Read Online Stay Well Soon by Penny Tangey - Free Book Online Page A

topics ever. Morgan and I look at each other. She mouths, ‘Depression’, and I nod. At least I know what the Depression is, and maybe we could beg for money from the Grandparents and Friends.
    Mr Parks pulls out the second-last pair: James and Deng.
    James and Deng choose the Depression.
    That means we have to do the suffragettes.
    â€˜Noooo . . .’ says Morgan, putting her head down on the desk.
    â€˜Who even are the suffragettes?’ I ask.
    â€˜I hate history that’s not about wars,’ says Morgan. ‘How is it even important if nobody dies?’
    â€˜If you don’t settle down,’ says Mr Parks, ‘I will take a marble out of the jar.’
    We have worked too hard for those twenty-eight marbles to lose them now. But other people in the class won’t shut up.
    Mr Parks says he has had just about enough. He takes a marble out of the jar.
    What a nightmare.
    Lara is on one of the beanbags in the Kidz Space when I arrive after school. I sit down beside her.
    â€˜I’ve drawn another horse,’ I say. I show Lara the picture.
    â€˜Wow, you’re really improving,’ says Lara.
    â€˜It’s for you,’ I tell her.
    Lara takes the picture. ‘Thank you so much! It’s fantastic. I’ll stick it up next to my bed.’
    â€˜I’ve got new pencils,’ I say. ‘Will you draw another one for me?’
    â€˜Nah, I’m not in the mood for drawing horses today.’
    I guess if you used to ride horses all the time, drawing them isn’t as interesting. Maybe Lara is missing Finnigan again and it is too painful to think about horses.
    â€˜Maybe I’ll do a drawing of something else,’ says Lara. ‘Can I borrow your pencils?’
    I say yes, but I hope she doesn’t press too hard.
    Luckily, Lara’s drawing is just a few lines and she doesn’t do any shading. She draws the nurse who is sitting at the desk outside the Kidz Space. She draws her with a really big nose (the nurse’s nose is big, but not that big) and a sticking-out forehead. It is very funny. The black pencil is even more used up, but this time it is worth it.
    â€˜That’s great!’ I say. ‘Are you going to be an artist when you grow up?’
    â€˜I doubt it, I’m not good enough. I wanted to be a vet.’
    â€˜Me too!’ I say. Actually, I want to be a vet and a horse breeder and a chemist. ‘Are you still going to be a vet?’ I ask.
    â€˜Nah.’
    â€˜Why not?’
    â€˜Just can’t see it happening. How was your day anyway?’ asks Lara.
    â€˜ A nightmare ,’ I say.
    â€˜Why?’ she asks.
    â€˜We have to do history projects.’
    â€˜Don’t you like history?’
    â€˜I love it. But me and Morgan got the worst topic.’
    â€˜What’s the topic?’
    â€˜The suffragettes.’
    â€˜But that’s great!’ she says.
    â€˜Is it? I don’t even know what it means.’
    Lara sits forward in the beanbag. ‘The suffragettes were brilliant. They fought for women’s rights. Can you believe that a hundred years ago women weren’t allowed to own a house or vote or have a job after they were married?’
    I shake my head.
    â€˜It was so unfair. Anyway, the suffragettes were awesome ladies. Some of them went to jail and went on hunger strikes.’
    Lara lets me borrow her iPad to look up suffragette on the internet. She is right, they are very interesting. Some of them even died. Fighting for women’s rights was like a kind of war. I can’t wait to tell Morgan.
    When I arrive at school the next day I hurry over to Morgan, who is sitting on the bench. ‘I found out about the suffragettes!’ I say.
    At the same time Morgan is saying, ‘It turns out the suffragettes are great!’
    We are both excited to tell each other about it.
    â€˜They went on hunger strikes!’
    â€˜They were force-fed!’
    â€˜One of them