You heard right.
Is he good?
I’ll find out soon. Are you worried about your team?
Of course. You know how much I want that prize.
The money? Or me?
Since when did you become the prize?
I laugh.
I’ll win that tournament, Headmistress. I never lose.
She doesn’t reply to this either, but I didn’t expect her to. I don’t need her response. Silence says more than any number of words: especially hers.
I’m going to win, for you and for me, Headmistress. Because we both deserve this chance; and neither of us should let it slip away.
Niall
Carter arrives at around six o’clock. He just about has time for a quick ‘hello’ before my daughter drags him into the dining room, probably out of fear that I’m going to embarrass her. They sit at the big table, as she tells him that her room wasn’t big enough for them both to study in – they’d have had to sit on her bed. At the wordbed, I realise just how much I support her decision. Sure, Carter seems like a good kid – he’s probably too scared of my daughter to try anything – and my daughter has reassured me on more than one occasion that she thinks he’s an utter loser; but you never know what to expect with teenagers. That’s a lesson I’ve learned recently.
I leave them to study as I finish off dinner. For a proper casserole, you need at least three hours of slow-cooking, so I leave it bubbling away on the hob and slice the garlic bread, ready to go into the oven. I grab a beer from the fridge and open it, just as I hear the front door slamming shut. My mother appears suddenly in the kitchen a few seconds later.
“Niall,” she exclaims, her expression shocked. “What are you doing?”
“I’m making dinner.”
My mother looks at me, concern etched across her face.
“What’s up?”
“Nothing, I’m just a little shocked.”
“Wow, thanks.”
“I just didn’t expect it.”
“You were at work, Dad was at work. I was here, doing fuck all.”
She steps towards me and plants a kiss on my cheek. “Thanks for taking care of it.”
“No problem.”
She heads towards the stairs and I suddenly remember that Carter is here.
“We have a guest, by the way.”
She turns to face me.
“Carter. Skylar’s tutor.”
Her eyes light up instantly.
“Don’t start.”
“What?”
