ONE MONTH AGO ‘Geez! You look like you just lost your best friend.’ Looking up from my Glenlivet 18 Year-old single malt, neat—a double-I notic...ed for the first time the woman who had seated herself next to me when the bar was almost totally empty. ‘That’s exactly what happened, except it’s even worse.’ ‘Why don’t you tell me about it? I’ve found that talking about a problem sometimes helps.’ ‘It’s really kind of personal. I don’t think you’d find it at all interesting, but thanks for the. Janet and his mother had also stopped at the local beauty salon, and Janetnow sported some hair extensions fashioned into pigtails, manicured nails,and painted fingers and toes in a soft pink, suitable for a little girl of6. Janet had protested at first, but a look from his mother, and hequickly sat subdued in the chair as the beauticians worked on him. Janetcouldn't believe that all his dreams were suddenly being forced on him,and he secretly was loving it, thought he had to put on his. Mum smiled as she realised that I was telling the truth. I smiled backwondering if she was testing me. She gave me a slight wink and nodded."If I can be honest," I said."Of course Mikki," Jennifer replied. "We like our members to be honest.No one will judge you." Thank you." I looked around. "Because I hope to take a similar journeyto the one Maria has taken." I paused. "I might not have guessed..." Hold that thought Mikki." Jennifer smiled broadly. "I suspectedsomething was a miss." She got me. Nidhi, who like every other player active in the interschool tournaments, had heard of, and witnessed, Catlina and her formidable talents, was already in awe of her new roommate. Arriving late , around 10pm, after a family dinner with her grandparents and cousins, Nidhi was both disappointed and relieved to find Catlina absent from the room. The only indication that she had been there, was the presence of two hefty looking suitcases lying on a plain white bedsheet on the left side bed. Surely.