Grease

Chapter 20

I'm on pins waiting for Danny to pick me up, I could only be more nervous if I was having the 'procedure' done myself. I stand up and pull the curtains to one side to look through the window for Danny's car.

"I think you have a thing for Danny," Sylvia says slyly. "You're like a cat on a hot tin roof. So where's he taking you?"

"He isn't," I say trying not to snap. "Me and Rizz are just hanging out with him, no big deal." 

She looks at me frowning. "And Rizz is stopping over tonight? You're getting old to be having sleepovers."

"Yeah I know," I say pondering. I don't want Syliva to get suspicious but Rizz was told she'd have to rest up afterwards and she said there was no way she'd be able to at home without her mum smelling a rat. "We have some school work we have to finish for the finals and since you'll be at Johnny's party I might have half a chance of getting on with it."

"So why don't you do it now?"

"You sound like mum," I say poking my tongue at her. "We just wanna chill out first."

"And you sound American," she says pulling a face back. "We only emigrated a few months ago!"

"And speaking of emigrating, guess who might be coming over?" She shakes her head. "The Carringtons. Dad was saying the company needs to transfer more staff to the American production and he's been approached about relocating."

"Wow," Sylvie gasps clearly excited. "The whole family are moving here?"

"Yep, and that includes that swotty son of theirs."

"Just cos he's clever doesn't mean he's swotty," Sylvia says pouting.

"You're only saying that cos he's good-looking," I tease and she flushes.

"He's alright, better than some of the guys around here." I wonder if she includes Johnny in that assessment but Danny's car pulls up before I get a chance to tease her any further.

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"So this is the place," Danny says to no one in particular as we park in front of a two-story house in a residential street. I don't know why but I was expecting it to be a clinic in an apartment block. Which is dumb really as they're hardly going to advertise their services. I see the curtains twitching, someone in the house is obviously waiting for us.

"Are you ready?" I ask Rizzo who's sat in the backseat. She nods her head imperceptively, her face pale. 

"Urg do you guys want me to come in with you?" Danny asks clearing his throat. "It might not be safe."

Rizzo snorts sounding more like her normal self. "Do that Zuko and they'll think you're the dad."

"I don't care," he says but Rizzo shakes her head and we slowly get out of the car. I'm a nervous wreck walking to the door and yet you can see this is a nice neighbourhood. All the houses and gardens are well looked after, the picture of suburban respectability. Rizzo raises her hand to knock but the front door opens and she freezes her hand mid-air.

"Hello, you must be Betty," a middle-aged woman says smiling. She looks us over and Rizzo speaks. 

"I'm Betty," she says. "We spoke on the phone."

"Of course we did, come on in," the woman says as if she's inviting us for tea. I step inside feeling like Alice in Wonderland, I don't know what I was expecting but it wasn't this. We're ushered through to the living room which with its patterned wallpaper and family pictures on display couldn't be more homely.