Yellow Dinghy Cafe (eBook)

Sophie Chenoweth (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2023 | 1. Auflage
276 Seiten
Bookbaby (Verlag)
978-1-6678-9092-0 (ISBN)

Infos

When Jasmine, Cybelle and Michaela finish school, they go their separate ways but the distance between them is no match for the secrets, fears and hopes that bind them together. Cybelle has a stalker, an anxiety disorder and warring parents. Jasmine studies at a regional university and her social life explodes, but the guy she falls for is not what he seems. Michaela works at The Yellow Dinghy Café and gets to know the regulars. However, one of them makes her uneasy. At the end of the year, Jasmine and Cybelle return to Sydney and organise a fund-raiser for the New South Wales drought, which Jasmine has experienced first-hand. The night promises to be a success but disturbing revelations and petty jealousies loom large. Michaela always thought Cybelle had the perfect life and Jasmine, who is on scholarship, resents watching her grades. Can they work through their problems and repair their friendship before it's too late? And who is lurking in the shadows, determined to sabotage it all?

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When Jasmine, Cybelle and Michaela finish school, they go their separate ways but the distance between them is no match for the secrets, fears and hopes that bind them together. Cybelle has a stalker, an anxiety disorder and warring parents. Jasmine studies at a regional university and her social life explodes, but the guy she falls for is not what he seems. Michaela works at The Yellow Dinghy Cafe and gets to know the regulars. However, one of them makes her uneasy. At the end of the year, Jasmine and Cybelle return to Sydney and organise a fund-raiser for the New South Wales drought, which Jasmine has experienced first-hand. The night promises to be a success but disturbing revelations and petty jealousies loom large. Michaela always thought Cybelle had the perfect life and Jasmine, who is on scholarship, resents watching her grades. Can they work through their problems and repair their friendship before it's too late? And who is lurking in the shadows, determined to sabotage it all?

Textauszug

2

Jasmine

As the train snaked its way through wooded countryside, Jasmine turned from the window and stared at the magazine sitting on her lap. She’d been up to the dining car twice, read about the latest celebrity divorces and hook-ups, and trawled through Reddit more times than she could remember. A little kid was running up and down the aisle, and the lady behind her had been discussing the price of fruit and vegetables for the past hour. Jasmine’s family had always lived frugally, but she was now realising there was a kind of ‘wealth’ money couldn’t buy. How lucky she was to have parents who encouraged her to read things, have an opinion, and rail against the status quo, even if it meant putting herself in embarrassing or awkward situations.

As she sipped her stone-cold tea, Jasmine glanced at the elderly man next to her who was reading the newspaper. He rolled his eyes as the woman behind them became more animated and she stifled a giggle. Perhaps she wasn’t the only one on the verge of losing her sanity. Before long, a smartly dressed woman began taking orders for lunch, and Jasmine wondered whether she had room for it in her stomach since she’d been snacking non-stop out of sheer boredom. She took a cardboard ticket anyway, and felt a strange flickering sensation in her abdomen. Had she made the right decision—to miss Orientation week so she could spend some more quality time with her dad, who’d just been diagnosed with Huntington’s Disease?

When the train eventually pulled into Glen Creek station, Jasmine sighed with relief. Burly men retrieved the luggage from another carriage, and she scrambled to locate her suitcase amongst the jumbled pile. Some teenage boys were fighting over a packet of M&Ms, and all of a sudden, it exploded, spraying hailstones of chocolate all over the bitumen. Jasmine staggered back and found herself hard up against the tiles of the ticket office. When she’d caught her breath, she rolled her bag along the crowded platform, and noticed a mini-bus with Glen Creek University’s logo on it. As the driver heaved her bag into the van’s boot, sweat beaded on her upper lip and she could taste its saltiness on the tip of her tongue.

Once they arrived at the administration building, which was mercifully air-conditioned, Jasmine gave her identification to the woman behind the desk, who smiled kindly as she handed her some keys. There were three colleges, and she’d been allocated to the one high on the hill, just above the university. The residential assistant (RA) came through the doorway and shook her hand, his broad accent and cheeky grin making her feel at ease.

‘I’m Dave, and you must be . . .’ he said.

‘Jasmine’, she replied, her voice high-pitched and scratchy.

‘I’ll take you to the college and introduce you to your new inmates.’

‘Huh?’

‘Wait ’till you see your room and you’ll see what I mean’, Dave said, giving her a wink.

As the two huffed and puffed up the steep incline, Jasmine’s mouth felt dry. What on earth did he mean about the rooms? Could it be that bad? Dave rapped on the scuffed brown door, stood back, and waited for the tenants of Unit Number 5 to respond. As the door squeaked open, a tall girl with a long ponytail stuck her head around.

‘Hi, Dave’, she said, all sugary and pleasant.

‘Hi, Bea. This is Jasmine, your new roommate.’

‘Oh, I thought we had the spare room ’till the end of semester’, Beatrice said, her eyes narrowing.

‘Yeah, we needed to shuffle things ’round a bit, so we’ve allocated her to you.’

‘I see.’

‘Well, if you wouldn’t mind showing her the ropes, that’d be great’, Dave said, before turning on his heel and walking off.

‘No problem’, Beatrice called out before muttering an obscenity under her breath.

On a wave of nausea, Jasmine followed Beatrice inside. Once she was in her room, she circled around. The walls were brick, there were cobwebs on the popcorn ceiling, and her bed was narrow and springy. Thankful she’d brought a foam overlay with her, Jasmine tossed it onto the bare mattress and closed her eyes.

‘We’re going downtown in about ten minutes if you wanna come’, Beatrice called from the dim hallway.

‘Oh. Ok I’ll just change my clothes.’

Wishing she could take a shower first, because of the unbelievable heat and her long trip, Jasmine decided that being social was more important. Seize the day and all that. She pulled on a short denim skirt and peasant top, untied her hair, and gave it a brush—her best feature, really, if she didn’t count her eyes. Although, she would have done anything to have a little more cleavage. Push-up bras were fantastic, but even their powers were limited. As she stepped out of her room after applying some deodorant, light concealer to hide the abundant freckles on her nose, and some lip gloss, she was greeted by a group of girls huddled in the kitchen. Beatrice introduced her to Kira, Cheyenne, and Yuki, and Jasmine nodded her head politely.

‘We’re meeting some guys down at the pub’, Beatrice said in an authoritative tone.

‘Great!’

They weaved their way downtown through the backstreets and Jasmine pinched herself. Was she really starting college life already? Who were the guys they were meeting? Would they be hot? Pulling into a side street, Beatrice paid the driver, while Yuki, Cheyenne, and Kira ran inside, bagged a table, and hitched themselves onto black bar stools, their heels dangling provocatively.

‘We’re all having vodka and orange’, Beatrice said, glaring at Jasmine. ‘You’re paying. The new girl always pays’, Beatrice added, her voice like ice.

Dropping her gaze, Jasmine followed Beatrice to the bar and fished out a fifty. She ordered the drinks and waited as her teeth ground, sending lasers of pain through her skull.

‘I’ll bring them out if you like’, said the guy behind the bar, giving her a wink.

What was it with men and winking? It made Jasmine feel as if she was supposed to be in on some kind of private joke, but the joke, of course, eluded her.

‘Thanks’, Jasmine said, as she turned and made her way back to the circular table. Dragging over a chair, she squeezed next to Yuki, who seemed a little more welcoming than the others.

‘He’s bringing them over’, Jasmine said, looking directly at Beatrice, who smiled curtly and turned to Cheyenne.

‘Hey, where’s Joel?’ Beatrice whined.

“I dunno. Luke said they were getting here at five’, Cheyenne replied.

‘Well, he’s ten minutes late, the bugger. I just hope he’s not chatting someone up.’

The drinks arrived, and Jasmine grabbed the cool glass. She took a gulp and screwed up her face as the burning liquid slid down her throat.

‘It’s not lemonade’, Beatrice sneered.

‘Most cocktails don’t taste this strong’, Jasmine retorted, humiliated at the scrutiny she was being subjected to. Had the guy at the bar put in an extra shot?

Cheyenne whispered something in Beatrice’s ear, and they both squawked. ‘Don’t worry. You’ll get a taste for vodka soon enough. The guys all drink VB, but it’s really gross.’

Determined not to repeat her mistake, Jasmine took another sip and listened to Cheyenne talk about hair straighteners and the best brands of fake tan. Just as she was wondering whether she’d be expected to buy another round, two men in plaid shirts approached their table.

‘Hi, Joel’, Beatrice said, forgiving him in an instant.

‘Hey, Bea’, he said, a dull look in his eyes.

‘So, who’s this?’

Beatrice introduced Jasmine to Joel and his friend, Luke. Joel, who was strikingly good looking, gave Jasmine a once-over, but maintained his distance, and Luke, who had a ready smile, shook her hand. Cheyenne tried to steal his attention by batting her false eyelashes at him and grabbing his arm, but Luke stood back, annoyed. Turning to Jasmine, he asked her what she was studying and mentioned that he hadn’t seen her at O week. Jasmine told him she’d just arrived on campus, and he asked her whether she was settling in. She gave a half-hearted shrug, and Luke smiled kindly. He was in his fourth year of a business degree and was looking forward to getting a well-paid job in the city, which made Jasmine feel both awestruck and envious at the same time.

After about twenty minutes, the group made their way to a lounge area where there was more space, and Jasmine, who was tired from her trip, took on the role of observer. Beatrice was clearly the boss, and she flirted with Joel non-stop. Cheyenne was her sidekick and pretty much agreed with everything Beatrice said. Kira, who was studying journalism, was confident, although she didn’t dominate the conversation, and Yuki was an international student from Japan, who was shy but had a quirky sense of humour. Leaning back against the cool leather, Jasmine closed her eyes, the voices around her becoming more and more muted until she sank slowly into unconsciousness.

***

Jasmine jerked awake as a man’s baritone guffaw almost pierced her eardrums. Suddenly breathless, she glanced around, trying to get her bearings. Once she’d calmed down, she stood up and went looking for her new flatmates. Searching the dance floor, bar area and then finally the ladies’ toilets, she realised they must have left without her. Crap, she didn’t even remember...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 17.3.2023
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Literatur ► Romane / Erzählungen
• ISBN-10: 1-6678-9092-1 / 1667890921
• ISBN-13: 978-1-6678-9092-0 / 9781667890920