Читать книгу Of Things Gone Astray - Janina Matthewson - Страница 21

JAKE STOOD ALONE IN THE corridor, frowning at the wall. He had been lying all day. He’d lied to his class. His teacher had asked him if it was a special day for him, using that extra-chirpy voice she had sometimes, as if she was winking with her entire head, and he’d lied and said no. He’d said there must be a mistake on the register.

He didn’t know why he’d lied. It was a special day for him. He wanted it to be special. He wanted to be sung to, but he’d lied and said no, and no one had sung.

There was a clip clopping of shoes behind him and Jake turned around.

‘Mr Baxter, school finished fifteen minutes ago. I’m sure someone’s waiting outside to collect you.’

She wasn’t Jake’s teacher so he didn’t know her name. He thought she maybe taught in the room next to his or the one next to that. She was looking at him the way adults always did: as though unsure of how to talk to him, as though they didn’t know if he could hear their words, and they wanted to make extra sure he understood what they were saying. They looked in his eyes a lot, all the adults.

She was wrong, there would be no one to collect him. Of course there wouldn’t; Jake had been walking to school by himself for ages. Ever since they’d moved here and school had been close enough to walk to. If someone had been collecting him, it would have to be his dad, and if his dad was collecting him, he’d be late or he’d forget. Jake didn’t know if his dad would have been late if he’d had to pick him up in the old days, but he knew he’d be late now.

Jake said nothing and walked slowly towards the doors.

It was usually only a ten-minute walk to Jake’s house, but Jake stretched it out to almost twenty.

He could tell his dad was in his office, but he didn’t go in. Instead he went to the kitchen. He opened the cupboards and looked inside. Then he looked in the fridge. There were no special foods. There was no cake. There was no fizzy drink. There were no lollies.

It was Jake’s birthday and no one knew.

Jake wondered if it would be better if he didn’t know himself. Part of him wanted to never have another birthday at all.

Jake’s last birthday had been the worst day ever. The second-worst day ever. No one had known how to celebrate it. No one had really wanted to celebrate it anyway. Jake hadn’t. Last year he’d felt as if he’d never wanted to celebrate anything ever again. His mum had always made amazing food. Jake hadn’t wanted anyone trying to make food as good as his mum’s food.

This year, though, he wanted something to happen. He didn’t really mind what it was. He didn’t mind if someone tried to make amazing food and it actually turned out to be quite bad food. He just wanted them to try. He just wanted it to still be important to someone that he was having a birthday.