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‘Not really, lad,’ Alex said from where he was kneeling by a flower bed, transplanting seedlings. ‘I’ve just about finished this lot.’ He looked up at his oldest son standing there restlessly tapping one foot on the ground. ‘Well, but since you ask…The front lawn could use a mow, if you wouldn’t mind.’

‘No worries, Dad,’ said Robert gratefully. ‘Should I do the nature strip, too?’

‘That’d be beaut.’

As he pushed the roaring lawnmower up and down in meticulously straight lines, Robert tried to consider the party invitation rationally.
Justin’s a genuinely nice bloke, even though his family’s so rich. But I don’t really know his friends. They might all be snobs. I don’t want to be standing there like a shag on a rock with all these private school types ignoring me. And Justin’s the host, he’ll be busy. But I’d… I’d actually love to see his house; that time I picked him up outside, it looked… incredible. I’ve never been inside a place like that.

If only he had someone he could go with, but his few friends from teachers’ college were all busy. Meredith would’ve been perfect; she was a real social butterfly, mixed with anyone, anywhere – but she was away for the weekend.

‘James!’ he said out loud. He finished the mowing quickly and put the machine back in the shed. His father was sitting on a canvas chair under the shade of a fruit tree, Toby the labrador flopped on the grass beside him.

‘Do you know what James is doing tonight, Dad?’

Alex shook his head. ‘I think he’s working at the pool till six.’

‘I’ll just nick down there. But if I miss him and he comes back here, can you tell him I want to ask him about going to a party tonight?’

‘I’ll do that. That’ll be nice for you, Robbie, a party. You deserve to relax. Don’t know whether young James does though!’

‘Oh, Dad, don’t be hard on him. Architecture just wasn’t right for him, you know.’

‘Well no, I don’t know actually,’ said Alex in a prickly tone. ‘He would’ve made a bloody good architect. But there you are, it’s not up to me what he does, is it?’

‘James’ll be okay, Dad.’

‘Oh, there’s no doubt about
that
! Well, off you go. I’ll tell him to wait if he comes back here.’

Down at the local swimming pool, one of the other attendants confirmed that yes, James had finished his shift but he hadn’t left yet. ‘He’s doing laps,’ the guy said, pointing at the fifty-metre pool.

There he was, his long tanned arms and broad shoulders surging steadily through the water, feet flexing in perfect rhythm. Robert
walked to the deep end and squatted at the end of James’s lane. As his brother approached, Robert reached down in front of the diving block and waved his hand to and fro under the water. James surged in, grabbed Robert’s hand below the surface and gave a little tug, not enough to overbalance him but enough to make him yelp and laugh.

‘Hi, Rob,’ James said, flicking back his shoulder-length black hair. He took hold of the steel bar below the block and propped his feet up, knees bent. ‘What are you up to?’

‘I’ve been invited to a party tonight at my friend Justin’s place. Wondered if you’d like to come.’

‘Justin?’ James asked, flexing his body now as though about to launch off into backstroke. ‘That bloke you met in America, right? At the summer camp.’

‘Yes, we were both counsellors. He’s beaut, I think it’ll be a good party.’

‘Uh-huh,’ James said. He held a breath and let his head fall back so that his face was under the water, still gazing up at Robert intently. He was thinking about water and painting: how to paint the way people appeared when you were looking at them through water; fellow swimmers in other lanes, or people walking beside the pool, coaches for instance, or like his brother was now, beside the blocks.
Look how the outlines are all wavery but you can still tell that he’s asking a question. Or someone on the blocks, that’d be good. Tensed and ready to dive in, or – even better – in mid-dive, seen from below
. James lifted his head and blew a whale spout of air and water. ‘Sounds good. Yeah, I’ll come. Still gotta do eight more laps though.’

‘That’s okay, I’ll wait. Give you a lift home.’

They had a light meal with their father, did the dishes, watched a bit of telly. They headed off for the party a little after nine. A yellow moon just past full hung low and swollen in the sky.

‘So where is Justin’s place?’ asked James, lounging in the passenger seat of Robert’s Datsun.

‘Toorak. It’s his parents’ place, they’re away for a while.’

‘Yeah? You’re taking me to a party in some Toorak mansion, eh?’ James was grinning at his brother. Robert glanced at him and grinned back.

‘That’s right. You know me, always hobnobbing with the rich and famous.’

James chuckled. Robert felt an unaccustomed sense of relaxation flow through his body.
This is going to be a good night
, he thought, and he took one hand from the steering wheel and patted James’s shoulder. ‘Don’t worry, little brother,’ he said. ‘If you start to feel out of your depth, I’ll look after you.’ He was rewarded with another chuckle.

They drove on, windows open to the tantalising breath of early summer.

‘I’ve got into art school for next year,’ said James absently.

‘What?’ said Robert, startled. ‘Really? I didn’t even know you’d applied!’

‘Well, I didn’t tell many people. Didn’t want to upset Dad if there was no need to.’

‘You think Dad’ll be cranky?’ asked Robert carefully.

‘You know he will,’ said James, his voice mild as ever. ‘But he’ll get over it.’

‘He will,’ Robert agreed. ‘He was just a bit disappointed when you dropped out of architecture. You know. It’s almost engineering!’

‘Yeah, don’t I know it!’

They stopped at a red light. ‘You know who would’ve been really rapt, though?’ Robert asked suddenly. From the corner of his eye he saw James turn toward him, his expression asking
Who?
. ‘Mum,’ Robert said. ‘She would’ve been absolutely thrilled to have you going to art school.’

‘Yeah?’ said James. ‘You reckon?’

‘Definitely,’ said Robert, nodding emphatically.

‘Why’s that?’

‘She just…Well, she was always drawing, remember? Designing clothes and things.’ The traffic light changed; Robert put the car in gear and drove on. ‘And also…’ he paused, considering. ‘She just would’ve been happy you’re doing what you’re good at. What you want to do. Wouldn’t matter what it is.’ Another pause. ‘You were always her favourite, after all.’

‘I was?’ said James. Not denying, nor disbelieving, just a little bemused.

‘No question. But we didn’t
mind
or anything. It’s not like you were obnoxious about it. I mean, you were everybody’s favourite. Teachers and everyone.’

‘I didn’t know that,’ said James. He was intent on something in his lap; looking across, Robert saw that he was rolling a joint. Lighting it, James took a deep drag, and said in a quick thin voice without exhaling, ‘Not Dad’s though, I don’t think.’

‘Mmm,’ said Robert. ‘Maybe Meredith, for Dad.’

James exhaled the stream of fragrant dope smoke gustily out the open window. ‘Yeah.’

‘Doesn’t that… I mean, I thought that with your swimming… lung capacity and so on…’ Robert faltered. He could hear himself trying not to sound disapproving.

‘That’s why I don’t smoke much,’ said James easily. ‘Just special occasions. You want some? Get you in the party mood.’

‘No. No,’ said Robert, holding up one hand. ‘I really don’t think it would.’
I probably wouldn’t even be able to get out of the car!
he thought.

Soon after, they arrived at Justin’s parents’ home, its grandeur drawing a heartfelt
‘Wow!’
from James. The long driveway curved through grounds the size of several ordinary suburban blocks. Music was pouring from the open front door, and a group of people talking and laughing on the broad steps smiled and nodded as Robert and James walked up. They headed towards the music and found themselves in a ballroom. Neither brother had ever been in a house that had an actual ballroom before. A live band was playing on a stage
at one end. Lots of girls were dancing; hardly any guys though. The room was so vast it still looked fairly empty.

Someone called out, ‘Robert! Hi!’ A pleasant-looking guy standing with a knot of others was waving, gesturing them to come over.

‘There’s Justin! Come and I’ll introduce you,’ said Robert. No sooner had they joined Justin’s group than a trio of girls left off dancing together nearby and came over. All three, leggy and frisky as foals, were dressed in skimpy spaghetti-strapped summer dresses, and the blonde one suggested straightaway that it was about time the guys started dancing, too. Her two dark-haired friends exuberantly backed her up; they were giggling and bopping flirtatiously. Robert noticed that though ostensibly their invitation was to the whole group, their attention was clearly focused on James.

Within a few moments most of the group, including James, was on the dance floor. Robert drifted unobtrusively to the perimeter of the room, where he leant with self-conscious casualness against the frame of a handsome set of doors that led out to a terrace and the back garden.

A girl drifted over and leaned against the opposite doorframe. She was wearing a pretty green dress, and she had a cloud of flame-coloured hair, more orange than red, which blazed against the dark wood of the frame. Their eyes met, the girl’s magnified by her glasses. ‘Hi,’ Robert said. She smiled.
What a beautiful smile
, he thought.
That hair is incredible, too.

On a sudden impulse, he pushed himself off from his lounging position and moved over to her. ‘My name’s Robert,’ he said. ‘I’m a friend of Justin’s.’

‘Hi,’ the girl said shyly. ‘I’m Vesna. I’m actually a friend of Sarah’s, Justin’s sister. I don’t know many people here.’

‘Me either, to tell you the truth.’

‘I saw you come in, with that guy over there in the white T-shirt.’ She indicated James, who was dancing away with a dreamy expression on his tanned face. His eyes were half-closed but as they watched he
opened them fully and looked around, smiling. Even from across the room they were striking, those eyes, as lovely as sapphires. The three girls who had approached the group earlier had him surrounded now, twining sinuously around him and each other.

‘That’s my brother,’ Robert said. They watched him silently for a few moments.

‘I wonder what it’d be like,’ the young woman said quietly, ‘to be
that
good-looking.’

‘I don’t know, but I think I’d hate it,’ said Robert honestly. ‘People always looking at you! But James seems to cope with it okay.’

‘I guess he’s used to it. But I’d hate it, too.’

‘Your name’s…Vesna?’ Robert asked, turning to her. ‘Is that right?’

She nodded. ‘It means “spring”. It’s a Yugoslav name.’

‘It’s beautiful,’ he said, and she smiled at him again, a pleased, radiant smile. Robert felt a little light-headed, as though he’d been drinking, and something else, too, like goldfish were swimming around in his chest. But it was not unpleasant. Not at all.

Over the next couple of hours he and Vesna parted several times to mingle with other people at the steadily swelling party, neither wanting to make the other feel they
had
to stay together. But their eyes kept meeting, from doorways and across rooms, and they were drawn back to each other again and again, to talk more, to laugh quietly and just to stand together, observing.
I feel so relaxed
, Robert marvelled.
She’s just so easy to be with.
Sometime after midnight they found themselves back in the same doorway where they had first met. The party was in full swing now, the dance floor seething. It was hard to hear each other over the racket of music and voices and loud laughter.

‘Let’s go outside for a while,’ Robert suggested, having almost to shout. Vesna nodded. They found a bench at the far end of the stone-paved terrace; the light from the house and the sounds of the party spilled out in a way that was attractive but not obtrusive.

There were enormous pots full of shrubs and flowers placed here and there. The delicious perfume of gardenias drifted on the warm air. From their shadowed nook they could see the dark outlines of trees with the moon glimmering through branches, and a suggestion of other terraces below.

Suddenly they heard a loud splash, and lights came on somewhere below them. Standing now and leaning on the balustrade, they saw a swimming pool on a lower terrace. Someone had dived in and was swimming steadily, covering the length of the pool in half a dozen long strokes and turning. James, of course, stripped to his underpants, his T-shirt and jeans tossed over a bench.

‘My brother the water baby,’ said Robert. ‘He can’t stay away from it.’

The same three girls who had been pursuing him all evening appeared by the pool. One slipped her party dress over her head, laughing, and dived in wearing her bra and panties. A second, the blonde, took her dress off, too: she wasn’t wearing a bra. Not hesitating for a moment, she pulled her panties down and stepped out of them. Her pale pubic hair caught the light for a moment, like a tiny silvery cloud, and with a shriek she jumped into the water.

‘Oh!’ gasped Vesna. ‘Gosh!’

James kept swimming up and down, apparently oblivious. The third girl was darting to and fro beside the pool like a dog who wants to join its master but is nervous of the water. ‘That’s not fair!’ she cried. She had an English accent. ‘You know I can’t swim!’ Her friends ignored her and after a few moments more she said ‘Oh, rats! I’m going to get another drink then!’ She disappeared.

Robert and Vesna watched as the two girls in the water began to swim on either side of James. They had no hope of keeping pace with him. Every few laps they stopped at one end to catch their breath and then pushed off level with him as he turned. Each time they swam closer to him, like playful porpoises. Suddenly one of the girls ducked beneath him. The pool was lit below the surface, and
Robert and Vesna saw her twist her body to face his and take hold of his shoulders from below. The other girl, the naked one, swam above him and pressed herself against James’s back. The three of them sank beneath the water and then surfaced a moment later, laughing and spluttering. The girls towed James over to the side of the pool: their prize catch.