8: Cast
After a morning subway ride back to their apartment, George spent an hour with Ewart downloading all the data from the scanner and the cloned hard drives and uploading it to CHERUB's secure server. By the time they were done, George felt exhausted again and was about to drag himself to bed when Ewart stopped him.
"Let's have a look at your arms," Ewart said firmly.
George held them out and winced as Ewart carefully poked at the bruises and swellings that were forming.
"It all looks like nothing worse than bad bruising," Ewart told him, "But I'm concerned there could be a fracture there."
George flexed his hand. "It doesn't feel like it," he said, twisting his arms around to show Ewart.
Ewart looked thoughtful for a minute but then shook his head. "No, we'd better play it safe. You've already missed the morning of school and a trip to the doctor's will provide a good excuse, too."
George's heart dropped. "That'll take all day and I'm knackered," he complained, but Ewart was already dialling the number of the medical clinic.
To George's annoyance, the X-rays showed a tiny fracture where the bones in his hand had been smashed into his wrist by a blow to his right hand, and his only consolation was that a pretty nurse spent half an hour bathing his arms and tending to his bruises, giving him sweets, before they slapped a cast on and sent him home.
"Ooh, can I sign it?" Jemima asked when they got back. "I think I've got a marker pen in my schoolbag."
"It's not the type you can write on," George said sourly, showing her the blue fabric which covered it. "And I've got that stupid plastic sleeve to wear in the shower."
"How long do you need to keep it on?" Jemima grinned. "It's your right arm as well, you won't be able to write or anything."
"The doctors said six weeks or so," Ewart answered. "But we'll get another assessment in a month's time. When you're young your bones heal faster and the longer George wears the cast the more physical therapy we'll need to do when the cast does come off to get his arm back to full strength."
"Ironically it's my left arm which hurts the most," George said, heading to his room. "Anyway, I am going to finally get the sleep I wanted."
Jemima looked at her watch. "I thought we could get something to eat soon," she said. "Will wants me to go over to study tonight."
"No way," Ewart said. "If you've been off school today you stay at home all day, I don't want awkward questions. But getting food is a good idea, then you can get an early night afterwards, George."
George sighed. "Alright, but only because I'm starving," he admitted. "Plus it'll take me ages to get used to sleeping in this cast."
Unfortunately for George, when he woke up the next morning, no matter how nasty his bruises looked, Ewart was adamant that he had to go to school.
"For one thing, it's good for the mission," Ewart pointed out as George resentfully ate his breakfast. "And for another, lounging around the house all day isn't going to speed up your recovery."
Infuriatingly, Jemima was up early as always and dressed in her impeccably neat school uniform. She abandoned George and walked to school herself, and after Ewart had left for the Embassy, George wondered whether he should just bunk off. He could wear his uniform and go out to eat, so the only way he'd be discovered would be if Ewart came home unexpectedly during the day or his teachers ratted him out. The temptation was strong, but Ewart would be foaming at the mouth if he found out somehow, so he reluctantly shoved lunch into his schoolbag and set off, hoping that if he walked fast he wouldn't be more than five minutes late.
To his complete annoyance, when he got to school he realised that Natalie wasn't even there.
"She's been a bit weird since the party," Charlie explained after examining George's cast with interest. "Don't know why but she's not answering her phone."
It hadn't occurred to George to send her a text, with everything else that had been going on in his life, so he slid his phone out of his pocket and sent one off, asking why she wasn't at school.
"Maybe she's sick?" George suggested as they walked towards the classroom.
"Maybe," Charlie shrugged. "Either way, yesterday was pretty boring here by myself."
A lot of the kids at TSIS were fishes out of water for one reason or another and George felt a bit sorry for Charlie as they settled into their desks, Natalie's desk next to George's looking empty without her there. He knew he wouldn't fancy a day there without his friends.
It felt like a long day without Natalie there to keep them entertained, and in the end George found himself watching the clock, dividing the last hour into blocks of five minutes and counting them down over and over until finally the bell rang and released him. He was walking towards the subway station when his phone buzzed in his pocket and he pulled it out, expecting to see something from Jemima, but when he saw a message from Natalie he swiped to view it.
U OK 2 TALK?
He glanced around. There were a ton of kids from TSIS walking past him to the subway and a pair of middle-aged women pushing prams coming the other way, so he stepped into a quiet side street and hit the call button, leaning up against the side of a vending machine.
"What's up?" George asked casually when Natalie answered. "Didn't feel like school today?"
He was a bit alarmed when the first thing he heard from Natalie was a sob.
"Is everything okay?" he asked, concerned.
"Yeah, I'm fine," Natalie said, sniffing. "I just had a big fight with my mum, that's all."
"Right," George said, trying not to pry and waiting for her to offer more information.
"I don't know, she's just so… overprotective," Natalie complained, getting into her stride a bit more. "She went ballistic about the party, obviously, but I expected that. Now, though, she literally won't let me breathe without checking up on me."
"Typical parents," George grinned.
"So I just went crazy this morning and told her I wanted to go back and live with Dad, and she freaked out and rang work and said she was staying at home and wanted to have a 'real talk' with me."
George laughed a little. "Sounds harsh."
"Yeah, exactly. I just told her my head was going to explode if I had to spend another minute with her and walked out, and I've been hanging out in the city all day. I'm bored, though, do you want to meet up somewhere?"
"Sounds good," George said, flipping the call to speakerphone and starting to write a text to Ewart saying he was staying out. "But you know you're going to have to talk to your mum eventually."
"Maybe, but for now I just need to stay away from her," Natalie sighed.
They hung out in a giant arcade, half-heartedly trying out the crane machines before killing an hour on head-to-head Mario Kart. George was too good for Natalie, though, even with one useless arm, so she got bored and they ended up sitting upstairs in a fast food place, squeezed into a corner with commuters taking up a bench on one side while some schoolkids who looked to be about twelve sat behind them, chucking chips at each other and messing around.
Natalie sucked at her milkshake and picked at a cheeseburger while George ate, munching chicken nuggets dipped in ketchup until he was full.
"These kids are starting to get on my tits," Natalie growled when one of them jostled her with his schoolbag, but before she could get any more worked up, the group started packing up and throwing their litter into the bins.
"So what's happening next?" George asked when he was finished, wiping his hands on a paper napkin. "Are you going to go back home?"
Natalie laid her head on her arms on the table, her blonde hair fanning out on top of her. "I don't know. I don't think I can face Mum again today. She'll act worried at first but then she'll be shouting at me and crying before you know it, like I'm the evil one."
George shrugged. "You could probably stay with us. I would need to check with Ewart but it's probably not a problem for one night."
Natalie lifted her head up and looked at George. "Are you serious? That would be amazing."
"Let me check with Ewart," George repeated, cautiously. "He might not say yes."
But when George rang up, Ewart was happy about it.
"I think we've got room for one more," he said, sounding breezy. "Did you eat dinner already?"
"Yeah, we've had something," George confirmed, giving Natalie a thumbs up as she beamed at him.
"Okay, well, just come back when you're ready," Ewart said. "Jemima's out at Will's again and she isn't back yet so I'll just get myself something to eat."
"All good," George said when he'd hung up the call and Natalie was practically bouncing off the walls.
"You're the best," she said, pulling George into a hug.
"Steady on," George said, laughing. "You haven't seen Ewart in the mornings. He can be a bit grumpy."
Jemima and Natalie didn't get on well at school and Jemima looked put out when Ewart broke the news that Natalie was staying the night.
"And she's staying in your room, so wipe that scowl off your face," Ewart said, severely. "I don't want petty playground fights tonight."
"Why in my room and not George's?" Jemima complained. "She's George's mate."
"I'm not having a teenage boy and a girl sleeping in the same room like that," Ewart said firmly.
Jemima smirked. "Natalie's a lesbian so it's definitely more of a risk putting her in my room."
Ewart didn't like her backchat and glared at her. "But based on your preference for boys I think we're safe, aren't we," he said icily. "Answer back one more time and you'll be looking at a punishment back on campus."
Jemima had a face like thunder as she set up a camp bed on the floor of her room for Natalie, so when George stuck his head in and grinned at her she swore at him.
"Touchy," George giggled.
"Get out, George," Jemima ordered. "I'm not above kicking you out."
"Alright, point taken," George said, beating a quick retreat.
Ewart said he had a headache and told them not to stay up late or make too much noise. George had found an English film on TV with Japanese subtitles, and after he made popcorn the two girls were happy to sit on the sofa with him and watch it until they were tired. Some of Natalie's laughter and joking around seemed forced and George knew the fight with her mum was still weighing on her. When the film finished, Jemima announced that she wanted to go to bed and Natalie said she'd turn in too.
"I'll tidy up then, shall I?" George said, pointedly, as the two girls abandoned half-eaten bowls of popcorn. "The guy who only has one working arm?"
"Hurry up, slave," Natalie said to him, cracking an imaginary whip, making Jemima giggle.
"I'm glad you two have a mutual interest in abusing me," George said, sweeping loose popcorn crumbs off the sofa cushion using his cast.
"Goodnight, slave," Jemima said, smirking at him.