The Hidden Garden
a retelling of The Secret Garden
edited by Jane Mouttet
Chapter 17 – Colin’s Tantrum
Mary had woken up very early that morning and worked hard in the garden. By the time supper came, she was so tired that she was ready to go to bed as soon as she finished eating. As she laid her head on her pillow, she mumbled to herself: “I’ll go out before breakfast and work with Dickon. After that—I think—I’ll go see Colin.”
It felt like the middle of the night when she suddenly woke up to a terrible noise. She jumped out of bed in shock, her heart pounding. What was that? Doors were slamming, footsteps were rushing down the corridors, and someone was screaming and crying at the same time, creating a dreadful racket.
“It’s Colin,” she whispered to herself. “He’s having one of those tantrums the nurse called hysterics. It sounds awful.”
As she listened to the shrieking cries, she understood why everyone was afraid to stand up to Colin. They probably gave him everything he wanted just to avoid hearing these horrible sounds. She covered her ears and shivered. The noise made her feel sick.
“I don’t know what to do. I can’t bear it,” she kept saying. She wondered if she should go to Colin but then remembered how angry he had been with her earlier. Maybe seeing her would only make things worse.
Even though she pressed her hands harder over her ears, she could still hear the screaming. The awful sound made her so angry that she wanted to throw her own tantrum! She stamped her foot in frustration.
“He has to be stopped!” she cried. “Someone needs to make him stop!”
Just then, the door to her room flew open, and the nurse came rushing in. She wasn’t laughing like before. In fact, she looked quite pale.
“He’s worked himself into hysterics!” the nurse said urgently. “He’ll hurt himself. No one can calm him down. You need to come and help! He likes you.”
Mary frowned. “He yelled at me and threw me out of his room earlier!” she said, stamping her foot again.
The nurse didn’t seem bothered by Mary’s angry stamp. In fact, she looked relieved. “That’s the right spirit!” she said. “Go in there and give him something else to think about. Scold him if you have to! Please go, and quickly!”
Mary felt her own temper rising as she hurried down the corridor. The closer she got to Colin’s room, the more upset she became. By the time she reached his door, she was so mad that she pushed it open with a loud slap and stormed over to the bed.
“Stop it!” she shouted at him. “Stop it right now! I hate you! Everyone hates you! I wish everyone would leave the house and let you scream yourself to death! You’ll scream yourself to death in a minute, and I hope you do!”
These were harsh words, but it was precisely what Colin needed to hear. No one had ever dared to speak to him like that before. He was lying on his stomach, hitting his pillow with his fists, but when he heard Mary’s furious voice, he stopped and looked up in shock. His face was red, swollen, and tear-streaked. He was gasping for breath between sobs. But Mary didn’t care one bit.
“If you scream one more time,” she threatened, “I’ll scream too! And I’ll scream louder than you and scare you even more!”
Colin stared at her, stunned into silence. The scream he had been about to let out got stuck in his throat. He was shaking all over, tears streaming down his face.
“I can’t stop!” he gasped, choking on his sobs. “I can’t!”
“Yes, you can!” Mary shouted back. “You’re having hysterics! It’s just hysterics! There’s nothing wrong with you except your temper! Turn over. Let me look at your back!”
Colin’s eyes widened. He had never heard the word “hysterics” before, but it seemed to have an effect on him. He was still shaking and crying, but the screaming had stopped.
“Nurse!” Mary demanded. “Come here and show me his back!”
The nurse, Mrs. Medlock, and Martha had all been standing by the door, too afraid to come in. But when Mary called out, the nurse hurried forward, even though she looked nervous. Colin was still sobbing, but now he whispered through his tears: “Show her… let her see.”
The nurse pulled back the blankets, revealing Colin’s thin back. Mary bent over and examined it with a stern expression. There was nothing wrong with his back. Every rib and bone could be seen because he was so thin, but there was no lump.
“There’s not a lump anywhere,” Mary declared firmly. “Not a single one! If you ever say there is again, I’ll laugh at you.”
Colin was still crying, but Mary’s harsh words made him stop writhing and listen. Deep down, he had been terrified of having a lump on his back, but now, hearing someone insist there was no lump, he felt a strange sense of relief.
The nurse spoke up. “I didn’t know he thought he had a lump on his back. His back is weak because he doesn’t sit up enough, but there’s no lump.”
“See?” Mary said, looking at Colin. “It’s all in your head.”
Colin turned onto his stomach again and sobbed quietly into his pillow. For the first time, his crying wasn’t due to fear, but rather to the strange relief he felt. After a moment, he asked the nurse in a soft voice: “Do you think I’ll live to grow up?”
The nurse looked at him kindly. “You probably will if you listen to what you’re told and spend more time outside.”
Colin’s tantrum had worn him out, and now that the worst was over, he felt weak. He reached out his hand toward Mary, and she, feeling sorry for him, took it.
“I’ll go outside with you, Mary,” Colin said quietly. “I won’t hate the fresh air if we can go together. I’d like to see Dickon and the animals.”
The nurse fixed Colin’s bed and gave him a cup of beef tea. She made one for Mary, too, who was happy to drink it after all the excitement had subsided. Mrs. Medlock and Martha slipped out of the room, and after everything was calm and quiet, the nurse looked as though she wanted to leave too.
“You should get some sleep,” she said to Mary. “He’ll fall asleep soon, and I’ll lie down in the next room.”
“Do you want me to sing you that song my Ayah taught me?” Mary whispered to Colin.
Colin nodded and held her hand tightly. “Yes, please. It’s so soft and nice. I’ll fall asleep right away.”
The nurse left the room, and Colin looked at Mary with tired eyes. “I almost told you the secret,” he said, “but I stopped myself just in time.”
“Go to sleep,” Mary said gently. “I’ll tell you more tomorrow.”
“Do you think you’ve found a way into the hidden garden?” Colin whispered, his voice trembling with excitement.
Mary looked at his tired face and smiled. “Yes,” she said softly. “I think I have. If you go to sleep, I’ll tell you tomorrow.”
Colin sighed with relief and closed his eyes. “If I could get into the garden,” he whispered, “I think I would live. Can you tell me what you think it looks like inside?”
Mary squeezed his hand. “Close your eyes, and I’ll tell you,” she whispered.
Colin closed his eyes, and Mary began to speak in a soft, soothing voice. She described how the garden might look—overgrown with roses, with daffodils and crocuses pushing up through the earth. As she spoke, Colin grew quieter and quieter. Soon, he was fast asleep, dreaming of the hidden garden.
Chapter 18 – Mary Shares a Secret with Colin
The next morning, Mary didn’t wake up early like usual. She had been so tired from working in the garden that she slept in. When Martha brought her breakfast, she told Mary that Colin was feeling exhausted and feverish, just like he always did after crying so much.
“He says he wants you to come and see him as soon as you can,” Martha said. “It’s strange how much he likes you. You really told him off last night, didn’t you? No one else would have dared. Poor boy! He’s been spoiled so much that it’s hard to know what’s good for him. My mother says the worst thing that can happen to a child is either never getting their way or always getting it. She doesn’t know which one is worse. You were angry, too, but when I went in to see him, he asked, ‘Please ask Miss Mary if she’ll come and talk to me.’ Can you imagine? He said please! Will you go, Miss?”
Mary thought for a moment. “I’ll run and see Dickon first,” she said. “No, wait—I’ll go and see Colin first and tell him something important.”
Mary put on her hat and went to Colin’s room. When she walked in, she saw he looked pale and tired, with dark circles under his eyes.
“I’m glad you came,” Colin said. “My head hurts, and I’m so tired. Are you going somewhere?”
Mary leaned on his bed. “I’m going to see Dickon, but I’ll come back soon. Colin, I have something to tell you—it’s about the hidden garden.”
Colin’s face brightened, and a little color came into his cheeks.
“Oh, is it?” he cried. “I dreamed about the garden all night! I dreamed I was standing in a place full of little green leaves, and there were birds everywhere, sitting on nests. It was so quiet and beautiful. I’ll think about that dream until you come back.”
Mary promised to return soon and hurried out to meet Dickon in their hidden garden. Dickon was there, of course, along with his fox, Captain, and the crow, Soot. This time, he also had two tame squirrels with him!
“I rode over on the pony this morning,” Dickon said, smiling. “He’s a good little chap—his name’s Jump. These two squirrels are called Nut and Shell.”
As soon as he said their names, one squirrel jumped onto his right shoulder and the other onto his left.
They all sat down on the grass—Captain curled up at their feet, Soot watching from a tree, and Nut and Shell exploring nearby. Mary was so happy that it was hard to imagine leaving such a wonderful place. But as she talked to Dickon about Colin, she saw that Dickon felt even more sorry for Colin than she did.
“Just listen to the birds,” Dickon said, looking up at the sky. “It feels like the whole world’s singing. The leaves are opening up, and everything smells so fresh and alive. And poor Colin’s stuck indoors, thinking about things that make him cry. We have to get him out here! He needs to see the sun, smell the fresh air, and feel the grass under his feet. We mustn’t waste any time.”
Dickon spoke in his broad Yorkshire dialect when he was excited, and even though Mary had been learning to speak like him, she wasn’t quite as good at it. Still, she tried her best.
“Yes, we must,” she said proudly. “I know what we can do first. Colin wants to see you, and he wants to see Soot and Captain. When I go back to the house, I’ll ask him if you can visit him tomorrow—and bring your creatures with you. Then, when more leaves are out and maybe a few flowers, we’ll bring him here, and you can push his wheelchair so he can see everything.”
Dickon grinned at Mary’s attempt at Yorkshire. “You did well!” he said, laughing. “You should talk like that to Master Colin. It’ll make him laugh, and laughing is the best medicine. My mother says a good laugh every day can cure anything.”
“I’m going to speak Yorkshire to him today!” Mary said, laughing too.
The garden looked even more beautiful than before. Every day, it seemed like magic was making the flowers grow, the trees bloom, and the birds sing. It was hard to leave, especially when Nut climbed onto Mary’s dress, and Shell came down from a tree to look at her. But Mary knew she had to go back to Colin.
When she returned to his room, Colin was already excited. “You smell like flowers and fresh air!” he said. “What is that lovely smell?”
“It’s the wind from the moor,” Mary said, speaking in her best Yorkshire. “It’s from sitting on the grass under a tree with Dickon, Captain, Soot, Nut, and Shell. It’s springtime, and it smells wonderful.”
Colin laughed. “You’re talking funny!” he said. “I’ve never heard you talk like that before.”
“I’m giving you a bit of Yorkshire!” Mary said proudly. “I can’t speak as well as Dickon or Martha, but I’m trying. Don’t you understand a bit of Yorkshire? You’re a Yorkshire lad yourself!”
They both started laughing, and the sound echoed through the room. Mrs. Medlock, who had come to check on Colin, stood outside the door, amazed.
“Well, I never!” she whispered to herself. “Who would have thought it?”
There was so much to talk about. Colin couldn’t get enough of hearing about Dickon, Captain, Soot, Nut, Shell, and even Jump, the pony. Mary told him how she had seen the pony and how it had nuzzled Dickon’s shoulder like they were best friends.
“Does the pony really understand everything Dickon says?” Colin asked.
“It seems like he does,” Mary answered. “Dickon says anything will understand you if you’re truly friends.”
Colin lay still for a while, thinking. Then he said, “I wish I had something to be friends with. But I don’t. I’ve never had anything, and I can’t stand people.”
“Can’t you stand me?” Mary asked.
“I can stand you,” Colin said. “It’s strange, but I even like you.”
“Ben Weatherstaff says we’re alike,” Mary said. “He said we both have bad tempers and aren’t much to look at. I think you’re like him too. But I don’t feel as angry as I used to—since I met the robin and Dickon.”
“Did you hate people too?” Colin asked.
“Yes,” Mary admitted. “I would’ve hated you if I’d met you before I met the robin.”
Colin reached out and touched her hand. “I’m sorry I said I wanted to send Dickon away. I was mad because you said he was like an angel, but maybe he is.”
Mary smiled. “It was a bit silly to say that because he’s just a boy with a turned-up nose and patched clothes. But if there were a Yorkshire angel, I think it would be someone like Dickon, who knows how to make things grow and talk to animals.”
“I wouldn’t mind Dickon looking at me,” Colin said. “I want to meet him.”
“I’m glad you said that,” Mary said, suddenly excited. “Because—”
She stopped, realizing this was the perfect moment to tell Colin the secret.
“Because what?” Colin asked eagerly.
Mary stood up and grabbed his hands. “Can I trust you? I trusted Dickon because the birds trusted him. Can I trust you for sure?”
Colin nodded. “Yes, yes! You can trust me.”
Mary took a deep breath. “Dickon will come to see you tomorrow morning, and he’ll bring his animals.”
Colin’s eyes lit up. “Oh, really?” he said with delight.
“But that’s not all,” Mary continued, her voice full of excitement. “There’s a door to the hidden garden. I found it. It’s under the ivy.”
Colin’s eyes grew wide with wonder. “Will I see it? Will I get to go inside? Will I live long enough to see it?” He clutched her hands tightly.
“Of course you will!” Mary said fiercely. “Don’t be silly! You’ll see it, and you’ll live long enough to explore it!”
Colin laughed at himself, and soon he and Mary were happily talking about the hidden garden, with all of Colin’s fears forgotten.
Miss previous chapters of The Hidden Garden? You can read them here.
Come back next week for the next chapters in The Hidden Garden.
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