rush of people came in. ‘We’ll call you if anything,’ Christi said.
‘Thank you,’ Mia called as she followed her mum out to post the missing cat notice on poles and trees in their neighbourhood.
By Monday morning there was still no sign of Rex and there had been no phone calls in response to the missing cat ad either. There was however a reply on Builders Wall. Mia pulled the folded sheet of paper out of the rocks, toppling the space ship. On it were two lines written in large scrawling hand:
Dear Mia,
My name is Joseph. I like to build models.
Mia was amazed, ‘Who do you think he is, Mum?’
With a twinkle in her eye Mrs Glasson shook her head. ‘I don’t know, love.’
‘He couldn’t be an adult though, could he?’ Before her mum could answer Mia pointed out the writing. ‘See, the handwriting is too big, look. And only kids build models.’
‘Is that so?’ smiled Mrs Glasson.‘It’s not really a game for adults is it?’
Mia talked about Joseph all the way home that day. Mum had been excited too and couldn’t stop thinking about it. She was glad the note had been on Mia’s mind as it had been on hers too.
The next day Mia raced up Meeks Mountain, to see what new creation had been left for her. Her mum had a hard time keeping up but was grateful she no longer needed to coax her daughter up the mountainside. She reassembled the rubble into something different, a boat. The next time a table, something, and anything that would match Joseph’s clever creations. The weeks flew by, the posters of Rex began to fade and Mia soon abandoned her search for the cat who started the game. All at once it was the end of first term at school.
Mia wrote a note to Joseph:
Happy Easter, Joseph.
I can’t come for a couple of weeks. I’m going to visit my Nanny and Grandad.
From Mia
She tucked the note in the rock basket she had made along with a card, three chocolate eggs and a photo of the eggshell she had decorated for her school competition. I won first place! she had written on the back.
‘Do you think he’ll like the card and chocolate, Mum?’
‘The card is thoughtful and kind, Mia, and almost everyone loves chocolate,’ Mum reasoned.
During the fun and excitement of the school holidays the game Mia played with Joseph was almost forgotten. Mia and her mum traveled up the coast to stay with Mum’s parents. Long days were spent at the beach and evenings curled up on the sofa watching movies. On days they stayed home Mum helped tend the gardens with Grandad while Mia helped Nanny in the kitchen. The slow pace of coast life was a good break but by the end of two weeks Mia was itching to get back to her new life. On the first day of term two, Mia raced up Meeks Mountain to find Joseph had created a square tower, and inside he’d placed a gift, a toy, a pocket pet. It was a tiny yellow cat with big eyes and a large head that wobbled back and forth. There was also a note:
Hello Mia,
I saw this when I went to get some bread, do you like it? How were your holidays? Joseph
Up went Mia’s eyebrow, ‘Joseph went to buy bread? How can a kid just go buy bread?’
‘Maybe his mum asked him to?’
Mia frowned, not in the least convinced. She felt cheated, as though she had been tricked. ‘Was it you all along?’ she asked her mum. ‘Are you Joseph?’
‘Of course not, darling,’ Mum promised.
Mia was worried – the friend she thought she had was not who she thought he was. Mrs Glasson, seeing the change in her daughter, suggested Joseph’s mother had bought it with him. Though Mia didn’t one hundred percent feel it was the case, she was satisfied with this explanation and the game continued like before. Winter school holidays approached and Mia decorated her models with paper snowflakes for Christmas in July. Joseph joined in and adorned a model of a Christmas tree with tinsel. In the last week of semester one, Mia wrote to Joseph to say they would have to start again next semester:
Hi Joseph,
Guess what, Dad surprised me and Mum with tickets to Singapore! We leave tomorrow. Merry Christmas in July!
From Mia
p.s. Mum says we should meet when we get back.
On the first day of term three Mia pulled on a dress and stared at her reflection, her uniform was already at her knees. She scribbled a quick note for Joseph:
Hello Joseph,
Are you still there? I had a great holiday in Singapore! I missed our games.
Mum says I’ve grown heaps, my dress is six inches shorter.
When can we meet?
From Mia
The first few days flew by, meeting new classmates, getting to know her new teacher, and connecting with old friends. Mia checked the wall everyday hoping to see Joseph, but by Friday her letter was still there, untouched, unread.
Each day the letter became more and more faded, the paper yellowed and crumpled from the elements. After a week of rain, Mia rewrote the note, adding are you okay?.
Mia tucked the new note into the rocks, ‘Did I say something wrong, Mum?’
‘What do you mean?’
‘Well I told Joseph we should meet when we got back from holidays.’
‘Oh, well – no, that’s perfectly fine. I’m sure Joseph is looking forward to meeting you. He’s probably still on holidays.’
‘Yeah, maybe. Hey, has anyone called you about Rex?’
‘Rex?’
‘Yeah, you know, the cat.’
‘I know who you mean, it’s just that it’s been so long. What made you think of him?’
Mia frowned, ‘He showed us Builders Wall and he introduced us to Joseph.’
Mrs Glasson smiled, ‘That’s a nice way of thinking.’
‘He did bring us to the wall didn’t he?’
‘I suppose... No, no one responded to the ad.’
The rest of the walk to school Mia looked for the signs they’d put up for Rex but it seemed they had all been removed and replaced by posters or ads. She found one on a tree in Paine Reserve.
‘The rain’s ruined it,’ Mia said.
‘Sun’s got to it too.’
‘We should
