Literacy

‘’It’s only two weeks till we go!’’ enthused Laura. ‘’Oh, yeah. Hm! ‘’I just can’t wait to show you the White Water Rapids – it’s just the most amazing fun in the whole resort!’’

‘’I bet. Yeah! It must be.’’

‘’It’s just brilliant that Mum and Dad said you should come. It’ll be so much better than being on my own with Toby and Rajiv. They are so boring and they just want to play snooker the whole day.’’

‘’Er…’’ Rupa hesistated. ‘’It is incredible that your mum and dad invited me. It was so kind of them. It’s even more amazing that my parents said I could go…but…’’

‘’Yeah! I didn’t think they would either. I mean, they didn’t even want you to come bowling when we went for Yasmin’s party, did they?’’

‘’No – well, they are a bit insane about homework, you know.’’

‘’I hope we’re in the Lakeside Cabin – it’s simply the best. You can watch herons flapping over the lake while you have breakfast. They have the most ginormous wings!’’

‘’Hm! Sounds good, Er…’’

‘’Er what? You’re not sounding all that excited anymore. You haven’t gone off the idea?

‘’Er…’’

‘’Roops! What is it? What’s happened?’’ ‘’Well. Nothing exactly happened…’’

‘’Well, then, what? You’re my best friend!’’

‘’I know! And you’re mine! It’s just…’’

‘’What?’’

Rupa paused. She drew a deep breath.

‘’Imran’s coming from America. He gets in the day we’re supposed to be going away. He leaves the day we get back. If I come away with you, I will miss him. Completely!

Laura went very pale.

‘’Oh no. And I will miss him too!’’

The girls stood still, in silence, both of them heartbroken, thinking of Rupa’s film-star cousin and how, over all the years of their friendship, they had dreamed of meeting him.

Passage 2 No time to Lose

Cassie is worried about her grandfather.

The inhaler was lying there on the table. Cassie froze.

‘’Oh no!’’ she breathed. ‘’Not again!’’

She looked at the little green clock on the cooker. 12:17. The train was due to leave at 12:34 and he’d been gone around four minutes. Could she – if she ran like a racehorse – get to the station before he got on the train? She grabbed her jacket, her keys and her purse. The laces of her trainers were undone and her fingers struggled to tie them, too fast to be accurate. She tore open the front door and slammed it behind her, already half way down the path as it banged shut.

Her brain raced. Which was the quickest way? Was it best to guess which route he’s taken and try to head him off? Was it better to just get to the station the fastest possible way and hope to be there when he arrived? But there were two entrances to the station. He might take either. What should she do?

She pictured him, as she pelted through the shopping centre, sitting on the train, the train slipping away from the platform and then, suddenly, his breath going, his throat constricting, his face turning beige as the air wouldn.t come, choking, collapsing … He’d fumble for the inhaler – the other passengers wouldn’t understand, they’d think he was drunk, they’d ignore him – ad the inhaler wouldn’t be in his pocket.

A woman was setting out a table in front of her café. Two men came out, laughing. There was no space between them and the table. Cassie couldn’t avoid them. She hurtled into them, sending one staggering into the wall.

‘’Sorry!’’ she tried to call out as she shot between them, but she had no breath left to make a sound. The shopping centre clock clanged 12:30 and she still hadn’t seen her grandfather.