Truly Marooned

1. Arguing, Dozing & Rowing

  Hey thanks for trying out this book. Normally I would just go straight into the story but you must be warned. So the reader can get the right feel of this book, I decided I would make this present tense, which I have never done before. If I make any mistakes in the tenses or anything, please point them out, thank you!

  MirlyMe :)

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  Ella storms out of the house, her eyes stinging from trying to hold back the tears. She never cries, even when she is on her own, Ella feels embarrassed whenever she lets the tears fall from her face. Should she turn back to her home at the end of the street and set things right? One thing Ella learned in life was to never give into an argument as tempting as it may be, so she agrees not to.

  As Ella walks down the street with her red back pack with her, she tries to work out what she and her adopted mother, Pamela, were arguing about. It was not their first argument and Ella is almost certain it won’t be their last.

  It’s at breakfast, when Ella just sits at the table, ready to gobble up whatever was set before her. Her expectations are met when Pamela places a mouth-watering scrambled egg on toast just in front of her nose. Like a dog, Ella licks her lips in delight and at the savoury smell of the warm bread and egg.

  “You are going to need your strength today, so be sure to eat it all up,” Pamela recommends. Ella does as she is told because she knows she will need her strength. For she is going on a school trip today, it is a trip to Portugal where she would be gone for a week with her classmates.

  It is something Ella had been looking forward to for months, a week of being in the sun as well as doing some rowing, kayaking, rock climbing and other sports. The best part of it is probably the fact her best friend Celia is going on the trip too. All the months of planning had lead up to this.

  “Oh goodness, I almost forgot!” Pamela digs through her purse and pulls out a ten pound note before slipping it underneath Ella’s plate she was eating from.

  Almost instantly, Ella pulls out the note and examines it. In the silence, Ella turns towards Pamela, waving the paper in her right hand. “Is this it?” she asks ungratefully.

  Disgusted at Ella’s ungratefulness, Pamela tries to be reasonable with her. “That should be enough to buy some snacks in during the week in Portugal, all you need to do is convert it into Euros and then-“

  “The school recommended twenty pounds at least,” Ella interrupts, still waving the money around.

  “I’m sorry, but unlike other children, we don’t have that kind of money. It’s been hard enough paying for this trip in the first place,” Pamela explains. Ella sighs in frustration.

  “When are you going to get a real job?” she asks.

  This little question stabs Pamela badly; she is an artist, though not the most successful. With her oil pastels, she skilfully brings some paper to life. Nature was what she liked to work with mostly. As enjoyable as Pamela’s job was, it does not bring in too much money; she knows that and so does Ella. Her lack of dosh coming in was getting so bad that her adopted daughter had considered it as not a real job.

  “I’m not much happier with money being problem than you are, but we are managing. We may not have luxuries but we have what we need,” Pamela smiles gently in attempt to be optimistic, but not so much it would irritate Ella.

  “Before I was in the children’s home, I got football training every Friday after school,” Ella announces.

  Her dream is to be part of Team GB’s girls’ football team for the Olympics. Before they died, her parents were very supportive of this and trained her every week so she could work hard and someday become a professional.