‘You don’t have to put your hand up, William. There are only three of you in the minibus.’ Miss Delaney spoke sharply.
‘Erm, do you think Remy will get into trouble for missing the exam?’ he half-whispered, as if he might be able to ask the question without her hearing. Remy turned to face him, giving him a hard stare that made him blink behind his gold-rimmed glasses and shrink back in his seat. And it was in that moment that an idea formed. Of course, he had assumed it was her who had not turned up! She was the more easy-going of the two, less conscientious than her sister. William thought she was Ashleigh, and Miss Delaney had not corrected him. Did that mean Miss Delaney thought she was Ashleigh too? Ashleigh, who wanted to go to St. Jude’s more than anything ... and she loved her sister more than anybody. And just like that, it felt obvious, easy even!
‘Let’s not worry about that right now, let’s just concentrate on staying calm and maybe running through some of the practice questions in our head.’ Miss Delaney shook hers, and twisted her lower jaw before turning around. ‘Silly girl.’
There it was again. Remy heard her loud and clear and envisaged lobbing her apple at the back of the teacher’s head before thinking better of it. It would be hard enough for her parents to deal with the fallout of the day without her being expelled for anyapple-related injury Miss Delaney might sustain. Miss Delaney, who couldn’t tell the difference between her and Ashleigh.
The silly woman . . .
Ashleigh
Ashleigh waited a good half an hour after the minibus had left, ensuring there was no way she could make the exam, before coming out of her hiding place. She felt lighter, happier, yet worried too about being in trouble. It seemed obvious to head to her happy place, and she went straight to the library, where Nancy was delighted to see her.
‘Hello, Miss Brett. You’ve caused quite a stir, little one, Mr Gerald has been running around trying to find you, Miss Delaney said you weren’t on the bus, but I’m glad you’re here. Are you okay?’
‘Yes.’
‘I just need to call your mother.’
Ashleigh buried her head inside her reading book while Nancy whispered down the phone. It was a strange feeling, knowing she was talking to her mum about her.
‘Now.’ Nancy, having ended the call, bent down so they could speak quietly, calmly, without any of the hysteria she had feared. ‘I’ve told your mum that you’re safe.’
‘Thank you.’ Her voice was meek, her muscles uncoiled with something very close to relief.
‘Where were you? What happened?’
‘I hid in the mower shed because I didn’t want to do the exam.’
It felt good, the honesty, the openness, letting the truth out of its cage. Holding it in was never an option. It would eat away at her.
‘I see.’ Nancy smiled and nodded with her eyes closed, as if she understood.
It felt nice, it always did, being here in this room with its peculiar smell of dust and the exhaled wonder and gasps of delight lingering in the air from everyone who had ever read a book inside the magnolia-painted walls.
‘Would you like to help me put some books back on to the shelves?’
Ashleigh nodded. It was exactly what she felt like doing. Nancy handed her a small pile of books. She knew the drill. This was not her first rodeo.
‘I just need to call Mr Gerald. As I said, he’s been very worried.’
She listened to Nancy’s phone call to the headmaster as she trawled the shelves, searching for the correct alphabetical spot, her stomach churning at the thought that she’d worried Mr Gerald, who was nice.
‘Yes, yes, she’s here, just strolled in. I’ve let Mrs Brett know. Nope, she’s fine, not upset, no, just ... quiet. Yep, uh-huh. She’s going to help me in here for a bit, which I think is a good idea, let her settle and let the fuss die down. But she’s safe, in one piece, and was apparently in the mower shed, hiding. Why? Oh, because she didn’t want to do the exam.’
If Nancy was telling Mr Gerald, then it would only be a matter of time before the whole school knew. Her mum would definitely tell her dad, and on it went. In truth, she hadn’t given much thought beyond hiding, hadn’t properly considered the consequences at all.
Still, she knew with certainty that it was worth it. Whatever happened, it was worth it. Her stomach was no longer moving like a food mixer, she didn’t feel faint (genuinely faint!), and gone was the feeling that she could burst into tears at any given second.
It was over; thankfully, and finally, it was over.
Her time in the library slipped by quickly, and just before the bell for home time, her sister appeared in the doorway. Remy rushed over and held both of her hands in her own.
‘There you are, Remy!’ Remy spoke with urgency, and Ashleigh wondered what on earth was going on.
‘What?’
‘I said, “There you are.” Honestly,Remy, Mum and Dad are going to be so mad with you!’
