Brave New Girl Read Online Free PDF Page A

says.
    That’s why it was such a shock. Denny had never thrown that at me. Not in all his ten years. Ever.

    I took two cups of tea upstairs. Mum’s door was propped open and she was sitting up in bed. I could see she was halfway through her brick of a book. I put the tea down on her bedside table.
    â€œThanks, love.” She looked at me, and patted the bed next to her. So I put Sasha’s tea down and slid into Mum’s bed.
    She put the book down, spread flat so as not to lose her place. “Are things OK?”
    â€œYeah,” I said. “‘Course.” I put my head down on her shoulder, shut my eyes and breathed her in.
    When Mum first started work driving the buses, I had this stupid idea that she would come home smelling of buses and not of Mum. You know that smell? That sort of sun-through-scratched-windows-and-old-chips-and-fizzy-drink kind of smell. She never did, obviously.
    â€œAre you still checking I don’t smell of bus?” she said.
    I smiled.
    â€œEverything’s all right, isn’t it?” Mum said. She smoothed the hair away from my forehead with her hand. “Oh, I wouldn’t be your age again for any money,” she said. “Thirteen!” There was a sort of sad laugh in her voice, like she was remembering.
    I shut my eyes. It was lovely lying there, listening to her voice.
    â€œYou know you’re really lucky, you are,” Mum went on. “A gang of good friends, I mean, Christina’salmost like another sister to you...”
    I moved away and sat up. I didn’t want to think about it and most of all I didn’t want Mum worrying about something that had happened ages ago and was most definitely old news....
    â€œIt’s all cool, Mum.” I smiled and picked up Sasha’s tea. “S’brilliant about Denny, isn’t it?”
    â€œSeren?” she said, and her voice sounded a little bit too sad for my liking.
    â€œMum, really. It’s all good. Better than good. I’m making a film with Keith…”
    â€œKeith? That’s great!”
    â€œI’m fine,” I said, and smiled wide to prove it. Then I scurried out and was across the landing and back in our room before she could say anything else.
    â€œSasha. Sash!” I nudged my sister awake. “You promised.”
    â€œPromised what?” she mumbled.
    â€œTo get up, remember? I said it was a surprise. And look, remember that top you were on about? Well, clever Seren found it for you.”
    Sasha hugged me.

    We got to the shop just in time. As we rounded thecorner I got a text from Keith. The
Paradise
has mirror glass windows so you can’t see in.
    L HERE, read the text. BUT OTHRS WTH HIM.
    I put my arm through Sasha’s.
    â€œIs this the surprise?” she said, taking her sunglasses off.
    â€œNo, I just need something…”
    Sasha’s phone rang. I knew it was Fay because Sasha’s got a special ringtone for her, that number one by the American girl singer, the one with the voice that does all those wobbly bits. Loud. Very loud. Sasha unhooked herself from me and answered.
    â€œGotta get this, Ser.” Sasha had saved up for one of those new phones with touch screens and everything, and she loves it almost as much as she loves Luke Beckford.
    Sasha was soon having an even louder conversation with Fay, while staring at herself in the mirror glass of the supermarket. I had to go in, and she had to come with me. I walked to the shop entrance. I could see Keith at the till, pointing round the corner to the cereal aisle. I really didn’t want Sasha doing the girly phone thing in front of all those boys. Not cool.
    I snuck in and saw Jamie Kendrick, who is six-foot-something and the school goalie, towering overthe top of the aisle. He hadn’t seen me. I could hear them chatting and laughing.
    My mind was racing. It was going to be hard to get Luke to notice Sasha when he was with his mates. I