Page 15 of Nothing Without You

‘You’ll do it now.’

‘No. I’m going fishing.’

Her hand came up, but he stepped back, jumping down the two stairs and backing away across the lawn. A good slap across the face seemed to be her answer to anything he said that she disagreed with. ‘How dare you!’ she yelled at him.

For once he wasn’t going to give in. Over the years he had always done what she wanted. He would argue a bit, but he’d come to know it wasn’t worth it, and she would win in the end. This morning though, nothing was going to stop him from going fishing with Evie.

The gate squeaked behind him and his father walked up the pathway. ‘What’s wrong Bettina?’ he asked. ‘Let the boy go fishing. He’s on holiday.’

Chris ignored his mother and, tucking his board under his arm, made his way around the back of the house. He leant his board against the fence before heading for a small shed, where the fishing gear was stored. He’d had enough. He was fourteen, nearly fifteen, and it was time she stopped treating him like a kid. He worked hard at school, didn’t get in trouble, and did more work around the house than anyone he knew. These were his holidays as well as hers, and he was going fishing.

The sound of his parents yelling at each other filled his ears, and he quickly grabbed what he needed, snatched a clean T-shirt off the washing line, and made his way through the bush at the back of the house. Stepping over a flimsy wire fence, he found a way through the long grass, breathing a sigh of relief once he was concealed by the bushes. Today he might ask Evie to walk further down the beach and around the headland, where no one would find them.

Thank goodness she had waited. He arrived, puffing and out of breath from running so fast. ‘Thanks for waiting. Can we walk up to where my sisters are? I want to fish further away from here, and I need to tell them they should go home. Mum is angry and wants to know where they are.’

‘Sure,’ she said, picking up her rod and bucket. He noticed how brown her skin was, her sturdy legs tanned and dark against the pink cotton shorts she wore. He gulped and tried not to stare, but he could see a lot of her skin. The only piece of clothing she wore, apart from her shorts, was a yellow knitted bikini top.

‘Your skin goes a darker colour than mine,’ he said, as they walked up the beach together. ‘Sometimes I get so burnt my skin blisters, then peels.’

She smiled at him, and his stomach did a strange flip when she spoke and looked at him. ‘My dad is from Italy and they have very olive skin.’ She pushed her arm against his. ‘I am darker. That’s the Italian blood in me.’

‘I wish that happened to me. My entire back is peeling from getting burnt at the start of the week. It’s itchy.’

In the distance, a group of people were fishing along the shoreline. ‘That’ll be the group my sisters hang out with,’ Chris said, pointing ahead. ‘They’re camped up further.’

They walked quickly, keen to start fishing. There was a good-sized gutter visible in the waves ahead, and they talked about where might be the best place. As they neared the group, a couple of the boys waved to them. ‘G’day Chris. Who’ve you got with you? Is that your girlfriend?’

He could feel his face burn. ‘No, this is Evie, my friend. Do you know where Lily and Rose are? Mum’s chasing them.’

The boy who spoke had long blonde hair down to his waist and wore only a pair of old faded board shorts, his body tanned from swimming and surfing. ‘They’re up at camp. Go up. Just call out though. I’m not sure what they’re doing.’

Evie followed him as he made his way up through the dunes and into the bush that lined the beach. A dog barked as they approached. The camp looked rough, comprising a few small tents and a large tarp hung between a couple of paperbark trees. The trees gave shade and maybe some shelter if it rained. Empty bottles were tossed into a pile, and a fire burned to the side of the shaded area. A couple of boys looked up from where they were playing cards. Rose was sitting with them. A look of surprise crossed her face and she quickly put down a can of beer that was in one hand, a cigarette in the other.

‘Chris. What are you doing here?’

He scowled at her. She only wore bikinis, and a boy who had scraggy long hair and a tattoo on his leg, had his arm wrapped around her shoulders. ‘Mum is going to come looking for you.’ Chris gave the boy an even more irate look. ‘You need to go home. Where’s Lily?’

When they arrived, he had heard noises and noticed movement from one of the smaller tents on the edge of the tarped area. No one answered, and he concluded that Lily was in there. ‘Is she in there?’ he gestured towards the tent.

One of the boys stood up. ‘How about you and your friend go back and wait on the beach? The girls’ll be there in a sec.’

Rose stood up. She was unsteady on her feet, the boy next to her laughing and propping her with his arm. Chris looked at Evie, who had not spoken a word. Her eyes were wide as she looked around the camp, taking in everything that was going on. The sickly scent of marijuana hung in the air, and he wondered if she knew what the smell was. He would have to remind her that whatever she heard or saw was between them, and no one else. There was no way his parents could find out what the girls were up to. ‘C’mon,’ Evie said to him. ‘Let’s get out of here.’

Chris stood tall, and tried to make his voice sound deep as he turned to Rose. ‘I’ll wait a couple of minutes, but then I’ll be back if you and Lily don’t come.’

He was angry. Not only was Rose drunk or stoned, but Lily was in a tent with someone by herself. He turned on his heel and followed Evie. When he turned back, he glimpsed Lily coming out of the tent. Her hair was dishevelled and she gave him a wave, calling out, ‘We’ll be there in a sec.’

Evie must have realised he was upset, because she didn’t ask any questions, or try to get him to talk. They stood on the beach together, waiting. He looked at his feet, then back up towards the path near the camp. The girls were taking too long and he didn’t want to have to go back up there. The camp, and what was happening with Lily and Rose, made him feel uneasy.

Eventually the girls came towards them, their shirts draped over their shoulders, both wearing only their bikinis. They ran past him, laughing and doing cartwheels as they neared the water. ‘We’ll just take a quick dip. To refresh.’

Rose fell over just as her feet reached the water, and Lily sat down next to her, both of them rolling around laughing and squealing as the waves caught them. Chris took deep breaths, fuming about how they found everything so funny. They were going to get themselves into trouble. Big trouble.

Evie stayed silent as Chris glared at his sisters, his chest rising and falling noticeably as he watched them. What she had seen at the camp unsettled her also, and she was glad they had not stayed long. Those boys were a lot older, and the place smelled of smoke and beer. There had been dirty cups and plates scattered along the camping table and an assortment of towels and clothing hanging from the branches of the trees. She was surprised Lily and Rose would want to be with those boys. Lily had definitely been up to something in the tent. Evie wasn’t stupid. Hanging around Layla and hearing what her sisters did had opened her eyes to what older girls did. Chris’s sisters seemed like they also did things they weren’t supposed to. And their father was a teacher. Surely, he wouldn’t be happy about them hanging out with the group of boys at the camp?

‘Hi Evie.’ Lily hugged her, her wet body cool against Evie’s warm skin. Both girls’ arms and legs were tanned and lithe. They were taller than she was, and she admired their figures that were covered only with skimpy bikinis and strings of shells around their necks and arms.

She could tell Chris was upset and angry. ‘Mum’s looking for you. I wouldn’t be surprised if she even walked down the beach. Where are you going to say you were?’

---