The clerk looked even more embarrassed.
‘Er...So that you will have plenty of room on the flight. Plenty of room to sit It’s a long flight from Singapore to Sydney. The basketball team has already booked out the bulkhead seats. They need room to stretch their long legs.’
‘Don’t you know who I am, young man?’
The clerk nodded. ‘ Your name is on your passport. And I’ve seen you on Singapore television.’
‘I’m Fifi ... the famous model. I’m known all over Asia and in Europe. My BIG T-shirts with gnome slogans are my trademark. Gnomes are now fashionable, thanks to me!’
‘The famous model ...’ echoed the clerk. ‘D’ you mind if I call my supervisor?’
Christopher nudged Amy. ‘She’s the one who wears the Gi-normous Fifi shirts on the TV. ads.’
Amy was busy examining her package for clues. No stamps. No sender and it wasn’t addressed to anyone on the front. And yet the mystery man had chosen her. Why?
When Christopher nudged her again ,Amy looked up and recognised Fifi.
‘She compered the Fifi-shirt fashion parade at that Tee-Riffic store in Orchard Road yesterday afternoon.’ she whispered.
People who liked shopping loved Singapore shops. Mum hated shopping so they bought next year’s clothes all at once. Amy liked browsing in Arab Street for Malay jewellery, but Mum didn’t like browsing anywhere. Fashion parades didn’t interest her.
Impressed by Fifi’s shape, Christopher was working out how to draw the ex-model.’ She’d be wonderful to draw! All curves. And if the garden gnome sat on her lap, I’ll draw that too.’
Fifi’s upper arms wobbled.
To get a closer look, Christopher grabbed Amy’s autograph book, took one of his top pocket pens and pushed forward.
‘Excuse me. Could I ask a favour? Could I have an autograph for my sister? She wants to be a model when she grows up.’
Fifi’s teeth dazzled as she signed the autograph book. ‘There you are dear. Maybe you’ll be like me when you grow up.’
Amy didn’t say anything. Yesterday’s shopping had put her off buying clothes for life. Interestingly Fifi looked very comfortable with her size, not like some fat people.
‘I must move on. Being famous takes so much of my time.’
‘Thank you very much.’ Christopher looked carefully at the squiggles. They looked like tiny graffiti.
‘Fifi’ was hard to read in those squiggles.
‘I don’t want to be a model when I grow up. I’m going to be Prime Minister.’ hissed Amy. ‘And it doesn’t matter what you wear then, even if you’re a MODEL Prime Minister!’
Christopher pretended not to hear. He was sketching.
‘Give me back my autograph book.’
Amy often collected signatures at airports. Her autograph- book was always ready in her backpack. Once she got the whole Australian cricket team to sign.
‘The WOMEN’S cricket team,’ Christopher kept adding.
Other times she collected retro-phone cards, stamps, stickers or badges. Her favourite badge was ‘BAN EVERYTHING’ She wore it on her back jeans pocket until she sat on the pin!
The airport newsagency was nearby. A man was scanning on a machine just inside the door. His friends stood around offering advice. He didn’t seem to have the right money. Or maybe the paper was too big? Perhaps they didn’t understand the language of the instructions on the machine? There was some shouting in what sounded like German. Christopher could recognise the language sounds, but not what they said. He squinted at the SYD label on one man’s briefcase, trying to read his name. ‘BEN something.’
‘Dumkopf!’ spluttered the man with the map looking across at Christopher.
For a moment, Christopher thought the man was talking to him! He felt embarrassed at getting caught watching so closely. ‘Sorry.’
‘He’s talking to himself, not to you,’ muttered Amy.’ Anyway, scanners have a language of their own. You have to speak nicely to them. He hasn’t learnt that yet.’
‘You just follow the instructions,’ said Christopher. ‘They’ve even got pictures showing you what to do.
Did you hear about that guy who wanted a copy of an old CD? He put the real CD on the photocopier and pressed the button. He got a black photocopy of the shape of the round CD.’
Amy laughed. ‘Wouldn’t that mess up the CD? I think “dumpkof “means stupid in German.’ Amy had a jigsaw mind of facts because she read so fast.
‘I’ll remember that, dumpkof.’
Losing interest in the copiers, Amy returned to her mysterious e- disc which had music .
Usually a cover had a name and a band. This one didn’t even say who recorded it. Carefully she opened the cover again.Inside was the flimsy, gleaming disc. Holding it by the sides, she lifted it out carefully.
‘Hey, there’s something underneath!’
Chapter 2
The Queue
Excited by her find, Amy waved the card around. ‘Looks like a business card. 3 DISC, THE GREATEST PUBLIC RADIO STATION in Australia. 3DISC’
Christopher took the card. ‘Great logo.’ He admired the sketch of a microphone.
‘Do you think that card is from the sender, or where it’s supposed to go?’
‘When we get to Sydney, let’s check at the post office. They have telephone directories for everywhere. Or we can Google it.’
.If we’ve got time. Aunty Viv will probably be late.’
‘As usual.’
Then Christopher had another idea.
‘Got any change? Thanks. I’ll only be a minute! Keep our place in the ticket queue.’
Big Ben and the arguers had gone by now. A burly man with a big suitcase joined the queue. He looked a little nervous, especially when he heard Fifi complaining.
Christopher fed money into the available scanner. He lifted the lid and put the 3 DISC card on the glass for copying. It would be useful to have a second copy if the twins were both trying to check where it came from. He pressed the button.
A map slid out.
‘Hey!’ Christopher grabbed the black and white copy. He bent over the marked map. Australian parks with crosses on certain areas.
Why would Big Ben and those travellers need this? Christopher checked the money slot. His coin was still there. Perhaps the man put more money in when it didn’t work the first time? Perhaps they were bush-walkers working out where they wanted to go?
But why had he left his map behind? Maybe he just took one and left the other by mistake?
The German travellers had vanished into the airport crowds. Christopher knew where they were going.
Their bags had SYD on the tags. Probably they’d be on the same plane because, it was another three hours until the next flight to Sydney.
Carefully Christopher folded the map and put it in his sketch book. He also took the copy of the 3 DISC card. He could give the map copy to Big Ben later, on the flight.