Page 49 of Knowing You
‘He was only trying to help. Alice has been nasty since I started that stupid school, saying things about Uncle Kevin. She thought he was your boyfriend.’
Mum sits down at the kitchen table. She reaches out an arm and pulls me close.
‘Don’t you understand how serious this is? You are very lucky Alice’s burns are superficial. You could have got into a lot of trouble if they were worse.’
‘But she hurts me every day. Mrs Warham has given up doing anything. It’s as if Alice and her friends being mean to me has just become part of school life like assembly or morning break. It’s not fair. At least Flint is on my side.’
‘So am I,’ says Mum gently. ‘Look, I’ll have a word with the school; see if we can sort this out.’ She gives me a hug. ‘But I can’t let this go unpunished. You can forget sparklers and bangers and mash tonight. I want you in bed early. I want you to think about how two wrongs don’t make a right.’
‘She says Uncle Kevin was a jumper. It’s because of her I have those nightmares.’
Mum’s face tightens. ‘Just go to your room, Violet. I’ll bring up beans on toast later on, but no cake or ice cream.’
‘It’s Friday!’
‘Bad luck. I feel very disappointed.’
Legs feeling heavy, I snatch my bag off the floor and head upstairs.
I hate Alice.
I hate school.
I hate my life.
Flint is the only good thing apart from Flossie.
Whatever Mum says, there’s no way I’m going to stop seeing him.
Chapter 21
I wake up the next morning at a quarter to seven. I turn off my alarm clock that is due to ring in fifteen minutes. I glance at my phone. There are no messages from Casey. He’s probably still wrapped up with Beatrix. I shower, get changed and head out of the building. It’s a beautiful sunny day.
The trouble is, I can’t force myself onto the pavement and route into the office. My legs simply won’t move that way. I sit down on the bench, next to the wooden bird table. I don’t have many scraps for it lately. I often used to cover it, on the way to work, with a crushed stale scone or bread crusts. I lean back as the last blossom petals float down like hesitant confetti.
‘Violet? Everything okay?’ says Bella, looking super fit in her spa uniform and bouncy ponytail. She’s out of breath. ‘I forgot my purse. How are you feeling?’
‘I can’t believe what an idiot I was, running away just at the moment Casey and I were about to get really close. Thanks for listening to me last night. I didn’t even ask how your date went.’
She sits down next to me and squeezes my shoulder. ‘Violet…there’s still over a week until the party. We aren’t giving up yet.’
‘What’s the point of carrying on? I’ve been kidding myself.’
She insists I stand up, and marches me over to look in front of a window straight ahead. ‘Compared to your average Joe that comes into the spa, you look great. But I promised that I’d make you look like an A-lister and there are still a couple of areas we could improve. Don’t be weak like the old you. Get a grip, Violet, and stop feeling sorry for yourself. I haven’t spent weeks getting you into shape for you to lose your nerve at the last minute.’
Harsh words. Perhaps I need to hear them. I look at her determined face and nod. Bella’s not one to abandon a project.
‘Let’s combine the jogging with some fitness DVDs. And I watched an amazing show last night on top lingerie models. There was some serious ribcage bragging going on and they did look amazing. Taut. Slick. Not an ounce of flesh to spare. To me, that’s perfection.’
Was it? I bit my lip. Hadn’t I done enough already? Did I really need to go that far?
Bella must have sensed my hesitation and squeezed my arm. ‘It represents someone who is ultra disciplined and prepared to do whatever it takes to get what they want in life. It’s no different to Daniel Craig following his rigid regime to get in shape to play James Bond. Success is only achieved by working bloody hard. It won’t be handed to you on a plate – certainly not a full one. My parents never supported my career ambitions. They said a degree was worth far more than a beauty qualification. But I’ve gritted my teeth and showed them I could make a success of my passion. We get on well now. They’ve even told me how proud they are of the direction my life’s taking.’
She’s right. I’m a fool for thinking otherwise.
We sit down again. A blue tit lands on the bird table and cocks its head before pecking at a lump of cake.
‘You already fit my clothes, Violet. You’ve got used to wearing contacts and drink so much water you’re almost under threat of being overhydrated. I’m so proud that you’ve come this far but please, don’t disappoint me. I don’t want to lose respect for the woman I’ve become so fond of.’
