The Space We're In by Katya Balen

Author:Katya Balen
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Holiday House
Published: 2019-10-21T16:00:00+00:00

4 15 7

MARK COMES TO the house the day after my blue cast is gone. He sees it not being there and gives me a thumbs-up. He has a cup of tea with Mum and Max except Max has Quavers instead and I play with Neil in the living room and he gives me his paw and rolls over and begs and I try to teach him to bark on command but he doesn’t get it. I want to teach him to do sums because I saw a YouTube video where a man shouted things like seven plus five and his dog would pause for a moment like it was thinking and then bark back twelve times. Dad says the dog isn’t really counting but I don’t care if he thinks that. I keep trying to teach Neil to bark on command so we can start on numbers but it’s really difficult because I don’t know how to make him bark. He sniffs where the cast is missing and I think he can smell the stain that Noah has left inside me. But he rubs his wiry muzzle against my hip and then Mark comes into the room holding Neil’s leash and his orange rubber ball and says let’s take Max with us and I say what?

Mum has to come too but she walks behind us. She’s pale and it looks like she’s pulling her legs through mud but she’s smiling in a way I don’t remember. Max has his giddyup reins on so Mark walks him and I walk Neil. I am furious and I don’t look at Mark because he was mine and he’s ruined everything. Mark talks to Max like he’ll answer and says things like how’s school? and what’s the best thing there? and can you see that sparrow over there? and he tells Max about seeing a heron last week. I don’t talk to anyone and not even Neil. I don’t want to share Mark and Neil with Max. Max is bouncing along in his reins and he claps and whoops and his fingers aren’t in his ears and he’s flapping up high.

Max likes Neil and he wants to touch him so Mark shows him how to stroke his ears and pat his head softly softly. Neil does a grumbly sigh which means he’s happy and that he wants his ears scratched too. Max’s fingers dance in Neil’s fur and then he reaches out his hands and he says dog with them and Mum beams and beams and she puts her hands up to her face as if to feel her own happiness there. That’s right I say, dog. Good job. And I say it like I don’t mean it but I think I do because that’s Max’s first word.

Max wants to hold Neil’s leash and so I let him and Max holds Neil and Mark holds Max. There’s a chain of man and boy and dog and they stumble along unbroken and Max is

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