CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

THOUGHTS ON BROTHER SWAPPING

Jonny was glad to watch some TV after lunch. After all the excitement in the park he wanted to relax. Alfie, on the other hand, didn’t seem to grasp the concept of relaxing. He flicked through the DVD collection, took the batteries out of the remote control, pulled feathers out of the cushions and tickled Widget’s nose with them. He hardly seemed to notice the screen. Jonny sighed and turned it off.

‘Bedtime,’ he said.

‘But it’s only five o’clock, and I haven’t had any dinner yet!’ said Alfie.

‘I’ll ask Mum to bring you a sandwich,’ Jonny said. ‘We often have an early night and a sandwich in bed in this house. Get used to it. Anyway, you must be tired. I bet you are!’

‘Bet I’m not!’ Alfie said, doing a couple of star jumps to prove it.

Alfie was wrong, though. He was one of those kids that runs around all day like an ant who’s training for a triathlon, but when finally placed between a mattress and a duvet, falls asleep instantly. Just like that!

After seeing Alfie power down like a disconnected screen, Jonny sighed and went to bed too. He lay with his eyes shut and thought about Alfie. He told himself Alfie would work out as his brother. He was certain of it. Well, maybe certain was pushing it a bit. Sure. That was better. Jonny felt sure Alfie would work out. They’d had fun together in the park, after all. And at least Alfie wasn’t like Ted, who almost never joined in with Jonny’s games and preferred teasing him about touching the Hanging Pants of Doom. So, it had all been great, in fact. Apart from the bit when Alfie fell out of the tree. Apart from that. But, yes, Jonny was sure he could make it work. Well, confident. Confident-ish … OK, he was reasonably confident that Alfie would make a good brother. Who never sat still to watch TV … And who had no understanding of danger or risk or …

Jonny’s eyes pinged open. He stared at the ceiling. He remembered the moment Alfie fell out of the tree and he felt slightly sick. Would he always have to keep an eye on Alfie in future? Was that what being an older brother involved? Jonny didn’t want that! He never had to look after Ted. Then Jonny thought about how energetic Alfie was, always bouncing about like an eager spaniel desperate to have his ball thrown. At least Ted gave Jonny some space. Ted spent time in his room, so Jonny could enjoy hanging out with his mum or drawing at the kitchen table. And at the end of the day, the three of them would sit and watch TV together, quietly …

Jonny got out of bed and sat at his desk. He made a new sign for the door, to replace the one saying OLDER BROTHERS KEEP OUT. This one said ALL BROTHERS KEEP OUT. Then he began reconstructing the brick castle that Alfie had kicked, the one he and Ted had made all those months ago. It seemed like weeks since Jonny had last seen Ted. In fact, it had only been a few days.