Read Online Pieces of My Heart by Sinéad Moriarty - Free Book Online

up on it – I’m now an expert on rugby. I know all the names of the wingers on the other schools’ teams. Step Seven: If he’s really thick, you’ll have to pretend you’re not intelligent. If he’s really clever, you’ll have to study harder or maybe decide to fancy someone else. Step Eight: If he has brothers or sisters in the school, make sure you become friendly with them. Step Nine: If he’s playing a match – rugby, hockey, tennis, whatever – turn up and pretend you’re supporting someone else on the team. Obviously make sure you look amazing. Finally, Step Ten: Move in for the kill. Look all sad and pretend your dog just got run over. It has to be a dog because guys don’t care about cats. Don’t actually cry, because your mascara will run, but just be all down and “I loved Scooby so much”, blah, blah, blah. He should put his arm around you and then you can tilt your head and – voilà – snog.’ She took a bow.
    I couldn’t help but laugh. ‘You’re something else, Sarah Mullen. If you put as much effort into your school work as you did into your ten-step plan, you’d be a straight-A student.’
    ‘All work and no play …’
    ‘And all play and no work …’ I replied. ‘Now, go upstairs and finish your homework.’
    She left the room, dragging her feet as she went. I went up to see Ali with a bowl of her favourite ice cream – Häagen Dazs strawberry cheesecake. I opened the door to her room and she looked up from her book. Her eyes were puffy from crying.
    ‘Oh, Ali,’ I kissed her, ‘I’m so sorry. What a crappy thing to happen. Are you OK?’
    She covered her face with her hands and sobbed. I wrapped my arms around her and tried not to cry. I wanted to call over to David’s house and smash his face in.
    ‘I just – uh-uh-uh – I just don’t understand, Mum,’ she sobbed. ‘We were getting on really well and then in the last few days he started being all weird and kept saying he was too busy to hang out with me and then today he said he didn’t think it was working out and he wanted to break up and then I saw him snogging Tracy.’
    ‘Bastard! He’s clearly an idiot if he can’t see what an amazing girlfriend you were. He doesn’t deserve you.’
    ‘I’m not amazing, I’m crap. And I have to go to school and face everyone tomorrow and I can’t bear it. Everyone will be talking about how I got dumped for Tracy. It’s so humiliating.’
    ‘No, they won’t. People are far too wrapped up in themselves to care about anyone else. It’ll blow over.’
    ‘How am I going to cope? I have to see David and Tracy every day. It’s going to be torture.’
    ‘Oh, Ali, I know it seems like the end of the world now, but you’ll get over this and find a new boyfriend who appreciates you.’
    ‘But I love David!’ She began to wail again.
    I tried to think of something reassuring to say. What words would make a seventeen-year-old girl whose heart was broken feel better? I had no idea.
    When I first got my heart broken my mother was dead. Charlie found me sobbing into my pillow and when I told him what had happened he threw his hands up in the air and said he didn’t know what to say, he had no idea how to make me feel better, that this was a job for Mum and he wished she was here, and we both cried.
    I racked my brains, but all I came up with was, ‘He’s a loser and you’re better off without him.’
    ‘He’s not a loser. I’d give anything to go out with him again. Maybe it’s just a phase. Maybe he’ll get bored with Tracy soon.’
    ‘Ali,’ I said as gently as I could, ‘you need to let him go. Let him and Tracy have their silly relationship and just ignore him. Pretend you don’t give a damn about him and his stupid new girlfriend. Go into that school tomorrow with your head held high and a smile on your face and pretend he doesn’t exist.’
    ‘That’s what Sarah said – but I can’t bear to see them,’ she said, welling up again.
    ‘If you really