Lots of them, when everyone wore funny clothes. And then there was one of him, but it wasn’t him. The boy had hair the color of the pebbles on the beach, and he was white like Nana Mer, and his school tie was a different color to his. He ran to Mum in the kitchen and showed it to her. “Who is this, Mum?” He held the photo in front of her. Mum wiped her hands on her apron and took the photo from him and stared at it for the longest time. For ages and ages and ages. Then she looked up at him and her eyes were wet. His tummy went funny because he knew Mum was going to start crying. “He’s a boy I grew up with,” she said. “But he turned into a man I don’t know.” Mum handed the photo back to him. “Why does he look like me?” She did that thing where she rubbed her fingers on the side of his head, then stroked them down his face. “Because God likes to play jokes on me sometimes,” she said. “Not always funny ones.” Leo nodded at Mum, but he knew that wasn’t the reason.
What do You think about Goodnight, Beautiful: A Novel?
