On the last day of school before the summer holidays, Izzy was lying with her head in Em's lap on the floor of the common room, her attention focused on the wrinkled pages of her much-abused copy of Great Expectations.
'Tell me your plan for tonight, Iz?' Dom said from across the room. 'We must catch up.'
Izzy was just getting to the interesting part of the story where the protagonist, Pip learns that his benefactor is not who he thought it was. She sighed. She'd been waiting for this twist.
Izzy closed her book reluctantly. She sat up and turned her mind to Dom's question, while unzipping her school bag.
Em put her fingers in her ears. 'I don't want to hear this. I'm so jealous.'
'Well, my friend Kath's staying with me,' Izzy said, stretching her back out. 'She's an Abbotscraig girl. She doesn't get out much, so we planned a huge night of it.'
'Is she hot?' Dom interrupted.
Em removed her fingers from her ears and glared at him. Dom laughed.
Izzy ignored him and continued. 'Of course, now that Em isn't going to be here, we'll have to adjust some things. When I get home, Kath and I will probably FaceTime with Tal.'
'But you would have just seen her at school,' said Dom.
'Yeah,' Izzy explained somewhat impatiently, 'but Kath hasn't seen her in forever, and we'll need to make plans for the night.'
Em plumped the cushion in her lap. 'Have you told your parents you're going out yet?'
'No, I'll have to break that news to Mum when I get home. That always goes down well,' Izzy said frowning. 'My sister will call me selfish. My dad will complain that I drop my laundry and run.'
'Sounds like my household,' said Dom dryly.
'At least you won't be in Japan,' Em said miserably.
Izzy laughed and tried to continue. 'I'm working on Friday, so I've got to factor than in too.'
Dom picked up a table tennis bat and began to swivel it in his hand. 'Where are you working?' he asked. 'I thought you were planning a big night out?'
'The RSL in Milsons Point. My shift is only three hours. Tal's going to pick me up after.'
Ignoring Dom's offer of a table tennis bat, Em said: 'Oh yes, I forgot, Tal and Kath are going out for dinner first. Maybe they'd like to join the guys?' Em looked to Dom for confirmation it was okay.
'I'm sure they can, but I won't be there.' Dom said waving a spare bat at Izzy. 'Tal can head to Vasco's at eight.'
'Where will you be?' Izzy asked Dom, taking the bat and rising to the table.
'If I go with Em to the airport, I'll head straight to the club afterward, skip dinner.' Dom said tossing the ball over the net. 'It depends on how long it takes to see this one off on her way.'
'That's fair enough.' Izzy said. She tapped the ball lightly and it glided over the net.
'I'm guessing Cole wouldn't mind Tal crashing dinner?' Em said.
'I'm guessing not. Still can't believe he's into Tal,' said Izzy.
'Why? Are you jealous?' Dom asked, tapping the ball back with more force than necessary.
'You know I'm not, idiot,' Izzy said, shaking her head and leaping across the table. 'I just thought she's so tiny...I'm not sure they fit together.' Tal was more petite even than Em, like a blonde Hermione Granger. Standing next to Cole, they looked ridiculous.
'She hasn't shut him down...' Dom said. Tapping the table tennis ball back and forth as they chatted. 'I see how she batts her tiny eyelashes at him. I think she likes him, secretly.'
'Some girls just like the attention,' Em said.
'Tal's not like that,' Izzy responded. 'She might genuinely like him. She can be tough to read like that.'
'He should just make a move if he likes her so much,' said Em. 'Instead of dancing around the issue. What's the worst that can happen?'
'He could be knocked back like he was with Izzy,' said Dom. 'You don't know how hard it is, being the one expected to make the first move all the time.'
'Oh yeah? You have it so tough,' said Izzy. 'Look how hard you had to work to get Em's attention.'
'Hey, I can't help it if I'm so good-looking, girls throw themselves at me.' Dom smashed the ball so hard; it flew right over the table whizzing past Izzy's ear and into the back wall of the common room.
'Rate yourself much?' said Izzy good-naturedly.
"It's true though,' said Dom laughing. 'Em chased me like a fly on the proverbial...' He sauntered over to pick the ball up and handed it to Izzy.
'Oh my God, I'm gonna kill you,' Em said, finally standing up, jumping on his back and play slapping his head.
Dom lifted his hands, shrieking: 'Aaaahhh!'
'You realise, that makes you the (air quotes) "proverbial,"' Izzy said to Dom.
Em put her feet back on the ground and burst out laughing. 'That'd be about right.'
Izzy put her bat on the table. 'When you learn to play better, give me a buzz, eh?'
Just then, the school bell rang. Izzy picked up her bag. 'Later,' she said, slinging it over her shoulder.
A handful of girls in the common room made their way outside with her.
Em and Dom had decided to skip English today. Ms. Zeiman was such a softy; she wouldn't dob them in.
'Later sheeple,' Em responded cheerily.