The Road Back (23 page)

‘Jazzy certainly is a lot wilder than her mother,' said Susan.

‘Jazzy is so homesick. She likes to act cool, but that's because she's so miserable. I don't think she's really like that at all. She really misses her little brother and sisters and her parents, as well as her animals. Anyway, that's why I think she smokes pot – it helps take her mind off how unhappy she is,' explained Megan.

‘I see, but I don't think that smoking pot is going to provide her with any lasting solutions. So, who's she boarding with?' asked Susan.

‘The Sedgemores,' replied Megan.

‘Are they the same Sedgemores who used to have kids boarding with them when I went to school, Mum?' asked Chris.

‘The very same,' replied Susan.

‘They must be a hundred in the shade by now,' said Chris in amazement.

‘The Sedgemores are good people, but you're right. They aren't young, so I can't imagine that they would provide exciting and stimulating company for a fifteen-year-old,' said Susan.

‘If I'd known how unhappy Jazzy was, I think I would have been a bit more understanding, instead of thinking the worst about her,' said Chris, remorsefully.

‘Shall I call her and ask her to come back?' asked Megan. ‘Explain that you didn't mean to lose your cool?'

‘Megan, just because I can understand Jazzy's motives doesn't mean I can condone her pot smoking,' replied Chris.

‘Oh, for goodness sake, Chris, don't be so prim,' said Susan, tartly. ‘If we don't get Jazzy to come back here, then we can't help her, and believe me, she wants to be helped.'

‘All right, you two, I give in. Do you want to take
Jazzy out to Mollie's place and then bring her back here for dinner, Megs? Tell her that you've got me sorted out and that the path is clear.'

‘Dad, you are the best. I'm going to ring her right away.' With that Megan leapt from her chair and raced to use the landline. In less than a minute, Chris could hear her chattering brightly.

‘Are teenagers always this mercurial?' he asked his mother.

‘You're lucky that Megan is. Some teens can hold a grudge for a very long time.'

Megan arranged to meet Jazzy down at the river.

‘I hope she'll come back with me and talk to us all. She said she might, but you'll understand if she doesn't want to?'

‘Sure thing,' said Chris.

‘But do try to encourage her,' added Susan. ‘We're not going to preach or anything like that, we just want to see if we can help her somehow.'

‘Being nice and friendly will help her heaps,' said Megan.

‘How are you going to get to Mollie's farm? I'll drive you if you like,' said Susan.

‘It's okay, thanks. We'll walk and take turns on the bike.'

Carla arrived back before the girls returned, and Chris filled her in on what had transpired.

‘You did the right thing. Sounds like Jazzy is struggling. Hard on her being separated from the rest of her family.'

The three adults were on the verandah when the girls came home that afternoon, wheeling Megan's bike.

‘I'm so glad you decided to join us for dinner,' said Susan with a sincere smile. ‘You both must be starving and it'll be a while until the meal's ready, so why don't you get yourselves a snack?'

The girls went inside and soon reappeared with large homemade milkshakes. Jazzy seemed much more subdued than she had the previous day.

Carla broke the ice, cutting to the chase. ‘So, your parents are out in the bush, are they? Too far to travel to school each day?'

‘I used to go to the local high school on the plateau, but my mother thinks that Neverend High is much better 'cause that's where she went, and she thinks that I'll get better educational opportunities if I go there, too.'

‘Do you like Neverend High?' asked Carla.

‘It's okay. The teachers are good, I suppose.' Then, unbidden, tears started to roll down Jazzy's cheeks. ‘When I went out to Mollie's farm today, all I could think about was home. I just love being on the land.'

‘Yeah, you like shovelling cow poo and horse poo,' said Megan, trying to lighten the mood.

‘I
do
love it. I miss it so badly, it hurts.'

The others looked at her.

The poor girl, thought Chris.

‘Did you like the school on the plateau?' asked Susan.

‘It was all right. I had some nice friends there. Not that you're not nice, Megan, and you too, Bunny,' said Jazzy in a little voice, and then started to cry again.

‘But if your parents knew how unhappy you are in Neverend, surely they would let you transfer back to your old school,' said Susan.

‘I couldn't tell them. They're making big sacrifices to pay for my board so I can go to school here. I don't want to disappoint them,' Jazzy sniffed.

Susan said nothing more and Carla had the tact to change the subject and talk about a rally she was going to in South Australia the following week.

‘I think I'll go in and start the dinner,' said Susan, walking towards the kitchen. ‘No, I'll be fine by myself,' she added when the others started to get up, ‘you lot just talk and I'll call if I need help.'

As soon as Susan left, Chris spoke quietly to Jazzy, explaining that while he could not approve of her smoking pot, he should not have overreacted. He assured her that if she didn't bring marijuana into the house again, she would always be welcome to visit.

Jazzy smiled weakly. ‘Thank you, Chris. I won't ever do anything like that again. You are great people and I'm glad that Megan invited me to stay over.'

An hour later, Susan announced that dinner was on the table.

‘I could eat a horse,' said Chris. ‘You were ages getting dinner ready. You should have yelled for help.'

‘Actually, dinner was quick and easy. What held me up was a very long phone call to Jazzy's mother.'

‘You rang my
mum
?' said Jazzy in a shocked voice. ‘You told her about the pot! I thought you were my friend.'

‘Bunny, how could you do such a thing?' asked Megan in an incredulous voice.

Susan held up her hands. ‘Listen, both of you. I didn't mention the marijuana. I rang Janelle to tell her that she has one very homesick daughter. I told her I remembered her from school and that I was aware I was interfering but I felt I had to tell her that sending Jazzy to Neverend High was having a detrimental effect on her. I told Janelle I understood her motives, but it wasn't necessarily the best way to go. I said that in my opinion not only was the plateau high school a good school, but I also said that if Jazzy was happy in her home environment, then she would achieve more than if she was unhappy at another school, no matter how good that school was.'

Jazzy mulled this over for a moment. ‘I didn't want them to know that, but I think I'm glad you told them, Bunny. What did they say? They weren't angry, were they?' she asked anxiously.

‘Your mother was shocked to find out how miserable you are. You've covered it up pretty well. But she thanked me for ringing, because neither she nor your father knew how you'd been feeling. She said that now that they understand the true state of affairs, they'll come down on Monday morning to talk to you and Mrs Hardwick with a view to having you transferred back to the school on the plateau.'

‘No way!' Jazzy leaped to her feet. ‘Oh, Bunny, did she really?'

‘Yes indeed. I also think your parents were reassured by my
opinion about the quality of the plateau high school. It is unfortunate, in a way, that Neverend High has such a good reputation, but other schools around here do a good job too. I was quite fond of your mother. She was always a sweet-natured person, very kind and caring. I was sure that if I could talk to her, she would reassess your situation. The important thing for her, Jazzy, is that you're happy.'

‘Oh, Bunny, I am. I can't thank you and your family enough for what you've done for me. Would I be seriously rude if I asked to go back to the Sedgemores' place straight after dinner? I want to be packed and ready to go, first thing on Monday morning.'

‘I'll drive you there on the back of my bike,' said Carla.

‘Wow. I've never been on a big bike like that, only the farm bikes, and they haven't got much power at all. That would be really cool.' Jazzy beamed at everyone.

*

After Carla left, with Jazzy holding tightly on the back of the bike, Megan disappeared into her room. Chris helped his mother with the dishes.

‘It was pretty cheeky of you to ring up Jazzy's mother like that, Mum,' said Chris. ‘She might not have reacted so well to someone calling her up and interfering with her family.'

‘Yes, I was being very forward,' admitted Susan. ‘But the funny thing is, even though it is years since I taught Janelle, I still felt as though I had a responsibility to her, so I just had to let her know about her daughter. Besides, if you're part of a community, you have to accept responsibility for some of its members.'

‘It was a bold move, Mum,' said Chris. ‘But I'm glad it worked out. I suppose Jazzy will be back home in a few days a much happier girl.'

Later Chris tapped on Megan's door and found her curled on the bed, her face buried in the pillow she was hugging. She looked up at her father, her eyes red, dried tears on her cheeks.

‘What's the matter, sweetie? I know it's been a tough day. But I thought you'd be happy for Jazzy.'

‘This has been more than tough – it's been an awful day. I mean, like, so hard. First I find out my new best friend is smoking pot, then you accuse me of taking drugs, and then everyone worries about Jazzy and now she'll most likely end up going home. And then I email Ruby and she's too busy to talk to me. I don't have any real friends.' Her rushed words tumbled out. ‘I hate it here.'

Chris sat on the edge of the bed. ‘I guess it must seem that way. Do you want to go to Perth and see your mum in the next school break? Or what about you go and visit Ruby? Do you want me to talk to Mrs Hardwick at school? Maybe she can talk to the other students.'

‘You can't do that. You can't make people be friends with me!'

‘Megan, I don't think people don't like you or don't want to be friends. They're just getting on with their own lives, school, family, sport, as we all do. Maybe you just have to make more of an effort to get to know them.'

‘That's right! Blame me,' Megan said, turning her head away.

‘Don't be so defensive, honey. Hear me out. Take me, for example. I've lost my job and I have been feeling more and more frustrated, hurt, depressed and a bit frightened about what I'm going to do next. But I have decided that I have to be proactive, to actually start to do something for myself, rather than asking other people to do something for me. Maybe you could do that, too.'

Megan looked at him again and rolled her eyes. Despite her demeanour, he could tell she was taking in what he was saying.

‘So instead of waiting for work to come to me, I'm going to try to create my own work by starting to find my own stories and write as a freelancer. It's not exactly what I want to do, but we can't always stay in our comfort zone. Sometimes we have to jump-start our lives.'

‘And how do I do that? I'm at school!'

‘I guess that when an opportunity comes along, even though it may not be exactly what you want, grab it and see where it leads you.'

‘Easy for you to say, but so far there haven't been a lot of opportunities for me. Nothing is going to happen and I'll be an outsider forever.'

Chris sighed. ‘I doubt that very much, Megan. Hang in there, something will come along and all that's happening now will be forgotten.'

‘Yeah, right, Dad. As if,' she sniffed.

Chris felt frustrated by Megan's relentless negativity, but he couldn't help but feel sorry for her. He knew that it was always difficult being the new person, and he hoped that his daughter would be able to make friends soon. He hated to see her so unhappy. They sat in silence for a few moments, digesting the conversation.

‘Dad, I suppose I could take Mollie up on her offer,' Megan said thoughtfully.

‘What was that?'

‘Well, you know Squire, Mollie's horse? I've been brushing him down because Mollie finds it too
difficult, and I can tell that Squire likes me. Anyway, Mollie said that if I wanted, she would teach me to ride him. So, I'm wondering if I should be game enough to try it. He is a lovely old horse.'

‘Hey! Amazing! Fantastic idea. That's something I've never done,' replied Chris enthusiastically.

‘Mollie says that she has helmets and boots that'd fit me. I don't need anything else, much, for just riding around the paddock.'

‘Well, there you go. Before you know it you'll be competing in the local gymkhanas!'

Megan laughed. ‘I doubt it.'

Chris leaned over and gave her a quick kiss. ‘It's going to be all right, Megs. We'll muddle through. Both of us.'

*

Chris began to spend time at his computer after work, researching the Neighbourhood Aid project that had so captured his mother's imagination and taken her abroad for the first time. There were other volunteer groups like hers which had operated in various countries and continued to do so, but what stood out about his mother's 1968 programme was the calibre of the people who had taken part in it. He was yet to pinpoint the specific focus of his story, but he quickly realised that he had a lot of material, not only about the volunteering itself but also about the subsequent activities of that particular group. He knew he'd have to budget for trips to Sydney and Melbourne and possibly Canberra to search archives and conduct interviews, but it felt good to sink his teeth into the process of digging, discarding, probing, talking and analysing. He was determined to write an in-depth, pertinent backgrounder that would hopefully make editors sit up and take notice.