Shrinking Violet (14 page)

“Did you ask Katie?” said Mum, next morning.

“About what?” I said.

“About coming on the Eye,” said Mum.

“Yes, I asked her,” I said.

“And what did she say?”

“She said…” I crossed my fingers behind my back. “She’ll let me know. She’s got to ask her mum.”

“Maybe I’ll give her mum a ring.”

“No!” I screeched it. Mum looked at me in surprise. “Why not? We ought to get it organised. I’ll have to arrange things at the shop.”

“But she hasn’t
said.
We have to wait till she
says?’

“Why? Why can’t I just ask her mum?”

“
Because she might not want to!
”

I yelled it at the top of my voice and rushed from the room. Mum was doing it again! Trying to push me. She didn’t know that I’d told all those stupid lies. She didn’t know that I’d been found out and that most probably Katie wouldn’t ever want to speak to me again. I wouldn’t want to speak to me again. Not if I’d been lied to.

I’d just reached the top of the stairs when I heard the telephone start to ring.

I’d just reached my bedroom when Mum called to me.

“Violet! It’s for you.”

“M-me?” I peered over the banisters.

“It’s Katie.”

Katie! Ringing to say she didn’t want to come on the Eye. That she didn’t ever want to speak to me again.

“Well, hurry up!” said Mum. “Don’t keep her waiting.”

Reluctantly, I trailed back down the stairs. Mum handed me the receiver.

“It’s all right,” she said. “I won’t listen!”

I waited till Mum had left the room.

“H-hallo?” I said.

“Violet?” said Katie.

“Y-yes.”

“This is Katie.”

“K-Katie,” I said.

“Hi!”

“H-hi.”

There was a pause; then Katie giggled.

“I thought you said you were going to try and be braver!”

I curled my toes. “I am!”

“Sounds like it,” she said. “This is only
me.
Not a man-eating tiger! Did you like my pictures for Betsy Burp? You didn’t say! Does that mean you didn’t like them?”

“No,” I said. “I loved them!”

“Well, I hope you did ’cos I’ve done some more! And why are you trying to stop me coming on the Eye?”

I said, “I’m not trying to s-stop you!”

“Just as well,” said Katie, “’cos I’m coming! My mum’s going to ring yours and we’re going to arrange a day. And stop trying to push me off on Lily! I don’t want to be friends with Lily. All her friends are posh. That’s what you said.”

“Yes,” I said. “They are.”

“Well, I’m not,” said Katie, “so I don’t s’ppose she’d want to be friends with me anyway. And listen! I’ve got some more ideas for Girlzone. I thought we could have interviews with celebs. First I could be one, then you could be one, and we could ask each other questions. Like what is your star sign and what is your favourite TV programme and stuff like that. Who would you want to be? I’m going to be a pop star. Listen! This is me singing.

A horrible slurpy sound came oozing down the telephone at me.

“What do you think?”

I couldn’t tell if she was being serious, or not.

“Think it’ll make the Top Ten?”

I decided to be brave, and take a chance.

“Not drooling like that!” I said.

“New kind of music … drooly music. I’ll be a drooler!”

“You’ll be Adrooler?”

“Adroola the Drooler!”

I giggled.

“You’ll have to write me some drooly songs to sing.”

“They won’t just be drooly,” I said, “they’ll be truly drooly!”

Lily had just come into the room. She gave me this irritated look.

“What’s going on?”

She wasn’t used to me having private conversations on the telephone. She was the one that was supposed to do all the talking!

“Who is it?” she hissed. “Is it the Blob?”

“No,” I said. “It’s Adroola.”

“Who’s Adroola?”

“Adroola the Drooler. She’s a pop star. Listen!”

I held out the receiver. Katie’s voice came drooling down the line. Rather disgusting, actually. It sounded like someone belching into a bowl of syrup.

“Have you gone mad?” said Lily.

I shouted, “Yes! Raving!”
and danced about in front of her with my eyes crossed and one hand held up like a claw. Lily stared at me, with her mouth gaping open.

“Raving! Raving!
Bluurgh!
”

“Mum! She’s gone completely mad!” wailed Lily.

“Has she?” said Mum. “Well, I shouldn’t worry about it. She seems quite happy.”

“But people might think I’m mad!” said Lily. “They might think she’s me!”

It is true that just lately people do seem to have started getting us more muddled up than they used to. Even, sometimes, people at school. I can’t think why, since we are not in the least bit alike. Lily will tell you that I am completely mad. It is since knowing Katie. She gets you that way! She is so bright and bubbly, she makes me bright and bubbly, too.

It is such fun to have a friend! We do all kinds of things together. I’ve slept over at Katie’s place, she’s slept over at mine. (Lily was excluded. But I might let her in on it next time. If she behaves herself!)

What else have we done? We’ve been shopping together. Lots of times! We really enjoy shopping. We’ve been on the Eye. At last – and for real! Not just in my imagination. We’ve been ice skating! (Katie’s mum took us.) Oh, and we’ve written loads
more for Girlzone. We did the celebs, and we did a quiz, and we did a special interview with Adroola. Our latest thing, the thing we’re working on at the moment, is Makeover of the Month. We’re going to have Befores and Afters. Like this:

These are true photographs! We did all the makeup and stuff in my room, with the door barricaded so that Lily couldn’t get in. She was practically foaming at the mouth! She knew something was going on, she just didn’t know what. Hah! That makes a change. But I don’t see why I should let her in on all my secrets.

I have lots of secrets, these days. I share them with Katie. Natch! Most of them are private giggle material, just between her and me. We go round the playground, arm in arm, giggling away together. Sometimes we giggle so much we give ourselves a stitch. People look at us as if we have taken leave of our senses. But do we care?

NO WAY!

Lemonade Sky
Love and Kisses
Fortune Cookie
Star Crazy Me!
Over the Moon
Boys Beware
Sugar and Spice
Is Anybody There?
Secret Meeting
Passion Flower
Boys on the Brain
Skinny Melon and Me
Becky Bananas, This is Your Life!
Fruit and Nutcase
The Secret Life of Sally Tomato
Family Fan Club
Ice Lolly

Special three-in-one editions
The Tutti-Frutti Collection
The Flower Power Collection
The Friends Forever Collection

And for younger readers
Dazzling Danny
Daisy May
Monster in the Mirror

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Text copyright © Jean Ure 2002
Illustrations by Karen Donnelly 2002
Cover illustrations by Nicola Slater

The author and illustrator assert the moral right to be identified as the author and illustrator of the work.

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Source ISBN: 9780009143900
EBook Edition © JUNE 2013 ISBN: 9780007439898

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