back to the table, just in time to see him. It’s only a glimpse, but it is him. Marley is pulling out a hose, running towards a burning tree. File footage, says a note at the bottom of the screen.
‘Are you okay?’ The waitress places a glass of water in front of me.
‘Yes, thanks.’ I drum my fingers on the table and breathe slowly to steady myself. The image on the screen changes to a parched paddock; no prospect of rain, says the announcer.
Things got a bit sad between Marley and me before I left to go overseas. We’d never been apart for so long – I think we were both trying to avoid thinking about it.
I tap on my phone and start an email.
To: Marley Lennon Wright
From: Summer Dawn Rain Wright
Subject: Remember? (part two)
I was reading on the couch when you sat beside me, bouncing up and down the way you always did.
I looked up from my book. ‘Hiya.’
‘Hey.’
You were so tall and broad-shouldered, Marley. You were the kind of guy I’d want to see coming to help if I was stuck in a house with a bushfire advancing. And, if you weren’t my brother, I’d say you were kind of cute.
‘What’re you reading?’ you said.
I held up my book. It was a guide to scriptwriting.
‘Still into that stuff, huh?’
‘Yeah, you still into that firefighting stuff?’
We always paid each other out, didn’t we?
‘I’m going to miss you, Summer Dawn.’
‘I’ll miss you too, you old silly.’ I punched you on the shoulder. ‘We’ll email, right?’
‘Yes.’
‘You could come,’ I murmured.
‘Yeah. But I’ve got stuff to do here.’
I knew that – you’d only just got a professional firefighting job after being a volunteer for almost ten years. You were hardly going to leave.
‘Hey, you’re going to have a great time. Make sure you send lots of emails,’ you said.
I send the email and take a sip of water. I have a queasy feeling, like I’m sliding down the Cone of Certainty at high speed. Damn Cougar Gale and her broken ankle. Damn Adrian and his sudden thirst for rock-climbing. They’ve pushed me off my rightful position on top of the Cone. I desperately need to tell Maxine I’m not going to Antarctica. I’m not looking forward to it, but it has to be done and I’ll feel much better afterwards.
I draw a little picture on my phone with the pointer:
Before meeting with Maxine
After meeting with Maxine
Extreme Project Management had something to say about rapid change – what was it? When chaos and uncertainty reign, a good project manager does not call in sick. Something like that … I may need to revise my life plan to take Adrian’s temporary absence into account, but the extreme project manager isn’t fazed by change, they just re-schedule. Once I’ve mastered XPM, Adrian will return. He won’t be able to resist my sexy project planning.
Adrian is probably rock-climbing right now. Or possibly visiting Cougar in hospital. Somehow I can’t summon the expected emotions. Anger, Hurt and Betrayal must be snoozing in the sun. They’re not the angry lionesses they should be. Here I am, betrayed on the eve of my engagement and yet … Instead of three lionesses, I seem to be saddled with three old tabby cats called Irritation, Annoyance and Pique. No doubt I’m in shock.
As I nibble on my chocolate muffin I recall that my project plan stipulated home-made muesli for breakfast. Too late. My phone rings and I check the number. Mum. I can’t resist thinking of her like that – it’s my little rebellion. I’m never allowed to call her ‘Mum’, only Euphoria. Euphoria’s not the name she was born with, but on the commune changing your name is de rigueur. Our neighbours are Serenity and Rock.
While my full name is Summer Dawn Rain Wright, Summer is more than enough for me. Marley got off easily; he was named after Bob Marley, hero of hippies the world over. His middle name is Lennon, for obvious reasons.
Mum almost never rings me on my mobile – she’s worried about radiation – so this must be urgent.
‘Hi, Euphoria,’ I say.
‘Summer, I’m worried about you.’ Mum speaks quickly; she wants to get off the phone as soon as possible. I picture her standing in the mud-walled lounge room, holding the phone away from her ear to lessen radiation. While it is me, if anyone, who is being irradiated, Mum believes it works both ways. ‘I had a dream about you. You were buried in snow. You’re not going anywhere snowy, are you?’
‘Um.’ The Antarctic trip flashes through my mind, but of course I’m not going. And if I was, it would be top secret. ‘No. I had my apartment painted white. That’s probably it.’
‘Oh, get out of here. Not you, Summer, it’s those bats, they’re running rampant. There’s always one flapping around. Yes, that’s probably it. I’d paint it blue if I were you – much more calming. Well, don’t go anywhere snowy, will you? Not until after the summer solstice.’
‘Why?’ I was born on the summer solstice, hence my name.
‘Really, Summer, you should know – after your birthday is a much safer time for you.’
‘Okay, Mum, that’s fine, I’m not going anywhere.’
Mum’s frozen silence reminds me I’ve called her ‘Mum’.
‘Euphoria, I mean.’
‘You should come home for the New Year’s Eve ritual. That was always one of your favourites. Marley preferred Halloween and …’ Euphoria stops. ‘Those bats, I’ve never seen so many of them.’
‘Mm,’ I murmur in a non-committal way. I have no intention of going home to make corn dollies and harvest altars or to beat drums with Mum and her friends. It might have been fun once, but I’ve moved on.
‘I’d better go before we get too much radiation. Don’t talk on your mobile phone again today, will you?’
‘I won’t.’
Mum hangs up.
I finish my muffin thoughtfully. Summer solstice used to take the place of Christmas on the commune. It was a huge celebration with friends and family. I never missed not celebrating Christmas and we got our presents early so there
