1. Be polite but firm.
2. Explain why, but do not overexplain.
3. Stay calm and on message.
I decide it might be a good moment to employ these strategies.
‘Thank you for the visit, Rose,’ I say, which I think meets the polite tip, ‘but, I need to work.’ Firm without overexplaining.
Rose frowns. ‘But I’ve come all the way to see you.’
‘I thought you were in the area,’ I say. ‘But in any case, perhaps calling ahead next time would be a good idea.’
Rose blinks. ‘You want me to go?’ Her face is blank now but there is a challenge in her voice. Maybe even a dare. The hairs on the back of my neck stand up.
‘Yes,’ I say.
I stand and turn away from her, but not before I see her jaw drop. As I walk into the staffroom, I force myself not to look back. Setting boundaries isn’t easy. I walk straight to my desk and google ‘great boundaries’ again. Seems like I’m going to need a little more help with this.
When we were little, Rose was a pro at giving someone the silent treatment. It was, Mum and I used to say behind her back, her area of expertise. The slightest infraction could result in several days of steely silence. Now that we are adults, it’s improved a lot, but she still occasionally does it. So, when I get home from the library that night, I’m prepared for the worst.
Instead, the minute I walk in the door, I receive a smile and a large flat cardboard box, tied with a bow.
‘Sit down!’ Rose’s face is clear and shiny, and her eyes are bright. ‘I bought you a present.’
She pushes me onto the couch and sits on the coffee table, right in front of me. ‘I’ve been a bit preoccupied with the baby lately, and I think I might have been a bit pushy and overzealous at times.’ She smiles. ‘Guilty as charged! So this,’ she touches the box, ‘is my way of saying that I really do appreciate you.’
I glance nervously at the box.
Rose puts it into my lap. ‘Open it.’
After I fumble trying to undo the bow, Rose takes over, untying it quickly and pulling out a dress. She stands and lets it unravel against her. It’s a long dress, striped with every colour of the rainbow. It has elbow-length sleeves and an empire waistline, with light flowy fabric that runs to the floor. I rub the fabric between my fingers. It’s as soft as butter. ‘Do you love it?’ Rose says.
I open my mouth.
‘I know you loved the rainbow dress that Rocco bought you,’ Rose explains. ‘And this is so similar. I bought it from Ripe Maternity, then took it to the alterations place to get French seams, so they wouldn’t irritate you.’ Her smile becomes wider. ‘And it’s 100 per cent organic bamboo!’
Before I know it, Rose is pulling my T-shirt over my head and instructing me to stand up and take my skirt off. I do as she says, and then stand there in my bra and underwear. She puts the dress on me and makes me twirl. It’s kind of bizarre, but I go along with it. Rose can be quite convincing when she’s in this kind of mood. It’s something I’d forgotten about her. She has a gift for knowing when she is at risk of getting on my nerves and managing to sneak back into my good graces at the eleventh hour.
Sisterly relationships are so strange in this way. The way I can be mad at Rose but still want to please her. Be terrified of her and also want to run to her. Hate her and love her, both at the same time. Maybe when it comes to sisters, boundaries are always a little bit blurry. Blurred boundaries, I think, are what sisters do best.
JOURNAL OF ROSE INGRID CASTLE
On the second-to-last night of our camping trip, Mum and Daniel went to bed right after dinner. ‘Don’t stay up too late,’ they said, as they disappeared into their tent. It had been a long day of swimming, hiking and collecting firewood and everyone was a little worn out.
‘Are we playing cards?’ Billy asked the moment they were gone. He’d been getting bolder with the beer drinking, and that night he’d even had one under the camp table during dinner, while Mum and Daniel were right there.
‘I’m just going to rest my eyes for a minute,’ Fern said. She had been the most active of everyone that day – always diving the deepest, climbing the highest, collecting the most firewood. She looked absolutely exhausted.
‘I don’t think we can play cards without her,’ I said.
‘You’re right,’ Billy agreed.
I assumed that was going to be the end of it, so I was surprised when Billy said: ‘We could go to the river to skim stones if you like?’
I hesitated. We weren’t supposed to leave the camp without telling Mum and Daniel. Daniel had been so adamant about it that Mum had joined in. ‘Did you hear that, girls? No leaving the camp without telling one of us where you are.’ But if Billy was worried about getting in trouble, he hid it well.
‘Rose?’ Billy prompted. ‘Do you want to?’
Of course I wanted to. I wanted to go only slightly more than I feared getting caught. And, as it turned out, that was enough.
‘Sure,’ I said. ‘Why not?’
It was pitch black as we followed the footworn path through the trees toward the river with only Billy’s torch to light the way. We didn’t talk for fear of being heard, and that was fine by me. Every stick and leaf we stepped on crackled unbelievably loud. My heart was in my throat the entire
