Page 14 of Nothing Without You

The sun started to burn Evie’s skin, so she rolled onto her stomach, her hands propping her chin as she looked out across the ocean. Her mother sat up straight and rearranged her hair. She stretched her legs out and rubbed them with coconut oil. Red polish highlighted her beautiful long nails, her toenails matching in the same colour. Evie kept looking at her mother’s legs. They were smooth and long, her slender feet wriggling into the sand.

Turning her gaze back to the ocean, she watched a couple of people swimming nearby. Chris and his father were further out on surfboards, but as far as she could see to the north, there was no one else. Next week would be busier though, as it would be getting closer to Christmas. ‘I wish I could stay here forever,’ she said, turning towards her mother.

‘The island is lovely. I’m happy here too. But you need to go to school and soon it will be high school, so there will be lots more homework. You know your father and I want you to do well and go to university.’

‘You and Dad didn’t go. Why should I?’

Her mother twisted her mouth. ‘So that you can be something better than a cleaner or a vacuum salesman who spends all his time worrying about the business, that’s why.’

They had not talked after that, both lost in their thoughts. Evie watched as Chris and his father started paddling in. They lay flat on their boards, using their arms to propel themselves through the water. The boards skimmed across the smaller waves, gliding effortlessly into the shallows and then the beach. Both stood up and carried their boards under their arms, as they walked towards where Evie and her mother sat.

Chris’s father greeted them. ‘G’day, Mrs Romano and Evie.’

‘Please, call me Maya.’ Her mother adjusted her sunglasses and tilted her head back to look up at Mr McIntosh. ‘That looked like fun,’ she said, flicking her head so that her blonde hair gleamed in the sun.

‘It is,’ Mr McIntosh replied. ‘You should try it.’

Her mother laughed. ‘I can’t even swim. I’d drown, not to mention I’m terrified of sharks.’

‘Are you having a good holiday?’ he asked.

Her mother put her arm around Evie’s shoulders. ‘We are. Thank you so much for filleting the fish. My husband would normally do that, but he was called away to Sydney for work, so we’re really grateful.’

Both Chris and his father wore board shorts, the same blue and white pattern of hibiscus flowers decorating each pair. Their chests were bare, and Evie stared at Mr McIntosh’s chest which was covered in hair. He also had lots of muscles, which Chris did not. Apart from that, they looked much the same. Chris was just a younger version of his father.

Water dripped from their hair, making little indents as it splatted onto the sand. Chris shook his head and Evie held her hand up, trying to shield herself from the cold water that flicked over her sun-warmed back. Sitting up, she crossed her legs under her, watching him as he put his board down and sat in the sand beside her. He started talking to her about where they could fish, and asked her if she would wait while he went and got his fishing gear. Her rod was next to her, ready to use.

The two adults were also talking, and she heard Mr McIntosh ask how her mum was liking her job. He seemed like a nice man, and it would be good to know him before starting school. Not that she ever got into trouble anyway. She had never done anything wrong at primary school, and she wasn’t about to start doing so at high school. Her father would, as he liked to say, ‘Feed her to the fish if she misbehaved.’

Mr McIntosh got to his feet and picked his board up from where it lay in the sand. ‘I’d better get going. My wife doesn’t like the beach or the water.’ He stopped talking and looked out over the ocean. ‘I don’t know how anyone can’t fall in love with this place.’

‘Mum didn’t want to come back here,’ Chris added. ‘We all wanted to though, so she was outvoted. See you soon, Evie. I’ll be back with my fishing gear. Make sure to wait. I don’t want you catching the big ones before I do.’ With that, he started jogging up the beach, his father also saying his goodbyes before following him.

Chapter Eleven

Chris ran faster once he was clear of the soft sand. The track was well-used and firm under his feet. His skin tingled from the salt water, and although his legs ached as he pushed himself harder, it was a good feeling—an ache that he embraced. He hitched his board tighter under his arm and picked up speed, hoping that Evie would wait for him before she started fishing. Maybe she’d spend the time finding pipis along the beach. There was a competitive streak in her though and he smiled as he ran, thinking she would probably try to catch something big before he returned.

Thank goodness he didn’t have to tag along with his sisters all the time. Now he had a friend. Someone who liked fishing, reading, and the same music he did. A girl who, although younger than him, didn’t seem so. His sisters also included her when they were around. ‘We like her too,’ they had told him. ‘And now you don’t have to hang out with us as much.’

Slowing down as he neared the house where they were staying, he noticed his mother on the front porch. That was not a good sign. She was waiting for him, or maybe Dad. Her face was set in that look that let him know she was in a worse mood than usual.

Slowing to a walk as he approached her, his shoulders sagged and the smile faded from his face.

He couldn’t remember a time when his mother had been happy or agreed with something he said or did. Nothing any of them did seem to please her; and her main priority was that everything was tidy, their clothes picked up, and the house spotless from one end to the other. His father tried to explain to her that these holiday houses were designed so that it didn’t matter if a bit of sand occasionally came in on their feet. ‘It’s a lino floor,’ he told her, the exasperation clear in his tone. ‘You just sweep it. What does it matter?’

But his father’s words were in vain. She argued with everything. At least at home she went to the bridge club, or spent time at craft classes. Here there was nothing to keep her busy. It seemed as though, for the entire week they had been here, she did nothing but clean, nag them to be tidy, and find fault with any little thing she could.

Her voice cut the air. ‘Where’s your father? You two have been gone for ages, and I have no idea where those girls are.’

‘They’ve gone for a walk, and Dad and I were surfing. He’s not far behind me.’

Picking up a broom, she started sweeping the porch. ‘This place is full of sand, and all of you just keep walking it into the house. I need you to cut firewood for the barbeque and clean the shower for me.’

‘Mum, we’ve only been here a week. The shower is clean.’

Her lips were pursed in a mean line, her face reddening. Her forehead was stretched tight, the bun she wore pulling back her skin, making her look stern and miserable. ‘Christopher, don’t backchat me. Just do as you’re told.’

Re-positioning his board under his arm, he felt a flash of anger surge through him. ‘I’m going fishing. I’ll do the jobs when I come back.’

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