Sleepover Club Vampires. Fiona Cummings

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СКАЧАТЬ mum does look a lot brighter.” Fliss gave Lyndz’s arm a little squeeze.

      “Yeah, she’ll be fine now!” Frankie reassured her.

      Lyndz gave us a little grin and ran to the van. As we waved her off, Rosie whispered:

      “I hope she will be OK. I hate seeing her so down.”

      I thought about Lyndz all the way home. And spookily, the first thing Mum said to me as I got through the door was:

      “Have you got a minute, Laura? I want a word about Lyndz.”

      “Crikey Mum, how long have you been able to read minds?” I asked her. Although actually that was a pretty silly question – Mum always seems to know when I’ve done something wrong.

      Mum ignored me. “Lyndz’s mum came to see me today. I think things are getting a bit on top of her at the moment.”

      I nodded. “I know.”

      “Well,” Mum continued, “I’ve had a word with your father and he agrees with me. What Patsy needs is a complete rest – away from the house, away from the chores, away from Cuddington.”

      Now if Dad suggested that, I knew it must be right. Dad’s a doctor and he always knows what he’s talking about. I’m going to be a doctor just like him when I’m older – after I’ve finished playing for Leicester City of course!

      “Yeah, that sounds like a sensible diagnosis!” I agreed, stroking my chin in a serious doctor-type gesture.

      “Well that’s good,” laughed Mum, “because I was thinking about asking Lyndz’s family to come up to Scotland with us for the week. Uncle Bob has plenty of rooms, and according to your dad he just loves having a house full of people. What do you think? I wanted to run it by you first before I phoned Patsy.”

      “That’s a great idea!” I ran over to Mum and gave her one of my Kenny Specials (that’s when I hug someone so tightly they go red in the face and start gasping for air!).

      “Phew! I’m glad you’re so pleased,” Mum spluttered, releasing herself from my grip. “I think it will do them all the world of good. I’ll go and phone Patsy now.”

      As she was dialling the number, she added, “And it means that you’ll have a friend there too, seeing as Molly’s taking Carli.”

      “She’s WHAT?” I screamed. “Since when?”

      “Since last night when she asked me. Is there a problem? Oh, hello there, Patsy…”

      A problem, she says! Not much! Molly the horrible Monster is bad enough on her own, but when she’s with her gruesome best mate Carli it’s Nightmare City!

      Still, at least if I had Lyndz with me it would be two against two. And I was sure that with all our devious Sleepover tricks we could get the better of them!

      Actually, just thinking that made me a bit sad. I wished ALL the Sleepover gang could come up to Scotland with us. I mean, I really really like Lyndz and everything, but it seemed a bit mean going away with just one of my friends. I felt guilty somehow, as though I’d sort of betrayed the others.

      “Pull yourself together, McKenzie!” I told myself sternly. “The others won’t see it that way. They’ll just be glad that Lyndz is going to have a good holiday!”

      Boy was I wrong about that!

      The next morning when I got to school, Lyndz was as frisky as a new puppy. She was laughing and joking and larking about.

      “What’s got into you?” Frankie was teasing her as I walked up to them. “Has someone put happy sugar in your Ready Brek or something?”

      “Kenny! Kenny! I’m so glad you’ve arrived!” Lyndz rushed up to me and almost swung me off my feet. “I didn’t want to say anything until you were here too.”

      The others looked at me questioningly.

      “Isn’t it great?” Lyndz gushed. “Kenny’s mum rang last night to see if we’d all like to go up to Scotland with them at half-term. Isn’t that brill?”

      “Fantastic!”

      “Excellent!”

      The others all started leaping about too. They were taking the news better than I’d expected.

      “Where will we stay?” Rosie wondered.

      “What kind of clothes will I have to bring?” Fliss demanded.

      Whoa, girls!

      “Erm, no, I think you’ve got it wrong,” I mumbled. “Mum asked Lyndz and her family.”

      “Mrs McKenzie told Mum we’d be doing her a favour because she could do with some sensible adult company,” Lyndz explained quietly, suddenly aware that she’d just rammed her great size nines into her gob. “But Stuart and Tom aren’t coming,” she carried on, as if that made the slightest bit of difference. “Mum’s sister Lorraine is going to stay at our place to keep an eye on them.”

      “Kenny?” Frankie stared at me. “Why didn’t you tell us about this?”

      “I-I-I didn’t know until yesterday,” I stammered. “I didn’t really…”

      My voice trailed off as I suddenly saw Lyndz looking very troubled.

      “I’m really glad you’re coming, Lyndz,” I told her truthfully. “We’ll have a great time. IT’LL DO YOU GOOD!” I added meaningfully, looking at the others.

      The whistle went for the start of school, and I’ve never been as glad to hear it in my life! I felt bad about the others, but I couldn’t help thinking that they were being a bit mean to poor old Lyndz.

      During the morning when we had to split up into groups for project work, Fliss, Rosie and Frankie quickly huddled together, leaving Lyndz and me by ourselves. Even Mrs Weaver our teacher raised her eyes at that. And at breaktime, although they hung round with us they kept making catty remarks about how they were going to have the “best sleepover ever” during half-term.

      “What a pity you two won’t be there to join in!” Fliss told me and Lyndz sarcastically. “But you obviously prefer each other’s company nowadays.”

      By lunchtime Lyndz was a dithering wreck. We were all sitting on a bench when she announced:

      “Look, I’m going to tell Mum that we can’t come away with you, Kenny. It’s my fault that we’ve all fallen out and I can’t bear it!”

      Her chin started to tremble and her eyes filled with tears.

      “Right then, are you satisfied now?” I turned on the others angrily. “Lyndz needs a holiday more than anyone. It just so happens that it’s going to be with me. If there was a way to invite you all up to Scotland I would, believe me. But Great Uncle Bob’s about ninety or something. I don’t think it would be very good for his health if we all descended on him, do you?”

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