Five Things They Never Told Me Read Online Free Page A

ready for our tea. Dad must have actually listened to what I said the day that I burned the chips and since then he’s tried to make sure that he’s home a bit earlier and he always leaves me with jobs to do that will make sure we’re not eating too late.
    ‘You’re in a good mood!’
    I’ve been whistling so loudly that I didn’t even hear Dad coming in. I turn and look at him, a big grin on my face. It feels a bit weird, the way my
mouth wants to smile, not scowl – but I’m really happy today.
    ‘It’s the summer holidays!’ I remind him, pouring myself a glass of juice. ‘Do you want some?’
    ‘That’d be lovely,’ he says, putting his bag on the floor and then opening it and removing his wallet. He slips it into his back pocket and I turn away – I don’t want my good mood being ruined with a reminder of how little he trusts me.
    Dad sits down at the table and I join him.
    ‘I was making plans with Lauren and Nat today,’ I tell him as he downs his juice in one gulp. ‘And I was just wondering if you might be thinking about starting up my pocket money again. I’m going to need some cash for bus fares and drinks and the cinema and stuff – nothing big.’
    Dad puts down his glass and looks at me in surprise.
    ‘You’ve been banned from going into town, Erin,’ he says. ‘You won’t need any money over the holidays.’
    I literally cannot believe my ears.
    ‘You mean you’re grounding me for the entire summer holidays?’ I ask him, my voice sounding
squeaky and indignant. ‘You do know that’s SIX whole weeks, don’t you?’
    ‘I am aware of the length of the summer holidays,’ he says, his voice calm and flat.
    ‘You’re going to keep me prisoner in the house for six weeks, all on my own?’ I can feel my heart racing in my chest. This is too harsh. I know I did a bad thing but surely I’ve paid the price over the last two weeks?
    ‘You stole four hundred and sixty pounds from me, Erin,’ Dad reminds me, as if he can read my mind. ‘And no – I have no intention of “keeping you prisoner” as you so dramatically put it. You’re going to have plenty of fresh air and lots of people to talk to. You might even grow up a bit.’
    I do not like where this is going. I want to put my fingers in my ears and sing ‘
la la la
,’ very loudly.
    ‘I’ve agreed it with my boss and she says it’s fine. She thinks the residents will love having you around for the summer. And I’ve spoken to your mum and she thinks it’s a great idea.’
    ‘I’m coming to work with you? To the old people’s home?’ I whisper, horrified.
    ‘It’s a care home, Erin. I’ll be there to keep an eye on you. I think you could really get a lot out of it. There’re some residents with amazing stories
to tell – all they need is someone with the time to listen.’
    I push my chair back and stand up, knocking the chair over in my hurry to leave the room.
    ‘You have just officially ruined my summer,’ I shout at Dad. ‘I seriously hate you right now!’
    ‘Well, learn to deal with that because this is happening,’ says Dad. ‘There’s no way I can trust you on your own for the summer. Look at the damage you managed to cause in one morning.’
    ‘But it’s NOT FAIR!’ I screech at him. Never in a million years did I think he’d go this far. ‘What about my plans with Lauren and Nat? They’ll stop being my friends if I don’t see them for the whole summer!’
    ‘I’m sure that’s not true,’ Dad says. He has absolutely no idea what he is talking about. Being part of a group of three is fantastic most of the time, but there’s always a bit of a worry that the other two might be best friends with each other and I’m just the hanger-on. If Nat and Lauren spend the whole summer together without me then I’ll be doomed to be the add-on friend FOREVER.
    ‘And anyway,’ he adds, ‘you should have thought about that
before
you stole my money.’
    ‘You can make me go but you can’t make me