Ashley unlocked the front door and let herself inside. Both her parents’ cars were parked in the street, even though it was before seven pm. Perhaps her dad had remembered that tonight was the end of term three and the start of the school holidays.
He’d been working so late recently that sometimes she was in bed by the time he got home, and there were only a few minutes left for him to sit by her feet and ask her about her day. Then her mother would come to the door and tell them it was lights out, and he’d give Ashley a kiss, switch off the lamp and shut the door behind him. Sometimes he was gone again before she was even awake in the morning.
But tonight was the first night of the holidays, and they always did something special for that. And tomorrow — tomorrow! — she was getting Puppy at last. She had lots to do — making up his basket, laying out the toys she’d bought for him, triple checking that there was plenty of puppy food in the pantry.
‘Hello!’ she called out, dumping her backpack at the foot of the stairs. Their house was kind of old, but it was cosy and she liked it.
‘We’re in here.’ Her mother’s voice rang out of the kitchen.
Ashley broke into a run, skidding down the hallway and jumping down the step. ‘Hi!’ she cried.
Her mother and father turned and Ashley stopped dead. Something was wrong. Her mother’s face was serious and her father looked terrible.
‘What is it?’ she asked.
Her mother patted her father’s shoulder. ‘We’ve had a bit of bad news, Ash.’
Ashley’s heart started to pound. ‘What?’
Her mother looked at her father and he shrugged. ‘I’ve been retrenched.’
Ashley had no idea what he meant. She’d never even heard that word before.
‘Your father doesn’t have a job any more,’ her mother explained.
Ashley took a deep breath. That sounded serious. ‘But you can get another one, can’t you?’
‘It’s not that easy,’ he said, rubbing his head. ‘Lots of people are out of work in my industry. There aren’t enough jobs for them all.’
‘What will you do?’ Ashley asked.
There was silence for a moment. ‘I don’t know, just yet,’ her father said at last.
Ashley wondered if a change of subject would help. ‘Can we still have fish and chips in the park?’
Her parents glanced at each other. ‘Oh, why not?’ her father said wearily. ‘At least it’s cheap.’
An idea occurred to Ashley and she skipped over to her father and gave him a hug. ‘Well, there’s one good thing,’ she said, hoping she might cheer him up a little. ‘Once the school holidays are over, you can look after Puppy in the day. Then he won’t be so lonely when I’m at school.’
There was an even longer silence and Ashley looked up from her hug. Her dad did actually have tears in his eyes and it frightened her.
Her mother stepped closer so that the three of them were in one big hug. ‘Honey, the thing is — you won’t be able to have a puppy at the moment. We’ll have to wait until your dad finds another job.’
Ashley loosened her arms. ‘He’s already eight weeks old. How long do I have to wait?’
‘You won’t be able to have him, Ash,’ her father said. ‘Once I’ve got a job, we can find you another pup. But it could be months.’
Ashley pulled back out of his hug as the meaning of his words became clear. ‘But Puppy is mine! I chose him!’
‘I’m sorry,’ her mother said. ‘I’ve already called the breeder and said we can’t take him after all.’
Ashley couldn’t believe what they were saying. The look of pity on her parents’ faces convinced her that this wasn’t some awful joke. She felt her chin start to wobble and a huge lump rose in her throat. Her father tried to pull her back into a hug, but she pushed him away roughly. ‘It’s not fair!’
‘Ashley!’ her mother snapped. ‘Don’t make this worse! Can’t you see your father feels terrible?’
‘It’s only a job. He can get another one. But Puppy is already mine, Mum.’
‘We just said that getting another job isn’t easy. And you haven’t even met the dog!’ Her mother was clearly furious. ‘Don’t be so selfish.’
‘We’ll make it up to you, Ash,’ her father said. ‘I know you’re upset. We all are. Blow your nose and let’s go for fish and chips.’
‘I don’t want fish and chips! I don’t want anything!’
‘That’s enough,’ her mother said. ‘Go to your room until you can think of someone other than yourself.’
‘I’ll be in there forever!’ Ashley yelled, and stormed out of the kitchen, slamming the door behind her so hard that the crash echoed through the house. A sob burst out of Ashley’s throat as she grabbed her bag and ran up the stairs. She slammed her bedroom door behind her, threw herself on the bed and buried her head under the pillow.
‘Puppy,’ she whispered.
Someone came and knocked on her bedroom door once, but Ashley had snapped, ‘Go away!’ and the footsteps retreated. By the time she heard the beep of a text message arriving, she’d been crying for so long that her nose was completely blocked and her chest hurt from heaving. She wiped her eyes on her shirt, sniffed and picked up her phone.
i just heard, so so so unfair!
Ashley threw the phone down on the bed. Her parents must have called Emma’s. It was all right for Emma: she was getting her own puppy anyway. Tomorrow morning, her parents would take her out to the breeder to pick up Bella. Their plan of being best friends and having brother and sister puppies was ruined, but at least Emma would still have Bella.
How could they even stay best friends? Ashley couldn’t bear it. She’d have to visit Emma’s house and see Bella growing up, knowing that her own puppy would have been the same size and learning the same things. She’d have to see Emma owning her own dog, a dog who loved her and wanted to be with her. Bella would become Emma’s best friend, and Ashley would be left out, alone, with no puppy of her own. If she ever did get one, it wouldn’t be the same. It wouldn’t be from Bella’s litter. Ashley’s and Emma’s dogs would never be best friends.
Her phone beeped again. Ashley waited a minute. She didn’t want to talk to Emma. But when it beeped for a second time, she couldn’t resist and picked it up.
still want to come with us?
This time she threw the phone on the floor, where it bounced. How could Emma even ask such a question? Did she have any idea what it felt like?
Ashley rolled on her belly and looked out the window. The moonlight was gleaming on the roof next door, and her throat hurt from crying. She’d been so close to getting Puppy that she could almost feel him in her arms. If he was here now, he’d be licking the salty tears from her face and cuddling up to her. She wouldn’t be all alone in her room, desperately unhappy. He’d be here with her, and that would make everything all right.
The phone beeped again, but this time Ashley was determined not to look at the text. There was nothing Emma could say to make it better. She closed her eyes, and at once pictured the image that had been in her head for weeks: she was meeting Puppy for the first time. She was crouching down, and Puppy was running towards her. He just knew that he belonged to her — that they were meant to be together.
Surely there must be a way?
The wind blew through the tree outside her window, making the leaves shiver, and she wondered if it was going to rain. It was getting cold, and she pulled her quilt up around her and turned her pillow over so the side that was drenched with tears was facing down. She’d do anything to have Puppy. Anything.
The phone beeped yet again, and the screen flashed on, sending a glow of blue light through the room. Why wouldn’t Emma just leave her alone? She wouldn’t even know what it felt like. Her parents always gave her everything she wanted.
If she could go and live with Emma, that would solve the problem. She and Emma could both have their puppies and live in the same house. They could do everything together. It would be perfect.
Ashley yawned. She’d been sure that she would lie awake the whole night, but the forty-seven minutes (she’d timed it) of crying had exhausted her. It was almost impossible to believe, but it felt like she was falling asleep.
Just as her eyelids were drooping, Ashley had a thought that made them fly open again. What if Emma wasn’t the problem — what if she was the solution?
She sat up in bed, forgetting the cold. Emma’s parents said yes to everything — they would have to say yes to this too. She would drive out with them to the kennels and they could pick up both the puppies tomorrow, just as planned. Puppy could stay at Emma’s house until Ashley’s dad got a job. It wouldn’t be long, surely? Ashley could go over every day after school and for weekend overnights to look after Puppy and train him, and make sure he knew he belonged to her.
But with the mood her parents were in, they’d say no to the idea for sure. Better not to tell them until it was done. One thing was in her favour: although she and Emma were best friends, their parents didn’t really get on. Emma’s parents were older than hers. They were wealthy and both worked at the university. They lived in a big white house in Canada Bay near the water. Ashley and her parents lived in a tiny red-brick two-storey semi in Five Dock. Her mother was a nurse and her father worked in some kind of job that Ashley didn’t understand — ‘financial services’ he called it.
Their parents had met a few times at school functions, but they didn’t really click. Which was good. Because she’d have to convince Emma’s parents not to tell — at least until they’d got Puppy home and it was too late to take him back. Emma would have to get them onside.
She flipped open the cover of her phone and quickly scanned Emma’s texts, which all pretty much said the same thing as the first. She hit ‘reply’ and started typing.
i’ve got a fantastic idea …
She didn’t have to wait long for a response. Emma was thrilled with the plan and certain she could convince her parents. Ashley typed out the instructions. She’d get up early and wait outside for Emma and her parents to collect her. There’d be no chance for any of the parents to meet. They’d bring Puppy home and he’d stay at Emma’s.
They shared six texts working out the details, and when Ashley lay down to go to sleep, she was smiling. She closed her eyes. She imagined Puppy snuggled up to her, with his doggy breath on her face, twitching as he dreamt of chasing rabbits.
The wind comes as the moon is right overhead, striping them in black and white. Youngster and his mother both pause and stop chewing. The leaves of The Hungry whisper and clatter, surrounding them with a dry, rustling sound.
Their home trees are spaced up the side of the hill, some with interlacing branches. Each tree has a name according to its qualities: The Tall, The Hidden, The Dry, The Hungry, The Safe, The Delicious, The Seeing, The Meeting Place. Youngster and his mother know every crook, every fork, every place to wedge themselves to sleep when the Bright comes, every high branch where new leaves will shoot, every place safe from the wind, every place dry in the rain, and where to climb to see further than their own home.
From the next tree, The Meeting Place, a long guttural roar rises, followed by a series of short grunts. It’s Strong, the male who lives in the centre of the colony. Youngster’s mother straightens, cocks an ear and grunts back: Leave us alone.
Strong is huge, and when he roars into the night, the leaves themselves shiver. Youngster is relieved when he hears him leap out of The Meeting Place into the next tree, heading back towards his own favourite sleeping fork.
Another gust comes and Youngster’s mother scents the wind, taking long, slow sniffs. Youngster digs his claws into her back until she twitches her skin for him to stop. He clambers over her shoulder and falls into her lap and she nuzzles him. Rain coming. We go to The Dry.
He buries himself into the warm fur of her chest, but the wind is picking up all around them and the whole tree is beginning to sway with it. He loves her lap, but she prefers him to be on her back now, away from the warm milk, which is only for every now and then, and the snug pouch that he still remembers, but which is closed to him. He sniffs his disappointment, clambers back over her shoulder and settles himself obediently.
She begins to back smoothly down The Hungry, to the place in the lower branches where she can leap across to The Dry.
He can hear the wind picking up, see it bending and whipping the branches down on the hill. It’s coming!
I can’t see it.
Listen!
The sound of it is a roar across the valley. His mother swivels her ear, and when she hears it, she starts climbing down fast.
A gust of wind hits The Hungry and their world rocks and moves and shifts, and the noise is all around. They’re too high, stuck in The Hungry as it dances and waves like a living thing.
Wind. We go to The Safe.
He hears a branch break above them and he shrinks down into her fur. The branch bounces down, glances off her shoulder. She rocks, slithers, and for a sickening moment he feels the empty space below them, feels them dangling, feels the sense of distance between them and the ground. Then she swings out an arm, hooks her claws into the bark and pulls them to safety.
She sits still, breathing heavily, and he doesn’t dare say anything. She said they were going to The Safe, but she doesn’t move, just rubs her eyes over and over again.
He tucks his head down, burying his face in her fur, as The Hungry whooshes and dances around them, roaring. He will be safe on her back.
Won’t he?