Alice to the Rescue
Page 11
By the time Linda was showered and dressed, Alice had called over, looking totally cool in a new skirt and top.
(I was so glad to see her happy again that I forgave her for looking better than me.)
Alice and I helped Linda to blow-dry her hair, and then Alice insisted on making Linda up with some of the make-up she’d bought for her wedding day.
‘It’s going to be a long day,’ she said. ‘And you’ll feel better if you look your best.’
Linda didn’t even argue. She was quiet and obedient and sad-looking.
Just as Linda was ready, a very frazzled-looking Mum put her head around the door.
‘Everyone ready?’ she asked.
We all nodded.
Mum had showered and put on the nice dress she’d had for my Confirmation, but the red on her cheeks betrayed the work she’d been doing all morning.
‘You look lovely, Mum,’ I said, and the lie was worth it for the happy smile she gave me.
And then Linda, Mum, Dad, Rosie, Alice and I all set off for the wedding that wasn’t meant to be.
Chapter thirty-one
As we got closer to the registry office, Linda began to slow her steps. Alice and I slowed down too, letting Mum, Dad and Rosie walk ahead.
‘I can’t go through with this,’ said Linda. ‘I’m too much of a coward. I’m not brave enough to get married, and I’m not brave enough to tell people that I’m not brave enough to get married. Someone else will have to do it. Sheila….’ she suddenly called.
Mum stopped walking and looked back.
‘What is it?’ she asked.
Alice made a furious face at Linda and then smiled at Mum.
‘Linda was just going to thank you for all your hard work,’ she said, squeezing Linda’s arm tightly, ‘weren’t you, Linda?’
Linda nodded.
‘Er … yes. That’s it. Thanks, Sheila.’
Mum gave her a funny look.
‘You’re welcome,’ she said. ‘Now let’s keep going, or we’re going to be late.’
* * *
I wished the walk would go on forever, as I sooo did not want to get to the registry office.
I soooo did not want to be part of what was going to happen next.
Still, even though we walked really slowly, we soon turned the last corner, and found ourselves right outside the office, where crowds of people in their best clothes were milling around.
‘This is awful,’ said Linda. ‘I have to get it over with as quickly as possible.’
Then, before Alice and I could do anything, Linda broke away from us. She ran up to the first group of people – three old women in flowery hats.
‘Linda!’ said one of them, ‘your dress is simply—’
Before she could finish her sentence, Linda interrupted her, ‘Can you just go inside quickly please?’ she said. ‘I’ll explain everything once everyone is together.’
They gave her puzzled looks, but obediently walked towards the door of the registry office. Then, as the crowd parted, I gulped.
There was Luka.
He was walking towards us.
He was wearing a beautiful suit, with a flower in the lapel.
He had a huge smile on his face.
I looked quickly at Alice.
‘He ignored you,’ I whispered. ‘He came anyway.’
Alice didn’t answer.
I looked at Linda. She looked like she’d seen a ghost.
Luka raised his hands in the air.
‘My beautiful bride,’ he said loudly, and everyone cheered as he put his arms around Linda. He twirled her around in the air until all we could see was the rush of soft blue silk, spinning in the air like a giant windmill.
At last Luka put Linda down.
‘Come on, my darling,’ he said. ‘Let’s go inside and get married.’
Linda gasped as she tried to catch her breath. Her face was pink and her hair was tossed, but she was beaming.
She leaned towards Alice.
‘What’s going on?’ she whispered.
Alice shrugged.
‘Do you want to get married?’
Linda nodded, still with a huge smile on her face.
‘Yes, more than anything in the world.’
‘Well then,’ said Alice. ‘Isn’t it lucky that I forgot to go and see Luka last night?’
‘I don’t understand,’ said Linda.
Alice shrugged.
‘I’ve been around a lot,’ she said, sounding like an old woman. ‘I knew you were only suffering from last-minute nerves. I couldn’t just stand by and watch you make a total mess of your wedding day.’
Linda put her hand to her face.
‘But what about the letter I wrote to Luka?’
Alice grinned as she took the still-sealed letter out of her pocket and slipped it into Linda’s handbag.
‘You can show it to your grandchildren,’ she said. ‘Now hurry up. Your bridegroom is waiting.’
I turned to Alice.
‘You’re incredible,’ I said.
Alice grinned.
‘I know,’ she said. ‘Now let’s go inside. I’ve invested a lot in this wedding. I want to be sure to get a good view.’
Chapter thirty-two
An hour later we were back at the house. Mum and Dad, who don’t speak Latvian, were trying to chat with Luka’s parents, who don’t speak English. There was lots of smiling and nodding and waving of hands, but I don’t think much information was being exchanged.
Luka, who speaks both languages, wasn’t much help. He and Linda were sitting on the couch. They were holding hands like a couple in a soppy movie, and they were both smiling like they never wanted to stop.
I watched as the three old women in flowery hats went up to Linda.
‘Outside the registry office,’ one of them said, ‘you wanted to tell us something.’
Linda’s face went red.
‘Oh,’ she said. ‘That was—’
Alice raced over.
‘She wanted to tell you where the fire exits were, and then she forgot. Isn’t it lucky there wasn’t a fire, or we could all have been killed?’
The three women nodded their heads, making their hats bob up and down like a field full of flowers in the wind.
‘Thanks, Alice,’ mouthed Linda, and Alice smiled.
‘Any time,’ she said.
* * *
Shortly afterwards Mum disappeared in to the kitchen. Half an hour later, she announced that the food was ready, and everyone crowded around the table.
Even I had to admit that the food smelled lovely, and I was glad to see that people seemed to be enjoying it.
So many people congratulated Mum that she began to be embarrassed.
‘It’s nothing,’ she said. ‘Just a few things I threw together this morning.’
Alice and I looked at Linda and we all laughed.
When everyone else was served, Alice and I got plates and went to the table. Just then there was a ring at the door.
Alice followed me into the hall. I opened the front door to see a pizza delivery man on the door step. He was carrying a pizza box, with two cans of fizzy drinks balanced on top. I could smell yummy cheese and onions and pepperoni. I could almost taste the fizzy bubbles of the drink on the back of my throat.
‘Sorry,’ I said sadly. ‘We didn’t order pizza. I think you must have the wrong house.’
The man looked at the label on the box.
‘I don’t think so,’ he said. ‘The address looks right.’
I sighed, wondering which one of our lucky neighbours was having pizza for lunch.
‘What name is on the order?’ I asked.
The man read the label.
‘It says for Megan and Alice,’ he said. ‘That wouldn’t be you two, would it?’
Alice and I looked at each other. Alice grinned.
‘If it’s a pizza, and it’s got our names on it, I ain’t arguing,’ she said.
Suddenly Linda was behind us.
She took the pizza and the drinks, paid the man and closed the door behind him.
She held the pizza towards Alice and me. I took it quickly, just in case she changed her mind.
‘My treat,’ said Linda. ‘And thank you, Alice. Thank you very, very much. You will never know what a big favour you did me yesterday.’
Then she gave Alice a big hug.
‘Maybe you’d better eat that in your room, Megan,’ she said. ‘We can’t have the other guests getting jealous, can we?’
And then she went back to her husband and her party.
* * *
Twenty minutes later, Alice and I were lying on my bed, licking our lips. The empty drink cans were on the locker beside my bed. The empty pizza box lay on the floor, and Domino was licking the last traces of food from the cardboard.
‘Should we go back to the party?’ asked Alice.
‘In a minute,’ I said lazily. It was nice lying there with Alice, talking about nothing much.
‘You shouldn’t really be here,’ I said after a while. ‘You should be in France now – in your boarding school.’
Suddenly I had an amazing thought.
‘No one else would have been brave enough to do what you did. If you weren’t here, Linda would have gone ahead and cancelled her wedding.’
Alice smiled.
‘Yeah, she would have, wouldn’t she? So I suppose it’s lucky I fell.’
‘It’s lucky that Domino got stuck in the tree,’ I said.
‘It’s lucky that of all the houses on this road, Domino chose this one to stray into last year.’
I leaned over and stroked Domino.
‘So black cats are lucky after all,’ I said to her. ‘You saved Linda’s wedding.’
Domino didn’t seem impressed. She licked her lips and then jumped on to the windowsill.
‘And if you get caught up any more trees, I’m not rescuing you,’ said Alice. ‘You’re on your own.’
Domino just gave her one of her sly stares, and then she jumped out through the open window.
I turned to Alice.
‘Thanks for saving Domino,’ I said. ‘And thanks for saving Linda. And I’m really, really sorry about France.’
Alice smiled.
‘That’s OK. And don’t worry about France. I’m over it. And remember Megan, no matter what happens, there’s always something else nice waiting around the corner.’
I smiled. Maybe she was right. Maybe there always was something nice waiting around the corner.
Then my best friend and I got up and went back to the party.
About the Author
JUDI CURTIN grew up in Cork and now lives in Limerick where she is married with three children. Her ‘Alice & Megan’ series, as well as Alice & Megan’s Cookbook and Eva’s Journey, are all published by The O’Brien Press. With Roisin Meaney, she is the author of See If I Care, and she has also written three novels, Sorry, Walter, From Claire to Here and Almost Perfect. Her books have been translated into Serbian, Portuguese and German.
The ‘Alice & Megan’ series
Alice Next Door
Alice Again
Don’t Ask Alice
Alice in the Middle
Bonjour Alice
Alice & Megan Forever
Alice to the Rescue
Alice & Megan’s Cookbook
Other Books
Eva’s Journey
Copyright
This eBook edition first published 2013 by The O’Brien Press Ltd,
12 Terenure Road East, Rathgar, Dublin 6, Ireland
Tel: +353 1 4923333; Fax: +353 1 4922777
E-mail: books@obrien.ie
Website: www.obrien.ie
First published 2009
eBook ISBN: 978–1–84717–376–8
Text © copyright Judi Curtin 2009
Copyright for typesetting, layout, editing, design
© The O’Brien Press Ltd
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Best friends NEED to be together. Don’t they?
Poor Megan! Not alone is she stuck with totally uncool parents, and a little sister who is too cute for words, but now her best friend, Alice, has moved away. Now Megan has to go to school and face the dreaded Melissa all on her own. The two friends hatch a risky plot to get back together. But can their secret plan work?
It’s mid-term break and Megan’s off to visit Alice.
Megan is hoping for a nice trouble-free few days with her best friend. No such luck! She soon discovers that Alice is once again plotting and scheming. It seems that Alice’s mum Veronica has a new boyfriend. The plan is to discover who he is, and to get rid of him!
Alice and Megan are together again!
They are both looking forward to their Confirmation, especially as their two families are going out to dinner together to celebrate. But not even a meal can be simple when Alice is around as she decides to hatch a plan to get her parents back together …
Best friends forever?
Megan can’t wait to go away to Summer Camp with Alice! It will be fantastic – no organic porridge, no school, nothing but fun! But when Alice makes friends with Hazel, Megan begins to feel left out. Hazel’s pretty, sophisticated and popular, and Alice seems to think she’s amazing. Is Megan going to lose her very best friend?
Sunshine & yummy French food – sounds like the perfect holiday!
Megan’s really looking forward to the summer holidays – her whole family is going to France, and best of all Alice is coming too! But when Alice tries to make friends with a local French boy things begin to get very interesting …
Alice and Megan are starting secondary school.
New subjects, new teachers and new friends – it’s going to take a bit of getting used to.
And when Megan meets Marcus, the class bad-boy who’s always in trouble, but doesn’t seem to care, things really start to get complicated. At least she has Home Ec class with Alice – the worst cook in the school – to look forward to, so school’s not all bad!
Get cooking with Alice & Megan!
Alice and Megan are writing a cookbook. But Alice is not the world’s the greatest cook, so could it be a recipe for disaster? Well, not with Megan’s help …. This fun-filled cookbook is packed with brilliant recipes. Why not wake up to French toast and tropical smoothies? Or go to school with raspberry muffins and pasta salad? Or snack on s’mores and quesadillas? Or impress your friends with homemade burgers followed by ice cream with toffee sauce? All this and more included!
Brilliant Breakfasts . Lucky Lunchboxes . Super Snacks .
Marvellous Main Courses . Delicious Desserts . Cakes & Cookies.
MEET GREAT NEW CHARACTERS FROM
Eva is the girl with everything – great birthday parties, a luxury home, designer clothes and manicured nails – until her world is turned upside down. Forced to move house and school when her dad loses his job, Eva thinks life is over. But, with the help of some new friends and the mysterious Madame Margarita, she finds out that there’s more to life than shopping.
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