The True Colour of a Little White Lie

by Gabriel Bergmoser

  ‘You sure about this?’ Matt muttered to me.

  I nodded.

  ‘Remember – I’m at risk of deportation,’ Matt said.

  ‘Not if you do this right,’ Charlie replied. ‘The job is simple.’ He held up a pill bottle. ‘I had a mate coming up from Snow Point and asked him to pick me up these.’

  ‘Which are?’ Matt asked.

  ‘Why, Matthew, I’m surprised you didn’t immediately recognise them,’ Charlie said. ‘These, my friend, are the most powerful, brutal, stomach-scouring laxatives known to man.’

  Ash let out a crow of laughter.

  ‘Hang on,’ Matt paused, stifling a giggle. ‘You’re saying …’

  ‘The protein shakes,’ Charlie said. ‘He’s always downing them, right? So what I’m suggesting is that we sneak a load of these into his protein powder. Because tomorrow night, Barry will be playing an historic round of pool against the greatest player in the lodge.’

  ‘Who’s that?’ Matt asked.

  ‘You,’ Charlie said. ‘Didn’t you know?’

  ‘What?’ Matt exclaimed. ‘Dude, I suck at pool!’

  ‘Doesn’t matter,’ Charlie said. ‘Or it won’t if everything goes to plan.’

  ‘Hang on, he doesn’t like staff members hanging out in the Lounge,’ Ash said.

  ‘Yes, but he’s also got a bad case of little-man syndrome,’ Charlie said. ‘So when I grabbed a drink in the bar last night and loudly told Esther how good Matt was at pool —’

  ‘I’m not good at pool.’

  ‘— Barry immediately demanded a game.’ Charlie grinned. ‘A game that he’ll be playing with a stomach full of …’ He shook the bottle. ‘And as we know …’

  ‘You don’t leave until the game is done,’ Ash and I chorused.

  ‘Wait, wait,’ Matt said. ‘How do you know he’ll take them at the right time?’

  ‘Because guys like Barry drink their protein shakes where everyone can see them doing it. To show off how tough they are or something,’ Charlie said.

  I nodded.

  ‘So that’s why we plant the laxatives tomorrow while he’s out on the slopes.’

  I shifted in my seat. My part in this was becoming uncomfortably clear.

  ‘Which is where Nelson comes in,’ Charlie went on. ‘Once we know Barry is out of the room, he’ll sneak in and pour these, which I’ve already ground up, straight into Barry’s protein powder. Ash’s covering reception tomorrow so she can get the code to his room. Also the reception office is where the security footage goes. Ash will let me in and I’ll delete what has to be deleted. Matt, you keep watch and run interference if need be. Five minutes, and we’re home free.’ He leaned back, looking satisfied.

  ‘I don’t know, man,’ Matt said. ‘I just feel like …’ He looked at me. ‘Nelson, are you really sure about this? You can’t get fired or anything but you’re not exactly gonna get off scot-free if you’re caught. Barry’s on the board; your parents could get in serious trouble.’

  I swallowed. That had occurred to me. And I’d be lying if I said that my every instinct wasn’t to get out of this as quickly as I could. But when I thought about Dan’s smug smile and Juliet laughing at his jokes and …

  ‘I’m sure,’ I said.

  ‘Absolutely no hard feelings if you decide not to,’ Charlie said.

  ‘I’m sure,’ I repeated.

  I could feel Matt watching me and kept my eyes determinedly forward. Partly because I knew that he wouldn’t have to look long to know how unsure I really was.

  ‘We’ll do it around eleven,’ Charlie said. ‘Ash will confirm Barry’s out of the lodge. Obviously if he doesn’t leave, we abort.’

  ‘He has a son,’ I said, trying to sound as if the fact meant nothing to me. ‘We have to make sure he’s out too.’

  ‘Really?’ Charlie frowned. ‘Anyone else with them?’

  ‘It’s just him and the son,’ Ash said. ‘I checked the register. So if they’re both out, we’re good to go.’

  Charlie handed me the bottle. ‘Hang on to this. At eleven, come downstairs. We’ll let you know if the coast is clear.’

  The small container somehow felt heavier than it should have.

  ‘Alright, troops,’ Charlie said. ‘Steaks on me tomorrow night if we pull it off.’

  I could barely eat the next morning. I picked at my food in the restaurant, eyes occasionally moving to the clock. When I saw Barry enter the restaurant followed by Dan, it was all I could do not to dive straight under the table. My palms were sweating.

  The idea of being caught in their room went from fear to very possible outcome. What was I thinking? Mum and Dad would be fired, I’d be kicked out of the Gal in disgrace, and I’d never see Juliet again.

  I was about to go and tell Charlie I had to pull out, when Juliet trailed after her parents into the restaurant. They sat at their usual table and within literally moments Dan had walked over to talk to them. I tried to keep my focus on my food but laughter started from the table. Juliet’s famously grumpy parents seemed to find everything Dan said funny or charming or both.

  I returned to my room full of renewed determination and played out my planned movements over and over in my head. Down the stairs, casually wander into the guest area, make sure the coast is clear, sneak into the room, plant the laxatives, humiliation, freedom, the end. Easy. Super easy.

  At eleven, just as planned, I left the staff quarters and made my way to reception, doing my best to look casual. One foot in front of the other, I smiled and nodded at whoever I passed, but inside I was wondering whether this was how I normally walked or if I was giving something away and how did I normally walk? By the time I reached reception, panic was just about ready to set in again.

  Ash beckoned me over to the desk and slipped me a small post-it note. ‘They’re gone,’ she said. ‘Coast is clear. Room one.’

  My family’s old room. Perfect. I took the note. A four-digit code was written on it.

  I walked down the hall and passed Matt. He was leaning against the wall, phone in hand, and didn’t acknowledge me. Playing it cool.

  I turned a corner and was immediately standing in front of room one.

  I looked at the code. 4672. With a trembling hand, I reached out and keyed it in, missing the 2 and hitting 4. A loud beep rang out. I flinched and looked from side to side. Nobody was around. I took a deep breath. It was fine. It was all fine.

  I keyed in the code, this time getting it right. The door clicked open and I stepped into the familiar room.

  Barry’s protein powder sat prominently on the kitchenette bench. I hurried over and with shaking hands unscrewed the lid. I reached for the bottle in my pocket then something stopped me.

  There were voices outside the door. Voices I knew. Barry and Dan.

  Then the beep of the first number being put into the keypad.

  There was no time to think. I put the lid on the protein without screwing it shut then hurried around into the next room, where I used to sleep. My eyes jumped from the bathroom to a suitcase to the bunk bed then, as I heard the door handle open, I dived under the bed, moving across until I was up against the wall. I tried as hard as I could not to breathe.

  ‘How could you forget?’ Barry was saying.

  ‘It’s a nice day,’ Dan said. ‘I don’t need it.’

  ‘Mate, I told you; you don’t go out without your beanie,’ Barry snapped. ‘I pay enough money for those lessons; I’m not having you miss out because you’ve caught a cold. Now hurry up and find it.’

  I heard Dan dragging his feet into the room. He stopped. ‘It’s not here.’

  ‘Can’t be anywhere else, mate.’

  ‘Can’t we just buy a new one? It’s only a beanie.’

  ‘You want me to crack open my wallet every time you lose something? We’re not going back out there until you find it.’

  My eyes moved upwards slightly. I could have cried. A black beanie lay on the floor just above my head.

  ‘Dad,
seriously!’ Dan whined.

  I didn’t see any other choice. I flicked it out from under the bed then closed my eyes tight, hoping that Dan was too distracted to notice what had just happened.

  Silence.

  ‘The sooner you find it, the sooner we can go,’ Barry said, his voice level and friendly and poisonous.

  Dan muttered something under his breath then stopped short. I bit my fist.

  ‘Oh,’ he said. ‘Found it.’

  I didn’t open my eyes. I heard a shuffle of movement then receding footsteps then the door shutting.

  I stayed where I was. Minutes passed. I listened, certain that Dan or Barry were still in the room, that it was a trap. But there was no sound.

  I opened my eyes. Took a breath. Then edged out from under the bed.

  The room was empty.

  My breathing was fast and shallow. My heart was pounding. I was covered in sweat. I ran back to the protein powder, knocked off the lid and poured in the laxatives before replacing the lid. I scurried to the door. I listened for approaching voices, then opened it and slipped into the hall, almost colliding with Matt.

  He was pale and wide eyed. ‘You’re okay.’

  I nodded, not trusting myself to speak.

  Matt ran a hand through his hair. ‘I thought we were screwed. I seriously, honestly thought we were done. I tried to distract them but he just ignored me and …’ He shook his head. ‘Never again.’

  ‘It’s done,’ I said.

  ‘Almost gave me a goddamn heart attack,’ Matt growled. ‘This better be worth it.’

  13

  I spent the afternoon skiing alone, letting the lingering stress of the morning subside and trying to not think about all the ways this could go wrong. Like, say Charlie didn’t delete the security footage properly, or Barry got the police involved to check for fingerprints. I wish I’d thought of wearing gloves. What if somebody noticed how shifty I was being this morning and put two and two together?

  I’d mentioned some of my concerns to Matt before going out, but he wasn’t too worried.

  ‘Who would believe anyone would go to these lengths?’ he asked. ‘I mean, I can barely believe it myself and I am directly involved. I bet Barry ends up so embarrassed he never tries to follow it up. Wouldn’t you be?’

  I thought back to trying to explain the ‘thinking’ disaster at school. Even an obvious answer was easy to ignore when people wanted to believe something enough.

  Still, I walked back into the Gal that afternoon on edge, ready to be set upon by the police or my parents or Barry himself, itching to take his revenge by strapping me to a chair and lecturing me on how to play pool – a notion that made jail look pretty appealing.

  But none of that happened. I made it to my room alive and unarrested, got changed and walked down to the games room. I was going to sit and read until Juliet turned up, then it occurred to me that if Charlie’s plan worked I probably wanted a front-row seat, so I moved into the Governor’s Lounge.

  The lounge was always busy on Saturday nights, but tonight it was especially so. Apparently the promise of Barry playing against the lodge’s ‘greatest pool player’ had drawn quite the crowd.

  Matt, for his part, looked a bit nervous despite the fact that he didn’t actually have to be good. He was off to the side nodding and smiling as a few older guys drilled him about the best games he’d ever played.

  ‘Oh, you know,’ he was saying. ‘It’s all about just, like, hitting the ball with the other ball so it goes in the hole.’

  There was a smattering of awed mutters at his wisdom.

  Juliet appeared. She looked around the room, saw me, and walked over. ‘What are you doing here? Tell me you’re not about to watch this stupid game.’

  ‘Just, um, change of scenery,’ I said.

  ‘You okay?’

  ‘Yep.’ I kept my eyes on the door, waiting for Barry.

  For a moment, she didn’t speak. When she did, she sounded tentative. ‘Nelson … I didn’t ski with Dan today.’

  I looked at her. ‘What?’

  ‘I didn’t.’

  It took me a moment to realise what was going on. ‘No, I never … I know you didn’t.’

  ‘Look,’ she glanced around. ‘In case it wasn’t obvious, I should probably say —’

  ‘Here for the show?’ Dan had arrived, arms spread as he made his way over to us. ‘Everyone’s going on about this English bloke’s skills, but I’ll tell you what, they haven’t seen the old man in full flight.’

  ‘Look, Dan,’ Juliet began, but then a hush fell over the room. Everyone was turning to the door.

  Barry had entered, a protein shake in his hand. My stomach flipped. It was happening. It was really happening.

  Swigging heavily from the shake, Barry crossed the room to Matt. He extended a hand. Matt shook it.

  ‘No hard feelings if I kick your arse, mate?’ Barry said loudly.

  Matt’s nervous expression gave way to a smile. ‘None whatsoever.’

  ‘Given you’re the hero player, you can break.’ Barry gave a sweeping gesture, then drank again. The shake was almost gone. My fingernails dug into the palm of my hand.

  ‘Right,’ Matt said. ‘Um. Yeah. Sure.’

  He lined up the shot and hit the white. The triangle of balls broke apart, but barely. Barry raised an eyebrow.

  ‘Interesting move, mate,’ he said, then lined up and hit a ball, which he didn’t sink.

  So Matt clearly sucked, but as the game went on it became pretty clear that Barry wasn’t much better. Balls moved around the table but few actually went into the pockets. I could hear some mutters among the customers watching. Clearly this wasn’t the incredible match they’d been expecting.

  Minutes passed. Barry crept ahead, just. I saw Matt’s glances at him increase. I knew what he was thinking – if Barry finished the game before the laxatives kicked in, this would all be for nothing.

  ‘Now, mate, I don’t know how they do things in England, but let me give you some advice,’ Barry said. ‘When you’re playing pool, you need to …’

  He faltered. A troubled expression crossed his face, followed by a troubled sound from his stomach.

  Matt leaned against his cue. ‘You were saying?’

  ‘I was saying …’

  Another loud rumble. Barry grimaced and lined up the shot. He missed, badly. He backed away from the table. A sheen of sweat had broken out on his forehead.

  Matt sank a ball. Then another. A couple of gasps from the crowd. Barry was wincing. Matt sank a third. The fourth he missed, but he looked happy enough with himself.

  I glanced at Juliet, then Dan. Both were watching intently, but Dan looked more than a little bothered by what he was seeing.

  Barry went to line up his shot, but dropped the cue. Another, louder sound resonated from his stomach. His shoulders hunched. He picked up the cue. He glanced at the door. He went to speak but looked at the door again.

  ‘No leaving until the game is done, mate,’ Matt said evenly.

  Barry looked like he was about to cry. His expression hardened. He picked up the cue. Breathing heavily now, he focused on the ball. He struck it. He missed. Matt spun the cue in his hand and went to take his shot.

  He sank the ball just as Barry let out a wailing, choked scream and a moment later another, far more horrifying sound followed.

  Silence filled the room. Barry’s usually red face was pale. Everyone was staring at him. A couple of people were holding their noses.

  Holding back tears and trying to run, but not doing very well, he waddled out the door.

  ‘What was that you said about full flight?’ Juliet asked Dan.

  She didn’t get a reply. Dan had already run for the door.

  ‘Unbelievable!’ Charlie leaned back on the couch in the staff area and raised his beer. ‘Absolutely unbelievable.’

  Matt, Ash and I lifted our own drinks – wine in their case, Coke in mine.

  ‘How did that go so smoothly?’
Ash wondered.

  ‘I wouldn’t say it went smoothly,’ Matt said. ‘Nelson almost got caught.’

  ‘But I didn’t,’ I said.

  ‘They’ve cut their stay short,’ Ash told us. ‘Leaving tomorrow morning. And he cancelled their trip up next weekend.’

  Charlie shook his head. ‘We couldn’t have even dreamt of this kind of outcome.’

  I sipped my drink. I was glad of the way things had gone, but it was Juliet’s words that kept repeating in my head that showed she clearly had never thought much of Dan to begin with. It would have been good to know that before breaking into Dan’s room. But then, things with Juliet would definitely be easier without the handsome jerk around making me feel small.

  The next morning I got up especially early and took a seat by the window in the restaurant. As I ate I looked out into the foggy morning. Two familiar figures, weighed down by luggage, traipsed across the snow. I tried not to laugh as I watched Barry and Dan hurry down the driveway as fast as they could.

  Dan glanced back and caught my eye. For a moment he paused, and I had to look away before I burst into giggles.

  I’d barely managed to compose myself when Juliet sat down across from me. I looked around for her parents, but they were nowhere to be seen.

  ‘Up early too?’ she said, picking up my coffee and taking a sip.

  ‘Yeah, something about catching worms.’

  ‘Yuck.’

  For a few seconds neither of us spoke. Juliet glanced out the window. Dan and Barry had reached the bottom of the drive.

  ‘You had something to do with that, didn’t you?’ she asked.

  ‘With what?’ I tried to look innocent.

  She raised an eyebrow.

  ‘It wasn’t my idea,’ I said. ‘But I didn’t exactly stand in the way of things.’

  Juliet cocked her head to the side. ‘You were jealous, weren’t you?’

  I looked out the window again, waiting for a cool, collected response to come to me. None did.

  ‘Yeah. I was.’

  Any last doubts about what I’d done were eliminated by Juliet’s grin.

  14

  It’s weird how quickly the strange can become normal and a novelty turns into your life. Being up on the mountain had always been a fun, occasional trip to look forward to, and while I did believe there was a magic to the place, that magic felt like something you could only get in short bursts. Not so. As the school holidays arrived, suddenly the Gallagher was my whole world and I wouldn’t have had it any other way.