Free Dare Game by Jacqueline Wilson Page B

dad could be together?’
    ‘Yeah,’ said Football, looking amazed that Alexander could possibly have sussed this out. ‘
And
to play for United,’ he added.
    ‘What about you, Tracy?’ asked Alexander.
    ‘I don’t want a dad,’ I said quickly.
    ‘What about your mum?’ Alexander persisted. ‘Would you wish you and your mum could be together?’
    ‘That would be a totally wasted wish, wouldn’t it, because I’m going to be with her
anyway
.’
    But I’ll still wish it even so. Let me be with my mum. Let me be with my mum. I’m wishing with all my heart. And my lungs and my liver and my bones and my brains. All the strings of my intestines are tied in knots I’m wishing so hard.

 
    Mum’s Home
    WISHES COME TRUE . My fairy godmother has been working overtime! She made it come true. I spent the whole weekend with my mum and it was WONDERFUL and she says she wants me to go and live with her for ever and ever and ever, just as soon as Elaine gets it all sorted out officially.

    Elaine didn’t think my mum would turn up. She didn’t say anything, but I’m not daft. I could tell. Cam dumped me off at Elaine’s office. She said she would wait with me if I wanted but I didn’t want. It’s kind of weird being with Cam at the moment. She’s
still
not making a big fuss and begging me not to go. Though I heard her crying last night.
    I heard these little muffled under-the-duvet sobs – and I suddenly couldn’t stand it and stumbled out of bed and went running across the hall. I was all set to jump into bed with Cam and give her a big hug and tell her . . .
    Tell her
what
? That was the trouble. I couldn’t tell her I wouldn’t go because I’ve
got
to go. My mum’s my
mum
. Cam isn’t anybody. Not really. And I’ve known my mum all my life while I’ve only known Cam six months. You can’t compare it, can you?
    So I didn’t go and give her a cuddle. I made out I needed a wee and went to the bathroom. When I padded back the sobs had stopped. Maybe I’d imagined them anyway.
    I don’t know why I’m going on about all this sad stuff when I’m HAPPY HAPPY HAPPY . My mum didn’t let me down. She came for me at Elaine’s.

    She was a little bit late, so that I had to keep going to the toilet and Elaine’s bottom lip started bleeding because she’d nibbled it so hard with her big bunny teeth – but then suddenly this taxi drew up outside and my mum got out and she came running in on her high heels, her lovely blonde hair bouncing on her shoulders, her chest bouncing too in her tight jumper, and she clutched me tight in her arms so that I breathed her wonderful warm powdery smoky smell and then she said all this stuff about over-sleeping and missed trains and I didn’t take any of it in, I was just so happy she was really there.
    Though I didn’t exactly
act
happy.
    ‘Hey, hey, don’t cry, kid, you’re making my jumper all soggy,’ Mum joked.
    ‘I’m not crying. I never cry. I just get this hay fever sometimes, I told you,’ I said, helping myself to Elaine’s paper hankies.
    Then Mum whisked me off and instead of bothering with boring old buses and trains we got into the taxi and drove all the way home. To Mum’s house. Only it’s going to be
my
house now.

    It was miles and miles and miles and it cost a mega-fortune but do you know what my mum said? ‘Never mind, darling, you’re worth it!’
    I very nearly had another attack of hay fever. And my mum didn’t just fork out for the longest taxi ride in the world. Just wait till I write about all the presents! She’s better than a fairy godmother! And her house is like a fairy palace too, even better than I ever imagined.
    OK, it’s not all that wonderful outside. Mum lives in this big block of flats on an estate and it’s all car tyres and rubbish and scraggy kids outside. Mum’s flat is right on the top floor and the lift swoops up faster than your stomach can cope. That’s why I suddenly felt so weird – that and the pee smell