Prologue

The wind tugged at my hair flicking it into my face making me have to brush it back again. Gripping onto my mum’s hand tight I gazed around at all the animals. Then my eyes laid upon something that made my face break in a wide grin. “Mummy! Mummy!” my tiny little voice called as I tugged on her hand.

Her brown eyes turned down to me before she then followed my pointing hand to the wishing well. She laughed but dug into her purse. “Go on then, Abigale” she said pressing a penny into my hand. Not waiting for her I raced off towards the well. I put my hands on the wall peering down into the dark water. Bouncing on my heels I gripped the penny within both hands and squeezed my eyes shut. I thought and thought of what to wish for and eventually tossed it in the air. As I watched it fall something drew my attention away.

It was a young boy about my age and I was still watching him when I heard the plonk of the coin hitting the water. The boy then looked up from where he had been watching the floor turning to look at me. It was as if he had heard the penny hit the water or my mind whispering something along the lines of ‘he’s cute’. He smiled slightly before racing off. I ran round the well and tried to chase him but my mum yelled my name.

I turned to look back at her. “Where were you going, Abigale?” she said with a stern look on her face. It was only then it occurred to me that I had almost run off.

“Sorry, mummy, but...” I turned to try and see the boy but he wasn’t anywhere to be seen. My heart sunk. “..There was a little boy I wanted to play with”

My mother laughed. “Where, Abigale?”

“He’s gone” I said turning to her with a bit of a frown. She stepped up and stroked my hair. She pressed a light hand onto my back and began guiding me off.

“Well that’s too bad isn’t it?” my mother said. “Maybe you can find someone else to play with?”

I didn’t want to play with anyone else though. I wanted to go and play with that boy. Shaking my head I tried to focus back on the animals around me as we went through the last of the zoo. I couldn’t though. My mind couldn’t stop replaying that little smile the boy gave me before he ran off. Nothing could distract me but when it was time to go home I was even more upset. The boy hadn’t been anywhere in the zoo.

Tugging open the door I was about to get in when I saw him. I stopped and watched him as he walked along with what seemed like a friend and older brother. They were all laughing and I found myself staring at the young boy. He stopped and turned to look round but quickly I hid behind the car door.

“Abigale, get in the car” my mum said annoyed as she waited for me to get in. I jumped up into my seat and looked through the front window to find not only the boy looking my way but the other two with him. It was only the boy though that smiled before turning to walk off. His friend hesitated looking at me with this piercing gaze before following the other two. It was only once they had gone that I realised my mum had been talking to me.

“Huh?” I said confused.

My mother laughed leaning over to tickle me. “Did you enjoy your birthday present?” she asked but all I could do was laugh because honestly how I felt was weird. I loved the zoo but that boy. He was weird and his friends were weirder.

“I want chicken and chips” I grinned at my mum once she had stopped tickling. She laughed and tapped me lightly on the nose.

“Then that we shall have. Hopefully Daddy’s home when we get back”

I nodded smiling and didn’t stop till I was alone in my bedroom about to go to sleep. After a few times, I stopped trying to close my eyes only seeing that boy on the back of my eyelids. Sitting up I rolled over and tugged my diary out from beneath my pillow deciding that this was a day worth writing about.

**

What I woke to squeezed at my lungs. I coughed and tumbled out of bed. “Mummy!” I yelled feeling my eyes well up. “Daddy!”

The next moment the door swung open to be met by the sight of a fireman. “Come here, darling. Come here”

I stumbled over to him letting him pick me up. “Where’s my mummy and daddy?” I asked not getting an answer. I would have asked again but I began to choke on the air I breathed. When the fireman got me outside he handed me to a doctor person who sat me in the back of an ambulance. They put a mask over my face which made it easier to breath but my eyes were starting to get heavy.

“Where’s mummy and daddy?” I asked again before passing out.