The Girl with the Violin by Shelley Davidow

Author:Shelley Davidow
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HQ Fiction
Published: 2024-07-01T00:00:00+00:00

30

Baz works long hours as a pharmacist, dispensing medicines to heal the ills of humankind, compounding chemicals to ease this or that ailment—but he doesn’t have a remedy for his own daughter, nor can he sense that she needs one. Naomi works haphazard shifts as a radio producer. The boys demand attention, and Susanna doesn’t require or demand any space. She is a bystander on the side of her own life. It is long past the time she should have moved out of home, even though she knows her family relies on her to babysit.

Susanna hasn’t seen Lara, her oldest friend, for eight months. She called her two weeks after returning home and said, ‘I’m back. Please don’t ask me too many questions. And yes I want to see you soon.’

Lara’s response was an old one: ‘Oh my god, Susie, of course. Your wish is my command as always. I’m dying to see you. Just tell me when.’

The time and day arrives and Susanna waits for Lara to pick her up at sunset.

Lara is rich because her parents are rich. She will also be rich on her own because she’s studying medicine and her parents have contacts in practices all over the world, from India to Florida to London—because they, too, are doctors. She arrives at Susanna’s house in a brand-new snow-white Toyota Corolla: hers.

‘Look at you, Scrawny.’ Lara hugs her. ‘What did they do to you over there?’

Susanna has forgotten what real friendship feels like. ‘No short answers,’ she says. ‘You look ... amazing, Lara.’ Her friend has ink-dark hair and South Indian skin that never burns or goes red in the subtropical sun.

‘Get in,’ Lara says. ‘Let’s go.’

They drive out of the suburb towards the city. Susanna’s brain has accustomed itself to German, and she still feels sluggish in her English conversations.

‘So,’ says Lara, ‘tell me what you want about Germany. Or not. Something big happened.’

‘It didn’t work out.’

‘Evidently. Can you say more? Was it the guy, the violin teacher?’

She nods. ‘Maybe one day—can’t do it now.’

‘If it’s any consolation, you didn’t miss anything here.’

‘That’s a relief.’

Lara looks at her, catching her irony. If Susanna has one inarguably good thing in her life, it’s a friendship that can withstand time, distance and sporadic communication.

‘It’s really nice to see you,’ she says.

‘Ditto, Susie. I missed you.’

They talk about small things. Susanna is searching for a place to rent, and Lara’s trendy share house in the West End will be a roommate short at the end of the month. Ninety dollars a week includes a furnished room and all utilities.

‘That would work for me,’ Susanna says. For the first time since she arrived back, there’s a faint glimmer of something worthy of hopeful anticipation.

‘Let me think about sharing a place with you, Susie ... um, heck yes!’

Susanna smiles. ‘That’s so nice. So, where are we going tonight?’

‘Ajay’s twenty-first.’

‘Who’s Ajay?’

‘My friend, with no Unresolved Sexual Tension—just to be clear. I met him at uni. He was studying medicine with me, but he dropped out.

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