Chapter 2 — Interference

When Molly went home after staying with her grandfather for the stretch of the school holidays, the days started running the way they usually did. School was back on and the mornings were busy with her mum telling everyone what needed to happen before they left the house. Molly got dressed, ate breakfast, managed to get her hair in a claw clip and found her shoes while listening to the instructions that had been repeated a million times before but never sounded quite right. There was always something to remember and it felt like pulling teeth.

At school, she sat where she was told and did her work carefully. She finished most things on time and didn’t cause any trouble. Teachers liked that. They said so often enough that Molly learnt what they meant by it.

“You’re very reliable,” her teacher said one afternoon while handing back work. “I wish there were more like you.”

Molly smiled and put the paper in her bag. She felt good about it, but she also felt slightly awkward about it. It felt invasive and almost as though it shouldn’t have been said out loud from an adult to a child. She thought nothing of it, though, and by the time she got home later that day, she felt strangely tired. She yawned and yawned relentlessly.

“Gee whiz, Molls. You’d think you were up all night performing at the Opera House,” her mother had said.

Performing? Molly thought.

She thought and thought. The word didn’t quite fit there but the days didn’t give her time to dwell on much. Yes, even at her age. The routine followed the same pattern. It was always lessons, breaks, lining up and being quiet when it was time to be quiet and talking when it was allowed. Molly did all of that without much effort. She paid attention and helped when asked.

Sometimes she stopped noticing what was being said and found herself watching the room instead. She liked to look at the way other kids moved around. It was like she was brought here to watch them and take note of what they were doing. She didn’t mean to think of other human beings as a science experiment, but the classroom was her very own microscope.

“Molly?” her teacher tapped her desk. “You with us?”

“Yes, Miss,” Molly replied.

It was the first time someone had caught her not paying attention. It was the first time she realised just how often she did it despite never being caught.

At home, Molly helped more than she was asked to. She cleared plates and watched her younger brother when her mum did jobs that she hadn’t had the time to finish yet.

“I don’t know what I’d do without you,” her mum said once while on the phone.

Molly felt proud when she heard that. She also felt heavy later when she lay on her bed but she did not know why.

By the end of the week, Molly felt worn out even though nothing bad had happened. She went to bed on time and still felt tired in the morning. She didn’t talk about it because there was nothing specific to talk about. Plus, she hadn’t observed it long enough in her very sciency way.

Molly thought about the beach and how different the days felt there. She could remember it clearly but it already felt far away. She wanted to go back and look at the rocks. She couldn’t quite place a finger on it but something had started to feel drawn out and strange.

Everything was in its place but out of place all at once.