Gypsy Wedding Read Online Free PDF Page A

why I should suffer.’
    ‘You haven’t been asked yet and you’re only just fifteen,’ replied her mother, reasonably.
    ‘But I can be married at sixteen. And if Vicky doesn’t get going I’ll be seventeen before I’m wed.’
    ‘That’s not old,’ said Vicky.
    ‘Do you know something?’ Shania squared her shoulders at her older sister. ‘I don’t think you want to get married at all. If you did you’d just be getting on with it. You’re just playing at getting married.’
    ‘How dare you say that? Of course I want to wed Liam. Who wouldn’t?’
    ‘You, apparently. You seem to be looking for problems.’
    ‘I so am not.’
    ‘You so are – I mean, college ? What the heck is that all about?’
    ‘It’s about …’ Vicky just couldn’t voice her dream. It was her innermost ambition, her innermost hope. The idea of being a professional dressmaker one day was just too big a deal to talk about. And it certainly wasn’t something to go into with her father present.
    ‘It’s about just getting my wedding perfect,’ she lied. She wasn’t going to let on about her true motivation. ‘I know the dressmaker will do her best but only I know really what I want for my bridesmaids and if it takes a bit longer to create …’
    Shania shook her head. ‘It sounds like an excuse to me. You’re just finding reasons to not set a date.’
    ‘Vicky,’ roared Johnnie, ‘will get married in under three hundred and sixty-five days from now, and that’s an end to it.’
    Silence fell. Vicky was contemplating the fact that she’d never take the A level she’d set her heart on and Shania was thinking that she had a whole year to wait at the very least, which, as far as she was concerned, was just totally unfair.

2
     
    The next morning Vicky was awake at dawn, her stomach churning with nerves at the realisation that this was results day. She crept out of the bed she shared with her sister, praying that Shania wasn’t going to wake up. She had enough to worry about today without a re-run of the row they’d had the night before. They had both got ready for bed still spitting tacks, hissing harsh words at each other in low voices so as not to antagonise their father further – Shania making it plain that she thought her sister’s attitude was unbelievably selfish and Vicky shooting back that Shania was being completely unreasonable. She’d never gone to sleep without making up with her sister before and this morning she felt bad about it. She’d sort it out later. Vicky hardly ever fell out with her sister and she didn’t like the atmosphere between them, but she wasn’t going to back down on the subject of college. Liam supported her and now that her father had changed his mind she didn’t care that it didn’t suit Shania. Tough – she’d have to get over it. That was assuming that she got the grades, because if she didn’t …
    No, she wasn’t going to think like that. Mrs Truman was sure she would pass her textiles GCSE with flying colours. A couple of the other subjects were a bit iffy but she didn’t care two hoots about science or history. Just as long as she got her English, maths and textiles then she could go on to college. Anything else would be a bonus.
    She glanced down to check her sister was still sleeping, grabbed her dressing gown, towel and sponge bag and then slipped out of the tiny room they shared in the family trailer, shutting the door behind her silently. Equally quietly she let herself out and breathed in the fresh, chill morning air. It was going to be another glorious day. Above her the sky was milky blue and cloudless, there wasn’t a breath of wind and the grass under her bare feet glistened with dew. The birds in the trees around the park were singing almost loud enough to drown out the traffic noise and at the edge of the park, where the grass grew long and lush, rabbits were foraging. Fingers of mist were rising off the field and the low sun cast long shadows. It all