It's Only Temporary (23 page)

As I plonked myself down disconsolately in my chair I noticed Donna staring at me, for a moment I thought she was going to arrest me. Having never had dealings with the police b
efore in thirty four years, to then be arrested twice in one day must be some sort of record I reflected. At least it would have given me an escape route.

‘I’m Lizzie,’ the next lady said as she sat sideways on her chair, ‘I know Karate.’

Sitting through five minutes of silence with Lizzie I realised to my dismay that I still had another three dates to go. As soon as Rebecca announced it was time to change Lizzie was gone in the manner of an Olympic sprinter getting out of the blocks. Rebecca then announced that ‘Due to unforeseen circumstances the next date will be the last,’ glaring at me as she did so.

Trying to avoid eye
contact for as long as possible I stared at my shoes, I was aware that my next victim had apparently plucked up the courage to seat themselves at the table so I reluctantly looked up.

‘Hello I’m Stacy.’

Thank god! ‘Can we just go please?’

‘Why are you embarrassed to be seen with me?’

‘Hardly, I have insulted or assaulted everyone who has sat in that chair.’

‘Well, this is your chance to finish on a high note.’

‘Ok,’ I said reluctantly. ‘Carry on.’

‘Y’know seeing as you have become a bit of an enigma tonight, I thought you might wanna go first?’

‘Not really.’

‘Try.’

‘What do I say?’

‘Whatever it is that y
ou have said to the other girls, but without the insults or physical violence though.’

‘Ok…I’m Marcus
… Oh this is stupid!’

‘Try,’ she said again more firmly.

‘I’m thirty four.’

‘And what do you do Marcus?’ She was attempting to role play, I had no idea why.

‘I’m an Egyptologist.’

‘Hmmm, and who do you teach……currently?’

‘Unive… err no, young people who are apparently hard to reach,’ I said getting into the swing of things.

‘Really, where’s that then?’

‘At a local day centre.’

‘Hmmm what’s it like?’

‘It’s…it’s. Great I guess.’

‘You guess?’

I found myself speaking before I was sure of what I was going to say; this was very unlike me but for some reason I found it liberating. 

‘Yes, it is. There is an atmosphere inside the building that transports you away from
the noise and the grime outside. An oasis of pleasantness in an altogether unpleasant world, where young people have the opportunity to develop as human beings.’

‘That’s lovely,’ she said.

‘Yes it is, because of you.’

‘Me?’

‘Oh don’t be obtuse,’ her smile faded a little at that. ‘You
are
the centre, you’re the reason Dan paints pictures but only puts the sun shining in the ones of you.’

She was silent for a few seconds then said ‘I

didn’t know.’

‘Oh yeah, have a look all the ones of you…’

‘No. I meant I didn’t know that’s how you felt,

how
you saw things.’

‘Well… you do now.’

‘And time!’ Rebecca called.

Chapter 22.

Once back in Dolly Stacy started to laugh, ‘You told her you didn’t like Indians?’

‘I meant curries.’

‘You plonker! No wonder she was offended.’

‘At least she wasn’t injured.’

‘Well yeah, there is that. Actually I had a word with the lady you nutted.’

‘Oh?’

‘Yeah, I explained that you were an exceptional case. She was very understanding and didn’t hold a grudge at all, as long as you never go near her again…’

‘Oh, ok….. Hang on, special case?’

‘Yep.’

‘Meaning?’

‘I told her you had been locked away in an institution for fifteen years. Was I wrong?’

‘Well no, but she would have thought you meant something totally different!’

‘I wonder why?’

We drove on in silence for a period before she said ‘You have to be the world’s worst speed dater!’

‘Agreed. So what
’s next?’ I asked meaning was she dropping me at Henrietta Street.

‘Er, they send us an email with any matches on.’

‘No I mean..matches?’

‘Yeah, y’know the card we handed in?’

‘I didn’t bother.’

‘Yes you did.’

‘No, I filled it in but then realised it was pointless so I didn’t hand it in.’

‘Yes you did, via me.’

‘What? Why did you do that?’

‘I just wanted to see if anyone was crazy enough to be interested in you I guess.’

‘Well that’s hardly likely is it? Besides I am going away in two weeks remember, what’s the point?

‘Yeah, I remember,’ she said quietly.

There was another period of silence then she said ‘I knew I should have had my hair done, my flippin roots are showing,’ looking at herself in the mirror.

Was she serious? ‘Don’t be so naive,’

‘Naïve?’

‘Yeah, no amount of artificial interference would do anything for your appearance, or your personality for that matter.’

‘Really?’ she said with a hard edge to her voice.

‘No, they are perfect as they are.’

‘Really?’ she repeated but this time much more quietly.

We were nearing
Henrietta street, ’Here will do,’ I said.

She pulled over, ‘Listen I have had some stuff
come through about the proposed youth club,’ she said as I got out. I looked at her and nodded, ‘Soooo, I guess we are gonna talk about that Monday?’ she asked.

‘For sure,’ I said closing the door.

As I entered my room I found an envelope which had been pushed under the door, my first mail I realised. Picking it up I saw it was from America, Hank had sent the air tickets which I was very gratified to note were in business class. There was an itinerary which told me everything I needed to know, from the time that a car would collect me, through to which apartment I would be staying in during my visit. It also told me that following my arrival on the Tuesday of that week I would have two days “orientation”, give a presentation on the third day and an interview on the fourth which was the Friday. I would have the weekend there and would be advised via an informal meeting of the outcome on the Monday. It didn’t mention anything about my return.

Settling down to sleep I was surprised to find that I had not been in my room for nearly twenty four hours and in that time I had been pepper sprayed,  arrested, incarcerated albeit temporarily, gone speed dating, accused of being a racist and had head butted someone, an eventful day.

I took my time with everything on Sunday and simply wanted to rest, however at around lunch time there was a knock on the door.

‘Wotcha mate,’ Alfie said.

‘Morning Alfie.’

‘Lunch time, let’s go.’

‘Where?’ I really did not want to do anything except sit around and eat something.

‘The boozer, it’s on me again. My way of saying sorry for getting you banged up.’

Banged up? Oh arrested. I was very hungry I realised, ‘Ok, sounds good.’

During lunch I updated Alfie on my situation, he was of the opinion that things were “Looking up”.

‘So how was it with the Rozzers?’ he asked.

‘Rozzers?’

‘The police, they give you a hard time?’

‘No, other than nearly blinding me in your flat whilst you were paralytic.’

‘Yeah, sorry about that mate.’

‘Don’t worry, that was the least of my problems.’

‘Huh?’

‘I ended up speed dating in the evening.’

His laughter was only interrupted by the arrival of our meals, ‘You went speed dating? Why?’

‘Stacy made me.’

His laughter stopped abruptly, ‘Stacy
made
you?’

‘Yeah.’

‘How exactly did a five foot four slip of a girl
make
you do anything?’

‘Well….first off she wouldn’t pick me up from the police station unless I agreed to do whatever she said. Second I didn’t’ find out that’s what it was until it was too late.’

He smiled and nodded, ‘Yeah I get it.’

Yet again
I was not sure what his meaning was but before I could begin to fathom another “Alfie-ism” as I had begun to call them he asked me, ‘So what was it like?’

I gave him the full unedited version of my horrific experience, when I mentioned the head butting he was struggling to breath and gesturing for me to stop. ‘Please, please, no more! You should be on the stage!’

Once he had regained his composure I mentioned the idea of the youth club and recounted the short conversation I had with Stacy as I got out of Dolly.

‘So you didn’t go back to her’s to
discuss
it then?’ he made the annoying quotation marks with his fingers as he said the word discuss. I had no idea what he was getting at but then again I did not know what he was on about most of the time, so I simply said ‘No.’

‘Right. Anyway I reckon I can help ya.’

‘How’s that?’

‘Sponsorship….of a sort.’

I waited for him to continue, ‘If you get the right gear I will put on one of my acts each week F,O,C, say on a Friday? I will advertise it n all that. Should get a few punters to your door.’

‘F,O,C,?’

‘Free of charge.’

‘Oh. But Alfie, it’s not a rave or whatever.’

‘Nah, it will be sweet. I have one guy who gets people up from the crowd and teaches em to rap! Its brill.’

I was very sceptical and he could see that, ‘It’s cool. Listen I will advertise it as up to sixteen years only and that there’s no booze and all tha
t. Start at seven done and dusted by ten before the pubs kick out, no worries.’

‘I’ll run it past Stacy.’

‘You do that; tell her about my idea at the same time.’

T
hat one completely confused me.

‘Course, she’s gonna have to get past the Parish Council first.’

Using the back of a menu he made me a list of equipment he thought we would need, ‘Ask about. Stick up posters, stuff like that. I’m sure you will get something sorted.’

Monday morning saw me waiting outside for Stacy clutching the menu in my
hand; Stacy also had a piece of paper in hers.

‘I’ve got a list,’ I said.

‘Me too.’

I showed her my list and explained Alfie’s offer, ‘Well we will have to see,’ she said. ’I have a date with the Parish Council first.’ It was on the Monday I found out if I had a job in Texas, when I told her she looked disappointed but smiled and said, ‘Ah well, looks like I’m gonna go to this date on my own then.’

Then she said, ‘Wanna see my list?’ handing me a piece of paper. It was my prospective dates from Saturday night, there was one name. Stacy.

‘I’m not surprised,’ I said.

‘What do you mean?’

‘Well that I didn’t get any.’

‘You got one.’

‘Yeah, but not a real one.’

‘Oh, I see.’

‘What about yours?’ I asked.

‘Don’t know yet, I guess they will email that when they get around to it,’ She walked into her office and closed the door.

Chapter 23.

A short while later Yu called us for breakfast, I was almost finished by the time Stacy reappeared for hers, ‘Ermm, can I check my emails?’ I asked.

‘Sure,’ she said sounding completely unlike her normal self, there was an edge to her voice that I had not heard before. ‘I’ve got my list now, four names on it, not yours though.’

‘Well no,’ I was surprised she would think my name would be there. She may have felt I was in need of a charity vote but I had not thought that she would need or even want that to be reciprocated. She evidently did not need my vote as she had four names anyway and she of course would not have wanted me to be on her list simply for the sake of it.