They walked toward the club.
“Fair point,” Jade said. “All right. This will be piss easy.”
“Sounds good to me.”
Inside the club, Jade disappeared into the mass of people talking loudly and dancing to clamorous music.
Erin grabbed a soda and had no luck finding Ruby, Marama, or Summer. Richard, the guy Jade had warned her about, found her, though.
“Erin, right?” he said.
She nodded.
“From America?” Americur. “And you’re a swimmer?” Swimma?
“I do swim, yes. And you’re Richard.”
“I am Richard. What’s on for tomorrow?”
“Some friends are taking me around.”
“I’d be happy to take you around, show you our greatest stuff. Do you surf?”
“I don’t.”
He beamed. “I am an excellent teacher! Everyone needs to know how to surf. Let’s you and me get out on the water this spring, eh? We’ll get you a wet suit. Take a lunch with us and make a date of it.”
His sparkling blue eyes were mesmerizing. Without Jade’s warning, she would have agreed enthusiastically.
“Sorry,” she said. “Not for me. I’m trying to settle in right now.”
“Not right now, right now,” he said. “Any time at all. I find America simply intriguing. Tell me, do you go to the prom?”
Junior prom had been one of her best—and last—dates with Ben, an evening she now preferred to forget. She breathed deeply. “I did go to prom, in a gorgeous silver gown.”
“And will you go again, or is it a once-in-a-lifetime thing?”
Senior prom could be fun. She and Lalitha would either reenact her birthday date or maintain the swim team seniors’ ritual of going as a pack. Even though she was no longer part of the pack.
“Whad’ya say? Will you go again?”
“Probably.” At last, Erin spied Marama at the far side of the room and locked eyes with her.
“We could nick out and make a date right now, if you like.”
She grinned at him. “I am so sorry, Richard, I see my friend. I should go.”
“She’ll wait. What say we try rugby? Or traditional New Zealand food? Or bungee? I’d love to introduce you to kiwi life, and you can tell me about America.”
Marama steered through the crowd toward them.
“I should go,” Erin said.
He wrapped his arm around her waist and pulled her closer. “So nice talking to you!” He kissed her roughly before giving her a little wave.
Erin loathed unwanted physical contact. Why did guys in every culture think that was okay?
“Please tell me you didn’t agree to go out with him,” Marama said. “He is bad news.”
“Yes, I was forewarned.”
“Thank god. Get you a beer?”
Erin hesitated. “Actually, Marama, I don’t like beer. I’ve never found an alcohol I actually like.”
“Me either, but I like the buzz.” Gulping her beer, Marama assessed the room. “I wanted you to meet my climbing friends, but I haven’t found anyone. My brother’s already half in the bag, so you’ll meet him tomorrow. Be nice and loud, would you?”
“Of course.”
“Oh! There’s someone!” Marama led Erin through the crowd by the hand and stopped so near the music that she had to shout. “This is Gloria. Gloria, Erin. Taking her to Castle Hill tomorrow.”
Gloria was tall and athletic with a thick brown ponytail. She and Erin exchanged hellos as Jade arrived and handed Gloria a drink.
“Are you coming?” Erin asked.
Gloria blushed, wide-eyed.
“What’s going on, now?” Jade asked.
“Marama is taking me to Castle Hill tomorrow. I asked whether Gloria was coming.”
Gloria glanced from Jade to Marama. “I don’t think so, no.”
“No worries. Another time, maybe,” Marama said. “Come on, Erin, let’s dance.”
The crowd moved casually to what Marama called house music. A tall guy trying to crowd surf from the sofa wound up on his back on the floor.
“And there is my idiot brother,” Marama said.
“Charming!” Erin said.
She usually felt like a spectacle on the dance floor, but here everyone paid little attention to anyone not in their immediate vicinity. Erin swayed to the music and swung her arms. Without any liquid courage, it took a while to warm up to the evening, but within the hour, she was moving fast enough to remove her sweater and relax among her new classmates.
TWENTY-SEVEN
Sunday morning, the woodstove was cold, presumably because everyone was leaving for the day: Felicity to netball with friends, Hamish to rugby, and Pippa to a friend’s house.
Sunday morning in New Zealand was Saturday afternoon in Wheaton, but she had no time to catch up with Lalitha before Marama picked her up.
Claire pinged Erin with new comments on her essay and demanded revisions before the end of the weekend. Erin promised to work on them after her outing with Marama.
Her phone rang. Claire.
“Hi, Mom.”
“Erin, I see you were out last night, and that’s okay. Make friends, great. But it feels like you’re not taking this seriously. You’re going out for the day today. Let’s not lose sight of what’s important and why you’re there. I’m worried.”
“Mom, I promise I’m on track. Swimming is going great. My coach thinks I’ll do well at Nationals. I don’t have any people here. I’m trying to connect.”
“Just remember this is temporary. Med school is forever.”
“I know. Mom, I have to go.”
Erin ended the call to find Pippa staring at her.
“Do you not get along with your mother?”
Erin sighed. “I do. She just has a lot of advice for me, and right now I’m not very interested in taking it.”
Instead, Erin was taking advice from Pippa: “Don’t wear jandals.”
“Don’t wear what?” Erin asked.
“Your shoes. Jandals.”
Erin regarded her Reef flip-flops. “I can hike in these just fine.”
“Maybe in the States, but not here. Take tramping boots. Or something else.”
Pippa was ten, but she was kiwi. And what the hell did Erin know about tramping? She laced her boots, which looked ridiculous with shorts, and threw her Reefs into her bag.
Felicity let Marama in and said to Erin, “You have a hat, yes?”
Erin didn’t.
“Where are you headed today?” Felicity asked.
“Castle Hill,” Marama said.
“I’ll get mine.” Felicity disappeared into the other side of the house and returned a minute later with a floppy red
