fence. ‘Jump over.’ Sabiha lifted Dina’s leg and put it on the beam. ‘Hurry. We have to get help for Omer.’
Dina finally cooperated. Brian lithely jumped over while Jesse perched on top of the fence and helped the girls. We landed in someone else’s backyard and ran down the side of the house.
‘Who’s got a phone?’ Sabiha demanded when we hit the footpath.
‘Me.’ I rifled through my handbag and looked up in panic. ‘I dropped it.’
‘What are we going to do?’ Dina sounded like a wounded animal.
‘I’m thinking.’ Sabiha looked up and down the street.
‘I’ll run to my house,’ Jesse said. ‘It will only take 10 minutes.’
‘Too long.’ Sabiha’s gaze zeroed in on a house across the street. ‘I’ll ask to use their phone.’
‘You can’t go alone.’ Jesse grabbed her arm.
Sabiha waited.
‘Let’s go.’ He followed her.
Brian comforted Dina, who was sobbing. She’d lost all control and looked like a drowned raccoon as her eye makeup ran. Jesse and Sabiha knocked on the door and the owners allowed them to enter. Within a few minutes, they reappeared through the front door.
‘The police are on their way,’ Sabiha said when they rejoined us. ‘They should be there by the time we walk around the block.’
‘We have to jump over the back fence and help Omer,’ Dina said.
‘There’s nothing else we can do.’ Sabiha yanked Dina’s arm and pushed her down the footpath. ‘Walk.’
‘Bitch,’ Dina spat as she walked ahead, her gait still wobbly. ‘You’re acting like it’s Omer’s fault that this happened.’
The rest of us pretended we didn’t hear her. Dina tried to tear ahead, but Sabiha carelessly grabbed her into a bear hug and covered her mouth when she protested.
‘I think they’re gone,’ Jesse said, when we were a few houses up from Brian’s house. He peered through the darkness, trying to see if Louie’s car was gone.
‘We should wait until the police arrive,’ Sabiha said.
Dina violently protested, shaking her head as she tried to shake off Sabiha’s bear hold.
I bit my nails and wondered if Alex was all right.
Jesse met Dina’s panicked gaze. ‘I’ll see if it’s all clear.’ He began walking. ‘You all wait here.’
‘I’m coming.’ Brian ran a few paces and joined him.
‘This is bullshit,’ Sabiha said with disgust, letting go of Dina. ‘We’re not waiting like some pathetic Victorian maidens that need to be saved.’
A police car drove past. ‘They’re here.’ Dina ran.
When we got to Brian’s house, I quickly ducked among the bushes and found my mobile.
In the living room, Omer was on the couch, his face bruised and his eyeball red. ‘They were Asian,’ he told the police officers, giving a wrong description. ‘They crashed the party and lay into me.’
Dina sat next to him and cried hysterically. She tried to hug him, but stopped when he winced.
I looked around in vain for Alex.
‘Did you see anything?’ The police officer turned to where we were standing by the living room door.
‘We were in the backyard,’ Brian said smoothly. ‘We jumped the fence when we heard screaming and called the cops.’
He looked at Sabiha, who eyeballed him for a moment.
‘I’ll get some ice.’ She left the room.
‘What about the rest of you?’
Jesse and I shook our head.
‘We’ve had reports of a group of gatecrashers in the area.’ The police officer gave Omer his card. ‘Call us if you think of anything else.’
‘Why did you lie?’ Sabiha asked when the police left.
‘Louie told me he’d cut up Dina if I went to the cops.’ Omer had his arm around Dina. ‘I have a week to come up with ten grand or else.’
‘Ten grand.’ Dina sounded like an echo.
‘Don’t worry, sis. I’ve got it under control.’ Omer shifted and groaned.
‘You have to go to the hospital,’ Dina urged.
‘It’s not that bad.’ He took a shallow breath.
I muttered the word toilet and headed down the hall. I heard the bathroom tap. The door was ajar, and I pushed it open. Alex was shirtless, his torso bruised. He was holding a wet towel against a cut in his eyebrow.
‘Hey.’ He smiled when he saw me in the mirror.
I threw myself into his arms, feeling a thrill as I touched the bare skin of his back.
‘I’m all right.’ He kissed my hair.
His smiled faded as he looked at me tenderly. I remembered the way he’d put himself at risk to save me. Alex placed his lips on mine and kissed me like he was trying to pour all his emotions into it. He picked me up and carried me, pushing Brian’s door open with his shoulder. He closed it with his foot and lay on top of me on the bed.
As my legs wrapped around his hips, there was a little voice of reason trying to penetrate through the fog of lust, but I blocked it and returned Alex’ kiss with abandon. My mobile rang. The tone got louder and louder, cutting between us like a barrier. I yanked out my mobile and was about to turn it off when the flashing screen stayed my hand. I’d set the alarm to go off and warn me when I had to leave.
‘Shit.’ I shifted my eyes to Alex. ‘My Mum is finishing work in fifteen minutes.’
Alex put his head on my chest and groaned. ‘I’ll take you home.’ He went to Brian’s wardrobe and took a shirt that he put on.
‘I’ll go out first,’ I said.
Alex nodded.
As I walked out of the bedroom, my legs were weak and my skin tingled like it was alive. Jesse and Brian were half carrying Omer toward me. They ducked into the bathroom and I heard them helping him wash himself.
Sabiha held a garbage bag and was cleaning up.
‘I have to go home,’ I said in a panic. ‘My Mum will be home in ten minutes.’
Sabiha stood straight. ‘It’s too late to call a taxi.’
Alex entered the living room.
‘Can you give Alma a lift?’ Sabiha asked him.
It wasn’t until we were pulling out of the driveway that I realised I didn’t say goodbye to Jesse and Brian. I looked at the dashboard clock and said, ‘I’m dead.’
‘Don’t worry.’ Alex jerked the wheel onto the road. ‘I’ll get you home.’
He sped down the road. The light ahead was amber. He stomped his foot on the pedal and shot through as the light turned red, leaving cars beeping in our wake. Alex burst into laughter. I held onto the roof handle.
Alex turned into a street without using an indicator, rubber wheels squealing. The wheels lost traction, and I screamed as the car slid out from under us. Alex aimed for the nature strip, making the car bounce hard as it climbed up.
‘Whoops.’ He put his arm on the back of my seat and reversed.
‘Maybe you should slow down.’ My throat was sore from screaming.
‘How long?’
I glanced at the dashboard clock. ‘Five minutes.’
He met my gaze. ‘Do you want me to slow down?’
I knew I should say yes. We were playing with our lives, but I couldn’t get the words past my lips. The good girl I used to be was asleep and the rebel inside was taking over. Alex waited. He’d do whatever I wanted.
‘No.’ I squealed as he hit the pedal.
The scenery passed by in a fluoro blur of lights. I was free in a way I’d never been before. The past and future ceased to exist, and there was only this moment. Alex howled to the wind as he sped through the streets. He pulled up a few houses away from my house with a squeal of rubber.
I threw myself sideways and kissed him deeply on the lips. ‘Thank you.’
He put his forehead against mine.
‘Monday,’ I breathed and kissed him again.
‘Monday,’ he said with a promise when I reached for the door handle.
As I crossed the street, I looked over my shoulder and saw he was watching me. I swayed harder. His car roared away as I hid behind the bushes in my front yard. I looked up at the fence. My arms and legs were tired after all my exertions at Brian’s party. With a sigh, I clambered over.
As I skulked past the living room window, I heard dead silence. Hopefully, Sanela and Ali were asleep. I carefully unlocked the laundry door and snuck into the house. Ali was in the study, engrossed on the computer. I did a Mission Impossible move and slinked past the doorway.
Sanela was asleep on the couch, the blue screen from the television lighting her up. I resisted the temptation to turn off the TV and remote. I nimbly climbed the stairs. In my bedroom, I changed into my pyjamas, wiped off my makeup and dived into bed, just as Mum’s car pulled up in the garage.
There was a murmur of voices and the thump of footsteps on the stairs. A few minutes later, my door opened. I debated whether to pretend I was sleeping, but Mum came to stand beside the bed and smoothed back my hair.
‘You’re home,’ I murmured.
‘How are you feeling?’
The hallway light spilled into the room, and I saw her outline. ‘Better.’
‘Good.’ Mum kissed my forehead. ‘I’ll see you in the morning.’
I stared at the ceiling and thought about Alex, desperately wishing he was here to hold me tight and make me feel good again. I’d been tiptoeing through life since Sabiha’s existence was revealed. All my emotions were on mute as I battled each day, but Alex made all that go away. He made me come alive.
I kept replaying memories of our night together. Alex playing that awful prank on me, Alex apologising, Alex protecting me. It was like we’d lived out a lifetime in one night and we’d survived our first fight, our first make-up session, our first adventure.
My mobile beeped.
Alex: “Sweet dreams, Chiquita. Can’t wait for Monday.”
I hugged my mobile against my chest and imagined it was Alex. I tried to think of a way to sneak out and meet him. In the end, there was only one person who could help me with an alibi.
***‘Mum, can I visit Dina?’ I asked the next morning after breakfast when everyone had dispersed.
‘Oh.’ Mum frowned from the sink.
‘We’re doing an assignment together.’ I cleared the table, putting in place the first stage of my plan.
‘I think we owe her parents a visit,’ Mum said.
I held back my impatience and waited.
‘I’ll talk to your father and we might all go.’
‘I was hoping to go now.’ I glanced at the clock. I didn’t want to be held ransom to their schedule. The sooner I talked to Dina, the sooner I could confirm my plans with Alex. ‘I’ll wash the dishes and you talk to Dad?’
‘You’re pretty eager to finish your homework.’ Mum smiled.
‘Maybe I want to talk to her too.’
‘I’m glad you’ve made friends with Dina.’ Mum cupped my shoulder as she passed. ‘She’s a good girl and the friend you ought to have.’
I nodded, an image of Dina sucking on a toke, making me look away guiltily.
Mum returned with an ok and I rounded up the troops. Ali stayed home. Sanela and I walked ahead, while Mum and Dad sauntered behind us. When we reached Dina’s house, Dad had his arm around Mum’s waist as we waited by the front door.
Anyone who saw us wouldn’t believe that they’d spent the day at opposite ends of the house. It was like Sabiha’s visit yesterday turned them into awkward strangers who didn’t know what to say to each other, but now that they had an audience, they were doing their trademark performance of the respected doctor and his devoted wife.
Dina’s mum, Suada, opened the front door and greeted us, her dad following soon behind. As Dina’s parents moved out of the way, I saw Dina’s pale face and the dark circles under her eyes. She looked like she hadn’t slept all night.
‘She’s not feeling well,’ Suada said, her hands on Dina’s shoulders.
‘Does she have a fever?’ Dad went into doctor mode.
Dina shook her head. ‘I must have eaten something that didn’t agree with me last night.’
‘Is Sabiha sick too? Didn’t she sleep over?’ Dad added when Suada gave him a blank look.
Suada shook her head.
‘I must have heard wrong,’ Dad said.
Dad forgot nothing. He always said that one of the most important things a doctor had was his memory. I gulped. Usually I’d be happy that Dad was catching Sabiha out in a lie, but if he uncovered Sabiha’s deception last night, my unveiling wouldn’t be far behind.
I gave Dina a hug, feeling her frailness as I put my hands on her back.
‘Sluša li te Babo?’ Dina’s father asked Sanela behind us as I followed Dina to her bedroom, the Bosnian equivalent of a joke in asking a child if their father was taking orders from them. I was so glad I was past the age where I got asked stupid questions by adults.
‘Fuck.’ Dina closed her bedroom door. ‘Do you think he bought it?’
I shook my head. ‘Our only hope is that Sabiha is a convincing liar.’
‘Then we’re fine.’ Dina lay on the bed. ‘Sabiha could pass a lie detector.’
I wanted to quip that Dad was a lie detector, but Dina let out a pained sigh. ‘How are you doing?’ I asked and sat on the chair next to her bed.
‘I’ve been better.’ Dina stared at the ceiling. ‘I can’t get it out of my head.’ She banged her hand on her forehead. ‘I keep seeing Louie punching Omer and imagining what else could happen…’ Her voice cut out, and she teared up.
I saw a tissue box on her vanity and held it out to her. ‘Omer will figure something out. How’s he doing?’
‘He’s at home doped up on painkillers.’ She wiped her eyes with a tissue. ‘And he’s got no one to look after him.’
‘He’s got Brian. Has he got any plans on how to get the money?’
Dina kept staring at the ceiling. ‘Maybe.’
‘That’s great then. Right?’
‘Maybe.’ Dina turned her head and looked at me. ‘There might be a way, but… Never mind.’ She looked back at the ceiling.
‘What? You can tell me, after all we’ve already kept each other’s secrets.’
‘Okay.’ She leaned on her elbow. ‘You can’t tell anyone what I’m about to tell you.’ She waited until I nodded. ‘We’ve figured out a way to get him the money, it’s just really, really risky.’
‘Risky how?’
‘My parents set up a bank account for both of us when we were babies. They put in our birthday money and extra a few times a year. When they kicked Omer out, they closed his account and put the money in my bank account. Sometime back they began using internet banking to stop paying the bank fees, and I ended up helping them set up stuff so....’
‘So you know their password and can steal the money?’ I was shocked. I’d expected some outlandish proposition about stealing from the bank, not from her own parents.
‘It’s not really stealing,’ Dina said. ‘The money is technically mine.’
‘Why don’t you ask them for it?’
Dina dropped back onto the bed. ‘Because they’d say no. They’d say that was their money that they were setting aside for me. For my wedding, or a car or university.’
‘Then it’s not really your money.’
‘It’s at moments like this I can really see you and Sabiha are sisters.’ Dina groaned.
‘Sorry.’ I held up my hand in apology. I didn’t mean to sound like a judgmental-know-it-all. When Sabiha lectured me, I knew how it got my back up. ‘I can see why it’s risky. Your parents aren’t exactly the forgiving type.’
‘Omer’s already said that we could move in together. He wants me to leave before they have the chance to kick me out. There’s money there to pay back Louie and then some, but I’m not sure.’
‘You really are between a rock and a hard place. Either way, you’re going to be facing some hard consequences.’ I felt sympathy at her predicament.
‘Exactly.’ Dina gesticulated with her hands. ‘I mean, I want to help my brother. I really, really do. But I don’t know if I can trust—’ She cut herself off.
‘You don’t know if you can trust him,’ I finished her sentence.
‘Neither side are saints. I didn’t hear from him for two years. I didn’t know if he was dead or alive because he never picked up the phone, or emailed me, or anything. Do you know what that’s like? To always be wondering.’ Dina was full on losing it and was crying in big, gulping sobs.
‘Hey, hey.’ I sat on the bed and hugged her. ‘It’s okay.’
‘I shouldn’t be laying all this on you.’ Dina pulled away as she swallowed her sobs. ‘Sabiha’s my best friend. She’s the one who I should talk to.’
‘So why aren’t you?’
Dina hesitated, not wanting to backstab her friend.
‘Because you know exactly what she would say. She’d tell you that Omer doesn’t deserve your loyalty. That he abandoned you and that this was his problem and he should deal with it.’
‘Something like that.’ Dina smiled wryly as she shredded a tissue.
‘You’re forgetting one thing,’ I continued. ‘Sabiha was raised with no siblings.’ As I imagined how I’d feel if Ali were in the same position, I shivered like someone had walked over my grave. ‘Sabiha doesn’t understand that all those years of living together under the same roof, having that person in your life from birth, creates an unbreakable bond. At the end of the day he’s your brother and of course you want to help him. But they’re your parents and you love them too,’ I sighed. ‘You know this riddle has no solution. It’s a matter of what you can bear.’
Dina looked down at the bed as she smoothed the coverlet. ‘I can’t bear the thought of my brother being tortured by some gangster because he owes him money.’
‘Then you have your answer.’
‘I do,’ Dina said.
‘But that doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t ask them first. If they say no you’re still in the same boat.’
‘That’s true.’ Dina’s face lightened. She noticed the confetti scattered on the bed and picked it up. ‘Thanks for talking to me. It helps to have a sympathetic ear.’
‘I know.’ I understood the need all too well as I wasn’t able to discuss what was happening with Alex to anyone, and it was killing me inside.
‘If there’s anything you ever need, let me know.’
‘Actually,’ I intoned. ‘There kind of is something.’
‘Shoot.’ Dina took the tissue shreds to the bin under her desk.
‘I have a boyfriend.’ I felt a thrill as I made my admission.
‘You’re shitting me.’ Dina slapped me on the arm as she sat down again. ‘Who is he?’
‘He’s someone you know.’
‘Go on.’ Dina gestured.
‘It’s only been a few weeks.’ It surprised me how short a time I’d known Alex for. It felt much longer. ‘I was hoping you’d cover for me tomorrow so I can see him. I’ll tell Dad that you and I are studying at the library.’
‘Of course.’ Dina waved her hand in exasperation. ‘Tell me about him.’
‘He’s really cute. And gentle. He makes me feel good.’
Dina interrupted. ‘What does he look like? What’s his name?’
‘You can’t tell Sabiha what I’m about to tell you.’
‘Why?’ Dina frowned.
‘I don’t want her to know—’ I stopped when Dina shook her head.
‘Sabiha’s my best friend. I can’t lie to her.’
‘I’m not asking you to lie. I’m asking you not to share my personal business.’
‘Why are you hiding him from Sabiha? Oh my God.’ Dina put her hands on her chest. ‘You’re seeing Jesse.’
‘It’s not Jesse.’
‘It has to be Jesse. Who else do you know? Sabiha is going to be devastated.’ She looked at me like I was scum.
‘It’s not Jesse,’ I shouted. I stilled, realising how loud I was. ‘It’s Alex.’
‘Alex?’ Dina repeated, like she was saying a foreign word.
‘Alex Payne.’
‘Alex? Really?’
‘Yes, Alex Payne is my boyfriend.’ Dina was acting like it was out of the realm of possibility that Alex would ever be with someone like me.
‘But Alex, he’s, well—’ Dina cut out under my furious stare. ‘He’s cute,’
‘What’s your problem with Alex?’
‘He’s Alex Payne,’ Dina said, like it was obvious. ‘He has a terrible reputation.’
‘He’s not like that. He’s sweet and nice.’
‘Nice,’ Dina repeated, looking at me like I was a mental patient.
‘Yes, nice.’
‘That answers my question?’ Dina said coyly.
I gestured with my hands for her to continue.
‘You haven’t had sex with him yet. Once you do, well, nice won’t be the operative word.’
I gasped. ‘He’s not like that.’ I told her how he’d saved me at the party.
Dina looked confused when I finished. ‘I don’t know. That’s not what I heard.’
‘Well, you’re hearing it from me. Alex is a good guy.’
‘Okay, okay.’ She lifted her hands in surrender.
‘Don’t tell Sabiha about him.’
‘Why not? If he’s a good guy, then you’ve got nothing to hide.’
‘But my parents can’t find out.’
‘She’s not going to tell on you,’ Dina said.
The thought of telling Sabiha freaked me out. Even though I kept telling myself Sabiha’s opinion didn’t matter, there was something inside me that shrieked “Danger, danger,” like Sabiha was going to take Alex away from me, the way she took away my father, and once again I’d be left lonely and invisible.
‘She’ll want to know when we got together and I’ll tell her it was at Omer’s house,’ thinking of a way to get Dina to back off. ‘You know, when Omer was passing around a joint and you got baked.’
‘You’re going to have to tell her eventually,’ Dina muttered, realising my admission would do her no favours. Sabiha was already harping on about Omer’s bad influence, she needed no more ammunition.
‘Maybe.’ The possibility was far off in the distant future and no threat to the present. ‘Can I count on you for an alibi tomorrow?’
‘I’m not going to lie to Sabiha.’
‘But—’ I cut out when Dina held up her hand.
‘But I won’t rat you out either,’ she finished.
Dina was leaving me some wiggle room in the grey area that was a lie of omission. ‘I can live with that.’
There was the sound of familiar running footsteps in the hallway. I opened the door to Sanela’s grinning face. ‘I found you,’ she said, as if we’d been playing hide and seek.
‘Yes, you did.’
‘What are you doing?’ Sanela peered into the bedroom.
‘Talking. Go be with Mum.’ I took her shoulders and tried to point her towards the stairs.
‘No,’ Sanela shrieked. ‘I want to play hairdresser. Dina, can I tie your hair?’ She evaded my grasp and burst into the bedroom.
‘Okay,’ Dina smiled.
I watched Sanela brush Dina’s hair with a smile. I’d have to do some fancy footwork tomorrow to pull off seeing Alex, but it was all going to be worth it. Just to be alone with him, with no interruptions and distractions. I hugged myself with glee.
***Later at home, I was watching television with Sanela in the living room when Mum asked me to get Dad for dinner.
‘I’ll get Ali,’ Sanela said and ran up the stairs.
I walked to the study where Dad was doing paperwork. I’d just reached the doorway when his phone rang.
‘Sabiha, I was getting worried about you.’
I ducked beside the door.
‘I called hours ago. I wanted to touch base after yesterday’s lunch,’ he said.
I put my nails in my mouth. As I suspected, he was following up on Sabiha, supposedly sleeping over at Dina’s. I was full of breathless anticipation. On the one hand, I felt vicious glee at Sabiha being caught out by Dad and that he would see who she truly was, but I was also terrified. If he caught Sabiha out, there was nothing to stop her from dobbing me in.
‘I’m glad,’ he said. ‘Did you have fun at your sleepover at Dina’s last night?’
This was it. The moment of reckoning. I bit my nail to the quick and sucked on the bloody stub as I waited.
‘I’m glad you had fun,’ Dad said. ‘But next time get to sleep at a reasonable time. It’s not good you spent all day in bed.’
He hung up. It took me a moment to process what had happened. He knew Sabiha was lying, and that she didn’t sleep over at Dina’s. I’d expected him to go off his nut. Instead, he’d let her get away with it.
I couldn’t believe that Sabiha could get away scot free with lying and flouting authority and yet if my siblings and I made one minor infraction, we copped it both barrels. The injustice burnt through me and I smacked the wall with anger.
‘Who’s there?’ Dad peered toward the door.
‘Just me.’ I popped my head in. ‘Mum’s finished dinner.’
‘I’ll be a moment.’ Dad looked at the files on his desk with a troubled face.