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‘I didn’t make that agreement,’ Sally said.
‘Yes, you did. Ryan, you, and I talked this through after the drinking episode.’
She shook her head. ‘You told me I can’t see Dylan. But I never agreed.’
‘That doesn’t matter. Whether you agreed or not, you’re not allowed to.’
‘Of course it matters!’ Sally said. ‘And I did not agree. So I haven’t done anything wrong.’
‘You have, Sally. And you know it. But let’s move on. How about this: whether you agree or not, you are forbidden from seeing Dylan. OK?’
‘You can’t stop me.’
In a way, she was right. Mary and Ryan could take whatever measures they wanted to: refuse to pay for her phone, ground her, tell Dylan he was unwelcome at their house, but in the end, if she wanted to see him what could they actually do? Physically restrain her? Lock her in her room? What about when she left to go to school – there was no way to compel her to return home immediately afterwards. She could do whatever she wanted, roll in at midnight, do the same the next day and the day after that and the day after that and Mary and Ryan could do nothing to stop her.
They could make her life difficult and inconvenient, they could berate her and threaten her, but in terms of actually stopping her? If she was determined to see Dylan, she would see Dylan.
And making her life difficult may simply widen the growing rift between her and Sally, pushing her away for good.
‘Sally,’ Mary said. ‘I want you to understand something. What you do now can have a major impact on the rest of your life. A record for drinking or shoplifting or an unwanted pregnancy will all stay with you forever. What matters is that you are with people who aren’t going to lead you down those paths. And I’m sure Dylan is a great kid, but he is not surrounded by good influences.’
‘You sound like such a dork.’
‘Maybe. But what you need to understand is that being what you call a dork isn’t necessarily a bad thing. In fact, it’s probably a good thing. The kids you think are dorks are the ones that’ll end up as lawyers, doctors, teachers, and other successful citizens.’
‘You’re a lawyer. Were you a dork?’
‘Probably. I don’t know. It makes no difference.’
‘It makes all the difference. Whatever you did, I want to do the opposite.’
‘Lovely. Thank you, Sally.’
‘You’re welcome. Whatever I am I don’t want to be anything like you.’
‘That’s disappointing, and as time goes on you may change your mind. But let’s end this conversation with something that you can understand unequivocally: you are not allowed to see Dylan.’
‘You don’t understand,’ Sally said. ‘You don’t understand about me and Dylan.’ She paused. ‘I love him, and he loves me.’
Mary’s heart sank to somewhere down by her feet. This was getting worse by the second. Sally thought she and Dylan were Romeo and fucking Juliet.
Had it not been so potentially tragic, it might have been funny.
Don’t Be a Silly Goose
Since declaring her love for Dylan, Sally had refused to speak. She had joined her family – silently – on a trip to the farmers’ market. On arrival, however, she had decided she didn’t want to be there after all, and was refusing to get out of the car. Mary found herself wondering whether she had only come in the first place so she could cause as much disruption as possible.
‘Come on,’ she said. ‘Don’t be a silly goose.’
Sally let her mouth drop open in an expression of utter disgust at her mother’s use of the phrase.
‘I’m staying,’ she said, slowly. ‘In. the. car.’
Ryan turned to his stepdaughter. ‘Come in with us. It’ll be fun. I’ll buy you a treat. One of those croissants the guy with the stand in the corner makes.’
She shook her head.
‘Why do you have to be so difficult?’ Otis said. ‘Just come to the farmers’ market. Why are you here at all? It’s so stupid.’ When his sister did not reply, he got out of the car and closed the door with a bang.
