in NSW
I was driving down to Eastgardens-sorry! I forgot to introduce myself! I’ll do it properly…
My name is Ellanora Rachael Jones-Sparrow, but most people call me Ella. My parents divorced when I was 3, while Mum was pregnant with my sister, and 5 years ago, we lost contact with dad and haven’t seen or heard from him –he even forgot my thirteenth birthday! A year after he began to ignore us, Mum changed my name to Ellanora Jones. ‘Rachael’ was my Dad’s mum’s name and ‘Sparrow’ was Dad’s last name.
I was only 2 when Mum and Dad divorced, and now I’m 17. The girls at work and school complain about their Dad’s embarrassing them and never seeing them and all that riff-raff. I always reply ‘At least you have a dad.’ Or ‘I would give anything for my Dad to come back, even if he embarrasses me. You guys are sooo ungrateful!’ I always feel jealous of those rich, pampered little ‘Daddy’s Girls’.
Anyway, my Mum, Eleanor, was born in
I have the usual looks-blonde, curly hair and blue eyes. I have about 200,000 freckles on my nose-I’m not joking-and white, white skin. Mama says I’m beautiful, but I’d rather orange hair and green eyes-the Irish looks. But when does anyone appreciate their so-called ‘beauty’??
OMG! I almost forgot! I have a little sister, Ashleigh. She looks like an Irish and nothing like moi. Ashleigh is 14 and has already got big you-know-what’s. My chest is as flat as glass! Humph.
OK. I’ll start from the beginning…
‘Mama, do you love me?’ Ashleigh asks.
‘What do you want, Ash?’ Mum replies, bored. You see, when Ashleigh wants something, she does the whole “Mama, do you love me?” type of thing. Mum used to go “Of course I do, honey.” and Ashleigh would ramble on like “Then will you get me blah blah blah?” Mum just asks what Ashleigh wants now. ‘Nothing.’ Ashleigh says, sweetly. Mum gives her ‘the look’ meaning I know you want something, now spill! ‘Oh, OK. There’s a really cute dress at Bard?t and I really, really want it for the formal next week.’
‘But you already have a dress!’ I butt in. ‘Yar, but I borrowed that one off Candy and it’s too small around the chest. It ripped because of that.’ Ashleigh argues, earnestly. Mum sighs and says ‘OK, but you’ll have to wait until this afternoon. I have an important meeting with Kevin Rudd.’ Mum is the top of the Business career. (Sorry! I get the Business career thingo from The Sims 2. I don’t know what Mum does but I know she’s all friend-y with the top-top people.)
‘Mum!’ Ashleigh whines. ‘If I don’t get it now Lola and the others will get it!’
‘What? You want to have a better dress than your friends?’ I smirk. Ashleigh scowls.
‘No, I want to have a better dress than Lola Singles.’
‘Oh.’ Lola Singles is Ashleigh’s arch-nemesis. Her sister, Rachel Singles, is my best friend and her mother, Chloe Singles, is my mum’s arch-nemesis. I don’t know why mum and Ashleigh loathe them so much. Well, OK, Lola is a spoilt pain in the rear end, not to mention a little brat, but Mrs. Singles is terribly nice and Rachel is smart, sensitive, understanding, not to mention gorgeous and she’s a great friend. Oh, and… well, you get the point. I know, it sounds like I have a crush on her but you know, that’s how besties feel.
‘Yeah. So I need to get it now!’ Ashleigh whines. ‘Fine. Ellanora, take your sister to Eastgardens.’ Mum orders. ‘Why Eastgardens? They don’t have Bard?t at Eastgardens.’ Ashleigh complains. ‘I will not have Ellanora drive all the way to Bondi Junction!’ Mum yells. ‘She hasn’t got a proper drivers license yet!’ Ashleigh opens her mouth to argue, but Mum beats her to it. ‘ASHLEIGH! I HAVE NEVER SEEN A MORE SELFISH GIRL IN-MY-LIFE! YOU’RE SISTER MIGHT HAVE AN ACCIDENT, YOU NEVER KNOW, AND ALL YOU’RE WORRIED ABOUT IS A BLOODY DRESS!’ she screams. Ashleigh backs off. Mum is fuming. ‘Hey, hey! Calm down, Mother! I’ll make Ash a dress, and then I won’t have to drive at all, except to Eastgardens to get the material.’ I compromise. Mum is quiet for a bit, I think she’s thinking it over. I hope and hope and hope. ‘While you’re there, get some groceries. The list is on the bench.’ Boo-yah! This is gonna be my big break! I’ll make the BEST
dress for Ashleigh and then everyone at her formal are gonna ask her where she got it! Then they’ll all come to moi when she tells them! ‘Ellanora? Go on.’ Mum’s sharp voice brings me out of my fantasy. Ashleigh snaps her fingers. ‘You know this is gonna take a couple o’ weeks, Ash?’ I ask. She shrugs. ‘No one else is going to get it, so no prob.’ She replies. ‘Ok, then. Come on, I’ll take you to my room and you can show me the style.’ We walk into my poster-covered bedroom and sit down at my desk. ‘I want it green and pink, and it has to be floaty material.’ Ashleigh demands. ‘Like chiffon?’ I ask. She nods. ‘Well, I’m thinkin’ of having three layers, green silk for the bottom two and green chiffon with pink hibiscus’s on it?’ I suggest. Ashleigh looks at the picture I have drawn. ‘That’s really pretty, I’ll have it!’ Ashleigh shouts. ‘Okie dokie.’ I reply, and I get up to get the material.
Anyway, I jump into my blue Toyota Camry and take off to Eastgardens. The song Hook Me Up by The Veronicas is playing on the radio-my favourite song. I close my eyes and bop to the beat. Beeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep! Someone is beeping me! I hear the slamming of a car door.
A cute guy taps me on the shoulder and points to the lights. Green. Ooopsies! I giggle and try to force a smile. But the guy wasn’t smiling. “ARE YOU CRAZY? YOU’RE JUST LUCKY I KNEW YOU WEREN’T LOOKING! YOU COULD’VE HAD A CAR ACCIDENT!”
CHAPTER TO BE CONTINUED...
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