There was a desperate part of Judith McKenna that longed to be rescued. It went against all her tough girl ideals and self sufficient reasoning but still it was there, bubbling beneath the surface of her emotions. She wanted to be saved. She wanted someone to pick her up help her stop sinking. Maybe this would have been easier if she let it show that she was drowning. ( But she wasn’t ready for that. )

She was attempting to cook.

Again.

This time though, she was insistant on the fact that she wasn't going to burn anything. People cooked all the time: it couldn't be that hard! She still didn't have a handle on the 'not making a mess' part of cooking. Or the cooking part. Jude was sure she looked the part though. She even bought an apron for herself.

It was Fiona Apple she was playing as she danced around the kitchen getting her ingrediants and peering at the cookbook and she almost didn't hear the knock over the music. Being the closest to the front door she shouted an 'I'll get it!' and pulled off her apron, wandering out to answer the door. She pulled it open and her smile immediatly fell, a rush of terror running through her and making her weak. She opened her mouth to try and speak but it came out as a stammer. "F-father."

( more )

The excitement of history could barely be contained. Usually Jude liked history. It was, in fact, one of her favourite subjects. She wasn’t sure whether it was the subject matter- pre-industrial Europe- or her state of mind that was making her completely uninterested. More than that: frustrated. She wanted to get outside and do something other than sitting around in the cooped up classroom. ( She let her mind drift off from her textbook. )

“Where have you been?”

Jude had barely even stepped back into the house- her head still full of fun thoughts from Dublin and Deirdre- when her father’s angry voice greeted her from the living room. She stood in the doorway, keeping a suddenly tighter grip on the overnight bag she’d taken with her. ( “Dublin,” she said, forcing her voice to remain level. “I told you that.” )