Celtic Night Read online

  “We go to pubs and nightclubs on the weekends,” James said. “Or house parties.”

  “We just hang out,” Eoghan said.

  When we arrived back at Biddy’s, there were people out in the arena. I saw Mary and Eimear standing in the middle while someone rode a horse around. James and Eoghan said they were going home and Paul had to go back down to work. I walked down into the arena to talk to Mary and Eimear.

  “What’s going on?” I asked.

  “Nothing. That’s Nora up there on the horse. She’s your cousin as well,” Mary said, never taking her eyes off the girl or the horse.

  “That’s Twiggy, Nora’s pony,” Eimear said pointing to the horse.

  After Nora rode around a couple more laps of the arena and jumped a couple poles, she trotted over to where Mary, Eimear, and I were standing.

  “Hey, who are you?” she said, still atop the horse.

  “I’m Sarah, John’s daughter from America.”

  “Oh, ya! I didn’t know when you were coming over. Did daddy pick you up from the airport this morning?”

  “Eugene picked me up this morning,” I replied, unsure of who her father was in this large and complicated family.

  “Ya, that’s Daddy!” she said as she hopped off her horse. The four of us walked up from the arena back into the yard. Nora took Twiggy’s saddle and bridles off and put her into a stable. Then she went into some sort of shed and took off her helmet and back protector. She linked her arm inside of mine and we started walking. It wasn’t until she took off her gear that I could actually see her face. She was very pretty with hazel eyes and shoulder length light brown hair. She had a very young looking face and I didn’t think she was much older than thirteen. She was also extremely tall and skinny. I could see that Eugene was her father because he was also very tall. She had on a sweatshirt of some sort, tight little tan riding pants, and riding boots.

  “Have you been down the shop yet?” she said happily.

  “Um, what shop?” I responded, looking totally clueless.

  “Our shop! It’s across the street. How’d you miss it? Daddy owns it!”

  It was a small yellow building with royal blue accents that said “Ryan’s” at the top. We went inside and Nora said hello to the girl working at the cash register. It was like an American supermarket, just much smaller.

  “There’s a restaurant in the back that just opened as well!” she said. “I can’t believe I’m only meeting you now and we’re first cousins! How old are you anyway?” She kept shooting questions at me as she went behind the counter and grabbed a handful of gummy candies.

  “I know. It’s really weird coming here having never met any of my family. I’m fifteen. How about you?”

  “I’m thirteen,” she said; just as I had suspected.

  “Are you hungry? Do you want some sweets or crisps?”

  “I actually don’t have any Euro yet. I have to exchange it first,” I told her. “And what are crisps?”

  “Oh, um, like American chips! Sorry, I forgot! It’s fine, grab whatever you want.”

  “Okay. Do you suggest anything?”

  “Here, have a Cadbury’s Dairy Milk. I bet you don’t have chocolate this delicious in the States.”

  I ripped open the wrapper and took a bite. It was amazing. The sweet, milky mixture melted in my mouth. “Wow! That is by far the best chocolate I have ever tasted.”

  She laughed and grabbed my hand, pulling me down the aisles. At the back of the store there was a butcher and a hot food counter. She pulled me inside an office. Eugene, Paul, and Pat were all inside. I came to the conclusion that Paul and Pat also worked at the shop.

  “Well Sarah, how are you getting on?”

  “Fine. I just tasted the best chocolate in the world.”

  “Daddy, is the door unlocked? Sarah and I are going up to the house.”

  “I think it’s locked actually, but your mother’s home.”

  “Alright, see you later.” Before we left the shop, we each grabbed a handful of sweets. We walked along, past rows of houses. Nora pointed out a white house with a sign that said “Melrose” out front.

  “That’s where Pat and his family live,” she said. We arrived at Nora’s house. It was stone and painted a very light peach color. There was a small garden in the front and a big fence that enclosed the backyard. The door was unlocked and I followed Nora inside. It was filled with photographs of Nora and other people I had never seen before and pictures that someone had painted. There was a giant statue of a lion and a giraffe and baskets filled with various noise makers from Africa.

  “Mom and Dad love Africa, if you couldn’t tell. Also, Mom’s very crafty. She loves to paint, sew, bead, you name it, and she does it. See, here I am at the beach and me riding Twiggy, but she painted those ages ago.” The house was nicer than Biddy’s. The floors were clean, the walls intact, and the layer of dust much thinner. I heard a voice upstairs calling Nora’s name.

  “Nora, is that you?”

  “Hi Mom! I’m home! I brought Sarah over. She just came in this morning,” Nora called back.

  “Bring her upstairs so I can meet her!” We walked upstairs to a small loft. It was filled with boxes of fabrics, beads, yarns, paints, and brushes. A woman with short wavy brown hair looked up from the sewing machine where she was working.

  “Hi Sarah! It’s so nice to finally meet you. How was the flight over dear?”

  “Nice to meet you too. Oh it was fine, a couple of crying babies, a little turbulence, the usual, I suppose.” I turned my head to get a better view of the room. There was a computer sitting on a desk in the corner. I wanted to ask to use it but I wasn’t comfortable doing that yet. It would be a little while before I was fully acquainted with everyone and used to being here all the time.

  Nora dragged me back downstairs to watch a movie. She put a movie in and sat down on the couch. The screen changed from black and some music began to play.

  “I love this movie!” I exclaimed as I realized that it was Ten Things I Hate about You.

  “Yea, me too!”

  After the movie was over, I realized that I’d lost all perception of the time. I asked Nora, who then pointed in the direction of a clock. It was six o’clock in the evening, which meant it was one o’clock in the afternoon in my head. Nora asked me if I wanted to sleep over and said that we could rent another movie or something. We walked back down to Biddy’s so I could get pajamas and a toothbrush and make sure it was all right with Mary if I stayed with Nora. Mary said of course it was all right. Biddy was sitting in a chair in the sitting room watching the news. I walked in to let her know that I was sleeping down at Nora’s house. She asked me if I would like to help her cook the dinner tomorrow and said we could make another apple tart together.

  “I would love to help you tomorrow.”

  “I’m cooking a chicken because it’s Sunday,” she said. “But of course we will have potatoes with it, and you, my dear, need much more practice,” she said with a slight smile on her face. I smiled back at her and quietly left the room.

  Nora and I took a shortcut back to her house by going through James and Eoghan’s backyard. We watched another movie and talked for a while. She was a nice girl and I was looking forward to getting to know her, but I hoped to meet some girls my own age that I could relate to much better. She fell asleep much earlier than I did and I was restless in this strange place I had never been before. I snuck out of my sleeping bag on the floor and quietly tiptoed down the hallway upstairs to in front of the computer.

  As soon as the computer had booted up, I clicked on the Internet link and checked my mail. It had only been a day since I checked it and I didn’t have any unread messages. I saw that there was an icon for AOL Instant Messenger on the desktop so I clicked on it and signed online. I instantly received three messages from my girls! At first I was confused because it was 12:30 a.m. but I realized that back home, it was only 7:30 p.m.

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  HaileysComet32: Oh my god! Oh my god! How is it??? How was the flight??? How are you??? What’s your family like? I’m so happy to talk to you!!

  SarBear15: Hey Hailey! It’s beautiful here! The flight was okay, a little scary. It’s so different here.

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  Polarbear99: Hey!!! How’s Ireland?!?!?!

  SarBear15: Oh my god Sophie! You would love it here! I love it here already. It’s beautiful!

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  TayTay101: Hey World Traveler! How’s Ireland!!! Seen any hotties yet?? We miss you!

  SarBear15: Hey Tay! It’s awesome! Nope, no hotties yet, but I’ll keep you posted.

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  Then, I decided I would send each of them the same messages to make it easier. Anyway, they all had the same questions.

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  SarBear15: It’s so green here. I love it. There are animals everywhere: Sheep, cows and horses! I met my grandmother for the first time today since I was like two months old. I met a bunch of my uncles, my aunt, and a couple of cousins. It’s hard to remember everyone’s names and whose kids they are. Anyway I’m going to live with my grandmother for a couple of nights before I go to live with my uncle Jack for the rest of the time. I’m really hoping to start riding horses while I’m here! I haven’t seen any cute boys yet but I know there are some around here somewhere! I really like my cousin Nora. She’s thirteen and she’s very nice. As soon as I start taking pictures I’ll send them over. I haven’t needed my raincoat yet and I look at pictures of you every day! Now that I’ve filled you in I have to go. I miss you loads and I’ll talk to you soon! Love you!

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  HaileysComet32: Love you and miss you too! Have fun!

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  Polarbear99: Love you so much! Make memories! Be safe!

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  TayTay101: Be good! Have fun! Miss you bunches!

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  I turned of the computer and tiptoed back downstairs and into Nora’s room. Somehow I was satisfied having talked to my friends and was able to fall asleep as soon as I was back in my sleeping bag on the floor.

  Chapter 5

  Around eleven o’clock Sunday morning Eugene brought me over to Jack’s house, where I would be staying for the duration of my stay.

  “Thanks for everything Eugene,” I said when we got into the van.

  “Anything you need, you just give me a call,” he said. I smiled at his generosity.

  “And you know you are welcome at my house or Biddy’s whenever you want.”

  “Thanks. I may take you up on that,” I said.

  When we arrived at Jack’s he said a quick hello and unloaded my things from the van. I watched him drive away, and then turned around to where my uncle Jack, aunt Una, and my cousins Grainne and Aisling were standing. They helped me carry my things inside their small townhouse in Childers Park, about a mile from Biddy’s house. In the front of the house there was a small rose garden, and at the back there was a shed filled with bikes, tools, a clothes drier, and other various pieces of junk, and a clothesline. I wondered where they kept their car.

  “You must have a small car that fits back here,” I exclaimed jokingly.

  “We don’t have one,” Jack said.

  “You’re not in a America anymore darlin’!”

  Una said laughing. I grew slightly embarrassed, but recovered quickly.

  “Mum and Daddy ride their bikes to work,” Aisling said.

  “And Aisling and I take the train back and forth from school,” Grainne added.

  I followed Aisling, Grainne, Jack, and Una up the narrow staircase as they gave me the grand tour of their home. We went into a small bedroom that was painted pink and purple. There was a small television, a double bed, a single bed, two dressers, and a nightstand, plus it had a closet. I scanned the room. The double bed was covered with stuffed animals, and the wall just behind it was lined with pictures. I recognized a few people; Paul, Jack, Una, Mary, Biddy. The top of one dresser was covered with bottles of perfume, lotion, sunless tanning products, hair products, and hairbrushes. The other dresser had only a CD player and a lamp on it. There was an enormous window that looked out into the back yard and over past many other houses. The windowsill was covered with trophies and medals, but I was too far away from them and could hardly read the inscriptions. The room was extremely cluttered and I wondered where all of my things would go. I assumed that the three of us would be sharing it. Eek. I guess it could work.

  “Sorry it’s so small, but Grainne and I are barely here during the week so it won’t be cramped all the time,” Aisling said.

  “Oh, no, it’s great. It’s, um, very cozy,” I said, slightly sarcastically. I was pretty certain that it was going to be anything but great, as I was used to having a room larger than this all to myself back home.

  After the introductions and the millions of questions, Jack and Una left the room. Aisling and Grainne sat on the double bed while I sat on the single. They were both in college, but returned home on the weekends. Their sister, Niamh, attended college in New Jersey to play basketball. My father once told me that I resembled Niamh. She was the eldest of the three girls. Aisling was the middle child. Her shoulder length hair was dyed dark brown, which complemented her dark eyes. Grainne was the youngest. Her hair was longer than Aisling’s, and it too was dyed dark brown, but in certain light had a slight red tint. Grainne was much taller than Aisling, and her body was long and lean. Like Niamh, Grainne was a basketball player. Niamh, I could tell from the pictures on the wall, wasn’t a girly type and she was very naturally pretty. I soon came to realize that the pink walls and stuffed animals were Aisling’s decorating ideas; she was the opposite of Niamh. I hoped that Aisling and Grainne and I would become close. After all, we were sharing a room the size of a prison cell for six months.

  They asked me questions about my life at home. Did I have a boyfriend? What my school was like? What did I like to do for fun? Eventually, after I stopped answering, I started asking. They gave me the low down on the school and the town. Grainne had generously cleared out a few drawers for me to use, so I was able to begin unpacking. I decided to put my shirts in the dresser, my pants in the closet and my shoes under the bed. Everything else I left in my suitcase, which I also shoved under the bed. After a while the three of us wandered back downstairs and into the kitchen, where Una had just boiled a pot of tea.

  “Well Sarah. Did you unpack? Is everything okay? Are you all right pet? Anything you ever need, just ask me.”

  “Thanks Una,” I said responding to her multiple questions all at once.

  “Would you like a cup of tea? Do you want anything to eat? How about a chicken fillet or some soup? I can’t believe I have nothing for you. I’ll go to the shop. What would you like?” she said, overwhelming me.

  “It’s okay I’m not hungry. I’ll have a cup of tea though.” I sat and talked to Una for about twenty minutes. After I finished my tea I went upstairs and sat on the single bed while Aisling and Grainne shuffled about the room, getting ready to go out for the night. I finally went to sleep after laying out my uniform for the morning. Around three a.m. the two girls stumbled upstairs and into the room. I heard them as they did their best to move around in the dark room but I kept my eyes closed and pretended I was asleep.

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  It was my first day at my new school, The Presentation, and I was already late. I woke with plenty of time to shower, get dressed, and eat breakfast, but somehow the walk through town and down to the school took much longer than I had expected. I had started the morning feeling p
repared and ready, but now, for some reason, I was nervous. I walked through the silent parking lot, which was filled with deserted cars, up to the front door of the school. I noticed pairs of eyes peeking out at me from the windows of a classroom on the first floor. They knew I was an outsider. They could smell my fear all the way underneath my burgundy pleated skirt and burgundy wool jumper. I looked down to make sure each piece of my uniform was intact. My burgundy socks were pulled up to my knees, my striped tie was straight, and my cream button down shirt was neatly pressed. I walked through the door and stood in the main hallway, hoping that a principal would come by and ask me if I was lost. A woman with blond hair popped out of an office to the right of me and said, “You must be Sarah. We’ve been waiting for you.”

  Another woman with blond hair rounded the corner and smiled widely at me. “Hello Sarah. I’m Miss Dwyer, the principal of the school.”

  She was friendly looking and slightly eased my nervousness. Miss Dwyer asked me to follow her. We walked through the school until we reached a door, which I suspected was my classroom. Miss Dwyer entered first and I followed. The students in the classroom immediately stood for her entry. I was shocked by the respect she received from the students because in my school, you never stood for a teacher. I avoided eye contact with the other girls, but took a quick glance around the room. It was a fairly big room with a dry erase board, a podium at the front, and small lockers in the back. On two of the walls crosses were hung along with a small statue of Mary. The room was cold and uninviting. The walls were badly painted and chipping, and had no colorful posters or motivational sayings on them as most American classrooms have. I estimated about twenty-five girls sitting before me, smiling through their teeth and staring me up and down, trying to figure out who exactly I was. As soon as Miss Dwyer finished my introduction she quietly left the room. The teacher sitting on a stool behind the podium introduced herself as Miss Darcy and directed me to an open seat in the third row. She suggested that we all get somewhat acquainted before we started the lesson. The girl in front of me turned around to introduce herself. She was a thick girl with shoulder length dark brown hair and enormous dark eyes. She instantly started babbling on to me.