BooksBarbecue
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Chapters (57)
  1. Cover
  2. Title
  3. Dedication
  4. Dedication2
  5. 1994
  6. 1
  7. 2
  8. 3
  9. 4
  10. 5
  11. 6
  12. 7
  13. 8
  14. 9
  15. 10
  16. 11
  17. 12
  18. 13
  19. 14
  20. 15
  21. 16
  22. 17
  23. 2006
  24. 18
  25. 19
  26. 20
  27. 21
  28. 22
  29. 23
  30. 24
  31. 25
  32. 26
  33. 27
  34. 28
  35. 29
  36. 30
  37. 31
  38. 32
  39. 33
  40. 34
  41. 35
  42. 36
  43. 37
  44. 2018
  45. 38
  46. 39
  47. 40
  48. 41
  49. 42
  50. 43
  51. 44
  52. 45
  53. 46
  54. 47
  55. 48
  56. 49
  57. Acknowledgements

The four of them were in the lounge, not talking, staring at the wall like they were winding up for the night. Heidi didn’t look quite so settled in. There was something about how she was looking at Dell. It felt like since she’d come back, she was always looking at Dell, like Dell owed her something. Then she looked away and said, ‘I think we should go to bed.’ She sat up in the chair like she was getting ready to leave. ‘We have work.’

‘I might stay up for a bit,’ Dell said.

‘Okay.’ Heidi slouched back into the couch like she wasn’t going anywhere at all.

Peggy and Greta looked at each other. The silence had been fine before, but now it felt weighty. Like someone was making a point. It had been raining on the night they’d split into two. The night they all arrived. They called it a night, but it was early in the morning as far as anyone was able to work out. It might not have even been raining, it’s just that the raining seemed right. Like they all came down with it. Or maybe it was the rain that split them in two. They hadn’t met Heidi and Dell until months after that night. There might have been a time when Heidi and Dell got on better, but Peggy and Greta hadn’t seen it. They aggravated each other completely.

‘Oh, well,’ Greta said.

‘Time for us to go to bed,’ Peggy said, and they got up.

Peggy and Greta went into the bathroom and stood in front of the mirror and brushed their teeth. They had two toothbrushes now. Someone had brought a box of them into the shop. They were free samples. ‘Not for sale’ they said, but that didn’t count for the secondhand shop. Dorrit had given them one each while they were pricing them together. There wasn’t a lot to say. Being around Heidi and Dell made them aware of themselves. They might never have bought a toothbrush each. The toothbrushes looked strange now. They tried not to look at them.

‘We should catch a bus to the estuary,’ Greta said. It wasn’t a surprise the picnic happened at the beach near the estuary and they’d talked about it the night Heidi came home. One thing led to another. They walked down the same track.