You against me - Jenny Downham

« Mum’s solution was to hide herself away. But an eight-year-old comforting a fifteen-year-old meant the world was upside down. »

« It was strange how words meant something when they came out of your mouth. Inside your head they were safe and silent, but once they were outside, people grabbed hold of them. »

« He was the only brother she had and it was his job to take care of her. He’d never felt that before, the terrible responsability of it. »

« But there – who was that ? On the bench, underneath that tree. Lanterns swayed above her, people everywhere, and her simply sitting there, the one still point. »

« This was what Mikey liked about cooking – you started with something simple and you added another simple thing to it and you ended up with something to do with magic if you were French. »

« The odd thing about it was that somewhere up there, the weather was fine. The sun was simply trapped behind a cobwebbed sky. Only a mile or two down the coast, the day was probably blazing. »

« she had the most amazing eyes – blue with splashes of grey in them »

« But something changed when she got to eleven, like she shrank away. She was too big for cuddles, too old for games and messing around. It was a slow retreat. »

« She’d thought it would be like speaking different languages because he was experienced and she wasn’t. »

« Was this love ? Because it hurt. It was like a bit of glass stuck somewhere important – his heart or his head, and it was throbbing. Already he missed her and they were only just out of the door. »

You against me – Jenny Downham