Roida felt her shoulders hunch up. Sometimes Irene seemed to her to be ten feet tall with her strong character, but in reality, she was smaller and bulkier than Roida. “Just grow up Irene,” Roida muttered, shooting the sneering girl what she hoped was the fierce, “don’t mess with me” look she had practised with her brother Peter at home. “I’m really not in the mood.” “Ladies, ladies, hush.” Miss Kaure swished back into the room. She was in high spirits today. Apparently someone was coming from the capital to spend some time teaching in a rural school, and although Roida was curious, she couldn’t help her thoughts creeping back to David. Last night they had kissed for the longest time in the shed at the back of the farm and she had swooned back into the house, drooped solemnly past her drinking father, and laid on her bed for hours thinking about it. David was 16 and wanted to travel. His father worked as a guide for the tourists who came on safari or to see how African people live and David always made her laugh with the stories his dad told him about the characters he spent weeks at a time with—people from all over the world and all walks of life. Some sounded quite rude, she thought, but most seemed okay and genuinely interested in learning about different cultures. They all would sigh, and some would cry, when they saw their first real-life elephant, David said, and she would giggle at his impression of an “awe-struck tourist”. But she understood and wondered what expression she might adopt if she ever found herself in London, for example. When David spoke next to her in the rushes, Roida felt safe and interested. She had known him for years, but during the last few months, he had magically transformed into a broader, cooler, and better-looking version of the boy who’d always been her brother’s best friend. She thought about the “Good morning. miss you.” text that had arrived as she’d been eating breakfast that morning, and her heart lurched up. She wanted to tell everyone but no one at the same time. She looked around the class. Irene and the others were listening intently to the details of the afternoon activities, so she tuned back in. Dear Miss Kaure was almost beside herself as she explained there was going to be a workshop that afternoon and Roida couldn't help smiling at her excitement. “So I want you all to come straight back in promptly after lunch,” Miss Kaure was saying. “George will be here to facilitate, and I want you to give him your undivided attention.” She opened the door and stuck her head out to the left. “George, please come in now. I’ll introduce you.” A tall, athletic man came into the room and smiled at them shyly. “Hi everyone. I’m, er, well, I’m George…I’ll see you after lunch then,” he said. Irene snorted but Roida could only stare: George was probably the most gorgeous man she had ever seen. -- THE END