Jealous Girl Page 9

  All the hopes that had been raised by the word 'pudding' were dashed as soon as Niffy walked in with the dish: a silver platter piled high with blackberries picked from the garden. There were green ones, light purple ones, then the odd bit of leaf and twig that suggested they hadn't even been washed.

  When Gina bit into one, she pulled a face because it was so small, so gritty and so sour. She decided that, rude or not, she was going to have to leave the rest on her plate, swimming in the thin coating of single cream from the elaborate silver cow creamer.

  After dinner there was coffee and some more polite chit-chat in one of the slightly more cosy sitting rooms. It had escaped no one's notice that instead of coffee Mrs N-B had produced a twig from the pocket of her cardigan and stirred it thoughtfully around a mug of boiled water before drying it carefully on a napkin and replacing it.

  'Liquorice,' was all she said when her husband looked up at her and shook his head.

  Anyway, once it was all over, including the clearing away, Niffy grabbed her friends by the hands and led them up several flights of stairs to the low-ceilinged former servants' wing where they were to sleep.

  'Don't worry – I've got radiators, hot-water bottles and even' – her eyes twinkled with mischief – 'an electric blanket.'

  'Oh shag, I thought you were going to say a large packet of duty-free fags,' Amy sighed. 'I think that's the least we can expect after a dinner like that. I'm sorry, but you people are mad. Haven't you heard of chips? Or M&S? Or even tinned soup? I'm sorry,' she repeated, 'but where did your mum learn to cook, Nif?' 'St Jude's,' Niffy, Gina and Min answered together.

  'Well, she must have been bottom of the class.' Amy sat down heavily on the saggy double bed in the middle of a room plastered in horse photos, posters, silver trophies and rosettes.

  'We're in your room, I take it?' Amy asked Niffy.

  'Yup. Make yourselves at home. I even have a telly.' She pointed to an ancient old set perched on top of a chest of drawers.

  'No chance of cable all the way out here, though, is there?' Amy asked.

  Niffy shook her head.

  'Sky?' Amy asked, but she knew it was a long shot. 'A DVD player?'

  When Niffy shook her head at both these suggestions, Amy couldn't help asking, 'What do you people do for fun round here?'

  'We make our own, of course,' Niffy said, and with that she sprang up and went over to the chest of drawers. From the bottom drawer she carefully drew out a mammoth bar of chocolate, four paper cups, a corkscrew and a bottle of wine so dark it almost looked black.

  As she set it down on the bedside table, Gina couldn't help noticing the layer of dust and the faded, brown, curling label. 'Jeez, that looks old,' she told Niffy.

  'Yeah.' Niffy took a closer look at the label. 'Nineteen sixty-nine. Oops! It's from the cellar. I usually stay clear of any labels I recognize, but I thought you deserved something a little special.'

  She turned the label towards Amy, who could be counted on to recognize the finer things in life. 'Château la Tour . . .' Amy read out hesitantly. 'Yeah . . . I think that's quite good.'

  'Excellent!' Niffy exclaimed, and began to set to enthusiastically with the corkscrew.

  'Niffy, are you drinking a lot of wine . . . up here, on your own?' wondered Min, who came from a family of caring doctors.

  'No' – Niffy shook her head – 'you don't need to worry about me, honestly. I share a sneaked bottle with Finn whenever he's home, but no, I'm not sitting up here with my hot-water bottle drinking the cellar dry.'

  Min smiled. 'Glad to hear it.'

  Once all the paper cups were filled, the girls found seats on the bed or the battered sofa beside it, then raised their cups in a toast.

  'Cheers!'

  'Now,' Amy said, as soon as the first mouthfuls had gone down, 'let's talk about boys.'

  Chapter Fourteen

  The paper cupfuls of wine, the cosy warmth – now that the heaters were turned up full blast – and the comforting chaos of the room itself all helped the girls to relax.

  All four of them were together again; it was just like old times, familiar times. Suddenly it was easy to really talk and confide, especially for Niffy, who'd had no one to talk to properly for weeks now. Her older brother had not, like her, moved back home. He had exams to sit, so their parents wouldn't hear of him leaving his expensive boarding school, Craigiefield. They had only let Niffy come back because she had so stubbornly insisted.

  'What's your new school like?' asked Gina, who had experience of moving from one place to another.

  Niffy's reaction was to toss back the last of the wine in her cup before saying levelly, 'It's shit. But can we please not talk about that? Let's talk about Angus.'

  'Angus?' Amy chimed in, making a mental note to ask Niffy all about her new school privately. 'What's happening with Angus?'

  'Angus?' Min sounded mystified. She'd obviously forgotten all about the cheerful, jokey St Lennox boy who'd asked Niffy for a date at the end of the summer term.

  'Oh yes, Angus!' Gina exclaimed. She remembered Angus well. 'Have you seen him?'

  To their surprise, Niffy looked quite shy as she told them, 'He's got an aunt and uncle who live not far from here, and . . . well, let's just say he's been spending quite a bit of time visiting them recently.'

  'Woo-hoo,' Amy teased. 'Is he providing a shoulder to lean on?'

  'You could say that . . .' Niffy admitted. 'But he's not exactly handsome, is he?' she asked with a grin. 'I mean, he has a kind face but it's a bit . . . meaty.'

  This caused the three others to crack up with laughter.

  'But he's a really nice guy . . . and his bod!' she added, before anyone thought Angus was just a friend. Because he was definitely more than a friend.

  'His bod?' Amy prompted, wanting to make sure Niffy elaborated.

  'He's very sporty – lots of muscles . . .'

  'And how do you know this?'

  'We went swimming in the river in the summer . . . quite a lot.'

  'Costumes on or off?' Amy asked incredulously.

  'Mainly on,' came Niffy's reply, but her eyes were fixed shyly on the cup in her hand.

  'Mainly on!' Amy repeated. 'Luella Nairn-Bassett!' she exclaimed, using Niffy's hated full name.

  'He is hot,' Niffy confessed, causing surprise all round. 'You know I said last term that it was so long since I'd fancied a boy, I'd almost forgotten what it was like? Well, that's all changed.'

  Gina and Amy instinctively drew a little closer to their friend. 'You realize that graphic details are required,' Amy prompted her.

  'Only if you go first,' came Niffy's cheeky reply. 'Min, you might want to put your fingers in your ears.'

  'No! I'm allowed to be curious,' Min told her.

  'But purely in the interests of science,' Gina joked.

  'Stop it!' Min exclaimed, sounding almost angry. 'Why does no one think I'll ever be interested in a boy? Maybe you think no boy will ever be interested in me! Is that it?'

  This caused something of a surprised silence in the room.

  'We don't . . .'

  'We didn't . . .'

  'No, that's not . . .'

  All three of her friends rushed to reassure her.

  Once she had calmed down again, Niffy had to ask Amy, 'OK, you and Jason . . . How did the hot Glasgow date go?'

  'We kissed . . . a lot . . .' Amy was happy to admit. 'He's totally great when he's there, right in front of me. But when we're apart, it's as if I don't exist. There's no urgency to see me again. I'm just supposed to sit about waiting for him to be in the mood for another date. And that drives me up the wall!'

  'Hmmm . . . it's not balanced,' Niffy decided thoughtfully. When Amy looked at her blankly, she added, 'You like Jason more than he likes you. That's how it is. That's the truth. You either have to live with it, or move on to the next one. Maybe there's always a slight imbalance. Maybe even when people stay together happily for years and years, it's because one loves the other just sligh
tly more and they both live with it.'

  'Very philosophical,' was Min's verdict. 'So with you and Angus . . . who loves who more?'

  'Aha!' Niffy went round the paper cups with a top-up of wine. 'Hard to tell at this stage. We are besotted!'

  'So just how far are you two planning to go?' Amy asked, the wine making her fearlessly curious.

  Niffy leaned back on her bed and thought about Angus. To say she hadn't thought about how far they might go would be a lie. His body was so heavy and so comforting to hold – his kisses and the way he made her boil up inside until she felt hot and needy for him. But . . . but . . . she was still fifteen and he was newly seventeen. Peeling off their swimsuits and pressing their bodies together had felt too extreme and had only happened once.

  The next time they'd met, they had kept their suits on and hips apart. Niffy thought she'd like to really get to know Angus – maybe go out with him for a year or so – before she made a big decision like that. She wanted to trust him with herself; wanted to make sure that he really, really cared about her. But she already thought that he did. He wanted to know all about her mum, all about her school. He phoned her up twice a week every week and was incredibly kind. Yes, she had a feeling she was with her first real boyfriend.

  'Mel's had sex,' Amy interrupted Niffy's thoughts. 'We had to bribe her with wine and two cigarettes but she coughed the details eventually.'

  'Yeah, I bet she coughed a lot after two cigarettes,' was Min's disapproving comment.

  'And . . .?' Niffy asked. She wasn't usually curious about Mel's personal details, but now that she was thinking about this herself, she wanted to know.

  'She said it was OK.' Amy gave a slight shrug of her shoulders. 'She didn't give much more info than you'd get from close reading of Cosmo. With sex, you obviously have to be there to really get what's going on.'

  'The first time was apparently a relief because it took some time to get everything in the right place,' Gina added. 'And she couldn't get over his horrible dark-blue underwear!'

  Min pulled a face and said, 'Eeuwww. I think this is all too much information.'

  'But what about you, Min?' Niffy wanted to know. 'Who do you sigh about when your head hits the pillow in Iris dorm?'

  To everyone's surprise, Min started to blush. She quickly tried to cover up by saying, 'No one – of course not, don't be silly!'

  But when she shook her head, Amy, Niffy and Gina couldn't help feeling that there was something forced about her denial.

  Maybe there was a boy. Someone somewhere who had sparked Min's interest for the very first time.

  Chapter Fifteen

  The first half of the following day didn't go so well. The girls woke up after their late-night chat to a grey sky and grey drizzle.

  There was spiky smoked haddock for breakfast and blackened toast, along with weirdly burned-tasting tea.

  'How did your mum manage to burn the tea?' Amy hissed under her breath at Niffy.

  'It's not burned,' Niffy hissed back. 'It's Lapsang Souchong.'

  'Good grief!' Amy muttered.

  They'd breakfasted in the kitchen, with the Aga giving out just enough heat to keep the room above the chill in the rest of the house.

  Watching Niffy ride Ginger after breakfast was about as exciting as burned toast and tea. It was obvious from the way she talked to him that she loved her horse. But standing around in a damp field in the rain watching your friend ride round and round was not exactly fun.

  When Amy announced that she would buy everyone lunch in Buckthwaite, they all perked up slightly at the prospect.

  But too soon. Buckthwaite turned out to be a small place with just one café, where they sat on pine benches beside steamy windows and ate soggy cheese and tomato sandwiches. It was totally depressing.

  'Do you miss Edinburgh?' Gina asked Niffy.

  'Yeah,' she admitted.

  'Do you miss school?'

  'Sort of . . . You know how it is with St Jude's,' Niffy replied. 'Can't live with it, can't live without it. You don't really want to be away from home, but then you wouldn't see any of your friends, who you love just like family' – she beamed at them all – 'so you drag yourself back there term after term.'

  They'd arranged to meet the Range Rover and Mr N-B at two o'clock in the Co-op car park, when he was going to drive them over to Angus's aunt and uncle's place.

  As they set off towards the car park through the unending drizzle, the girls passed a group of teenagers huddled beneath the arches of the small town hall on the high street. One of them, a girl dressed in tight jeans, a tracksuit top and a baseball cap, called out as they passed, 'Got your posh friends down for the weekend, have you, your ladyship?'

  Amy, Gina and Min stopped in their tracks and looked over at the girl in astonishment. Niffy, by contrast, ducked her head down and carried on walking at a brisk pace.

  'We're not good enough to talk to then, are we, your highness? Lady Toffee Nose?' a second girl, standing beside the first, chipped in with a sneer.

  Amy, Gina and Min were still rooted to the spot, staring at the girls in horror.

  Now the other members of the group were joining in. The boys were whistling, and there were calls of 'Stuck-up cow!' 'Snooty witch!' and 'Posh bird!'

  Niffy didn't even want to wait for her friends. She just pulled her shoulders almost up to her ears and kept on walking.

  Amy, Gina and Min looked at the girls, looked at each other in outrage and looked at the girls again. Gina's mouth was hanging open in shock: was this how Niffy's new classmates were treating her? No wonder she'd described school as 'shit' and didn't want to talk about it. Amy's hands were on her hips; Amy's face was clouding over with fury; Amy was very definitely about to say something loud and angry.

  Gina brushed against Amy's arm. 'Maybe you shouldn't,' she warned. 'Maybe it will make things worse.'

  But Amy was already taking a deep breath. 'Just what do you think you'rrrre playing at?' she fired out in her strongest Glaswegian accent. 'Our pal is at your school so she can be at home looking after her sick mum.'

  No one in the group said anything for a moment, so Amy went on, not quite so angry now, 'At least give her a chance. She's a nice person. Some of you could probably be nice too . . . if we gave you a chance.'

  By this time, Niffy had stopped and turned to see what was going on.

  The girl who'd made the first comment spotted her and immediately shouted, 'Ooooh, you've finally turned to look at us then, Princess Poncey Pants.'

  'I said be nice,' Amy said, slowly and icily.

  'Or what?' The girl turned and curled her lip at her. 'What ya gonna do? Get the Queen down to have us arrested?'

  This caused an outbreak of loud, sneering laughter from her friends.

  Amy had been in enough playground scraps to know that it was time to retreat with a parting shot; she could come back to fight another day.

  'You're going to be very sorry,' she said loudly and clearly so that everyone could catch each word. Then she took Gina and Min by the arm and marched them away from the group as quickly as she could.

  The laughter and whistles of the teenagers were still ringing in their ears as they rounded the corner into the Co-op car park.

  'Nice new friends,' Amy hissed at Niffy.

  'Don't interfere. It's best to just keep your head down and stay out of their way.'

  'No it isn't!' Amy retorted. 'You've got to sort them out or this will go on and on all the time you're at their school. And that could be a while! I promise you, you've got to sort it out.'

  'No I don't,' Niffy snapped.

  Mr N-B's filthy old Range Rover was already in the car park. Without saying anything more, Niffy opened the front passenger door, climbed in and slammed it shut.

  Chapter Sixteen

  The drive from Buckthwaite to Angus's aunt and uncle's home through green and twisty country lanes seemed to soothe Niffy. As the car turned into a long tree-lined driveway, she turned and smiled at her friends
in the back seat.

  'Wait till you see this place – I think you're going to be impressed,' she told them.

  The driveway seemed to go on for miles, winding through leafy woodland, then past green fields where sheep grazed and enormous oak trees, protected by little wooden fences, spread their graceful branches. At the end of the drive, the rhododendron bushes fell away and they pulled up in front of a vast grey stone building.

  There was no way this could be a house, Gina couldn't help thinking. It looked more like a museum or a school – even some kind of castle. Surely this couldn't be where Angus's relatives lived! Only royalty could afford a place like this.

  In contrast to Blacklough Hall, the front doors were thrown wide open at the sound of the car on the drive. A flight of steps dotted with colourful pots of plants and flowers led up to the ornate marble-columned entrance hall.

  Already there were people standing there, a middle-aged couple and, towering above them, waving frantically, a hunky blond figure, which must surely be Angus.

  'Hi! Hello there! Good to see you – great to see you!' He came bounding down the steps towards them, booming out greetings, scattering three tiny yapping dogs as he went.

  'Does everyone live in a place like this around here?' Gina asked Amy, only half-joking.

  'Erm, no. Don't think Niffy's school pals do, for a start,' came Amy's reply.

  'But look at it,' Min said, staring through the Range Rover windows in something close to dismay. 'It just doesn't feel right that someone should have a house this big. What about the homeless people?'

  'You'd fit plenty of them in here,' Amy joked. As she stepped out of the car, she watched happily as Angus kissed Niffy on both cheeks – which could just have been politeness, though the hands around her waist pulling her towards him definitely weren't. And while her father wasn't looking, Angus leaned down and gave Niffy's ear a quick lick, which caused Amy to utter a shriek of surprise.

  'Hey, Amy,' Angus said when he could bear to take his eyes off Niffy. 'Can I kiss you too?'