Thyla - Kate Gordon [20]
‘I will,’ I said, nodding.
‘Right! Now we’ve sorted that one out, what is your stance on waffles?’
‘Waffles?’
Another word I didn’t know. I wondered if it had something to do with urination too. I hoped not.
‘Oh, geez! Wow. You don’t know waffles? Seriously? Okay, mate. Here’s the plan: we get up, we go and shower –’
‘Shower?’
I could feel the scars on my back begin to burn and throb. I winced. They’d hurt before, but not like this. The pain was bad, but my anxiety was worse.
I didn’t want to shower.
I didn’t want anybody else to see my scars.
I didn’t want them to think I was strange.
My heart started beating very quickly and the palms of my hands felt sticky with sweat. ‘Do we … I mean … the showers …’
‘Oh, they’re really good showers here, don’t worry!’ said Rhiannah. ‘If you’ve been to other boarding schools, with cold water, or water that cuts out after a minute or, you know, no shower curtains or whatever, this is not like that. You get your very own big stall, and those posh nozzles where you can change the water pressure, and they have swanky smelly shampoo and soap and moisturiser in these pump things that stick on the wall, and heated towel racks and everything! It’s heaven!’
‘So, it’s private?’ I asked. I didn’t care about water pressure or pump things or hot towels. All I wanted to know was that nobody else was going to see my scars.
‘Oh, yeah!’ said Rhiannah, smiling. ‘No ripping back the curtains to check you’re washing properly here. I mean, you have a timer so you don’t waste water, but that’s about it. So, plan? Shower time and then waffle time?’
‘I really do want to know what a waffle is before I say it is waffle time,’ I said, firmly. I didn’t want to get myself into anything unsavoury.
Rhiannah rolled her eyes. ‘Can’t you just trust me? No? Okay, it’s a breakfast item. And it’s good. That’s all I’m going to tell you. Is that enough?’
I nodded. ‘That’s enough.’
‘Well, thank Mother Earth for that. Shall we go?’
Rhiannah held out a pale hand to me and I took it. I watched as the copper bangle slid down her arm and settled on her wrist. Her eyes followed me. ‘It’s a family thing,’ she said, very casually considering the way she had reacted yesterday. ‘An heirloom. You really like it, don’t you?’
I nodded.
‘That’s a worry,’ she said.
Have you ever had waffles, Connolly?
If you haven’t, and I mean this with the utmost fervour and seriousness, you really must do it!
Waffles are just the most wondrous thing that was ever invented! They are crunchy and yet soft; sweet and yet savoury; filling and yet oh, so very light and I loved them so much I had four! With ice cream as well! The smell of them hit me long before I reached the dining hall (the cafeteria). ‘Oh, they smell wonderful!’ I exclaimed.
‘You can smell them already?’ asked Rhiannah, her eyebrows raised, and I was reminded yet again how things – sights, smells, noises – happen more powerfully for me than for others. I was embarrassed again, but the feeling faded as soon as I took my first bite. I swear to you, Connolly, I had never eaten anything so heavenly. If it wasn’t for the fear that I might get fat, and weak, I would have eaten five waffles!
As I ate, I looked about the cafeteria at my new schoolmates. I was disconcerted to see that some of them were looking back at me. Some smiled when I caught their eye. Some looked away quickly and whispered to their friends.
‘They’re just interested in you ’cos you’re new,’ said Rhiannah’s friend Harriet. ‘It was the same when we started. Don’t worry about it. They’ll get sick of you.’
I nodded mutely. I could feel my heart quickening, and a prickle of sweat on the back of my neck. The cafeteria was just a bit too busy. There were too many people. I was used to quiet.
The hospital was quiet.
And maybe I had liked quiet before as well. My aversion to the bustle and clatter seemed to come from deep within me.
I am Tessa. I like quiet.
‘Of course, you know they’re completely bad for you,’ said Rhiannah, pointing at the waffle suspended midway to my