"Fat, chinky kid. Bossy as hell. Whatta pain, dude. Never shuts up. But she's on all the teams."
And she was, too.
So we all bore bullying, and let her, teeth all askew and grinning stupidly-fiendishly, steamroller us into orange icecream and letting practice off early.

But at Inter House Swimming, when I feel a tug on my skirt from out beyond all the towels and bathrobes I'm holding, it is her.
Plump face screwed up a little- Didi [she doesn't know me well enough to remember my name]
-Can I use your cellphone ? My mother hasn't come.
She does; Where are you mamma? I'ts going to start. And my races are all now.
Hands the phone back with a sedate thank you didi.

I watch her, she looks at me and replies that her mother is going to come, but late.
So she must win everything, so that her mother can see her getting the trophy, at the end.

She doesn't win. Competes honourably, but nothing.
After each race, she climbs out, stands back and looks on tiptoe through the crowd.


One of us had to drop her home later.