Stargirl of the Edge

Ch 1 - Arrival / Dao Lai

The girl looked to be about sixteen or seventeen and was quite tall, about five feet seven. Her face was a striking mixture of European and Oriental, with a wide nose and pale skin. The lines around her eyes and the dimples in her cheeks told a story of worry and tension. Her thick black straight hair was combed boldly across her forehead, her lips were pale and she kept pressing them together nervously. Her eyes were deep brown with a hint of berries, and as she peered up at the screen, the ceiling lights were reflected in them like constellations. Her eyes seemed to have a depth and a vision beyond her years, with the power to see things, both visible and invisible.

Passengers started to walk through the double sliding doors. Some had KLM baggage tags, others had labels of other airlines.

It wasn't long before a man of Chinese appearance, medium height, around five feet eight inches tall, in his mid-fifties, walked confidently through the double sliding doors, pulling a wheeled suitcase. When he saw the girl and the woman, he put on a 'mock surprised' expression and waved with a circular motion.

"Livvy! Liz!" he cried.

The girl ran up to him and hugged him tightly, brushing her hand against her eyes. Her mother stood at a distance, and just for an instant, she looked daggers at him, she looked at him with wide angry eyes that cut like a knife, eyes so intense he had to look away. Then he linked arms with his daughter. The mother, now putting on a smile, stepped forward to kiss her husband politely on the cheek and walked ahead, swinging her keys.

The three made their way up the escalator, across the covered bridge to the multi-storey car park.

"So Dennis, how was the flight?"

"Fine," he said.

"And how were things in China?"

"Yes, okay. The project is coming along well." he said.

They walked the short distance to the jeep.

Olivia jumped in the back behind her mother, Dennis sat in the front passenger seat, and Liz turned the key. After a couple of false starts, the engine sprang into life, and she drove to the exit, inserted the ticket and headed towards the motorway.

Despite the happy homecoming, there was silence between them. Finally he asked: "And so Livvy, how are you doing at school?"

"Don't ask," she said, shaking her head.

Liz remained silent as they passed under the first of the two runway tunnels towards Wilmslow. There was a scream of jet engines as another plane headed back up into the dark, rain-filled clouds.

Olivia sat in the rear seat and made a long sigh, breathing in deeply and then out again, pushing the air out slowly through her teeth and lips.

"This weather, it really gets me down!" she said, placing her hand on her forehead.

It continued to rain heavily as they drove through the town centre past the café bars and luxury car dealers, before heading towards the nearby village and residential district of Alderley Edge.

Inside the jeep, the atmosphere grew tenser. There is an expression 'You could cut the air with a knife.' That's exactly what it was like.

Dennis heard a 'ping' sound from a small tablet device he was using. He quickly took it out and started to read.

Just after the station, before the main street with its fashionable bars and restaurants, Liz took another left turn, drove on past a pub and after about half a mile stopped outside a small grocery shop.

"I'm just going to pop into Dorothy's and get a pint of milk," she said.

Dennis and Olivia waited silently.

She made another long sigh, leaned forward and asked:

"Dad, how long are you back for?"

"Oh, a few weeks I think.?"

"But how long exactly?"

"Till February the eighth."

"Oh Dad, why do you have to keep going away. I've got a really bad feeling. I can't explain it."

She pressed her lips together and looked out through the glass and the falling rain.

She could see her mother through the shop window, talking with lively facial expressions. Then the rain grew stronger and angrier. Raindrops the size of pebbles fell onto the roof of the jeep.

Rivers of icy water flowed down the outside of the glass like tears, shattering the view. Then Olivia began to shed real tears, and soon they were pouring down her face. She sobbed loudly but her sobs were mostly hidden by the noise of the rain.

Her father looked up and around. He began to move his hand as if to comfort his daughter, but something held him back.

Liz came running through the rain, jumped in and turned the key. After a few tries it started and she drove back onto the road.

"Oh, Dorothy has been so worried about her son, he's in the army and they've told him where he's going. She's quite worried. Such a lovely lad."

And then she looked in the mirror.

"Livvy, are you all right, darling?"

"Oh, it's just," she said, wiping her eyes, "before, I felt so happy but now I feel so sad. It's the stress at school and my dyslexia. I just wish I could wave a magic wand and everything would be crystal clear."

"Oh, Livvy, there's no need to worry, you're going to be fine!"

"You always say that, Mum! I don't think you realise how difficult it is, studying for exams. I just need some help, that's all."

"You'll help Livvy, won't you Dennis?" said Liz.

He lifted his gaze from the tablet and looked round.

"What? Oh yes, yes of course," he said.

After about half a mile, Liz turned right into a lane.

"Ooh, it must be cold, wet and miserable up on the Edge tonight," said Liz.

"I feel sorry for the animals," said Olivia, "They must be shivering."

"Oh Livvy, I'm sure they're going to be fine!"

"Yes I suppose so!" said Olivia, her eyes sparkling through the tears.

Finally the tension seemed to ease.

Liz turned right at a gate, then up a short drive to a small but beautiful white house. A security light came on and there was the sound of a dog barking. Now it had almost stopped raining.

Liz switched off the engine, turned around and said enthusiastically:

"I'll put on a lovely fire, the house will be nice warm in no time, and then I'll make us a nice meal."

"Thanks, Mum," said Olivia.