Free A Hole in the World by Sophie Robbins

sighs, jealous. Alexandra’s lips look soft and plump and slightly shiny without needing help from cosmetics. It’s not really fair.
    ‘What is this?’ Alexandra is at her side, retrieving her foundation and eyeing it curiously.
    ‘It covers up blemishes, makes your skin look smoother.’ Bianca takes it off her and opens it up. ‘Here.’ She starts applying it to Alexandra’s face, careful not to put too much on, and then follows with eyeliner, shadow, mascara and a small, thin layer of light pink lip gloss. She doesn’t need it really, not like Bianca, but it never hurts to give it a try.
    When she’s done, Alexandra has a small amount of blue eye shadow on her eyelids, matching and bringing out the colour of her eyes. Bianca turns her, gently, by the shoulders towards the mirror and points.
    ‘How very peculiar...’ Alexandra says, touching her face and examining her eyes. ‘This is a strange practice. You do this every day?’
    Bianca shrugs. ‘Sometimes,’ she says. She grabs a makeup wipe from her makeup bag and starts wiping at Alexandra’s face. ‘You don’t need it though,’ she says. ‘You look gorgeous without makeup.’
    It’s Alexandra’s turn to blush and Bianca can’t help but smile as she gently removes the makeup.
    ‘You don’t need makeup either,’ Alexandra says, quietly.
    Bianca smiles and keeps on wiping. 
    *
    ‘Should we not be attending school?’ Alexandra enquires when Bianca leads her by the hand in the opposite direction from the high school. ‘I believed it to be mandatory.’
    ‘So is skipping a day once in a while,’ Bianca replies as she takes a right and slips down a small, almost hidden path. ‘It’s a rite of passage for a teenager.’
    ‘I see...’ Alexandra hurries after her as she takes a few more turns, going past small cottage-like houses and climbing over a stile. ‘Where is it you are taking me?’
    ‘You’ll see.’ Bianca helps Alexandra over the stile and they carry on across the grass. The tall blades tickle at the blonde’s knees and the dew clings to her skin and shoes. She doesn’t seem to mind, though, instead just running after Bianca, carefully avoiding holes in the ground.
    ‘I used to come here all the time as a kid,’ Bianca tells her, ducking under a fence and into another field. ‘I still do as a teenager but it’s not the same. Ever been to a park?’
    Alexandra shakes her head and grabs Bianca’s hand again when she loses it. ‘What is a park?’ she enquires.
    ‘It’s a place with fun things to do. Ever been on swings? A roundabout?’ More shaking of Alexandra’s head follows and Bianca sighs. ‘You’ve been repressed,’ she informs her. ‘Come on.’
    They walk for the next five minutes in silence and then Bianca leads Alexandra into a small copse of trees. They duck under a few branches and keep walking until they emerge into a clearing.
    The clearing is a playground. There’s a set of swings, some climbing bars, a roundabout, a sandpit and a seesaw. The playground is surrounded by a fence, which Bianca slips through and pulls Alexandra with her, and the main gate at the opposite side leads onto a small residential road.
    There are a few parents with small children playing, but not too many. Bianca offers a lady she recognises a wave and a smile and gets the same in return, then turns to Alexandra and says, ‘Tadah!’
    Alexandra looks confused. ‘This is a playground?’ she enquires.
    Bianca nods. ‘Yes,’ she says. ‘Come on.’ She leads Alexandra directly across to the nearest swing set, pushes her down on one and sits on the next one along. Within seconds, she’s swinging. Alexandra looks even more confused.
    ‘Swing,’ Bianca says, grinding to a halt. Alexandra reacts with a furrowed brow and a lame attempt at swinging without moving her legs or kicking off.
    ‘Here.’ Bianca climbs off her own, walks around behind Alexandra and pushes her.
    Alexandra squeals – loudly – and clings on for dear