Free Alpha Girl by Kate Bloomfield Page B

her bosom hung out of her blouse.
    ‘Well, that’s great. It’s great you’re both taking some initiative in class.’ Mr. Stone crossed the room to his cupboard and pulled out two copies of ‘Great Expectations’ by Chares Dickens.
    ‘Have either of you read this?’ he asked, handing Sadie a copy, and placing the other on my desk.
    ‘No,’ said Sadie, pulling a face as she looked at it.
    ‘Yes,’ I said.
    ‘Really?’ Mr. Stone seemed impressed. ‘Can you summarize for me?’
    I licked my lips nervously. It had been years since I’d read it.
    ‘Um, it’s a coming of age story, isn’t it? About an orphan boy who is adopted into a blacksmith family?’
    ‘Right,’ Mr. Stone smiled at me. Sadie glared.
    ‘I can’t wait to read it,’ she said pointedly.
    ‘Great!’ Mr. Stone clapped his hands together. ‘Well … if you can write a report summarizing the plot, and its themes … let’s say … eight hundred words?’
    ‘Easy,’ I grinned. It really would be a piece of cake. Sadie, however, looked miserable. Clearly this encounter had not gone to plan.
    ‘Excellent,’ said Mr. Stone. ‘Well, you better be off to lunch, you two.’
    ‘Thanks Mr. Stone,’ I said, getting up from my seat and slinging my bag over my shoulder.
    Sadie slid from Mr. Stone’s desk and took a few steps, only to drop her book.
    ‘Oops!’ She bent over in front of Mr. Stone and I to retrieve the novel. My jaw almost hit the ground. She wasn’t wearing any knickers.
    He saw it too. Mr. Stone looked away, embarrassed, his face beetroot-red. I literally began to shake with anger. What a slut!

Thursday – 6 days to go

     
    I was a mess. My father was meeting with his real estate agent that evening, and my mother was out on a date with a co-worker. What was worse; my father didn’t seem phased by this at all.
    I sat in my room, upset and panicky. I didn’t want to leave Halfway; I’d miss him too much. Thomas. I needed him. I wanted him.
    I wanted him more than anything in the world, and he needed to know it. I couldn’t hold on to this secret any longer. It boiled inside me like poison.
    But how would I do it?
    I stared at Mr. Stone’s name in my phone for ages, contemplating on whether I should call him or not. What if he was busy?
    No. I wouldn’t call him. I’d text him instead, that way he could deny my offer if he wished.
     
    Can we go for a drive? I asked.
     
    He responded almost instantly, sending butterflies exploding through my stomach.
     
    See you in 5 minutes, it read.
     
    I wasn’t sure how, but I knew that Mr. Stone would drive to see me in the middle of the night if I asked him to. Perhaps that was vain of me to assume.
    I slipped out of the house while my father was still on the phone and waited in the street for Mr. Stone to pick me up.
    When he rumbled to a groaning halt by the curb he could tell instantly that I was upset.
    ‘Oh, no,’ he said as soon as I got into the passenger seat. ‘What’s the matter, Rose?’
    ‘Get me away from here,’ I said to him.
    He drove and I didn’t ask where we were going.
    Ten minutes passed in silence until we were on the outskirts of town, on an old road that was surrounded by forest. He picked up the mud with his tires as he pulled over on the side of the road.
    ‘You’re not going to murder me and ditch my body in the forest, are you?’ I asked.
    He laughed. ‘No, nothing like that. It’s calm here. I like it.’
    I looked out at the forest. ‘I hate it.’
    Mr. Stone raised his eyebrows. ‘Why?’
    ‘I was attacked by a wild animal when I was nine while hiking in the woods with my parents,’ I said.
    ‘Shit. Sorry, I didn’t mean to-’
    ‘It’s fine.’ I said. ‘It was a long time ago.’
    He gave me a pitying look. ‘You look upset,’ he said.
    I nodded and stared at my hands in my lap. I could feel the burn of tears in the back of my throat, but sniffed them away.
    ‘My parents are getting a divorce,’ I told him.
    ‘I’m