Body of Water

Body of Water by Stuart Wakefield Read Free Book Online Page A

Book: Body of Water by Stuart Wakefield Read Free Book Online
Authors: Stuart Wakefield
had a boyfriend I lost him. And now, the family that I'd finally secured had been destroyed by the most evil disease imaginable. I was nine years old again. Lost and alone.
    The doorbell rang. In no mood for visitors or cold callers I ignored it. I heard the letterbox open and something dropped lightly onto the doormat. I waited a moment and then went to see what it was.
    A little blue box lay in the hallway. I picked it up and turned it over in my hands. There was no address, just my name; written beautifully in complex calligraphy. I opened the lid and gently removed the tissue paper.
    Inside were two papier-mache figurines. One an adult mermaid, the other a smaller merman. They interlocked in a hug, the mermaid kissing the merman's forehead.
    I wrenched the front door open and mess of silk clothes, muslin bags, and tousled hair, launched towards me, nearly knocking me over.
    "Lev! Oh Lev, it's so good to see you!" Beth cried into my neck as she held me tight. "I've missed you so much."
    I hugged her for a long time, sobbing into her hair, then held her by the shoulders and straightened my arms to look at her; tanned, hair lightened by the sun, frame diminished by loss of puppy fat.
    Looking down at her bags, I laughed. "What's all this stuff? Has Gerald kicked you out?"
    "No, silly. I've just got back from school for the holidays and I had to see you before Mummy and Daddy." She dropped her bags in the hallway and ripped the silk scarf from her neck, before going into the lounge and collapsing onto the sofa.
    "Won't they miss you?"
    "If they do, they'll call. Oh, that reminds me," she switched her phone off. "Where's your dad?"
    "Work. It takes his mind off things."
    Beth's eyes roamed over me. She was still only sixteen but she looked more like a woman than other girls her age. "And what's taking your mind off things? You look exhausted. Not sleeping?"
    "Not really."
    She pulled me down onto the sofa with her and hugged me again. "You're skin and bone."
    "Oh Beth, it's been so terrible without her. Dad is never here, and when he is he's so polite to me I could scream. It's like he doesn't even know me."
    "Everyone grieves differently, sweetie."
    "No, this is different. It's like we're both floating away from each other and I can't do anything about it. I want to talk to him about how I'm feeling but he avoids any conversation about Mum. It's like he's keeping something back from me but I can't think what."
    "Just give him time, Lev. I'm sure he'll come back to you. Right now, you need to concentrate on yourself."
    "How do you mean?"
    Beth grimaced. "Let's start with a wash, shall we?" She grabbed my chin and scowled. "You could do with a shave, too. Then you're going to need a good, healthy meal and a nice, long walk."
    "I don't go out much."
    "Just as well, smelling like that," she laughed. "And we need to think about getting some meat back on your bones. You had such a great body."
    I shrugged and ran a hand through my beard.
    "What's the point?"
    "The point is, sweetie, that you're never going to get a shag looking like a caveman." She stood and held out her hands to help me up.
    "But Beth," I started to complain.
    "Not another word. Bathroom!"
    She stood in the doorway while I shaved. "You know, with a bit of work you'd make a great model."
    I rolled my eyes. The man looking back at me in the mirror was in no state, or mood, to be any sort of model.
    She ignored me. "I think that's why people are attracted to you - you seem completely unaware of how beautiful you are. One of the girls at school got scouted last month and she's convinced that she's a proper dog but the big fashion houses are going crazy for her."
    She stepped out of the bathroom reluctantly as I slipped off my underwear and stepped into the shower. "I don't know why you're making me do this. My entire family has seen your willy."
    It was the first time she'd mentioned Shaun, although indirectly. Even with the hot water pounding my body I felt a chill

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