Just Tricking! (10 page)

But I don't mind. No matter how heavy my pack is, Roseanne's must be even heavier.

Not that it seems to be giving her much trouble. She picks it up with one hand, slips her arms through the shoulder straps and strides to the front of the group. She's off down the trail and around the bend before anybody else has even started walking. You'd think Danny had filled her pack with helium balloons.

Even though my legs are feeling like jelly after the morning's climb, I walk quickly to catch up with Roseanne. I want to enjoy the sight of her carrying our rocks. If nothing else, it'll help take my mind off the weight of my own load. No matter how much pain I'm in, she'll be feeling worse.

She's walking so fast that after about fifteen minutes we've left the rest of the group way behind. The track becomes steeper and slightly overgrown. Roseanne pushes her way past a small tree branch that's hanging across the track and holds it back for me.

Just as I'm about to grab it, she lets go and the branch flicks back hard against my face. The pain makes my eyes water.

‘Watch it,' I say. ‘Are you trying to blind me?'

‘Sorry about that, mate,' says Roseanne. ‘But you should always try to keep at least two metres behind the person in front so that they can't flick branches in your face.'

‘I
was
staying behind, but you deliberately held it back for me.'

‘That's cos I'm such a nice person,' she says. ‘I thought you'd grab it. Honest!'

‘Yeah, right, Roseanne.'

She must think I came down in the last shower. She's staring at me with that stupid grin on her face. And, what's worse, she doesn't look the slightest bit tired. There's not a single drop of sweat on her.

‘How are you feeling?' I ask.

‘Great!' she says. ‘How about you?'

‘Fine!' I say. ‘Never felt better. You've got such a big pack, though. It looks like it must be heavy.'

‘Yeah, it's heavy,' she says. ‘But I can handle it. Hey, what's that on your jumper?'

She points to my chest.

I freeze. Please, God, don't let it be a spider. Anything but a spider. I look down and Roseanne flicks her finger up my chin, my nose and off the top of my head.

‘Gotcha!' she cackles, as I jerk backwards – which is not a good move, considering how heavy my pack is. The next thing I know I'm falling off the track and crashing through the scrub.

I'm in a prickle bush. I can't get up. I'm on my back, just like an upside-down tortoise.

‘Enjoy your trip?' calls Roseanne.

‘Shut ya face,' I say.

‘Are you all right?'

‘I don't know,' I say, ‘I can't get up.'

‘Hang on,' she says. She shrugs off her pack and slides down the bank commando-style. ‘Give me your hand.'

The thought of having to hold Roseanne's hand is only marginally more appealing than having to hold a live funnel-web spider, but I'm not exactly in a position to refuse.

Her grip is strong and she pulls me up easily.

But I can't put any weight on my left foot.

I have to sit straight back down.

‘Where does it hurt?' says Roseanne.

‘My ankle. I think it's broken.'

‘Take your boot off and let's have a look,' she says.

I undo my boot-laces and slip my sock off.

‘Yeah, it's pretty swollen,' she says. ‘But it's not broken. You're going to need a bandage, though. I've got one in my pack.'

Roseanne climbs back up the bank, grabs her first-aid kit and is back in a flash.

She puts a cream-coloured bandage on the top of my foot and wraps it around twice. Then she winds it around my ankle and back under and over my foot again, in a figure-eight motion.

‘Where did you learn to do that?' I ask.

‘I'm doing my queen scout training,' she informs me matter-of-factly.

‘I didn't know that,' I say.

‘You didn't ask.'

At last the others catch up.

‘What's going on?' asks Derek, craning his neck to see what we're doing. ‘You two playing footsies?'

‘He's hurt his ankle,' says Roseanne. ‘Pretty bad too.'

‘Can he walk?' asks Derek.

‘Not properly,' she says. ‘But he can lean on me. He won't be able to carry his pack, though. We'll have to unpack it and share the load around.'

Lean on her? Is she crazy? I can't believe what I'm hearing.

‘It's okay,' I say. ‘I'll be right.'

But Roseanne's not listening.

She's lugged my pack up to the trail and is distributing its contents amongst the other walkers.

‘Hey,' she says. ‘What are you carrying these for?'

She's holding up three rocks, each the size of a small coconut.

I don't believe it.

I can't believe it.

I won't believe it.

Could Danny be that stupid?

This calls for some quick thinking. I don't want to end up looking like an idiot in front of the whole group.

‘I can explain,' I say, trying to act like it's the most normal thing in the world to carry rocks in your pack. ‘See, I'm a rock collector and . . .'

But Roseanne is shaking her head.

‘Why put the rocks in your pack?' she says. ‘Why not carry them in your head with the rest of the collection?'

Everybody starts laughing. Everybody, that is, except me. And Danny. This is all his fault. I should never have trusted him.

If only he had never had the stupid idea of putting rocks in her pack in the first place!

After Roseanne finishes distributing the contents of my pack, she slides back down the bank.

‘Put your arm around my neck,' she says. ‘I'll help you up.'

My
arm?
Her
neck? She's got to be kidding.

‘No, it's okay thanks,' I say. ‘I think I can walk now.'

‘Suit yourself,' she says.

I grab a small tree and start to pull myself up the bank. But the pain in my ankle is too much. I miss my footing and fall backwards.

Roseanne lifts me up, places my arm over her shoulder and helps me up the bank.

She might be a pain in the bum, but I've got to hand it to her: she knows how to handle an emergency.

Danny is standing at the side of the trail, looking sheepish.

‘Maggot-brained moron!' I hiss at him.

He just shrugs. He knows it's the truth.

As I limp alongside Roseanne, we talk. She tells me that this is the sixth school she's been to.

‘You got kicked out of five schools?' I ask.

‘I wasn't kicked out,' she says. ‘We keep moving. Dad's a structural engineer. He has to keep moving to where the work is. We never stay in the one spot for more than a year or two.'