LERNERT ENGELBERTS Real Bad People - De Harmonie

irthday. A really expensive one that she’d seen in a magazine. But when sheunwrapped her actual birthday present, it turned out to be a nice red rucksack, whichshe needed much more than a stupid jacket with a fur collar and zips all over it,because she’d completely ruined her school bag by refusing to pick it up anddragging it everywhere behind her like a dog on a lead, and so of course she wasgoing to end up with holes in it.She just refused to accept it. She threw the red bag at Mum, with all of myaunts and uncles and Grandma watching, and then she locked herself up in herbedroom for hours. And then, a few days later, Dad came home with the jacket,because my sister was inconsolable and the atmosphere at home had becomeunbearable.My parents totally overindulge her, because they want to make her seem asnormal as possible. She decided she didn’t like her specially adapted bike anymoreso they went out and swapped it for a proper ladies’ bike, which I knew would be thedeath of her one of these days, because she wobbled about all over the road on it,and she didn’t do that at all when she had the stabilisers.Mum cycled beside my sister on the way to the small shopping centre and wehad to keep stopping every five minutes to rest because my sister is in such badshape. It’s because she eats so many sweets in secret, which everyone knows aboutreally.Claire and Mum went inside while I hung around outside in the doorway. Thehairdresser’s stank of chemical dye and shampoo and when it was all mixed togetherit smelled just like shit, and I wasn’t in the mood for the hairdresser anyway. Mumsaid he batted for the other side and I didn’t want him to start making commentsabout my hair and saying that he had a great idea for a new style for me.