Cherry Blossom Dreams Read online

  ‘For God’s sake, Sean! What were you thinking?’ Mum burst out, just as I came into the room and placed the container down on the floor.

  Sean didn’t reply as he knelt down carefully and concentrated on making Monty comfortable again inside his temporary home.

  ‘Why didn’t you raise the alarm as soon as he escaped?’ Leo demanded. ‘We could have called in the RSPCA!’

  Sean looked self-conscious. ‘It wasn’t that simple.’

  ‘I suppose what complicated it was your concern about what would happen to you if anyone found out!’ Mum said sarcastically.

  Sean’s cheeks were reddening. So were mine. After all, Mum was right. We had been too concerned with protecting our own skins to think about what was in Monty’s best interests. He’d had to survive without food, water or heating for all this time, whereas if we’d confessed at once and let Mum call in an expert, he might have been recaptured immediately. Then again, Zack was a snake expert. Not that Mum was likely to find that reassuring.

  Mum spoke again, sounding very angry – and not just out of concern for Monty’s wellbeing. ‘Didn’t you realise the risk you were taking agreeing to hide that snake here, Sean? You could have ruined Miranda’s business! At the very least you could have lost me my job! I mean, just how long did you think you could keep sneaking in and out of here without being spotted?’

  ‘We were very careful, Mum,’ I reassured her rapidly before Sean had a chance to answer. Because, frankly, I wouldn’t put it past him to blurt out that we’d been sneaking in and out of Blossom House for two years now with no problem at all.

  Mum left the room abruptly after that, saying she was going downstairs to turn off the heating. She also told us she was going to read the gas meter and that the heating bill for last night was coming straight out of Sean’s allowance (when he actually had one again).

  Leo immediately started ringing up animal rescue centres, leaving messages on answer machines. Then he phoned a reptile sanctuary that was about an hour’s drive away from where we live. Finally someone answered and we listened as Leo explained the situation.

  ‘So you’ll take him? That’s fantastic!’ Leo sounded hugely relieved as they discussed the details.

  As Leo ended the call, he saw the look on my brother’s face and said, ‘Sean, that snake will have a very good home at this reptile place. You should be pleased about it, not sulking.’

  ‘I’m not sulking. I just wanted to keep him a bit longer, that’s all! I mean we only just got him back! And he’s not really even my snake, he’s Zack’s.’

  ‘Well, if you behave yourself I might take you to visit him.’

  ‘Seriously?’ Sean sounded disbelieving.

  ‘Yes, seriously. So long as I don’t have to touch any snakes, I think I’ll cope. Now … I’m just going to phone Zack’s parents.’

  ‘Wait! Leo, you can’t do that! They don’t even know about Monty,’ Sean protested.

  ‘Even more reason why I should tell them,’ Leo replied crisply. ‘They clearly need to have a talk with Zack about the correct procedure for rehoming a python.’

  ‘But, Leo, they’re really strict! They’re going to kill him!’ As Leo raised an eyebrow, he added, ‘OK, so maybe not kill him exactly but … well …’

  ‘Ground him?’ Leo suggested. ‘Cos I believe that’s the next thing your mum has in mind for you two.’

  ‘You mean it’s what you have in mind,’ Sean grumbled.

  ‘Actually, Sean,’ Mum said coolly as she came back into the room, ‘sometimes all it takes is another person to put a good idea in your head and you wonder why you never thought of it in the first place!’

  Sean was still a bit sulky with Leo as we walked home. (Mum had stayed behind to wait for Zack and his dad, who were going to take Monty to the reptile centre.)

  ‘I still think you could have let us keep Monty for a few more days so we could try to find him a home nearby,’ he said.

  ‘Oh yes? And exactly where did you want to keep him, Sean?’ Leo replied impatiently. ‘Because there’s no way I’m living in the same house as a python, even if it is called Monty.’

  It took a moment or two for what he’d said to sink in.

  ‘So are you and Mum officially back together then?’ Sean asked, trying his best to sound casual. ‘I mean, properly back together – as in being an actual couple again back together?’

  I could feel my own heart beating faster as we waited for Leo to reply.

  ‘Your mother and I spent a lot of time talking last night,’ he told us. ‘And yes … we agreed that we really do want to be together and to make things work for all of us.’

  Sean’s immediate ear-to-ear grin was actually quite sweet. Not that I’d dare tell him that.

  He quickly got a grip on his enthusiasm and grunted in a laid-back voice, ‘Well, maybe you shouldn’t get married too quickly. You could always just live together … loads of people do … and there’d be less pressure. For one thing, we wouldn’t actually be your step-kids, so you wouldn’t need to feel so responsible for us. Not that Sasha would be any bother of course, but as for me, I guess it’s true that I can act a lot like a five-year-old at times –’

  ‘Listen, Sean,’ Leo interrupted him quickly. ‘I said a lot of angry stuff after I caught you at that party. Maybe I wouldn’t have freaked out quite so much if I hadn’t arrived to find you trapped inside that airtight box …’ He paused. ‘Or if I hadn’t started thinking about how the story was going to be round the school in no time and how I was going to have to give a report to Mr Jamieson, who was bound to ask me what I was doing there. Anyway, I guess I just got a bit worked up about the whole thing.’

  I think Sean was probably just as surprised as I was by what Leo was telling us. Yes, I knew Leo had been totally stressed out by having to rescue Sean from that box. But it hadn’t entered my head that we’d also put him in an awkward position at work and with his boss.

  ‘Sorry, Leo,’ I said with a frown, adding in a rush, ‘We’re really glad you and Mum are back together. Aren’t we, Sean?’

  ‘Yeah – it’s a first all right,’ Sean readily agreed.

  ‘A first?’ Leo looked puzzled.

  I was puzzled too, until I realised what my brother meant. Basically, this getting-back-together thing had never happened to Mum before, at least not with anyone she’d broken up with since our dad died.

  No wonder my brother was starting to grin. So was I.

  ‘I should never have asked you guys to hide Monty at Blossom House,’ Zack said when we saw him later that day. He and his dad had stopped at ours on their way home to let us know how they’d got on at the reptile sanctuary.

  As the adults talked in the kitchen, Zack showed Sean and me some pictures he’d taken on his phone.

  ‘He is such a beautiful snake,’ Sean murmured as he flicked through all the photos of Monty. ‘Even Sasha thinks so, don’t you, Sasha?’

  ‘His skin is beautiful,’ I quickly agreed.

  Zack looked pleased. ‘A lot of people don’t appreciate how beautiful snakes are, Sasha. I’ve got this great book about pythons at home. I bought it to try and convince Mum that they make good pets, but you can borrow it if you like!’ He gave me a very warm smile.

  It was then that I remembered what Lily had said before about Zack, and for the first time I started to feel uneasy. I mean, what if Lily had got it right after all? What if Zack did fancy me?

  I told myself quickly that it couldn’t be true! But what if it was? And what if anyone at school found out?

  What if Raffy found out?

  I started to panic. I couldn’t help it.

  ‘Sasha, you should come round to mine and meet Percy,’ Zack was saying enthusiastically. ‘He’s got especially strong markings for a corn snake. And he’s super friendly.’

  ‘Hey, Sasha, you’ll be the first girl Zack’s ever taken home to meet the reptiles,’ Sean teased, giving me an evil smirk. ‘You know … Meet the Parents … Meet the Re
ptiles … Get it?’

  That’s when I started to panic even more. I wanted to be friends with Zack, but that was all. And I certainly didn’t want my brother stirring things up.

  I took a deep breath and heard myself say, ‘Actually, Zack, I keep thinking how Monty’s skin would make a really lovely handbag. Or maybe even a nice pair of shoes.’

  Poor Zack looked like he’d been shot.

  ‘She’s only joking, Zack,’ Sean said at once.

  Seeing Zack’s face, it was all I could do not to blurt out that of course I was joking, and to remind everyone that I’d refused to speak to Granny for a whole month after she’d confessed to still owning a genuine mink coat. But somehow I managed to hold it together and walk away with a totally straight face.

  After all, I couldn’t back down now, could I? Not if I wanted my Cruella de Vil impersonation to have the desired effect.

  For the next two weeks Sean and I were both grounded, Lily and I kept ignoring each other at school, Leo and Mum were a hundred per cent back together, but Mum and Granny still weren’t speaking. I could see how happy Mum was to be back with Leo, but it made me really sad to think of Granny on her own. Sean and I both phoned her again to make sure she was OK, and she said she was. We told her all about Monty, about our friends, and I even told her about how embarrassing school had been since everyone found out about Mum and Leo. But it took us ages to persuade Mum to phone her.

  Eventually, however, Mum disappeared upstairs and made the call.

  ‘How did it go?’ I asked as she came back down.

  ‘Not too badly considering,’ Mum replied. ‘Though I think it’s going to take us a while to get back to normal.’

  ‘Did you tell her the wedding’s back on?’ Leo asked.

  Mum nodded.

  ‘So what did she say?’

  ‘She said, “Well, dear, I suppose one good thing about him being so young is that at least he isn’t already married to someone else!”?’

  As I winced, Sean pointed out with a little smirk, ‘As far as we know.’

  ‘I think that’s the closest you’ll ever get to Granny saying sorry,’ I said.

  It was then that I noticed Mum’s new engagement ring. (The day after her row with Leo she’d tossed the first one in the bin and by the time she’d thought better of it, the refuse collection had already been.)

  ‘Wow!’ I exclaimed. ‘That’s gorgeous, Mum!’ She held her hand out so I could look more closely. It looked a lot more expensive than the one Leo had bought her in Greece. In fact it was even bigger than the one my dad had given her, which she kept in a box in her drawer and said that I could have when I was older.

  Mum smiled. ‘Leo gave it to me last night. It was a complete surprise!’

  ‘So much for treasuring the original one forever no matter how cheap it was!’ Sean teased.

  ‘Sean, stop being such a smart alec,’ Leo told him gruffly.

  I kept gazing at the new ring, letting its significance properly sink in. ‘So you two really are going to get married,’ I murmured.

  And though I hadn’t meant it as a question, Leo answered me anyway. ‘As far as anyone can be sure of anything,’ he said levelly, ‘then yes, Sasha … we really are.’

  I don’t know why, but that made me feel happy and sad at the same time. I was truly happy for Mum, and for Leo as well, and for all of us. But deep down inside, a bit of me still wanted to believe that my dad was the love of Mum’s life, and that nothing would ever change that. Of course it was possible that he still was … Or if Leo was, then maybe that was OK too. Perhaps our dad would have wanted Mum to find true love and happiness again with somebody else.

  In any case, I was certain of one thing. Our dad would be pleased to see Sean getting the father figure he needed at long last. And I’m pretty sure he’d be ecstatic to know I was going to be stuck with some dad-style overprotection just as I entered my teens.

  That afternoon Leo took Sean and Zack to visit Monty at the reptile centre. Mum had gone out shopping, which meant that I was alone in the house. Just as I was thinking of calling Priti to see if she wanted to come over, our doorbell rang.

  I was really surprised when I looked through the spyhole and saw Ellie standing there.

  ‘Hi, Sasha, is it OK if I come in and talk to you for a minute?’ she asked in a nervous rush as I opened up.

  ‘Sure.’ I found myself feeling equally anxious as I let her inside.

  ‘Listen, I think there’s something you should know,’ she blurted as soon as the front door was closed. ‘It wasn’t Lily who told everyone about your mum and Mr Anderson. It was Rafferty!’

  I don’t know what I’d expected her to say, but it certainly wasn’t that.

  I frowned. ‘No way!’

  ‘Yes, Sasha! He overheard Lily talking about it to their mum. He told one of his mates and that’s how it ended up being spread round the school. Lily was going to tell you in PE that day, but you didn’t give her a chance. After that she got really stubborn and said that if you thought that little of her, then maybe the two of you shouldn’t be friends.’

  ‘But –’ I broke off abruptly, feeling a little bit sick.

  ‘You should go and talk to her, Sasha,’ Ellie said. ‘You guys have been friends for ages, right?’

  ‘Yes, but … but … I haven’t spoken to her for three weeks. I guess she probably doesn’t want to be my friend any more after –’

  ‘She does want to be your friend,’ Ellie reassured me, adding swiftly, ‘Well she thinks she doesn’t, but she’s kidding herself because she’s been really moody ever since you two fell out. Listen … I’m on my way round to her place just now. Why don’t you come with me?’

  I frowned. ‘I don’t know, Ellie … I mean, what would I say?’

  ‘Just tell her the truth … that you’re sorry you didn’t believe her and that you know now that it was Rafferty who told everyone. Come on, Sasha … I know she’s sorry too. Just come with me and talk to her.’ As I kept hesitating, she added, ‘You know, I had to leave my best friend behind when we moved here. You’re lucky you’ve still got Lily.’

  I looked at Ellie as she worriedly chewed on her thumbnail while she waited for me to decide what to do. It was sweet of her to want Lily and me to make up, I thought. After all, she could have used our falling-out to her advantage and tried to turn Lily into her new best friend.

  I took a deep breath. ‘OK then,’ I said.

  And I picked up my keys and my jacket before I could change my mind.

  I stood away from Ellie, to one side of the front door, as Lily opened it and greeted Ellie enthusiastically.

  ‘Hi there! I was just going to phone you to see where you were –’ Lily broke off as she spotted me standing there nervously.

  ‘Sasha wants to talk to you, Lily,’ Ellie put in quickly. ‘I’ll go and wait for you in the garden.’

  Lily stared at me after Ellie had disappeared into the house. For one awful moment I thought she was going to keep me standing on the doorstep. But then she stepped back to let me through. ‘I was just getting a drink,’ she mumbled. ‘Do you want one?’

  I nodded. ‘Water, please,’ I said hoarsely. My throat and mouth were bone dry.

  As Lily led me into the kitchen, I said, ‘I’m sorry I thought it was you who told everyone about Mum and Leo.’

  ‘You know it was Raffy?’

  ‘Ellie just told me.’

  She handed me a glass of water and said awkwardly, ‘I kept checking my phone all the time thinking you would text me or something.’

  ‘I’m sorry. Mum took our phones away after the party. We only just got them back.’

  ‘Oh … that sucks.’

  ‘Yeah.’

  Through the kitchen window I could see Ellie basking on the grass in the spring sunshine.

  I took a deep breath. ‘Lily … listen … I’m really sorry I blew up at you before when you tried to tell me about Raffy.’

  ‘Yeah, well, it wasn’t
very nice,’ she agreed. ‘It wasn’t so much what you said, it was how you said it. You said it like you hated me!’

  ‘Oh, Lily … I’m so sorry … but you know I don’t hate you, right?’

  ‘I guess you wouldn’t be here if you did.’

  ‘Well, no …’ I paused, wondering what else I could say. ‘I don’t know how I could ever have thought it was you who …’ I trailed off, not wanting to repeat myself.

  ‘Well, you weren’t exactly thinking straight at the time,’ Lily replied, ‘what with everything that was going on, I mean.’

  ‘I guess … but I still shouldn’t have taken it out on you.’

  She nodded as if that was also true.

  I briefly wondered if she was going to apologise for anything herself – for inadvertently letting Raffy overhear my secret in the first place, for instance. It seemed not. Still … Lily was Lily and you couldn’t have everything.

  ‘Sasha, I’ve really missed you!’ she suddenly burst out, throwing her arms round me in a big hug. ‘I don’t want us to fall out ever again! No matter what happens, let’s definitely stay B.F.F.L.s, OK?’

  ‘Definitely,’ I agreed, hugging her back. Because even I know that B.F.F.L. means Best Friends for Life.

  ‘Hey!’ She suddenly pulled back from me. ‘Are you actually wearing a bra?’

  Before I could reply, Rafferty sauntered into the kitchen heading for the fridge. ‘Is who wearing a bra?’ he demanded.

  And this time when I went bright red, it definitely wasn’t because I fancied him.

  ‘Sasha, just for the record, I think it’s really cool that Mr Anderson is dating your mum,’ Ellie said, as Lily and I joined her in the garden.

  ‘That’s what I keep telling her!’ Lily said enthusiastically. ‘I mean, he’s only the cutest teacher in the whole school!’

  ‘I know. And have you noticed how he always has such fresh breath when he leans over you to check your work?’