‘Hey, Sweetie, it’s Mum. Guess what; I’ve got some get well cards for you! There’s one from Auntie Jan and Uncle Pete, one from Auntie Lou and even one from Elaine and Yaz. I suppose they must be feeling bad. Well, anyway. It’s a very nice card, one of those big ones with two cartoon teddy bears on the front; I expect they thought it might make you smile. I wish you’d wake up and smile at me, Alice. I really wish you would …’
They are standing under a tree, arms wrapped around each other, so still they look like waxworks. They are big and clumsy-looking, funny old men dressed as schoolboys. I know who they are straight away; Tweedledum and Tweedledee. They smile and stick their free hands out towards me in greeting.
‘We should shake hands,’ one of them says. ‘It’s traditional. But it doesn’t mean that we can be friends, not nohow.’
‘Contrariwise,’ the other corrects. ‘It does mean that. And we’re not friends, are we? We don’t know each other at all.’
The hands are withdrawn hastily and hidden behind their backs.
‘I think I do know you,’ I say, frowning, because there is something strangely familiar about the situation. ‘I think we were friends, once, somehow …’
The pair shake their heads. ‘No, not nohow,’ the first one says.
‘Contrariwise,’ the other states. ‘We may have been friends, once. But friends aren’t always forever, you know. We should shake hands, start over!’
They offer their hands again, and, not knowing which to take first, I take them both. Instead of shaking hands, I find myself in the middle of a dance, the three of us circling round and round, going nowhere, until my head is reeling and the ground shifts beneath my feet, and I fall down all over again.
The others appeared in the doorway of Savvy’s room, piled inside and started arranging sleeping bags and duvets and pillows on the thick, plush carpet.
‘You can put your sleeping bag here,’ Lainey said. ‘Next to me!’
Savvy switched her iPod on just as I was spreading out my sleeping bag, and I recognized the song at once.
‘Oh, Avril Lavigne,’ I said. ‘This was the theme tune to Alice in Wonderland, right? The one with Johnny Depp. It’s awesome; I don’t know which I love best, the film or the song! It’s on my iPod, too.’
‘You have such good taste, Alice,’ Savvy told me. ‘I don’t know why it’s taken me so long to get to know you!’
Yaz, Lainey and Erin smiled thinly, like the overload of sugary compliments from Savvy was melting their teeth. I pretended not to notice. If Savvy was a little over-the-top friendly, so what? It was better than being invisible.
‘We should go tidy that kitchen,’ Lainey said, checking her watch. ‘It’s past seven now; we’d better get a move on!’
‘Why?’ I asked. ‘What’s happening?’
Lainey just grinned and said I’d soon see.
‘Tidy-up time,’ Savvy announced, picking up her iPod. ‘We’ll all pitch in and blitz it!’ She grabbed my hand and pulled me out of there, the two of us laughing.
‘Alice (Underground)’ played on repeat as we washed the dishes and scrubbed the table and swept the floor; to get us in the mood, Savvy said. It did. Savvy started dancing first, waving a damp tea towel around in the air, wiggling her bum, strutting her stuff. One by one she took our hands and drew us in: first Erin, then Lainey, then Yaz, then me, until the whole lot of us were dancing around the kitchen with tea towels and brooms and pan-scrubbers. I had a dishcloth in one hand and Erin was waving an egg whisk in the air, still soapy from the washing-up bowl, and if there had been any frostiness towards me before, it vanished then. It was impossible to dance around with an egg whisk in your hand and keep a straight face.
‘You can dance, too,’ Savvy said, and Erin laughed and pretended to chase me around the table with the broom, and overall it was the most fun tidying a kitchen I had ever had.
By eight o’clock, the kitchen was sparkling, and Carina, Savvy’s sister, came in, all dressed up in wedge-heeled boots and a little black dress that looked like it had been sprayed on. She was wearing so much make-up there was an orange tidemark around her jawline where the foundation ended, and her false eyelashes were so thick they looked like she’d stuck spiders on her eyelids.
She looked like Savvy, but without the sparkly charm; her expression was bored, uninterested.
‘So, I’m going out,’ she said. ‘You’ll be OK, right?’
‘We’ll be fine,’ Savvy said. ‘We’re not babies, Carina!’
‘Whatever,’ she said. ‘Just behave. Don’t do anything stupid.’
‘As if,’ Savvy said.
Carina shrugged on a little jacket, tucked her handbag under her arm. ‘I won’t be late back. Not too late, anyway.’
She walked away, leaving a cloud of perfume in her wake. We heard the front door slam behind her, and Savvy threw her head back and laughed. ‘Finally!’ she said. ‘I thought she’d never go! Look, Alice, let me show you what we’ve set up!’
Someone came up behind me and whipped a clean tea towel around my eyes like a blindfold. ‘Surprise,’ Lainey said, as the fabric tightened and was knotted gently behind my head. ‘Trust us!’
I wasn’t sure if I did, but I wanted to.
Hands whirled me round in a circle – once, twice, three times – until I couldn’t tell which way I was facing. Cool fingers touched my elbow, guiding me forward. My heart thumped as I stumbled along the hallway, my fingertips stretched out before me, my mouth stretched into a smile.
‘This way,’ Savvy’s voice sang out ahead, and I heard the sound of a door opening and allowed myself to be led inside, my heels clipping sharply against a wooden floor.
‘She’s a good sport, at least,’ Erin commented.
‘Blindfold off,’ Savvy instructed. ‘Let her see now!’
I blinked and looked around.
The dining room was decorated with balloons and bunting. I could see Savvy arranging the jam tarts I’d brought on a fancy cake stand; all along the table there were plates heaped with beautifully decorated cupcakes, plates of quiche and triangular sandwiches with the crusts cut off. A big teapot with hearts and polka dots sat in the middle of the table, a label saying ‘drink me’ tied to the handle, and mismatched side plates and cups and saucers were set out in front of every chair. Playing cards were scattered across the tablecloth, along with red and white roses that must have cost a fortune.
‘What do you think, Alice?’ Savvy asked me. ‘Do you like it?’
My eyes shone. ‘I must be in Wonderland,’ I said.
‘Just you wait,’ Savvy said. ‘This is just the start of it. Lainey, can you send that text?’
Lainey smiled and tapped out a message on her mobile; a moment later a reply bleeped through.
‘Sorted,’ she said, grinning. ‘They’re on their way.’
‘Who are?’ I asked, confused. ‘What’s happening?’
‘Some friends,’ Savvy said, evasively. ‘Just a little get together. Don’t worry, Alice, you’ll like it!’
My happiness evaporated, replaced by uncertainty, anxiety. I wasn’t sure I would like it, not at all.