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pulled back off his face. ‘Want a lift?’
    A group of girls tittered as Tully brushed past them, her backpack swung over one shoulder.
    ‘Sure,’ she said as she climbed into the passenger seat. ‘Let’s get out of here.’
    Nathan managed to burn some rubber as he took off and Tully waved to the girls through the window.
    ‘Have a good look,’ she yelled, then bounced back against the seat.
    ‘Friends?’
    ‘Huh!’
    ‘Isn’t that Ravel’s group?
    ‘Is that her name? We chatted today. Where are we going?’
    ‘Wherever you want,’ said Nathan. He turned on the radio and skipped through the stations.
    ‘The park.’
    ‘Sure. I didn’t even know you were at school today. Did you go to any classes?’ said Nathan.
    ‘Physics and Food Tech,’ said Tully. ‘I love Food Tech. It’s the only class where you can eat your schoolwork.’
    ‘So what did you do the rest of the time?’
    ‘Hung out. No one asks you why you’re in the gym change rooms when you’re wearing a PE uniform. Did you see the MySpace invite for the start of Schoolies?’ asked Tully.
    ‘Ravel’s invite?’ Nathan asked.
    Tully nodded.
    He shrugged. ‘Sure.’
    ‘Why didn’t you mention it? Laney still has me on internet rations at home just ’cause I used up all her download time last month. I totally missed it. Luckily, Ravel mentioned it in the change rooms.’
    ‘That’s nice.’
    ‘Made a point of mentioning that I wasn’t invited.’
    Nathan laughed. ‘You wouldn’t go anyway,’ he said. ‘You don’t even like her.’
    ‘That’s not the point,’ said Tully. ‘It’s one thing to be invited and not go. It’s another to be uninvited.’
    ‘How did you even get to be a friend on Ravel’s MySpace?’
    ‘Last time I looked she was aiming for the most MySpace friends in the world. I can’t believe she knows half the people she has listed. Anyway, I just go online sometimes to see what’s going on. Knowledge is power. Someone said that. I think they’re right.’
    ‘Knowledge is power, hey? What sort of knowledge do you get hanging out in the change rooms?’
    ‘It’s amazing what people leave in their gym bag.’
    ‘You’ve been stealing stuff?’
    Tully looked out the window. ‘Not stealing. Just looking.’
    Nathan snorted. ‘Just looking?’
    Tully nodded.
    ‘Be careful, Tul.’
    ‘I’ll never get why people like to label their gear. Just to make it really easy for people like me, I guess.’
    ‘What do you mean?’
    ‘Ravel really pissed me off. So I waited until she left the change rooms then I found her bag, which was really messy by the way. Camel keeps her MP3 Player in her bag. She has crap taste in music.’
    Tully smiled at the thought of the note she’d found tucked away in the bottom of Ravel’s sports bag side pocket. Now it was tucked away in her pocket.
    ‘Some girls are pigs, Nate.’
    Tully thought Nate would be surprised if she gave him a run down of how messy those girls could be. They were so neat and perfect on the outside.
    ‘Why do you do it?’
    ‘I’m not a thief. I don’t steal anything, unless you count the hairclips. You can never have too many hairclips.’
    ‘Never,’ Nathan agreed. ‘So why? Aren’t you scared you’ll get caught?’
    ‘It gives me a rush. You know, the fact that any minute someone can walk in and find me with my hand in someone else’s bag. And sometimes I do get caught. I’ve always got an excuse. They always believe me. I guess I’m good at lying.’
    ‘Do you lie to me?’ Nathan looked straight ahead, then left and right before he turned into a side street.
    ‘Not you, Nate,’ whispered Tully. She pushed her fringe away from her eyes.
    ‘Just as well.’
    They pulled up into a car space adjacent to the park. It was empty, save for an old model sedan near the toilet block.
    ‘It’s their own fault,’ she said suddenly. ‘I do it because they think they can shut me out. They treat me like shit. I don’t really care. But who