I’ve put in a few hours online and I’ve sharpened up my game a little. I mean, I’m no Frank. But I won’t let them down. I hope. Actually, I think I’m a little better than Ollie, who asked me at our first practice session if I was dating Linus, and when I said, ‘Yes,’ looked deflated for about thirty seconds, then said, manfully, ‘Well, let’s just be good friends and team-mates, then.’ He is quite a cutie, old Ollie.
‘I bought some Cokes for the team!’ Dad arrives at the door of the playroom.
‘Chris!’ Mum frowns. ‘I got them water!’
‘One Coke won’t hurt.’
‘Oh God. Look at this,’ Mum is peering around the room as though for the first time. ‘Look at this room. Coke? Krispy Kremes? Computers?’ It’s like the triumvirate of all the things she despises and fears. I feel quite sorry for her. ‘Are we bad parents?’ She turns to Dad. ‘Seriously. Are we bad parents?’
‘Maybe.’ He shrugs. ‘Probably. What of it?’
‘Are we, Audrey?’ She wheels round to me.
‘Hit and miss,’ I say, deadpan.
‘We’re not as bad as these guys,’ says Dad in sudden inspiration, and hands her a copy of the Daily Mail which he must have bought while he was out. ‘Read this.’
Mum grabs the Mail and her eyes fall avidly on a headline.
‘We have to wear identical clothes every day,’ she reads. ‘Mum forces her six kids into matching clothes. Oh my God.’ She looks up, totally cheered. ‘We’re so not as bad as this! Listen: The children are teased at school but Christy Gorringe, thirty-two, is unrepentant. I like my kids to match,’ she says. ‘I buy my fabric wholesale.’ Mum shakes her head in disbelief. ‘Have you seen them?’
She turns the paper round so we can see a line-up of six miserable kids, all in matching spotted shirts.
‘That’s made my day!’ Mum hastily adjusts her expression. ‘I mean, poor kids.’
‘Poor kids.’ Dad nods.
‘But at least we’re not as bad as that.’ She hits the paper. ‘At least I don’t make my children wear vile matching clothes. Things could be worse.’
I don’t know where Mum would be in life without the Daily Mail.
MY SERENE AND LOVING FAMILY – FILM TRANSCRIPT
INT. 5 ROSEWOOD CLOSE. DAY
The camera (held by Dad) shows the playroom littered with empty Coke cans and water bottles.
Seen from behind, Frank, OLLIE, Linus and Audrey are playing LOC intensely. Mum is looking from screen to screen, peering over their shoulders and trying to follow, without success.
FRANK
Go on him. Jesus.
He clicks madly and his screen explodes in graphics.
MUM
(alertly)
What was that? Which one’s you?
LINUS
Initiate. Initiate.
AUDREY
Stay in the trees. Nooo! Ollie, you noob.
Ollie is desperately clicking, his face red.
OLLIE
Sorry.
Mum’s head is swivelling wildly from screen to screen.
MUM
Are you dead? What happens when you die? How can you keep up?
FRANK
Fireblast the fucker. Die! Die!
MUM
(shocked)
Frank!
A series of Russian swearing comes from the audio Skype link.
FRANK
Na kaleni, cyka.
MUM
What does that mean? Is that in the game?
LINUS
It’s Russian. You don’t want to know what it means.
MUM
So is that chap a Russian? Or is that you, Frank?
She points at the screen.
MUM
I mean, they all look the same to me. Do they look the same to you, Chris?
The camera (held by Dad) focuses in on a screen.
DAD (VOICE-OVER)
Of course they’re not the same. Die! Die!
We didn’t win. Not only did we not win, we were stomped.
I think Mum was genuinely shocked. I think she’d mentally checked us in for the finals in Toronto and the six-million-dollar prize pot, with her lording it over all the other parents.
‘So, how did they beat you?’ she said in astonishment when we’d finally got it through to her.
‘They played better,’ said Frank despondently. ‘They were really good.’
‘Well, you’re really good too,’ says Mum at once. ‘You killed loads of people. I mean, you have great technique, Frank. Doesn’t he, Chris? Very good technique.’
You have to love Mum. She’s now behaving as though the only thing she rates in life is LOC.
‘Anyone want the last Krispy Kreme?’ she says, and we all shake our heads. It’s a pretty sad atmosphere in here, what with the silent computers and the Coke cans and the air of defeat, and I think Mum realizes this.
‘Well, anyway!’ she says brightly. ‘We’ll go out for a team lunch to celebrate the taking part. Pizza Express, everyone?’
‘Cool.’ Frank takes off his headset and switches off his laptop. ‘And then I might go into the Fox and Hounds,’ he says casually. ‘Ade said I could help in the kitchen or whatever at weekends. I need to talk to the head chef. I’ll give Ade a ring now, sort it out.’
‘Oh.’ Mum looks a bit flummoxed. ‘Well . . . OK, Frank. Good idea!’ As he lopes out of the room, she turns to Dad, her jaw sagging. ‘Did I hear that right? Is Frank getting himself a job?’
But Dad can’t hear. He’s put on one of the headsets and is logged into another LOC game with Ollie.
‘Dad, can you play?’ I say in surprise.
‘Oh, I’ve picked up a bit,’ he says, and clicks furiously. ‘Here and there.’
‘But who are you playing with?’
‘A couple of friends from school,’ says Ollie, who is equally engrossed. ‘They were online, so . . . Go on him!’
‘I’m on it,’ says Dad breathlessly. ‘Oh, shit. Sorry.’
Mum is staring at Dad, flabbergasted. ‘Chris, what are you doing?’ She pokes his shoulder. ‘Chris! I’m talking to you! Did you hear what I said about Frank?’
‘Right.’ Dad pulls off the headset for a moment. ‘Yes. I heard. Ground him.’
I can’t help giggling, and even Mum gives a little smile.
‘Get back to the game, you big kid,’ she says. ‘But we’re going out in half an hour, OK? Half an hour. And I don’t care if you have to interrupt the game.’
‘OK,’ says Dad, sounding just like Frank. ‘Great. Yeah. Can’t wait.’ He clicks madly, then punches the air as the screen explodes in colour. ‘Die, you bastard! Die!’
MY SERENE AND LOVING FAMILY – FILM TRANSCRIPT
INT. 5 ROSEWOOD CLOSE. DAY
The camera wobbles as someone stabilizes it on a high surface. As this person backs away we see that it is AUDREY, in her bedroom. She hesitates, then peers into the camera.
AUDREY
So, this is me. Audrey. You haven’t met me yet. I’m probably not what you expected. Like, my hair’s probably darker or lighter or whatever . . . Anyway. Hello. Nice to meet you.
She pulls up a chair and looks into the camera for a while, as though sorting out her own thoughts.
AUDREY
I’ve been thinking a lot about everything. And I guess Mum was right about the jagged-graphs thing. We’re all on one. Even Frank. Even Mum. Even Felix. I think what I’ve realized is, life is all about climbing up, slipping down, and picking yourself up again. And it doesn’t matter if you slip down. As long as you’re kind of heading more or less upwards. That’s all you can hope for. More or less upwards.