Three
‘Louder!’ Eddie calls across the sand as we go over the song once again in our now favoured rehearsal spot hidden in between the rocks in Morvoren Cove. ‘They won’t hear you singing otherwise.’
‘I’m sure there’s going to be a microphone, Eddie,’ I say as we sway together on the rock. ‘The audience will hear you
, and that’s the most important thing.’
‘Yeah,’ Mandy adds, grinning. ‘We’re just here to look pretty!’
‘Cut!’ Eddie shouts dramatically, waving his arms above his head. ‘Enough! You’ve ruined it now. Go again, please.’
We sigh and roll our eyes at each other. ‘Now, you’ve done it,’ Claire says, looking worried. ‘Eddie looks awfully cross.’
‘I don’t care.’ Mandy hops down off the rock. ‘I’ve had enough. I need a break.’ She begins to rummage about in her bag.
Suzy, who’s been watching us rehearse, gets up from where she’s been sitting cross-legged on the sand and walks over to us.
‘I thought you were all really good,’ she says with encouragement. ‘The outfits I’ve made for you are going to look great.’
‘Yes, about the costumes,’ I begin, but I notice that Mandy, instead of pulling some sweets or a drink from her bag as I expected her to, has actually pulled out a packet of cigarettes, and, cool as a cucumber, she proceeds to light one up while Claire, Suzy and I just stare at her open-mouthed.
‘What?’ she asks nonchalantly. ‘Stop gawping at me like three goldfish gasping for air.’
‘Why are you smoking?’ I demand.
Mandy shrugs. ‘Just felt like trying it.’
‘But where did you get them?’ Claire asks, eyes wide. ‘You’re not old enough to buy cigarettes.’
‘The old fella in the corner shop sold them to me,’ Mandy says, pretending, I notice, to take a drag, but not actually inhaling. ‘He doesn’t care who he sells to as long as he gets his money.’
Eddie doesn’t say anything as he arrives next to us. He simply pulls the cigarette from Mandy’s fingers, throws it down on the beach and kicks some sand over it, so the cigarette rapidly extinguishes itself.
‘Hey!’ Mandy says. ‘I paid good money for that.’
‘I don’t care if you paid in blood,’ Eddie says, glaring at her. ‘Smoking will ruin your lungs and therefore your voice.’
‘You can’t just extinguish cigarettes on the beach.’ Suzy kneels down in the sand, attempting to uncover the cigarette with her hands. ‘Apart from being terribly bad manners, it’s terrible for the environment and it’s littering too!’
Mandy glares at Eddie and pulls the packet of cigarettes from her bag again.
‘Don’t!’ Eddie warns.
‘Or you’ll what?’ Mandy says defiantly. ‘I’m sick of you bossing us around, Eddie, and telling us we’re no good. I think I can speak for all of us mermaids when I say none of us wants to be here doing this on a Sunday evening. We’re doing it as a favour to you. You’d do well to remember that!’
Eddie continues to stare at Mandy for a moment, then very slowly he turns to each of us. ‘Is that true?’ he asks. ‘You don’t want to do the talent show with me?’ He waits for our reaction but when we don’t speak, he asks, ‘Frankie, is that how you feel?’
‘Er . . . you know performing isn’t my favourite thing in the world,’ I answer diplomatically. ‘But I know you love it.’
‘Yes,’ Claire joins in. ‘We wanted to support you, Eddie. You’re our friend.’
Eddie turns to Suzy. ‘Don’t look at me,’ she says. ‘I was honest, I told you I didn’t want to do it. That’s why I offered to make the costumes.’
Eddie’s chin drops to his chest, and I glare at Mandy.
‘What?’ she mouths silently, shrugging. But she has the good grace to push her packet of cigarettes back into her bag.
I’m about to step in and try to build bridges when I hear something.
‘What’s that?’ I ask, tilting my head to one side to hear it better.
‘Sounds like someone playing a guitar,’ Suzy says, looking around.
We all turn, trying to spot the invisible guitarist playing the Beach Boys song we are all far too familiar with by now.
‘There!’ Suzy points along the beach. We look in the direction she’s gesturing and see a lone guitarist appearing from behind some rocks. As they walk towards us, they are lit from behind by the setting sun, so we can only really make out their silhouette.
‘Isn’t that Robert Matthews?’ Claire squints into the evening sunshine.
‘Yes, I think it is,’ Suzy replies, holding her hand above her eyes. ‘I didn’t know he played the guitar.’
‘He can play my strings any day,’ Mandy says, watching the silhouette getting nearer.
Both Eddie and I are silent as we watch the familiar figure of Rob getting closer.
‘Sorry if I’m interrupting,’ Rob says as he stops playing, his guitar hung by a strap around his neck. ‘I heard the song and felt like joining in. Do you mind?’
‘No, not at all.’ Mandy immediately goes over to him and loops her arm through his. ‘By all means, come and join us.’
Rob glances at me as Mandy leads him over to the rock we were sitting on. ‘Also, I think I should mention you’ve got some spies in your camp,’ he says, glancing upwards before he sits down.
‘What do you mean spies?’ I ask, following his gaze.
‘Up there.’ Rob points. ‘Tucked up on the hill.’
Everyone now follows Rob’s hand and we see a group of girls younger than us giggling up on the hill that looks over the bay.
‘You little . . . ’ Mandy begins, her brow furrowing with rage. ‘That’s my bloody sister and her silly mates.’
She storms over to the edge of the sand. ‘Bugger off, you lot!’ she shouts, gesturing at them. ‘Wait till I get home, Hetty!’
‘Wait till I tell Mum what you’ve been up to,’ Hetty calls back, and she pretends to smoke an invisible cigarette. Then Hetty and her giggling friends scuttle off up the hill and disappear down the path on the other side.
‘Bloody Hetty!’ Mandy fumes as she returns to us. ‘She’s such a little shit.’
‘Aren’t you worried what your mum will say if she tells her?’ I ask.
‘Nah, she won’t say anything,’ Mandy says. ‘I’ve got stuff on her that she won’t risk me telling Mum about if she dobs me in first. Thanks for letting us know though, Rob. I hadn’t spotted her. Eddie’s been running us ragged rehearsing down here.’
Eddie opens his mouth to protest but Mandy continues. ‘Now.’ She sits down next to Rob on the rock before anyone else can. ‘I’m sure we’d all love to hear you play some more. Wouldn’t we?’ She looks up at us for encouragement.
‘Only if you want to, Robert,’ Claire says. ‘We don’t want to force you or anything.’ She raises her eyebrows at Mandy.
‘What about our rehearsal?’ Eddie asks. ‘We haven’t finished yet.’
Mandy glares at him.
‘Perhaps Robert can play for us while you rehearse?’ Suzy suggests diplomatically before it all kicks off again. ‘He clearly knows the song.’
‘Would you like to?’ Eddie asks casually.
‘On two conditions,’ Rob says, looking at us all. ‘You call me Rob and not Robert.’
‘Ooh, yes,’ Mandy says. ‘That suits you much better.’
‘What’s the other?’ Eddie asks a little suspiciously.
‘You all stop arguing. I’ve seen you guys rehearsing a few times; you’re really good. Be a shame to spoil all your hard work by falling out.’
Mandy and Eddie look sheepishly at each other.
‘Soz, Ed,’ Mandy says first. ‘I know this show is important to you.’
Eddie nods. ‘I’m sorry too. I’m being harsh on you all, I know, but I just want this to be perfect.’
They give each other a hug.
‘Right, then,’ Rob says, smiling at me. ‘Shall we give this a go?’
After we’ve rehearsed our routine a few more times with Rob playing his guitar as accompaniment instead of the original track, we decide to call it a night.
For some reason, once Rob became involved, everyone tried that little bit harder and behaved that little bit better.
He could certainly play the guitar, and had no trouble playing ‘Surfin’ USA’ over and over again.
‘Thanks, guys,’ he says as he zips his guitar back into its case. ‘I really enjoyed that tonight. It was a lot of fun.’
‘You know, Eddie,’ Suzy says, giving me a look that suggests she might need some backup in a moment. ‘If he was open to it, might it be a good idea to ask Rob to continue to play with us – even make him a part of the act . . . ’
‘Yes!’ Claire says eagerly. ‘You played wonderfully tonight, Rob. Come and be a mermaid with us!’
Rob had looked initially pleased at Suzy’s suggestion, but now looks a little worried.
‘You don’t have to do either if you don’t want to,’ I say hurriedly. ‘I mean, you might like to play, but you don’t have to dress as a mermaid or anything. That’s just what we backing singers are going to be dressed as.’
‘I don’t know, though.’ Mandy looks Rob up and down. ‘I’m sure he could rock a fishtail . . . ’
‘You could be a merman!’ Claire says joyfully. ‘Then you would match us. Could you do a merman’s outfit, Suzy?’
‘Whoa!’ Eddie says, holding his hand up. ‘Everyone is getting a little carried away here.’
We all look at Eddie. Was he going to reject our idea?
‘No one has asked Rob yet,’ he says, turning to him. ‘Firstly, Rob, thank you for playing for us tonight. Your presence,’ he looks across at us knowingly, ‘has certainly focused the girls on their performance.’
‘And it has made no
difference to you, I suppose?’ Mandy asks, smirking at Eddie.
Eddie bats his eyelashes coyly back at Mandy. ‘ Anyway
. . . ’ he continues. ‘If you’re open to the idea, Rob, I would formally like to offer you the chance to come on board with us – no pun intended – and become an honorary mermaid. The costume, I should make clear, will not be necessary should you choose to accept.’
Rob looks around at us all, and his gaze rests on me.
‘I would love to,’ he says sadly. ‘Really, I would. But, as Frankie knows, I’m already part of an act. I’m playing in Jenny Meadows’s orchestra next Saturday.’
There are groans and whines of disappointment.
‘Ah, don’t be minding about Jenny Meadows,’ Mandy says airily. ‘She’s a stuck-up cow, anyway.’
‘Mandy,’ Claire says admonishingly. ‘That’s not fair. Jenny can’t help the way she is.’
‘If she pulled that clarinet out from where it’s wedged up her arse, she might possibly be bearable, I suppose,’ Mandy says, making Rob laugh.
‘Can I do both?’ Rob asks. ‘I wouldn’t want to let anyone down.’
We all look at each other. ‘Is there a rule for that?’ Suzy asks. ‘Can you perform in two acts?’
‘Dunno,’ Eddie says. ‘Perhaps no one has tried before?’
‘We could ask?’ Claire suggests. ‘It wouldn’t do any harm.’
‘I’ll check tomorrow with Miss Kelly,’ Eddie says. ‘She’s in charge of the show. But if she says it’s all right . . . Then, Rob, may I be the first to welcome you into our gang. And may I also wish you the very best of luck too – you’ll need it with this lot!’
‘Are you all right?’ Robs asks as we walk up the hill that leads up and out of St Felix.
We all left the little cove and walked up through the town together like we always do. As each of our houses or streets came along, one of the gang would depart, leaving the rest of us to continue on our way. I always hated being the last one left, as my house was a little bit further from the centre of the town than the others, but I quickly realised that tonight I wouldn’t be alone as I walked the extra few minutes to my house, as Rob would be with me.
‘Don’t you live above the pub?’ Mandy asked Rob as we passed the Merry Mermaid on the harbour front, still full of holiday drinkers spilling out onto the wooden benches in front of the pub as they enjoyed the last few hours of the warm Sunday evening.
‘No, there’s not enough room for all of us. There’s five of us altogether, so my parents are renting a house on the new estate as you head out of town. You couldn’t get more different from a new build to a pub that’s stood on the harbour for hundreds of years.’
Claire, who was walking with me slightly behind the others at the back of the group, nudged me excitedly.
‘What?’ I asked.
‘You’ll be the last one walking with Rob,’ she whispered, her eyes bright.
‘So?’
‘I think he likes you.’
‘Don’t be silly!’ I hissed, slowing her up a little so the others didn’t hear us. ‘What . . . what makes you say that?’
‘Suzy said that, while we were rehearsing, he kept looking at you.’
‘He was probably looking at how bad my singing and dancing was.’
‘Not the way Suzy said it, he wasn’t.’
‘What are you two gossiping about at the back there?’ Eddie turned back towards us.
‘Nothing!’ I quickly replied. ‘Hurry up, Claire, we’re dropping behind.’
We caught up with the others and nothing more was said. But as we walked along Harbour Street and up through the town, and our party of six diminished one by one, I couldn’t help thinking about my conversation with Claire.
Now I realise I’ve been thinking a little too much, because now we’ve said goodnight to Claire, and it’s just me and Rob, I’ve barely spoken in the last few minutes.
‘Yes, yes, I’m fine,’ I reply to his question.
‘Good, you’ve just been a bit quiet since we left the beach, that’s all.’
‘Not much to say. I’m not one to chat away about nothing.’
Rob smiles. ‘That’s good to hear. Most of the girls I know chit-chat and gossip all day. My sisters are terrible for it.’
‘Nope, not me.’ I shrug, suddenly worrying I might sound a little rude with my abrupt answers.
‘I wondered if the reason you were quiet was because the others had asked me to be part of your act?’ Rob looks genuinely worried, which surprises me.
‘No! No of course not,’ I assure him. ‘I’m pleased you’re going to be one of the mermaids – sorry, we’re not really called that. But until we – or Eddie – think of a better stage name, we’ve kind of called ourselves that temporarily.’
‘Eddie and the Mermaids!’ Rob says, waving his hand in front of our faces as though he’s reading our name up in lights. ‘Doesn’t really have much of a ring to it, does it?’
‘No, that’s why we have to think of something better.’
‘I was genuinely pleased when Suzy asked me, you know?’
‘Were you?’
‘Yeah, I’ve not really found any good friends since I came here to St Felix, and you guys always look like you’re having a great time together. I have to admit I’ve been quite jealous.’
I stare at him and almost stop walking.
‘What?’ he asks.
‘But I’ve always thought how well you fitted into the school since you came here – how easy it seemed for you.’
‘No way.’ Rob shakes his head. ‘I may have made it seem easy, but I can assure you it hasn’t been. Because of what Mum and Dad do, I’ve changed schools a couple of times before, and it’s never easy being the new kid. Maybe I’ve just got better at it.’
‘So the boys you hang around with – they’re not really your friends?’
‘Mates, maybe, but nothing like you and your friends seem to have. Without sounding weird, I’ve seen you all together loads of times. You’re a really close little gang, aren’t you?’
‘Yes, I guess we are. But we never set out to be a gang – we all just kind of ended up together cos we’re all a bit different.’
‘How do you mean?’
‘We just are.’ I shrug. ‘I’ve always called us a gang of misfits – that’s why we all get on so well. We all know how it feels to be a bit different.’
‘The Misfit Mermaids.’ Rob smiles.
‘What?’
‘The name for your group. You should call yourselves the Misfit Mermaids.’
I think about this for a moment. ‘Yeah, the Misfit Mermaids, I like it. It works.’
‘As long as Eddie is happy to be called a mermaid, of course.’
‘Are you kidding? Eddie will love it! Thank you, Rob, it’s a great idea. Er . . . this is me.’ I awkwardly point down the road we’ve arrived at the junction of as we’ve made our way up the hill out of town.
‘Oh, right. Our house is a few streets further on. Do you want me to walk you to your door?’
I desperately want to say, ‘Yes, please!’ but I’m worried it will make me seem far too needy. ‘No. I mean . . . thank you, but I’ll be fine from here.’
Rob nods and, feeling incredibly awkward once more, we stand in silence for what is really only a few seconds but feels like minutes.
‘Well . . . goodnight,’ I say eventually.
‘Yeah, goodnight.’
I turn to walk away.
‘Frankie?’ Rob asks suddenly.
‘Yes?’ I turn back.
‘Can I ask you one more thing?’
‘Sure.’ I can feel myself trembling inside. Is Claire right? Is Rob going to ask me out? What if he asks if he can kiss me? My mind runs rapidly over what I’ve eaten today. Will my breath be rank?
I suddenly realise Rob is already talking.
‘What I mean is, if I’m allowed to play guitar with you for the show. Would it be all right if I hung out with you too? I mean, like, all of you,’ he hurriedly adds.
And it’s then, just when I want to say something cool and interesting, that I utter one of the silliest sentences ever to come from my lips.
‘Erm, that depends . . . Are you misfit enough to be a mermaid, Rob?’