said....”
“What?”
I blurted it out.
“That your brother was dead. He said Colin had died.”
“He has Nicky.”
Simon said this in such a ‘matter of fact’ way, like he was talking about his pet goldfish or a character on a soap opera that he didn’t particularly like. I immediately thought back to the visits that my Dad and I had made to the hospital and the hospice to see Mum, how I had cried at her bedside, engulfed with sorrow. This just did not seem right. A bit of me was annoyed with him.
“Then why aren’t you crying?”
His voice waivered a little as he replied,
“It doesn’t seem real, Nicky. It just doesn’t seem real.”
Part Three
The Penny Pinchers
ZARA –May 2011
Flo and I were walking back to our cars after work. It was a lovely, warm day but I was in no mood to be enjoying the sunshine. Penny Pinchers queues had been ten deep all day and that was with three tills open.
“God, it’s been hectic today,” I said to Flo, “I’ll be glad when this credit crunch is over, so everyone doesn’t come looking for bargains in our place.”
“I know. Chaos. Have you noticed that only ugly people ever come in? Rows and rows of ugly people. I reckon there must be a sign on the door saying, ‘If you’re ugly, come on in and fill a basket full of useless crap, but if you’re good looking, piss off, you are not welcome in our scummy shop!’”
This was an opportunity to tell Flo my news.
“Talking about good looking lads, I haven’t had chance to tell you, it’s all off with Danny.”
“Honestly! Bloody hell, Zara, what happened, I thought you were well keen?”
“It was a mutual decision. Well, sort of, anyway.”
Flo and I had been friends since nursery. She knew me too well.
“So, Danny rang you and finished it and you said ‘OK’!”
“No. Not exactly.”
“What then?”
“He text me to finish it, so I text him back and told him he could go and screw himself, but he’d best buy himself a microscope first, otherwise he’d struggle to find it.”
“Well done you. Are you bothered?”
“To be honest, Flo, I’ve been quite upset about it. I nearly didn’t come into work today.”
“Mr.Brazier would have loved that! How long were you and Danny together?”
“Three and a half weeks.”
I could see Flo was about to start laughing at me. She did that a lot. So did everyone else, to be honest.
“And you were going to take a day off sick, Zara, because you’d split up. After three and a half weeks! Mr.Brazier would have gone potty.”
“It was an intense three and a half weeks though, Flo. Was there not a film called ‘Three and a half weeks’?”
“No, that was nine and half weeks.”
“No, not that one.”
“Three men and a baby?”
“That’s it! I loved Danny, Flo. I know it was less than a month, but he was quite nice to me sometimes. Anyway, I wouldn’t have told Mr.Brazier I was staying off because of a trauma in my personal life. I’d have said it was because of severe period pains. Men can’t argue with that.”
“They can if they have a memory, Zara. You were off three days last week with severe period pains.”
“So? I’d just say they’re irregular. Do men even know how often we bleed?”
“They say ‘time of the month’ often enough, so I guess they do.”
“Mr.Brazier might not.”
“I think he would.”
“Men are bastards though, aren’t they, Flo? Not one has ever been really nice to me. Not once they get to know me, anyway. I don’t know why we put up with them.”
“I know why you do!”
“Why?”
“Because you like a good six inches!”
“You cheeky cow!”
“Deny it then.”
I looked at Flo and cracked up, as did she, as I say she knew me better than anyone.
“OK, that might be true, but I wanted them to be nice to me all day, not just when they want to get their end away.”
“Stop going for the players then.”
“Flo, that’s not my fault, they go for
“What?”
I blurted it out.
“That your brother was dead. He said Colin had died.”
“He has Nicky.”
Simon said this in such a ‘matter of fact’ way, like he was talking about his pet goldfish or a character on a soap opera that he didn’t particularly like. I immediately thought back to the visits that my Dad and I had made to the hospital and the hospice to see Mum, how I had cried at her bedside, engulfed with sorrow. This just did not seem right. A bit of me was annoyed with him.
“Then why aren’t you crying?”
His voice waivered a little as he replied,
“It doesn’t seem real, Nicky. It just doesn’t seem real.”
Part Three
The Penny Pinchers
ZARA –May 2011
Flo and I were walking back to our cars after work. It was a lovely, warm day but I was in no mood to be enjoying the sunshine. Penny Pinchers queues had been ten deep all day and that was with three tills open.
“God, it’s been hectic today,” I said to Flo, “I’ll be glad when this credit crunch is over, so everyone doesn’t come looking for bargains in our place.”
“I know. Chaos. Have you noticed that only ugly people ever come in? Rows and rows of ugly people. I reckon there must be a sign on the door saying, ‘If you’re ugly, come on in and fill a basket full of useless crap, but if you’re good looking, piss off, you are not welcome in our scummy shop!’”
This was an opportunity to tell Flo my news.
“Talking about good looking lads, I haven’t had chance to tell you, it’s all off with Danny.”
“Honestly! Bloody hell, Zara, what happened, I thought you were well keen?”
“It was a mutual decision. Well, sort of, anyway.”
Flo and I had been friends since nursery. She knew me too well.
“So, Danny rang you and finished it and you said ‘OK’!”
“No. Not exactly.”
“What then?”
“He text me to finish it, so I text him back and told him he could go and screw himself, but he’d best buy himself a microscope first, otherwise he’d struggle to find it.”
“Well done you. Are you bothered?”
“To be honest, Flo, I’ve been quite upset about it. I nearly didn’t come into work today.”
“Mr.Brazier would have loved that! How long were you and Danny together?”
“Three and a half weeks.”
I could see Flo was about to start laughing at me. She did that a lot. So did everyone else, to be honest.
“And you were going to take a day off sick, Zara, because you’d split up. After three and a half weeks! Mr.Brazier would have gone potty.”
“It was an intense three and a half weeks though, Flo. Was there not a film called ‘Three and a half weeks’?”
“No, that was nine and half weeks.”
“No, not that one.”
“Three men and a baby?”
“That’s it! I loved Danny, Flo. I know it was less than a month, but he was quite nice to me sometimes. Anyway, I wouldn’t have told Mr.Brazier I was staying off because of a trauma in my personal life. I’d have said it was because of severe period pains. Men can’t argue with that.”
“They can if they have a memory, Zara. You were off three days last week with severe period pains.”
“So? I’d just say they’re irregular. Do men even know how often we bleed?”
“They say ‘time of the month’ often enough, so I guess they do.”
“Mr.Brazier might not.”
“I think he would.”
“Men are bastards though, aren’t they, Flo? Not one has ever been really nice to me. Not once they get to know me, anyway. I don’t know why we put up with them.”
“I know why you do!”
“Why?”
“Because you like a good six inches!”
“You cheeky cow!”
“Deny it then.”
I looked at Flo and cracked up, as did she, as I say she knew me better than anyone.
“OK, that might be true, but I wanted them to be nice to me all day, not just when they want to get their end away.”
“Stop going for the players then.”
“Flo, that’s not my fault, they go for
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