Blossom

• Sophie Nguyen, Grade 6, Collingwood College
• Short Story
• 2015

Excellence Award in the 'Beyond Words 2015' competition

I remember when we first found her. We were driving home after a trip into town, and the rain was thundering against the roof of our old ute. I was drawing pictures in the mist on the window, leaning my head against the glass. As the grey-green leaves flew by, my gaze slipped down to the side of the road. A shape was lying there. “STOP!” I cried, and the car skidded on the wet dirt road. “CASSIE!” Mum gasped as I threw open the car door. I didn’t hear her. I jumped out into the rain. Stumbling through the mud, I gasped as I saw what was lying on the side of the road. The wallaby wasn’t dead yet, she was breathing in short gasps, her leg obviously broken. Her frightened eyes stared up at me, pleading. “Cassie! What do you think you’re doing?” Mum cried, stumbling out of the car. “Oh my...” she stopped in her tracks as she saw the creature lying next to me. She dropped to her knees at my side. “Is it still alive?” she asked, gazing at the poor animal lying helpless in front of us. I nodded, without looking up. “She’s a she,” I whispered, and Mum sighed. “I guess we’ll be camping out tonight,” she smiled, and gave me a quick hug. “I’ll get some blankets from the car.” Dad and Jimmy were still in the car, and I could hear mum explaining what had happened. We stayed with the wallaby all night, wrapped in blankets, with the ute sheltering us from the rain.
In the morning, she was dead. Jimmy started crying when I told him. He was only five. “Oh, sweetie,” mum murmured, “sometimes these things happen.” I stayed sitting by the dead wallaby, stroking her soft fur. We had covered her with a blanket last night, and left it on as the sun came up. “Hey, Cassie.” Dad came and sat by me in the mud. “Think we should start heading off.” He rubbed my back. “We’ll be in the car,” he said, starting to get up. Suddenly, something moved under the blanket. “Look!” I breathed, and pointed. A tiny head popped out, followed by the rest of the body, until a whole, very alive joey was standing there, blinking in the sunlight. She sniffed, and started nuzzling the body of her mother. “l reckon that little one's, only been out of the pouch a few times before! She’s a real young one!” Dad whispered in my ear. I nodded, and reached out my hand to the baby wallaby, who sniffed curiously at my fingers. “Well look at that!” exclaimed Dad. “Hey Suzie, come meet Cass’s new friend!” he called to Mum. The joey had a white spot on her nose in the shape of a cherry blossom. “Her name’s Blossom,” I said, stroking her nose, “and her mother’s dead." I looked up at Dad. “So we’ll have to look after her.” “Yes,” said Dad, “we will.”