange flag he was meant to be curving around. A girl’s snowboard hit a rock and sent her face first into ice. One massive stack after another.

  Ash and Matt were soon laughing as hard as Charlie, while I felt the blood drain from my face and sweaty, jagged panic set in.

  Then the door to the Lounge opened and a middle-aged man entered. He was dressed in a tight, navy blue T-shirt that seemed designed to show off a body that was a little doughier than he apparently thought. His face was deep ruddy red and his blond hair, clearly dyed, was short and spiky. In his right hand was a protein shake. He looked between us with an expectant expression. We looked back. He walked over and turned off the TV. That seemed a bit rude. I glanced sideways at Charlie, who was determinedly looking elsewhere while Ash sank a little deeper into the couch and Matt rubbed his temples.

  The man left. The moment he was out the door Matt got up. ‘Alright, let’s get out of Dodge before–’

  The man reappeared, followed by my sweaty dad dressed in his chef gear.

  ‘What’s going on Barry?’ Dad asked.

  ‘You see this, mate?’ Barry said, gesturing at us all. ‘It’s not a great look. Staff coming and using guest facilities. We’re not paying so they can have a holiday. And besides, it’s a bit intimidating for the kids, you know?’

  There were, in fact, two kids over by the pool table, a boy and a girl way more focused on their game than us.

  Barry put his hand on Dad’s shoulder. Dad looked at the hand with a furrowed brow.

  ‘Now look, I’ve run a few businesses in my time,’ Barry said. ‘And I mean, I don’t want to brag, but they’ve all been big successes.’

  It seemed to me that you probably only needed to run one business if it was that big a success, but what did I know.

  ‘What I’m saying is, presentation is key, and mate, this just isn’t on.’

  My exhausted-looking dad had never looked closer to punching anyone. Charlie and Ash had joined Matt in standing and making for the door. I wasn’t sure where any of this left me but I stood anyway.

  ‘Hang on, hang on, hang on,’ Barry said, as everyone moved for the door. ‘Bit of an apology would be good, right?’

  Before Dad could tell the man where he could stick his apology, Matt had muttered a quick ‘sorry’ then, tailed by Charlie and Ash, gone through the door.

  ‘Nelson, you too,’ Dad growled, then turned and left. I glanced at Barry. Hands on hips, he was surveying the room with a smug smile. His eyes landed on the two kids. I went to move past him just as he yelled. ‘Alright, out! You should know you’re not allowed to touch the pool table, you’ll tear it all up!’

  I found the others in the staff area, arranged around the corner couches near the TV.

  ‘What a jerk,’ Charlie muttered. ‘It’s the third year in a row he’s found something we’ve done to complain about. He always gets the deluxe rooms so I figure he’s loaded and sees that as a ticket to treat us like scum.’

  ‘Yeah I had a run-in with him this morning,’ Ash said gloomily. ‘His bacon wasn’t crispy enough. Then it was too crispy then he said he was going to file a complaint.’

  ‘I heard him having a go at Robbie about being given a room without a view of the slopes,’ Matt said. ‘None of the rooms have a view of the slopes.’

  For a moment, nobody spoke. My mind was still on the race video.

  ‘Here’s a thought.’ Charlie said. ‘It wouldn’t be too hard to, y’know, get back at him.’

  We all looked at him.

  ‘I like having a job,’ Matt said. ‘Plus I don’t wanna get deported.’

  ‘I’m talking something harmless but embarrassing,’ Charlie said. He leaned back, eyes on the ceiling. ‘Something that might make him a little less than keen to come back.’

  ‘I’m all for that,’ Ash said. ‘But I’m still not sure what you’re getting at.’

  ‘The worst we’d have to do is a little breaking and entering,’ Charlie said.

  ‘Oh yeah, now it sounds really easy,’ Matt said.

  Charlie pointed at me. ‘You in, Nel?’

  I didn’t know what to say. I was no fan of mean jerks but so far the worst thing Barry had done to me was save me from watching a horrible reminder of my fate. Besides, if Mum and Dad found out I had done anything to humiliate a customer …

  ‘Dude.’ Matt frowned and shook his head. ‘Leave Nel out of it. His parents run this joint; he can’t just slip away if things go south.’

  I felt a warm rush of gratitude at that.

  Charlie nodded. ‘Yeah, okay. Fair enough. Sorry man, just got a bit carried away. The whole thing is probably a stupid idea anyway.’ He turned to Ash. ‘When do you start your shift?’

  It turned out that Charlie had, if anything, been downplaying Barry’s behaviour around the pool table. Later that night I stuck my head in
to the Governor’s Lounge to find a weirdly tense atmosphere. Barry was standing by the table, swigging from another protein shake while a skinny young guy tried to line up a shot.

  ‘Nah, bit to the left, mate,’ Barry said. ‘You’ll miss the ball by a huge amount there.’

  The guy shifted.

  ‘Now remember, not too hard, not too soft,’ Barry said. ‘Not like all the other shots. That’s why you’re losing, mate. Okay, look, you’ve lined it up all wrong again.’

  From what I could see, the number of each of their balls left on the table was about equal.

  Over by the TV a middle-aged woman went to turn it on.

  ‘Oi!’ Barry clicked his fingers. ‘No TV while pool’s happening.’

  The young guy took his shot. He missed.

  Barry shook his head. ‘Told you, mate.’

  Scowling, the guy propped his cue against the table. ‘Just going to the bathroom.’

  ‘No you’re not,’ Barry said. ‘You don’t leave until the game is done, mate.’

  Barry lined up a shot, hit the ball, but didn’t sink it.

  11

  At first, seeing Juliet again had been a little weird. When I came across her in the foyer the Friday after I’d met Adele, I froze.

  Juliet was playing on her phone and looked up at almost the exact same instant. A massive smile came over her face; a smile that faltered when it became obvious that I wasn’t returning it.

  ‘Are you okay?’ she asked.

  Instead of blurting, ‘I spent last weekend hanging out with a pretty girl who wasn’t you’, I forced myself to choke out something along the lines of, ‘Good, thanks, how are you?’ and hurried down to meet her.

  Any uncomfortable feeling quickly faded the moment I was back in Juliet’s company, laughing and joking and teasing each other. Within minutes it was like we had picked up where that first weekend had ended and Adele was just a vague memory.

  That night I half-heartedly picked at a plate of leftover food in the staff area, glancing at the clock occasionally to work out when Juliet would be free after dinner with her parents. I had to time it perfectly. I didn’t want to seem too keen by rushing into the games room the second she got there, but with only an occasional stolen hour together every fortnight I also didn’t want to waste time. So I gave it forty-five minutes and then, trying to look casual, I strode through the coded door into the games room.

  Juliet was there, in her usual spot on the couch, but I stopped short upon realising she wasn’t alone. Sitting across from her, exactly where I’d sat two weeks ago, was a guy. His back was to me and I couldn’t make out anything about him, except for the fact that Juliet was laughing at whatever he’d just said.

  I was caught in a moment of uncertainty. It was hard to put a finger on what I felt: twisting jealousy, yeah, but also, weirdly, a sense of not wanting to intrude. The best thing for loser Nelson to do at this moment was to slip away unnoticed.

  ‘Nelson!’ Juliet waved at me with a smile.

  The guy turned and everything got worse. He looked older than us by a year or two. He was broad-shouldered and I knew if he stood up he would be taller than me. He had a smiling, handsome face under wavy brown hair and, to add insult to injury, a hint of a moustache.

  ‘G’day, mate.’ He stood, confirming my fears about his height, and extended a hand. ‘Dan.’

  Walking over to them, I shook his hand. His grip was crushing. His smile didn’t reach his eyes.

  ‘Nelson,’ I said.

  ‘You work here, Nelson?’ Dan asked.

  I sat down next to Juliet.

  ‘His parents do,’ Juliet explained. ‘Nelson’s up here every weekend.’

  ‘So you stay up here with them?’ Dan asked.

  ‘I have my own room,’ I replied, hoping I didn’t sound as defensive as I suspected I did.

  ‘Super cool, man.’ Dan was nodding with an indulgent smile. ‘Juliet and I were just having a chat about going out on the slopes tomorrow.’

  I resisted the temptation to look sideways at Juliet.

  ‘Dan’s training to be a ski instructor,’ she said.

  Dan laughed. ‘Unofficially. I’m in with a bunch of the instructors here. Know them from doing all the stunt teams when I was a kid. Anyway, I do the rail parks with them sometimes and they’re kind of showing me the ropes.’ His shrug was clearly supposed to seem modest. ‘But yeah, I was telling Juliet that I could give her some lessons.’

  ‘I didn’t think you needed lessons,’ I said to Juliet.

  ‘Never said I did,’ she replied. ‘We were just talking about it.’

  ‘Excuse to get away from your folks though, right?’ Dan winked. ‘Tell ’em you’re learning.’

  ‘So you’re from Melbourne?’ I did my best to keep my voice light and airy.

  ‘Yeah, mate.’ Dan leaned back. ‘I’m at Whitechapel Grammar down there, Year Ten. You know it?’

  I didn’t. ‘Sure.’

  ‘Yeah, pretty great sports programs,’ he went on. ‘I’m on the footy team, but I try to balance that with a few good skis every year. You ski, Nelson?’

  ‘Nelson’s entering the Whitt,’ Juliet said.

  Dan raised both eyebrows. ‘Bit of a racer, mate? I like your confidence seeing as they haven’t held the qualifiers yet.’

  ‘You going to enter?’ I asked.

  ‘Nah, mate. I’m a bit past all that, you know? The Whitt’s fun for casual skiers, but it’s not super fair for me to be a part of it.’

  I felt a hot flush creeping up my cheeks, but did my best to ignore it.

  ‘What else do you do, Nelson?’ Dan asked. ‘You from around here?’

  ‘Snow Point, yeah.’

  ‘You go to school down there?’

  ‘I do.’

  ‘There you go. I didn’t even realise Snow Point had a school.’ He returned his attention to Juliet. ‘So, what room are you in?’

  Was he seriously asking that?

  ‘Seven,’ she said.

  ‘Ah, hit me up next time,’ he said to her. ‘My family has a bit of weight around here – I can get you upgraded.’ He took out his phone. ‘What’s your number?’

  It was like alarm bells had started going off all around me, and all I could do was sit there with that horrible fake smile that I knew wasn’t convincing anybody.

  ‘Um …’ Juliet glanced at me. ‘Well …’

  At that point a familiar face appeared in the doorway.

  ‘Danny Boy, with me,’ Barry said. ‘There are some lads from the lift company I want you to meet.’

  ‘One second, Dad,’ Dan said.

  Dad? I glanced between them, open-mouthed.

  ‘Stolen seconds are for losers, mate,’ Barry snapped, then gave Juliet and me an unimpressed look before leaving again.

  ‘Families, right?’ Dan laughed.

  ‘Right,’ Juliet said. ‘Hey, speaking of which, I actually need to get back to mine. Games night, apparently.’ She shot me an apologetic look. ‘Good to meet you, Dan. See you, Nel.’

  I watched her leave, and made a point of not looking at Dan.

  ‘Cute girl, huh, mate?’ He clapped me on the knee, making me jump. ‘Give it a year or two before you try though, eh? She’s a bit out of your league right now.’

  I had no idea what to say to that. I just stared at him.

  He winked. ‘See you round, mate. Enjoy your room all to yourself.’

  After he left I sat there for several minutes, mind racing, my fists clenching and unclenching. I thought of how much I had been looking forward to spending the weekends with Juliet. I thought of the magic we’d shared the first time we met. And I thought of Dan intruding every weekend from now on, with his winks and his laughs and suggestions that, as I’d maybe privately suspected all along, I had no right to think a girl like Juliet would ever be interested in me.

  I found Charlie splayed on the couch in the staff area, watching a sitcom. I sat across from him.

  ‘You still want to
get Barry out of here?’

  He sat up straight. ‘Dude, I’ve been working at it for ages.’

  ‘I’m in,’ I said, despite having no idea what I’d just opted in to.

  For a moment he watched me, considering. Then he glanced towards the hall that led to the kitchen. ‘Nelson —’

  ‘We’ll be smart about it,’ I said. ‘My parents don’t ever need to know.’

  ‘Still,’ Charlie said. ‘It’s risky.’

  ‘Okay.’

  He looked me in the eye. ‘I’ll level with you: I’m gonna ask you to do something a bit dodgy. Only because if you get caught it’s a slap on the wrist. But if any of us get caught, we’d lose our jobs and maybe end up with a criminal record.’

  My stomach turned. ‘Criminal?’

  ‘It’s more …’ Charlie seemed to be trying to find the words. ‘More that if anyone gets caught it’ll look really bad, but it’s honestly just a prank.’

  I thought back to Dan’s laugh and what he’d said about Juliet being out of my league.

  ‘Alright,’ I said.

  Charlie smiled. ‘Meet us in my room at midnight and I’ll take you through the plan.’

  The word ‘criminal’ added a spike of fear to the anger and jealousy I was already feeling, but I’d be lying if I said that I didn’t leave the room excited.

  12

  I couldn’t have slept that night if I’d wanted to. I lay on my bunk tossing and turning, occasionally checking my phone, until at 11:55 I slid off my bed and went to the door. I paused for a moment, listening, then opened it a crack. Silence in the chilly hall.

  I stepped out. My eyes moved to the door to my parents’ room. There was no light coming from under it.

  I hurried to Charlie’s room and, feeling like I was in a spy movie or something, knocked once. The door opened and Charlie ushered me in. Matt and Ash were already there, sitting on the bed. Charlie’s room was covered in Green Day posters and a large, expensive-looking laptop sat on his desk beside a printer.

  ‘Alright,’ Charlie gestured for me to sit next to the others. ‘Let’s get this show on the road.’