Thursday, May 19th 2005
Fortitude Valley, Brisbane
8:07 PM
Junie Bennett was three things.
She was cold, hungry and a little scared.
Cold, because for probably the umpteenth time that month the boiler had stopped working. She had tried to fix it herself with the boiler manual she'd found in the basement but she had, of course, failed miserably. The manual used such confusing vocabulary and complicated instructions that Junie had given up within fifteen minutes of her attempt. She wanted to call someone to fix it but the phone wasn't working and she didn't know who to call.
The temperature in the house had plummeted several degrees in the last ten minutes. The plus side was that she had been able to find something to keep her relatively warm. Junie wrapped the thick blanket around her and cuddled into its furry warmth.
She was hungry because the only thing she had to eat that day was an packet of crisps and an apple. Not even a nice apple at that. As soon as she had come home from school, Junie had ventured into the kitchen and just five futile minutes into her search for sustenance, she had found the cupboards and fridge empty with no food in sight. Well, there was that block of cheese but it had turned green. The food should have been here. Exhaustion and hunger never mixed well with her, it always seemed to make her irritable and impatient.
Junie was worried because she had not seen Audrey in four days . On the Monday morning before she had left for school, Audrey had trotted into the kitchen holding a suitcase. She was dressed to impress, her red hair had been styled upwards into a tight bun. She wore a short and rather tight white dress with crimson high heels. Audrey had given her some money for food and anything else she might need. She'd said she was going on a business trip with a friend of hers and that she would be back soon. Junie thought four days was soon enough.
She was, admittedly, a little scared because she didn't like the fact that she hadn't seen her mother for four days and she was starting to get worried. The lights weren't working again, leaving Junie to sit in the cold dark by herself. Junie may have been a little scared of the dark. The flickering light from the television ahead helped a little but not a lot. She sat in the living room, quietly watching an episode of Home and Away. She was only watching it because it was the only thing on television that she could tolerate.
Thump.
What was that? Her eyes scanned the room. She had definitely heard a noise.
Thump. Thump.
There it was again. Keeping the blanket wrapped around her, she sat up and cautiously left the comfort of the living room. The narrow hallway was dark. The thumping noise was coming from the front door. Junie frowned. Who would be knocking at this time? For a second she thought her mother had returned, she shook her head, batting the thought away when she realised her mother would have come in from the back door.
Thump! Thump! Thump!
Whoever was knocking was getting impatient now. Junie hopped forward and grabbing a baseball bat from the storage compartment underneath the stairs, she walked towards the door. If she was going to die, she was going to die fighting.
Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!
She raised the bat high and yanked the door open. She was surprised to find that on the other side of the door was not the bloodthirsty monster she expected but the skinny blue-eyed boy by the name of Dylan Mercer. He gaped at her. His ocean blue eyes were widened in fright. Junie dropped the bat and let out an exasperated sigh.
"New Zealand," she huffed, "You bloody idiot."
"Were you about to hit me with that baseball bat?" He asked and she nodded, "Why?"
"I live in Fortitude Valley, in case you haven't noticed." She snapped, stepping aside to let him in. She shut the door, and locked it securely behind her. "It isn't exactly a safe place."
"Why's it so dark?" He asked glancing around.
"Light's not working," she said. In the dim light she noticed that he was holding a large bag. "What are you doing here?"
"I'm here to celebrate your birthday, you divvy."
Junie rolled her eyes. She was hoping he'd forgotten. "Do your parents know you're here?"
Dylan nodded, "My mum dropped me off just now. She said I could sleep here tonight."
"Uh...I didn't say you could sleep here tonight."
He shrugged, "Don't care, I'm staying. I don't like you spending your birthday alone."
She was suddenly thankful for the dark because he couldn't see the crimson red blush that was painting her cheeks.
"Idiot," she mumbled.
"Good thing, I brought some light," he grinned and flicked on a bulky torch he held. It lit up the hallway, casting everything in an eerie glow. He passed it to her and began rummaging through the bag. "I know how you love chocolate cake...so I thought it would be cool if we made some!"
She smiled. "Okay."
Dylan grinned again, revealing the silver braces he had gotten a few months ago.
8:19 P.M
Junie had located several lamps from around the house and dotted them throughout the kitchen. They needed a copious amount of light if they wanted to make the chocolate cake. She was thankful the oven and all the other items in the kitchen were working perfectly.
Junie pulled her red hair up into a messy ponytail. She picked up the bag of flour and she poured the contents into a bowl as Dylan chucked a handful of spices and bicarbonate soda. He dumped a chunk of butter into the bowl and began mixing and kneading it with his fingers.
"Is your mum still away?" He said.
"Uh-huh."
"Four days now..." he frowned, "Where d'ya think she is?"
Junie shrugged, "She said somethin' about meeting a friend."
"My mum would never leave me alone in the house for so long," he said. Junie threw him a glare and he quickly apologised, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean..."
"It's alright," she said as she poured sugar, treacle, syrup and milk into the saucepan. She turned on the stove and let it cook for a few minutes.
Junie didn't want or like to admit it but he was right.
His mother would never do leave him like that. His mother was a kind woman, she always smiled and always made them pancakes every time Junie visited. Unlike Audrey, she didn't smoke, she didn't drink and she certainly didn't treat Junie like her own personal slave.
She loved his father, he thought she was a bright girl, he had introduced her to some of the most fascinating books on astronomy. His two older sisters were kind too and Bethany always knew how to make her laugh. Dylan came from a privileged background. His father was the Chief of Medicine at Brisbane Private Hospital and his mother was a successful romance writer. She had seen Audrey and some of her teachers reading his mother's books. Although when Junie had tried to read some of the books Audrey had admonished her and said the books were strictly for grown ups.
Junie regularly went to Dylan's house and some days she would sleepover. The only word to describe his house was magnificent. It was a magnificent mansion, luxurious and warm and so homely. Dylan's family was rich. He could have everything and anything he wanted at just a snap of his fingers.
She glanced at him, watching as he stirred the bowl of flour and egged. She was puzzled as to why he was friends with her. He could be friends with people much better than her, so why her? She didn't have much to offer him.
9:22 PM
"Wait, wait, wait, wait," Dylan said. He searched through his bag once more and pulled out a small plastic packet. He counted to himself as he plopped the small candles into the cake, "nine...ten...eleven...and because you're twelve today...we add one more...twelve!"
They had finished making the chocolate cake was finished and in all honesty, it looked absolutely delicious. Dylan had successfully made the lemon icing and dribbled it on top of the cake. They moved all the lamps from the kitchen and into the living room. Dylan ignited a match and carefully lit all the candles.
He glanced at Junie with a broad grin, "Make a wish!"
She returned his grin. For the first time in her life, Junie had a birthday cake. A delicious looking birthday cake. She pondered for a few seconds, contemplating her wish. Dylan and Junie were half way through the school year and even though she hadn't made any new friends (apparently she was too rude and didn't know when to shut up) but she didn't care because she had Dylan.
Junie leant forward and closing her eyes she made her wish.
I wish Dylan and I will always be together.
She puffed out her cheeks and blew. The fire on the candles flickered for a second before they died, and wisps of smokes drifted slowly up from the tips.
"Woo-hoo!" Dylan cheered, "And now to cut the cake."
He took a sharp knife in hand and began slicing the chocolate cake into quarters. He placed a slice of the cake on Junie's plate and one on his.
"Happy birthday, Junie," he said.
She grinned, "Thanks New Zealand."