Mimi followed her gaze. ‘But you wanted it to be?’
‘No, I—’
‘Ello, ‘ello!’
‘Hi, Jack!’ Sive smiled up at the eight-year-old, grateful for the interruption.
‘Mind if I join you, me ol’ muckers?’
‘Not at all.’ Sive patted the space on the floor beside her, and Jack sat down, cross-legged.
‘Please tell me that’s not coffee you’re drinking?’ Sive asked, nodding to the cardboard cup in his hand.
‘Nah, I got it for you, innit?’ He handed it to her.
‘Oh, thanks. That’s very nice of you.’ Sive smiled, wondering if he’d really got it for her or if he was improvising.
‘Well, I’m off to get some of that, since some of us clearly have to serve ourselves,’ Mimi said, standing. ‘But this isn’t over,’ she added in an undertone to Sive. ‘We’ll talk about it later with Aoife.’
‘Wot’s that about, then, eh?’ Jack asked, nodding at Mimi’s retreating back.
Sive shrugged. ‘My sister’s just giving me grief about my love life.’
Jack shook his head sagely and sighed. ‘Skin and blisters, eh?’
‘What about you, Jack? Do you have any, um, skin and blisters? Or… I don’t know what the Cockney rhyming slang is for brother?’
‘Manhole cover,’ Jack supplied readily. ‘I’ve got one. No skin and blisters.’
‘Older or younger? Your … manhole cover?’
‘Older. ’E’s in sixth class.’
‘So your mum tells me you’re trying Method acting?’
‘Yep.’
‘And you’re using the crutch all the time now? To get in character?’
Jack nodded, taking a bag of Haribo from his pocket. He stuffed a handful into his mouth and offered the bag to Sive.
‘No, thanks. Are you keeping the accent up all the time too?’
‘Cor blimey, I sure am,’ he said with a grin, larding it on. ‘Drives me bruvver nuts, it does!’
‘I bet. Your mother too, I think.’
‘I ain’t allowed do it at school, though.’ He popped another couple of sweets into his mouth. ‘Anyway, they won’t have to put up with it much longer. Don’t want to get typecast playin’ Cockney urchins for the rest of me life, do I? This is my second in a row. I need to do somefink different.’
‘Very wise. Are you up for anything else at the moment?’
‘Nah.’ He shrugged. ‘Ain’t nothin’ much goin’ at the moment. You know wot it’s like in this game.’
‘Yeah, it’s tough finding good roles.’
‘You finkyou‘ave it bad, darlin’? Try bein’ my age.’
Sive suppressed a smile.
