(Part 01) Friday
Nerissa Gamboa was in her late twenties and was a legal secretary for
Barrowman, Clarke, Braithwaite and Edwards Solicitors in Finchbottom but on a grey overcast Friday in August she was driving through the perfect English countryside of the Finchbottom Vale on her way to Shallowfield for the bank holiday weekend.
She was originally from Shallowfield but moved away after college and had lived in Finchbottom for close to eight years.
Although she no longer lived there she still had family and friends in Shallowfield including her best friend Victoria Johnson Higham who she first met at nursery who had been her best friend ever since.
They also went to a private Girls School together in Kettlewell and then onto Childean College and Abbottsford University.
While Nerissa was driving through the picturesque Vale, Jonathon Samuel was rattling around it on the 11.50 from Finchbottom as he travelled to Shallowfield to stay with his best mate Jeff Hammett.
Jeff was going to meet him at the station and then he was staying at Jeff’s house for the bank holiday weekend.
The reason he was on the train was because he never learned to drive, he didn’t really see the point, it wasn’t like he went anywhere to speak of and when he did he used public transport.
He lived within 5 minutes’ walk of work and 10 minutes from the station and everywhere else that was of interest to him was also in a ten minute radius of home.
Jeff always teased him about not being able to drive and being at the mercy of public transport but he didn’t mind the jibes, because travelling by train allowed him to indulge his passion which was reading.
Nerissa hadn’t seen her friend for about two months so she was a little excited as she pulled up outside Lyndon-Sanders Properties where Victoria worked.
Nerissa immediately jumped out of the car and the two girls hugged and jigged beside the car.
Nerissa was the older of the two by a few weeks, five foot seven, with Jet-black hair and dark dusky skin while Victoria was an inch taller with red hair and a pale complexion and was cutely freckled.
But the one thing they had in common was that they were still gorgeous.
Although Jon and Jeff were both Shallowfield boys they both left after leaving Childean College to make their way in the world, neither of them fancied University so they both got jobs in Abbottsford with Here, There & Everywhere, who did Domestic and Business Removals but after ten years Jon ended up at the Finchbottom Furniture Palace where he was now the store manager and Jeff was back in his home town as assistant manager of the Shallowfield branch of HT&E.
As Jon emerge from the station he saw Jeff get out of the car.
People who didn’t know them often mistook them for brothers as they were both over six foot tall, dark haired and lantern jawed.
The pair did a brief man hug, exchanged jibes and got in the car.
Vicky and Nerissa drove in convoy to the formers house at the Childean end of the Village and after dropping her bags at the house they went on in Vicky’s car to Childean to have their hair done a Mazzone’s, because they were going to a wedding the next day.
After Jeff had driven Jon to his house they dropped his bags in the hall left the car and walked to The Woodcutters Arms and stayed there most of the day because they were also going to a wedding the next day.
(Part 02) Saturday
Saturday was a glorious day coming at the end of an unsettled week, perfect for an August wedding.
It was very warm, for that late in the summer but it was the type of day that Shallowfield and England was made for.
However apart from being a very pleasant day it was also a very special day at St Mary’s church because the Vicar Ben Shenton was marrying college sweethearts Jim McArthur and Jana Fuller.
Jim was a longtime friend of Jon and Jeff having been through the school system together from beginning to end followed by two years of college.
While Jana had known Nerissa and Victoria since nursery and went to the same private Girls School with them in Kettlewell and then onto Childean College and Abbottsford University.
The Church was packed to the gunwales as the happy couple were both from Shallowfield and they were a very popular pair to boot and truly likeable people, the result of which was that it seemed like most of Shallowfield were there to celebrate the day with them.
Jonathan Samuel and Jeff Hammett were also friends of the bride as well as the groom, and had been since their school days, although they didn’t attend the same schools but they were well known to the Fuller family as they were neighbours.
The Fullers were a wealthy family in Shallowfield so there was a big reception on at the Claremont Hotel to celebrate the nuptials of her daughter and son in law but the numbers of revellers were much reduced from those in the church congregation however the numbers would swell again in the evening where there was a free bar so subsequently a good deal of alcohol would be consumed.
Nerissa and Victoria were bridesmaids so were among the first to arrive at the Claremont and were in the grounds having pictures taken when Jon and Jeff crossed the terrace.
Mother of the bride, Amanda Fuller was sitting at a table by the door of the terrace entrance, some people with money can be standoffish however she was not one of them, she always made a point to make everyone’s acquaintance and spoke to everyone.
“Hello Mrs Fuller” Jeff said
“Hello boys” she replied as she shot to her feet and launched herself at the pair for a rather untidy embrace.
“I’m a bit squiffy” she slurred “to tell the truth”
“Why shouldn’t you be” Jeff said “you should be so proud”
“Oh I am dear” she replied
After the wedding breakfast was over, there was an hour and a half to kill before the evening reception began.
The easiest thing to do would have been to sit in the bar but by early evening a combination of too much beer and not enough food would have taken its toll so Vicky and Nez where considering getting a cab home and getting changed but then another option presented itself.
As it was unbearably hot the boys decided to go back to Jeff’s and get changed out of their suits and they had just stepped out onto the terrace when they were hailed by their ex-college friends Nerissa and Victoria, who were slightly the worse for wear, they turned to see them tottering towards them across the grass, shoes in hand dressed as bridesmaids and ever so slightly tipsy.
(Part 03) Saturday
Jeff knew the girls had always been best friends and were quite inseparable and although he hadn’t seen them for a while he could see were very obviously still gorgeous.
When they knew them at Childean College they were lovely but now they were in their late twenties they were even more so.
They were both really nice girls at college but they were in a different league to them so they were never more than friends, and looking the way they did now it would appear that they were still out of their league.
Jon preferred Nerissa who was an inch shorter than her friend and had Jet-black hair and dark dusky skin.
While Victoria, who was the younger of the two by a few weeks, was five foot eight, red hair and pale complexion and cutely freckled, was Jeff’s personal favourite.
That day the still stunningly beautiful girls were also wearing low cut bridesmaid dresses.
The truth of the matter was that although Jon and Jeff considered the girls as unassailable at college, both Nerissa and Victoria had crushes on them, so they considered them as unfinished business.
Although it was almost ten years since she had last spoken to him the moment Nerissa saw Jon at the church the old feelings she had once had for him resurfaced.
She had seen him a few times around Finchbottom over the years but only from a distance, but now she had him in her sights and as she was a little merry she thought she would take her opportunity.
They tottered up alongside the boys each taking an arm, Nerissa took Jon’s and began flirting outrageously as Victoria slipped her skinny pale arm through Jeff’s.
“Can we come back to yours Jon?” Nerissa said
“Well I live in Finchbottom, so it’s not really practical Nez” he replied
“So where are you going then?” she asked
“We’re going to mine” Jeff replied
“So can we come?” Nez asked “Come on we are house trained”
“It’s not like we’re drunk or anything” Victoria chipped in
“Can we?” Nerissa said again
“Please Jeff?” Victoria begged
“Ok” he said, “as long as you behave”
“What will you do if we don’t?” asked Nerissa
“Will you spank us?” Victoria said and giggled
“I’m completely reassured” Jeff said
It was a bit of luck latching onto them when they did as Jeff’s cottage was only half a mile from the Claremont Hotel, while Victoria’s was at the Childean end of the village a good half an hour yomp in sensible shoes and neither she nor Nerissa were wearing anything remotely like sensible shoes, the fact that she fancied the pants off him was a bonus.
“This is a stroke of luck” Victoria said
“I know” Nerissa agreed
“Let’s stick with them at the party” Victoria suggested innocently
“Oh ok” she replied and giggled already having decided to do just that.
(Part 04) Saturday
Jon thought all his birthdays had come at once, Nerissa Gamboa was flirting with him of all people however in his excitement he spilt aftershave down his trousers and had to blow-dry his crotch which was the last thing you wanted to do on a swelteringly hot day.
So when he returned downstairs 30 minutes later he was looking a little hot and bothered when he joined the girls on the patio.
Nerissa smiled broadly and Victoria’s head drooped as Jeff went inside to get changed.
“So do you two not live in the village anymore?” Jon asked
“I do” said Victoria “but I’m down the Childean end”
“What about you Nerissa?” he asked
“I’ve got a flat in Finchbottom” she replied “But I’m staying with Vic for the weekend”
“Do you two want to freshen up before we go back for the party?” Jeff asked when he returned.
“If you don’t mind?” Victoria said
“Me first” Nerissa said and ran into the house giggling.
Nerissa was in the bathroom for half an hour doing her make-up and freshening up her perfume and doing something with her hair.
Nerissa returned and Victoria slipped away unnoticed to freshen up herself.
Jon began gathering up the dirty mugs and Jeff went inside to run a sink of hot water to wash them up.
When the washing up was done they sat at the table with Nerissa.
“So what are you two doing for the rest of the weekend?” she asked but her eyes were on Jon.
“We haven’t decided yet” Jeff replied and then he heard Victoria behind him and he turned to look at her and when he saw the sun setting her hair ablaze he was lost for words.
“What haven’t you decided yet?” Victoria asked
“I asked what plans they had for the rest of the weekend” Nerissa said
“Oh” she replied
They walked back to the Claremont Hotel as the shadows were lengthening but Nerissa’s flintiness had deserted her so she and Jon were not arm in arm, and Victoria was similarly restrained.
Nerissa had hoped to have Jon’s undivided attention for the evening but as the four of them had so many friends at the party they were all distracted at every turn and apart from an occasional dance she wasn’t able to get to grips with him as she would have liked.
As a consequence Nerissa and Victoria drank more than they planned or was good for them which resulted in them sitting in a corner for the last hour of the party in a state of inebriation.
“Come on you two” Jeff said “it’s time to go”
“Where are we going?” Victoria slurred
“Home” he replied and pulled her to her feet
“Oooh lovely” she replied
“Phwoah” Nerissa added
The temperature had dropped away during the course of the evening and as they left the Hotel Nerissa and Victoria both shivered so Jon and Jeff lent them their jackets for the short walk back to his cottage.
Once they got inside Jon was desperate to use the toilet so Jeff went upstairs to get some bedding for the girls but by the time he got back they were both asleep, one on each sofa, so he draped a duvet of each of them, turned off the light and went to bed.
(Part 05) Sunday
On Sunday morning the dawn chorus was deafening, at least it was to Nerissa, it also hurt her head, Although dawn had broken, the room was still in semi darkness due to the heavy drapes so she ignored the birds and went back to sleep.
She had always been a heavy sleeper and could sleep anywhere, she once fell asleep standing up on a bus.
The next time she woke up it was very abrupt when her head thumped heavily on the arm of the sofa.
“Ouch” she exclaimed
“Sorry Nez” Victoria said as she tiptoed out of the room.
If she didn’t know better she would have thought Victoria had yanked the cushion from beneath her head.
She opened her eyes as wide as she could and tried to focus on something in the room in order to get her bearings.
The best she could manage was to look from one sofa to the other and back again and then the penny dropped.
“Victoria doesn’t have two sofas” she thought and tried to figure out where she was.
“Where the hell are we?” she said out loud
She gingerly sat herself up and swung her legs out from beneath the duvet and put her feet on the floor.
She was relieved to see that she was fully clothed even if she was still wearing the horrible bridesmaids dress.
So at least she hadn’t ended up in some man’s bed, like some sad old slapper, waking up in a strange place and having to do the walk of shame.
She had never been that kind of a girl and at 28 years of age she wasn’t planning on changing any time soon.
Victoria returned as Nerissa tried desperately to identify some point of reference in the room and failed miserably.
The problem was that the brain processes what you can see and then fills in the blanks with things from your memory bank.
I.e. when your eyes become more accustomed to the darkness a sleeping dog on the floor becomes a dressing gown discarded the night before, or a sleeping child on the chair becomes a sweater dropped haphazardly.
Unfortunately Nerissa’s brain wasn’t working properly so she was really struggling to identify any point of reference that would identify her location.
“We’re at Jeff’s” Victoria said and it all came flooding back to her, the party, the free bar, the walk and Jeff’s cottage and then the passing out.
“Oh” she replied “Oh God have we blown it?”
“Probably” she replied
“Shit” Nerissa said
“Quite” Victoria agreed “Now get yourself moving”
“What time is it?” Nez asked
“5.30” she replied “So we might get home before all the decent people are up and about”
“Why would they care?” Nerissa said “It not like we’ve done anything”
“Yes but they don’t know that” Victoria pointed out
Nerissa went to the loo while Victoria folded the duvets and put them neatly on the sofa and then when she returned they let themselves quietly out the front door.
It was very quiet as they walked along the Childean road, fortunately everyone in the village appeared to have started the day late, they didn’t talk much and when they did it revolved around their missed opportunities, but at least they managed to get home without being seen by anyone of any consequence.
(Part 06) Sunday
Nerissa and Victoria stepped through the latter’s front door just after 6.30am and the first thing Nerissa did was to sit down in the lounge while Vic put the kettle.
Nez was sat snoring in the arm chair when Victoria walked into the lounge with a mug of coffee in each hand which she set down on the table and said loudly
“Wake up!”
And Nerissa woke with a start and said.
“Why did you do that? I was having a lovely dream”
“Really?”
“Yes Jon was just about to snog my face off” she said
“Unfortunately I think that ship has sailed” Vic retorted
“Oh don’t say that” Nez said “if they didn’t like us they wouldn’t have looked after us”
“They were just being nice” Vic pointed out
“Because they are nice” Nez remarked
“I know they’re nice, that’s why I’m so cross with myself” she replied
“We embarrassed ourselves Nez, and I don’t know if I could face him after that”
“I think you’re wrong, I don’t believe for a second they will think any less of us” Nerissa said very definitely and then she added “and now I’m going to take first dibs on the shower”
Nerissa was in the shower for an absolute age as she reran the conversation with Victoria in her head.
“I know I’m right” Nerissa said when she was stepping out of the cubicle.
“And I’m not going to give up”
By the time she finally arrived back downstairs Victoria was starving so she suggested to Nerissa that they have a cooked breakfast and she agreed.
They were both ravenously hungry so Victoria went the whole hog, egg, bacon, sausage, fried bread, mushrooms and tomatoes, and they polished off every last morsel and as soon as the last mouthful was consumed and the cutlery was laid noisily on the plates Nerissa said
“Right go and get showered and we can go to St Mary’s”
“I’m not in a mood to rush Nez” she said “you go ahead and I’ll see you there”
“Are you sure hon?” Nerissa asked as she stood by the front door
“Yes, I want to have a leisurely shower and not have to rush around” she replied “I’ll be about half an hour behind you”
“Alright then, I’ll see you soon hon” she said, kissed Vic on the cheek and left.
She drove straight to St Mary’s Church and pulled into the adjacent carpark.
Being a Shallowfield girl she knew a lot of the congregation and she recognized a lot of other faces from the wedding and the reception the day before.
But she also spotted a face in the crowd that she wasn’t expecting to see.
In the end seat on the third row from the back on the left hand side of the aisle was Jonathon Samuel.
“Hello Jon” she said
“Nerissa! Hi” he responded
“Is that seat next to you vacant?” she asked
“Yes” he replied and moved along to make room for her.
“Are you on your own?” she asked
“Yes, Jeff got called out to the yard by the police” he replied
“What happened?”
“Some sort of break in” he said “And where’s Vic?”
“She was feeling a bit jaded this morning, but she’ll be a long before the end of the service” Nez replied
It was during Reverend Shenton’s sermon that Nerissa’s phone vibrated in her bag to alert her to the fact that she had a text.
She resisted the temptation to read it until a particularly dull part of the Vicars sermonizing when she discreetly opened the message.
“Hi Hon, change of plan, going up to the lake, see you later Vic xxx”
A moment later Jonathon felt the tell-tale hum in his pocket and when he checked he also had received a text which read.
“Going sailing, Jeff”
He returned his phone to his pocket and then turned to look at Nerissa, who had already turned to look at him.
“Do you want to go to lunch?” they asked simultaneously.
(Part 07) Sunday
After the service at St Mary’s was over Nerissa and Jonathan mingled briefly at the back of the church before they ambled their way outside.
“So where would you like to go?” she asked “I have the car so we can go wherever we want”
“I think we should go and park the car at Victoria’s and walk to
The Farmers Tavern, that way we can both have a drink”
“That’s a great idea” she agreed
“I was surprised to see you this morning” Nerissa said as she drove them towards Victoria’s house.
“You were surprised to see me up and about so early you mean” he asked
“No I meant in church”
“Really? I go every week” he said
“I didn’t know that, do you have a regular church?”
“Yes” he replied “St Martha’s”
“You’re kidding, I go to St Martha’s, and I’ve never seen you there”
“Do you go to the 11 o’clock?”
“Yes” she replied
“Well I have to open the store on Sunday’s remember so I have to go to the evening service” he explained
“Well that would explain it” she said “perhaps we could go together sometime”
“I’d like that” Jon said
During lunch they took the opportunity to catch up on what had happened in their lives over the ten years since they left college.
They covered all the ups and downs, both personal and professional.
But as they sat at the table drinking coffee after the meal the excesses of the previous night and the lack of sleep began to take its toll.
As it turned out, neither of them wanted the lunch to end but equally neither of them wanted to start yawning and send out the wrong signals.
Jonathon walked Nerissa back to Victoria’s house in relative silence having enjoyed immensely the time they had spent together but were both unsure how to proceed and all the while she was thinking the same thing.
As they approached the house and time was running out, Jon summoned up the courage to ask
“I thought maybe the four of us could go out tonight?”
“Oh yes” she said “Count me in”
There was a moment when they were face to face on the doorstep when they could have kissed, they both wanted to, but Jon lost his nerve and unfortunately Nerissa was also hesitant and all of a sudden the moment was gone.
So it was with mixed feelings that Nerissa went inside the house and sat down in an armchair and promptly fell asleep.
“Nez!” Victoria called as she walked through the front door
“You’ll never guess what’s happened”
“Nez!” She repeated and then went into the lounge where she found her asleep and snoring in the armchair so she gave her a good shake.
“Wake up sleepy head” she said excitedly “Guess who I’ve been with today and guess who kissed me?”
“You’ve been snogging?” Nez asked rubbing her eyes “Who?”
“Jeff Hammett”
“That’s not fair, you’ve been snogging Jeff’s face off while I’ve been taking a siesta, you lucky swine” Nez said
“Well if you snooze you lose”
About ten minutes later when Nerissa had fully woken up, Vic brought her a coffee.
“Oh I almost forgot we’ve been invited to a party tomorrow” Victoria said “Fancy dress”
“Where?”
“At one of the big houses up at Teardrop Lake”
“Who do you know up at the lake?” Nez asked
“I don’t know anyone” she replied “But Jeff does”
“And?”
“Peter Lutchford”
“What the film director?” Nez said
“Yes that’s the one” Vic replied
“Oh damn I don’t have a costume” Nerissa said crossly
“Your school uniform is still upstairs in the wardrobe”
“Is it?” she asked “how come?”
“You left it here after Cassie’s hen weekend” she replied
“Oh yes I forgot”
That night the four of them were still a bit tired so they settled on pizza and a movie at Jeff’s place.
The only downside to that was that she and Jon were at opposite ends of what seemed like a very long sofa.
(Part 08) Monday
Peter Lutchford was well known for his Fancy Dress Parties he had them every Halloween and New Year’s but he would also throw an impromptu one at almost any time.
And the August Bank Holiday party fell into that category and it was a typically theatrical affair.
Whereas the Halloween and New Year’s Eve parties were very much grown up occasions the Holiday weekend party was aimed at the younger element as well and as a result it began at midday.
On the morning of Bank Holiday Monday Victoria was up early and driving to Jeff’s house before 7 o’clock.
They had decided to sneak off and spend some time on their own and so after she had picked him up they drove up to Teardrop Lake and walked up to Lovers Leap in the coolness of the day.
Lovers leap was a rocky outcrop above the cliffs, and the cliffs that created the leap were an extension of those that formed part of the northern side of Teardrop Lake and were the natural border between the Teardrop estate and the Dancingdean Forest proper.
Lovers Leap was so called because it was where desperate and broken hearted lovers would leap to their deaths although there was no evidence that anyone actually had but it made a good story.
And on that beautiful August day the view across the Dancingdean Forrest was quite spectacular however Victoria and Jeff had eyes only for each other.
Nerissa was also up early that morning although not as early as her friend and her reason wasn’t to go out for a timely assignation with her beau.
Nerissa wanted the extra time to wash, wax, pluck, tweak, and perfume and powder herself to perfection and make herself irresistible when she saw him that afternoon.
Meanwhile the object of her desires was back at Jeff’s and he was packing.
After spending a couple of hours together in quiet isolation on Lovers Leap they reluctantly headed back to civilization.
They stopped briefly at Jeff so he could pick up his rather unimaginative costume, which consisted of an Abbottsford Knight’s football strip.
When they arrived at Victoria’s they were greeted by a rather excitable Nerissa wearing her school uniform.
“Where’s Jon?” Nerissa asked craning her neck to see if he was following on
“He’s not coming” Jeff replied
“What?” she said in disbelief
“He’s got to get the train back to Finchbottom this afternoon” Jeff said “So he’s not coming”
“He has to come” she insisted
“I’m sorry but he’s not coming” Victoria added
“That is not an option” Nerissa ranted “Four bloody hours I’ve spent getting ready this morning”
“But…” Jeff began
“You don’t think this happens by accident do you?” she said and waved her hands in a sweeping head to toe gesture
“He’s not going anywhere until he has feasted his eyes on the fruits of my labour”
She grabbed her handbag and car keys and headed towards the door
“Where are you going?” Victoria asked
“Where do you think I’m going” she retorted “I’m going to find Jonathon”
(Part 09) Monday
There was no way on earth the Nerissa Gamboa was going to let Jonathon Samuel return to Finchbottom before he’d had a good look at her in her sexy schoolgirl outfit.
She raced down the Childean road and parked the car hurriedly outside Jeff’s house and then ran to the front door.
Knocking loudly several times she got no response and started to panic.
“Oh shit” she cursed “he’s gone already”
“It’s not fair” she muttered to herself “Victoria got her man, why can’t I get mine?”
She knocked again even harder than before but still got no response so she trudged back towards the car but before she got in she looked both ways down the street and spotted a man that bore a striking resemblance to Jonathon.
“It’s him” she screamed “I haven’t missed him”
And then Nerissa started running in his direction.
Jonathon was meandering his way along the footpath separated from the road by an avenue of Plane Trees when he heard a voice behind him.
“Wait for me Jon” it, said, “wait for me”
He stopped and turned around but he couldn’t see who it was
“Wait for me” the voice continued shouting a little louder this time and then crash.
A schoolgirl had come running around a Plane Tree and hurtled straight into him and they both ended up on the floor and he was surprised to see it was Nerissa Gamboa.
“Ouch” she said rubbing her left knee, and Jon got a quick flash of white knicker against her dark skin as she pulled her knee up towards her.
“Are you ok?” He asked as he helped her to her feet.
“Just scrapped my knee a bit,” she said laughing
“I didn’t think I was that close to you”
Jon was overcome in that moment when he was looking at the very pretty girl, he’d had a crush on since college.
Five foot six with Jet-black hair and dark dusky skin, her father was Spanish and her mother was from the Philippines but whatever the origins Nerissa she was a beautiful girl and a beautiful colour.
“Why are you dressed like that by the way” he asked
“We’re supposed to be going to the fancy dress party up at Peter Lutchford’s” she said “Why aren’t you going?”
She looked very cute in her straw boater with the burgundy and yellow band, even cuter when she was being stern.
Nerissa was wearing her full school uniform consisting of black knee length socks, a black and white plaid skirt, burgundy jacket with yellow trim, white blouse and a burgundy and yellow tie, oh and the boater of course.
“I have to catch the train” he replied “Where did you get the outfit?”
“It’s mine from school, and it still fits me” she said boastfully
“I’m bigger around the bust but apart from that I’m the same size I was ten years ago” she replied
“I noticed that” he said
“Which part?” she said flirtingly
“Both” he replied and she blushed
“Why are you getting the train so early?” she asked
“I’m not” he replied “I was just going to the shop to get some milk, my trains not until four”
“Oh I thought you were going to the station” she said
“What without my bags?” he pointed out
“Come on you can keep me company”
“Yes ok”
When they reached the corner shop her knee was bleeding so he fished out a hankie from his pocket and handed it to her.
“Use that” Jon said “that will help for the moment”
Nerissa dabbed at the cut and winced as Jon went inside and emerged a few minute later holding a carrier bag.
“Come on, come back to the house and I’ll clean up your wound”
(Part 10) Monday
Jonathan and Nerissa went into Jeff Hammett’s house and Jon said
“Bad luck cutting yourself like that”
“Oh no it’s quite apt” she said “I always had scabby knees when I was at school, my friends always teased me”
“Talking of friends, where’s Victoria?” he asked Victoria was her best friend after all and she was staying at her house for the weekend.
“I left them to come and find you” she said “We’ll see them up at the party”
“I really can’t go I have to catch the 4 o’clock train” he said “now go and sit on the sofa and I’ll get the first aid kit”
“Do you want a drink?” he shouted from the kitchen
“A glass of water please” she shouted back as she took off her hat.
He walked back into the lounge with a drink in each hand, the first aid kit under his arm and a towel over his shoulder.
Jonathon handed her the drink of water, knelt down in front of her and opened the first aid kit.
“You don’t have to catch the train you know” she said as he irrigated the wound with water and cleaned it with a cotton wool pad
“I’m driving back myself tonight”
“That’s very kind” he said “but I couldn’t impose”
“It’s really no imposition” she replied “I live in Finchbottom as well you know”
“I don’t have a costume anyway” he said trying to draw a line under it and before he had chance to reply he changed the subject
“So how old were you when you last wore that uniform to school?”
“16” she replied as she sat perched on the edge of the sofa
“This might sting a bit,” he said as he applied the antiseptic
“Ooh” Nerissa winced
Jon had his right hand under her knee as he applied the plaster “So sweet sixteen….” he said rubbing the corners of the plaster with his thumbs
“…. And never been kissed” she finished as she reached forward and kissed him on the mouth, more of a peck than a kiss and then she went terribly red.
Jon wasn’t expecting that, it came right out of left field, he wasn’t complaining it’s what he would have done had he had the courage.
He moved his hand from her knee up to her crimson cheek, which was burning with embarrassment and he stroked it gently as he pulled her face towards his.
“Do it like this” he said and put his lips to hers once, twice and then a third time when their mouths gently sealed on each other.
It only lasted a few moments and when their lips parted everything in their lives had changed.
Suffice is to say that Jonathon didn’t catch the 4 o’clock train to Finchbottom and nor was Nerissa able to persuade him to go to the Fancy Dress party.
Instead of rubbing shoulders with Peter Lutchford’s well healed locals or arty types from the film industry, he and Nerissa stayed at Jeff’s where he was able to undo all her fine work in making herself look sexy.
They weren’t missed at the party though as Victoria and Jeff never left her house.
Sunday 5 March 2017
Saturday 4 March 2017
Tales of Love # 14
EVERY CORNER OF THE WORLD (9)
From the stormy southern isles
To the exotic land of smiles
I will carry with me a constant love
Over the distant countless miles
WHEN I LOST YOU, I FELT DEAD TOO
When I lost you, I felt dead too
Apart from the constant empty pain
All I can do now is carry on living
Until the day I feel alive again
I LOVE YOU BY ANY MEASURE # 1
I love you by any measure
You might wish to use
But I don’t know how to express
The way I feel about you
And the affect you have on me
So I hope this gives you a clue
If you were a pop song being sung
You would be number one
LEAVE THIS WORLD WITH ME
Leave this world with me
And together you and I,
Will discover the universe
And explore the heavens
Until our souls forever join
IN THAT EXQUISITE PLACE
In that exquisite place,
Lying between
Sleep and wakefulness,
Night and day,
Fantasy and reality.
And not knowing
As senses heighten
If it’s a vivid dream
Or a sensual reality.
It is shear ecstasy
AWE AND WONDER
Awe and wonder
Fills my heart
As I stare at her,
I dream a dream
Of what could be
One day,
She could be mine,
Or maybe not
But it costs me nothing
Just to dream
ON THE HUMID EVENING
On the humid evening
The heady cloying perfume
Of red camellias
Filled the air
Confusing the senses
And amidst the scent of desire
I found in the moonlight
I was falling in love with her
A MOST GRIEVOUS SIN
A most grievous sin
To depucelate the purity
To sully and deflower,
Without the beauty of love
As an accompaniment.
Such deprivation of innocence
To taint and corrupt
And conspire in her defiling
Without romantic love
Is the province of the beast
I LOVE YOU BY ANY MEASURE # 2
I love you by any measure
You might wish to use
But I don’t know how to express
The way I feel about you
And the affect you have on me
So I hope this gives you a clue
If you were a movie blockbuster
You would win the Oscar
EVERY CORNER OF THE WORLD (10)
I’ve seen the distant far pavilions
And the land of the rising sun
I’ve seen Tierra del Fuego
And where all life was begun
I’ve seen the Pyramids of Giza
But now my travels are done
I’ve found what I’ve sought
And you my love are the one
From the stormy southern isles
To the exotic land of smiles
I will carry with me a constant love
Over the distant countless miles
WHEN I LOST YOU, I FELT DEAD TOO
When I lost you, I felt dead too
Apart from the constant empty pain
All I can do now is carry on living
Until the day I feel alive again
I LOVE YOU BY ANY MEASURE # 1
I love you by any measure
You might wish to use
But I don’t know how to express
The way I feel about you
And the affect you have on me
So I hope this gives you a clue
If you were a pop song being sung
You would be number one
LEAVE THIS WORLD WITH ME
Leave this world with me
And together you and I,
Will discover the universe
And explore the heavens
Until our souls forever join
IN THAT EXQUISITE PLACE
In that exquisite place,
Lying between
Sleep and wakefulness,
Night and day,
Fantasy and reality.
And not knowing
As senses heighten
If it’s a vivid dream
Or a sensual reality.
It is shear ecstasy
AWE AND WONDER
Awe and wonder
Fills my heart
As I stare at her,
I dream a dream
Of what could be
One day,
She could be mine,
Or maybe not
But it costs me nothing
Just to dream
ON THE HUMID EVENING
On the humid evening
The heady cloying perfume
Of red camellias
Filled the air
Confusing the senses
And amidst the scent of desire
I found in the moonlight
I was falling in love with her
A MOST GRIEVOUS SIN
A most grievous sin
To depucelate the purity
To sully and deflower,
Without the beauty of love
As an accompaniment.
Such deprivation of innocence
To taint and corrupt
And conspire in her defiling
Without romantic love
Is the province of the beast
I LOVE YOU BY ANY MEASURE # 2
I love you by any measure
You might wish to use
But I don’t know how to express
The way I feel about you
And the affect you have on me
So I hope this gives you a clue
If you were a movie blockbuster
You would win the Oscar
EVERY CORNER OF THE WORLD (10)
I’ve seen the distant far pavilions
And the land of the rising sun
I’ve seen Tierra del Fuego
And where all life was begun
I’ve seen the Pyramids of Giza
But now my travels are done
I’ve found what I’ve sought
And you my love are the one
Downshire Diary – (05) I’m Not a Nun!
(Part 01)
It was dark and very cold as Dave McAteer sat on a bench in the garden of St Bernadette’s Covent Hospital in Abbeyvale, although in truth and furthermore it was snowing again.
He was sitting there alone as he had just heard the news that his mother was dying and he was still somewhat in shock.
It shouldn’t have been such a shock he had always known St B’s was more of a hospice, there were a number of wards for convalescents but mainly it was palliative care.
He was on his way home, his Mum had been sedated so there was no point in his staying and the end was a little while off yet.
He should have gone straight home but he had no one to go home to and he needed time to think.
Dave had been sitting there for maybe half an hour and was used to the silence and was totally lost in his own thoughts so much so that that he had failed to hear the crunch of approaching footsteps in the snow.
Due to the darkness he was all but invisible and he suddenly saw something moving in his peripheral vision which made him jump and to his perpetual shame caused him to let out an involuntary yelp, this in turn made the figure in the dark scream.
The source of the scream was a nurse at the convent hospital and she worked on the wing his mother was in, although he couldn’t bring her name to mind at the time.
“Oh Shit” she said in very un-convent like language.
“What the fuck are you doing hiding out here in the dark?”
“I’m sorry” he said “I didn’t mean to scare you”
“Oh its Mr. McAteer isn’t it?” she asked “So what brings you out here? Are you ok?”
“Yes” he replied “I just needed some quiet time”
“I heard about your mother, I’m sorry it wasn’t better news” she said
She sat down on the bench beside him and took out a pack of cigarettes from her coat pocket, she took one out and put it to her lips and then offered the pack to him.
He had given up smoking two years earlier but he didn’t hesitate in accepting one.
“Thanks Nurse…” he began
“Fedeli” she replied as she gave him a light “But call me Elena”
“Thanks Elena” Dave said and inhaled deeply and closed his eyes as he exhaled the smoke and felt the welcoming light headedness as his body greeted the nicotine with open arms.
“It looks like you’re enjoying that Mr. McAteer” she said
“Call me Dave” he said and took another drag “this is the first fag I’ve had for two years”
“I’m sorry I didn’t know” Elena said
“Don’t be sorry, I really missed it” he said honestly
She dragged on her cigarette and the tip glowed brightly and briefly illuminated her face and then faded to a glow.
“I'm sorry I scared you,” he said taking a final drag on his cigarette before dropping it on the ground and grinding it under the heel of his shoe.
“That’s ok” she replied and paused briefly before adding
“By the sound of that yelp you made, perhaps I should be apologizing to you”
“Quite” he said sheepishly “I’m a bit embarrassed about that”
“You look like you could use a drink” she said and she reached into her pocket again and this time pulled out a silver hip flask.
She unscrewed the cap and took a slug and then handed it to Dave.
“Thanks” he said taking it from her and putting it to his lips.
The whisky tasted so good and he felt it warming him to the very core.
He handed her back the flask and watched her take a good slug before putting the cap back on.
“What kind of a nun are you?” he asked with a laugh “Swearing, smoking and drinking”
And all the time he was actually thinking what a really naughty girl she was.
“I’m not a nun!” She shouted,
(Part 02)
“I’m not a nun!” Elena shouted, “Why does everyone think I’m a nun?”
“Sorry but you work in a convent hospital and you dress like a nun” he said in his defense.
“I’m a nurse in a hospital, and this is my uniform” she said “No wonder, nobody ever asks me out, I can assure you that I’m not a nun!”
“I’m sorry Elena, if it helps I thought you were a very attractive nun” he said and she looked at him and laughed.
The snow continued to fall and was settling on her headgear.
As he looked at her he couldn’t understand why she would ever have been short of a date.
She had a beautiful face and her eyes were dazzling, it was also a kind face with a delicate smile and her coloring clearly betrayed her Mediterranean ancestry.
Being a good catholic boy and having thought until a few minutes earlier that she was a nun, he wasn’t sure if thinking she was sexy was a sin or not, but he thought she was, even if it was sinful.
He was also grateful for the distraction from thinking about his terminally ill mum.
“How are you feeling now?” she asked him out of the blue.
“Much better,” he replied
“Was it a shock?” she asked,
“Yes” he replied and then corrected himself “No, not really”
She didn’t speak but looked at him and silently invited him to continue
“I was expecting it, but I didn’t want to believe it” he said “I lied to myself”
“That’s quite natural” she said sympathetically “Loved ones have often confided that to me”
“That’s because they think you’re a nun” he said and they both laughed.
At that point the snow began to fall harder and faster and it was getting colder.
“Are you off duty?” he asked although he’d already made the assumption that she was.
“Yes” she replied “I’m done for the day”
“Well I’m chilled to the bone” he said “do you fancy getting something to eat?”
“Yes, that would be nice” she replied and a broad smile crossed her face “As long as you don’t mind being seen out with a nun”
When Dave offered and she accepted neither of them expected it to be anything other than a chance to get out of the snow and a mutually companionable meal, they certainly weren’t looking for anything else.
Elena Fedeli had been disappointed by love too many times in her 32 years to walk into another potential disaster with a man who had a very difficult and fraught time ahead of him.
Dave had also been through the mill relationship wise and wanted no more than to be there for his mother every step of the way until she passed.
Dave was a lapsed Catholic and indeed he was also a lapsed Christian while she was a practicing Anglican with a very deep faith.
He worked 9 to 5 for an insurance company while she was a nurse who worked shifts and then there was the age difference he was three years her junior.
But when all was said done and despite all their differences they promptly went and fell in love.
It was dark and very cold as Dave McAteer sat on a bench in the garden of St Bernadette’s Covent Hospital in Abbeyvale, although in truth and furthermore it was snowing again.
He was sitting there alone as he had just heard the news that his mother was dying and he was still somewhat in shock.
It shouldn’t have been such a shock he had always known St B’s was more of a hospice, there were a number of wards for convalescents but mainly it was palliative care.
He was on his way home, his Mum had been sedated so there was no point in his staying and the end was a little while off yet.
He should have gone straight home but he had no one to go home to and he needed time to think.
Dave had been sitting there for maybe half an hour and was used to the silence and was totally lost in his own thoughts so much so that that he had failed to hear the crunch of approaching footsteps in the snow.
Due to the darkness he was all but invisible and he suddenly saw something moving in his peripheral vision which made him jump and to his perpetual shame caused him to let out an involuntary yelp, this in turn made the figure in the dark scream.
The source of the scream was a nurse at the convent hospital and she worked on the wing his mother was in, although he couldn’t bring her name to mind at the time.
“Oh Shit” she said in very un-convent like language.
“What the fuck are you doing hiding out here in the dark?”
“I’m sorry” he said “I didn’t mean to scare you”
“Oh its Mr. McAteer isn’t it?” she asked “So what brings you out here? Are you ok?”
“Yes” he replied “I just needed some quiet time”
“I heard about your mother, I’m sorry it wasn’t better news” she said
She sat down on the bench beside him and took out a pack of cigarettes from her coat pocket, she took one out and put it to her lips and then offered the pack to him.
He had given up smoking two years earlier but he didn’t hesitate in accepting one.
“Thanks Nurse…” he began
“Fedeli” she replied as she gave him a light “But call me Elena”
“Thanks Elena” Dave said and inhaled deeply and closed his eyes as he exhaled the smoke and felt the welcoming light headedness as his body greeted the nicotine with open arms.
“It looks like you’re enjoying that Mr. McAteer” she said
“Call me Dave” he said and took another drag “this is the first fag I’ve had for two years”
“I’m sorry I didn’t know” Elena said
“Don’t be sorry, I really missed it” he said honestly
She dragged on her cigarette and the tip glowed brightly and briefly illuminated her face and then faded to a glow.
“I'm sorry I scared you,” he said taking a final drag on his cigarette before dropping it on the ground and grinding it under the heel of his shoe.
“That’s ok” she replied and paused briefly before adding
“By the sound of that yelp you made, perhaps I should be apologizing to you”
“Quite” he said sheepishly “I’m a bit embarrassed about that”
“You look like you could use a drink” she said and she reached into her pocket again and this time pulled out a silver hip flask.
She unscrewed the cap and took a slug and then handed it to Dave.
“Thanks” he said taking it from her and putting it to his lips.
The whisky tasted so good and he felt it warming him to the very core.
He handed her back the flask and watched her take a good slug before putting the cap back on.
“What kind of a nun are you?” he asked with a laugh “Swearing, smoking and drinking”
And all the time he was actually thinking what a really naughty girl she was.
“I’m not a nun!” She shouted,
(Part 02)
“I’m not a nun!” Elena shouted, “Why does everyone think I’m a nun?”
“Sorry but you work in a convent hospital and you dress like a nun” he said in his defense.
“I’m a nurse in a hospital, and this is my uniform” she said “No wonder, nobody ever asks me out, I can assure you that I’m not a nun!”
“I’m sorry Elena, if it helps I thought you were a very attractive nun” he said and she looked at him and laughed.
The snow continued to fall and was settling on her headgear.
As he looked at her he couldn’t understand why she would ever have been short of a date.
She had a beautiful face and her eyes were dazzling, it was also a kind face with a delicate smile and her coloring clearly betrayed her Mediterranean ancestry.
Being a good catholic boy and having thought until a few minutes earlier that she was a nun, he wasn’t sure if thinking she was sexy was a sin or not, but he thought she was, even if it was sinful.
He was also grateful for the distraction from thinking about his terminally ill mum.
“How are you feeling now?” she asked him out of the blue.
“Much better,” he replied
“Was it a shock?” she asked,
“Yes” he replied and then corrected himself “No, not really”
She didn’t speak but looked at him and silently invited him to continue
“I was expecting it, but I didn’t want to believe it” he said “I lied to myself”
“That’s quite natural” she said sympathetically “Loved ones have often confided that to me”
“That’s because they think you’re a nun” he said and they both laughed.
At that point the snow began to fall harder and faster and it was getting colder.
“Are you off duty?” he asked although he’d already made the assumption that she was.
“Yes” she replied “I’m done for the day”
“Well I’m chilled to the bone” he said “do you fancy getting something to eat?”
“Yes, that would be nice” she replied and a broad smile crossed her face “As long as you don’t mind being seen out with a nun”
When Dave offered and she accepted neither of them expected it to be anything other than a chance to get out of the snow and a mutually companionable meal, they certainly weren’t looking for anything else.
Elena Fedeli had been disappointed by love too many times in her 32 years to walk into another potential disaster with a man who had a very difficult and fraught time ahead of him.
Dave had also been through the mill relationship wise and wanted no more than to be there for his mother every step of the way until she passed.
Dave was a lapsed Catholic and indeed he was also a lapsed Christian while she was a practicing Anglican with a very deep faith.
He worked 9 to 5 for an insurance company while she was a nurse who worked shifts and then there was the age difference he was three years her junior.
But when all was said done and despite all their differences they promptly went and fell in love.
Tales of Love # 7
HAIR OF RED
Hair of red
Falls untamed
Over ivory skin
Stark in contrast
Like a crimson rose
Against bridal white
IT WAS MY GOOD FORTUNE
It was my good fortune
That you came my way
For like a broom you swept
My loneliness away
TOUCHED BY THE GODDESS
Touched by the goddess
Our hearts surrendered
As Venus worked her spell of love
And nothing could break the bond
That fitted us perfectly
Like a hand inside a glove
So strong were the bonds
That entwined our hearts
And held us prisoners of love
Only death could part us
And I am now haunted
By the call of the mourning Dove
YOU VIEW LOVE AS A SNARE
You view love as a snare
Of ordinary everyday life
And won’t be trapped into
The ritual taking of a wife
But who will support and
Comfort in times of strife
If you don’t open your heart
To the simple joys of life
THE LOVE THAT DARE NOT SPEAK ITS NAME
The love that dare not
Speak its name
For fear of bringing
Upon them, shame
Denial of their love
Would be a cruel betrayal
For inside they knew
It was perpetual
Try as the families might
It would not be swept
Beneath a convenient carpet
Their bond was kept
And when they were safe
Behind a closed door
Their love was expressed
As true lovers adore
IF LONELINESS IS YOUR FEAR
If loneliness is your fear
There’s no need to shed a tear
For the solution is clear
Just find a love sincere
Someone to hold dear
And watch sadness disappear
OH FOR A SIGHT OF YOUR SMILE
Oh for a sight of your smile
Soothing as chamomile
To ease away my frown
Picking me up when I’m down
MY BROWN EYED FRAU
Where are you now
My brown eyed frau
It breaks my heart
Now that we’re apart
Sugar sweet brunette
My dearest Margaret
Wherever you might be
Come back to me
WHEN I PLIGHT MY TROTH
I don’t understand even though
I wear my heart on my sleeve
When I plight my troth
You find it so difficult to believe
I have never hidden my feelings
But I would not have plighted
Should I, for a moment, thought
They would not have been requited
A SPECIAL WORD FOR A SPECIAL GIRL
A “special” word for a “special” girl
Modesty prevents you saying its true
But if the word “special” didn’t exist
It would have to be invented just for you
HAIR OF BROWN
Hair of brown
Falls in cascade
Over freckled skin
In perfect complement
Like forest fronds
And dappled shade
KOWTOW IN MACAO
Do you remember?
In old Macao
I greeted you
With an elaborate bow
You responded
With a formal Kowtow
Then I said hello
And you said Ciao
But the formality
Was just for show
So anyone looking
Just wouldn’t know
That the two of us
In that tableaux
Were more familiar
And all aglow
In the privacy
Of the chateaux
Hair of red
Falls untamed
Over ivory skin
Stark in contrast
Like a crimson rose
Against bridal white
IT WAS MY GOOD FORTUNE
It was my good fortune
That you came my way
For like a broom you swept
My loneliness away
TOUCHED BY THE GODDESS
Touched by the goddess
Our hearts surrendered
As Venus worked her spell of love
And nothing could break the bond
That fitted us perfectly
Like a hand inside a glove
So strong were the bonds
That entwined our hearts
And held us prisoners of love
Only death could part us
And I am now haunted
By the call of the mourning Dove
YOU VIEW LOVE AS A SNARE
You view love as a snare
Of ordinary everyday life
And won’t be trapped into
The ritual taking of a wife
But who will support and
Comfort in times of strife
If you don’t open your heart
To the simple joys of life
THE LOVE THAT DARE NOT SPEAK ITS NAME
The love that dare not
Speak its name
For fear of bringing
Upon them, shame
Denial of their love
Would be a cruel betrayal
For inside they knew
It was perpetual
Try as the families might
It would not be swept
Beneath a convenient carpet
Their bond was kept
And when they were safe
Behind a closed door
Their love was expressed
As true lovers adore
IF LONELINESS IS YOUR FEAR
If loneliness is your fear
There’s no need to shed a tear
For the solution is clear
Just find a love sincere
Someone to hold dear
And watch sadness disappear
OH FOR A SIGHT OF YOUR SMILE
Oh for a sight of your smile
Soothing as chamomile
To ease away my frown
Picking me up when I’m down
MY BROWN EYED FRAU
Where are you now
My brown eyed frau
It breaks my heart
Now that we’re apart
Sugar sweet brunette
My dearest Margaret
Wherever you might be
Come back to me
WHEN I PLIGHT MY TROTH
I don’t understand even though
I wear my heart on my sleeve
When I plight my troth
You find it so difficult to believe
I have never hidden my feelings
But I would not have plighted
Should I, for a moment, thought
They would not have been requited
A SPECIAL WORD FOR A SPECIAL GIRL
A “special” word for a “special” girl
Modesty prevents you saying its true
But if the word “special” didn’t exist
It would have to be invented just for you
HAIR OF BROWN
Hair of brown
Falls in cascade
Over freckled skin
In perfect complement
Like forest fronds
And dappled shade
KOWTOW IN MACAO
Do you remember?
In old Macao
I greeted you
With an elaborate bow
You responded
With a formal Kowtow
Then I said hello
And you said Ciao
But the formality
Was just for show
So anyone looking
Just wouldn’t know
That the two of us
In that tableaux
Were more familiar
And all aglow
In the privacy
Of the chateaux
Tales from the Finchbottom Vale – (08) Isabella and the Geek
(Part 01)
If you looked closely at Isabella Cross you couldn’t help but see why she was one of the most popular girls at school.
Her Elphin face had a shape and symmetry that was very easy on the eye and both genders thought she had a figure to die for.
Although there were girls in Christian Myers circle who were more classically beautiful than she was, they didn’t have any of the character of Isabella’s.
Her silky red hair shone and shimmered as she moved her head and her brown eyes bore into your soul when you met their gaze and as if her unique beauty was not enough to set her on a pedestal she was also athletic, artistic, intelligent and downright sexy.
Everyone, but everyone, boy or girl that ever met Isabella Cross fell instantly in love with her, but Christian had been in love with her since the time before she blossomed.
However despite all the attention she received from the moment of her blossoming Isabella managed to keep everyone of the persistent suitors at bay which inevitably led to the rumour that she played for the other side.
These rumour’s led to reports originating from the “other side” that she didn’t play for them so therefore the conclusion was that she must be frigid.
Not that Christian ever believed such rumours for a moment and he had known her longer than anyone, because Isabella Cross was literally the girl next door.
And she had lived there since she was three and they had been best friends since the very beginning.
So when she was approaching her seventeenth birthday, even though Christian was everything that she was not, he would have been extremely surprised not to get an invitation to her birthday party as Isabella, Christian and the other guests had after all been friends since nursery school.
So having well and truly established that Isabella was one of the popular group, Christian on the other hand was in no uncertain terms not.
He was not athletic, artistic, or sexy but without being immodest he did have intelligence in common with her even though his intelligence was considered nerdy because his forte was science, and in particular Physics.
So under normal circumstances, friendship and intelligence aside, it would be inconceivable if one of the popular girls was to invite a Science geek to her 17th birthday party.
Anyone not close to her could be forgiven for thinking she had a rush of blood to the head such would have been their surprised but he was not at all surprised.
There may well have been peer pressure to only invite the “in crowd” but she was not of that ilk and was not easily led or cajoled.
The popular crowd would probably have been further surprised when it turned out he was one of only six guests at the party, one of those being Isabella herself.
Though for him it certainly wasn’t a surprise knowing her as he did she was never a flashy person.
She didn’t want a big flashy party with glitz and glamour and lots of superficial friends.
(Part 02)
There was just Isabella, Christian and four other guests at the party who were also old friends chosen for the longevity of their friendship rather than for their social standing.
Kelly Reed was also one of the popular girls at school but she started with them in nursery as well and she had no affectation about her either.
Then there was her cousin Roy Pollard who was 18, Mark Clench and Susanna Perioli.
The party was at a Chinese restaurant called the The Scented Garden in Abbottsford which was Isabella’s favourite.
As you would expect from such a great restaurant it was a really excellent meal and as Roy was 18 he ordered wine with the meal which they all drank as they reminisced about their shared history and by the end they all laughed until they cried.
As they left The Scented Garden and got down to street level they had the usual round of hugs and kisses on the pavement and then Kelly went accross the road to where her Dads car was parked and as Mark, Susie and Roy all lived in the same neck of the woods they went off to get the bus and Isabella and Christian headed to the station to catch the train.
As they walked up station approach he said
“I had a really great time”
“Yeh me too” she replied
“Wasnt it great to get the six of us together again?”
“We should do it more often” he suggested
““We” should get together more often” Isabella said
“What just the two of us?” he asked
“Yeh” she said coyly
“Just you and the Science geek?” He asked with surprise
“You’re not a geek” she said defensively
“I’m going to study Astro Physics at Cambridge” he pointed out
“That proves nothing, and anyway if you were a geek that wouldn’t stop me fancying you,” she said.
“You fancy me?” he asked pointing at himself
“Yes” she replied “Didn't you know?”
“Not for a second” Christian said and shook his head
“What about you?” she asked shyly
“Do you fancy me?
“Well I don’t know about fancying you” he said and she was clearly crestfallen for a second and the smile left her eyes
“But I’ve been in love with you since we were 7 years old if that counts”
“You total pig” she said and laughed before she kissed him softy on the lips which led to the most wonderful spine tingling embrace that seemed to last forever.
When it ended she looked at him with her soulful brown eyes and smiled the most loving smile.
He returned her smile and wanted to say something fitting for the moment, something that would truly mark the moment forever, something poignant and pithy, but alas he was lost for words.
“Wow” she said beating him to the punch
“Why didn’t I think of that?” he said to himself
“Wow” she said again and giggled then she ran off up the road and shouted over her shoulder
“You’ll have to marry me now”
He caught up with her at the station and she was still giggling until he kissed her
“Okay then” he said and headed toward the platform and it was Isabella’s turn to run after him.
If you looked closely at Isabella Cross you couldn’t help but see why she was one of the most popular girls at school.
Her Elphin face had a shape and symmetry that was very easy on the eye and both genders thought she had a figure to die for.
Although there were girls in Christian Myers circle who were more classically beautiful than she was, they didn’t have any of the character of Isabella’s.
Her silky red hair shone and shimmered as she moved her head and her brown eyes bore into your soul when you met their gaze and as if her unique beauty was not enough to set her on a pedestal she was also athletic, artistic, intelligent and downright sexy.
Everyone, but everyone, boy or girl that ever met Isabella Cross fell instantly in love with her, but Christian had been in love with her since the time before she blossomed.
However despite all the attention she received from the moment of her blossoming Isabella managed to keep everyone of the persistent suitors at bay which inevitably led to the rumour that she played for the other side.
These rumour’s led to reports originating from the “other side” that she didn’t play for them so therefore the conclusion was that she must be frigid.
Not that Christian ever believed such rumours for a moment and he had known her longer than anyone, because Isabella Cross was literally the girl next door.
And she had lived there since she was three and they had been best friends since the very beginning.
So when she was approaching her seventeenth birthday, even though Christian was everything that she was not, he would have been extremely surprised not to get an invitation to her birthday party as Isabella, Christian and the other guests had after all been friends since nursery school.
So having well and truly established that Isabella was one of the popular group, Christian on the other hand was in no uncertain terms not.
He was not athletic, artistic, or sexy but without being immodest he did have intelligence in common with her even though his intelligence was considered nerdy because his forte was science, and in particular Physics.
So under normal circumstances, friendship and intelligence aside, it would be inconceivable if one of the popular girls was to invite a Science geek to her 17th birthday party.
Anyone not close to her could be forgiven for thinking she had a rush of blood to the head such would have been their surprised but he was not at all surprised.
There may well have been peer pressure to only invite the “in crowd” but she was not of that ilk and was not easily led or cajoled.
The popular crowd would probably have been further surprised when it turned out he was one of only six guests at the party, one of those being Isabella herself.
Though for him it certainly wasn’t a surprise knowing her as he did she was never a flashy person.
She didn’t want a big flashy party with glitz and glamour and lots of superficial friends.
(Part 02)
There was just Isabella, Christian and four other guests at the party who were also old friends chosen for the longevity of their friendship rather than for their social standing.
Kelly Reed was also one of the popular girls at school but she started with them in nursery as well and she had no affectation about her either.
Then there was her cousin Roy Pollard who was 18, Mark Clench and Susanna Perioli.
The party was at a Chinese restaurant called the The Scented Garden in Abbottsford which was Isabella’s favourite.
As you would expect from such a great restaurant it was a really excellent meal and as Roy was 18 he ordered wine with the meal which they all drank as they reminisced about their shared history and by the end they all laughed until they cried.
As they left The Scented Garden and got down to street level they had the usual round of hugs and kisses on the pavement and then Kelly went accross the road to where her Dads car was parked and as Mark, Susie and Roy all lived in the same neck of the woods they went off to get the bus and Isabella and Christian headed to the station to catch the train.
As they walked up station approach he said
“I had a really great time”
“Yeh me too” she replied
“Wasnt it great to get the six of us together again?”
“We should do it more often” he suggested
““We” should get together more often” Isabella said
“What just the two of us?” he asked
“Yeh” she said coyly
“Just you and the Science geek?” He asked with surprise
“You’re not a geek” she said defensively
“I’m going to study Astro Physics at Cambridge” he pointed out
“That proves nothing, and anyway if you were a geek that wouldn’t stop me fancying you,” she said.
“You fancy me?” he asked pointing at himself
“Yes” she replied “Didn't you know?”
“Not for a second” Christian said and shook his head
“What about you?” she asked shyly
“Do you fancy me?
“Well I don’t know about fancying you” he said and she was clearly crestfallen for a second and the smile left her eyes
“But I’ve been in love with you since we were 7 years old if that counts”
“You total pig” she said and laughed before she kissed him softy on the lips which led to the most wonderful spine tingling embrace that seemed to last forever.
When it ended she looked at him with her soulful brown eyes and smiled the most loving smile.
He returned her smile and wanted to say something fitting for the moment, something that would truly mark the moment forever, something poignant and pithy, but alas he was lost for words.
“Wow” she said beating him to the punch
“Why didn’t I think of that?” he said to himself
“Wow” she said again and giggled then she ran off up the road and shouted over her shoulder
“You’ll have to marry me now”
He caught up with her at the station and she was still giggling until he kissed her
“Okay then” he said and headed toward the platform and it was Isabella’s turn to run after him.
Friday 3 March 2017
Downshire Diary – (04) Dating Dorcas
(Part 01)
Following Ben Overton and Dorcas Fox-Martin’s unusual first date back in June on the Tree Top Trail in Dancingdean Forest, Dorcas and he had spent a lot of time together on the full range of more conventional dates, country walks, museums, art galleries, pubs, restaurant’s, cinemas and bowling alleys.
Over which time they had gotten to know each other very well and he discovered that quite apart from being gorgeous, which was plain to everyone, she was also witty, intelligent, sensitive, loving and a totally rubbish bowler, even worse than him.
As the weeks went they virtually became inseparable which was why at the beginning of August on a bright Friday morning they were driving along the Pepperstock Express Way on their way to celebrate, Cambridge Professor, Uncle Herbert’s 60th birthday by which time Dorcas and Ben were well and truly a couple.
It was to be a full on family weekend, which was something they did rather, but even by his families standards this one was to be even more special because this was one of the rarest of occasions when absolutely everyone would be in attendance.
Apart from the birthday boy Herbert and his wife Alexandra, there was his elder brother Edgar, Ben’s eldest sister Abi and her husband Bijs, who were coming over from Holland, his younger brother Danny and his girlfriend Siti, who were driving down from the Millmoor, baby sister Helen, hubby Mark and baby Connor who were a few hundred yards ahead of them on the motorway and his Mum and Dad who were about 50 miles behind them, despite the fact that they left home in convoy, because Ben’s Dad never broke the speed limit.
Although Dorcas was a longtime friend of his sister Helen, she didn’t know all the players involved in the weekend’s events and was a little apprehensive about meeting them all, so on the journey he filled in any blanks in her knowledge of them.
“Have you met Abi before?” he asked as they approached the junction for Finchbottom.
“Not really” she replied “She was in the back of your Dads car once, I think she was on her way back to Uni, but I didn’t meet her exactly”
It was hardly surprising really as she never really came home again after Uni.
Abigail met Bijs at University and went out to Southern Holland almost as soon as they graduated.
Now they both worked at the City Hall in S-Hertogenbosch and lived a few miles away in Rosmalen and only got back to the UK once in a while.
“You know Danny though” he said as Helen’s car took the exit for Finchbottom and the Dulcets.
“Yes but then he is nearer my own age” she said
“And he asked me out once”
“I didn’t know that” Ben said with surprise
“I said no” she assured me
“I’m pleased to hear it” he retorted
“How come we never met?” he asked
“I don’t know” Dorcas said thoughtfully “Just my good fortune I suppose”
“Bloody cheek” he said as she laughed hysterically
(Part 02)
After his sister exited the Express Way he and Dorcas stayed on and head for Pepperstock bay and the ferry terminal.
Forty five minutes after parting company with Helen they rejoined the Expressway at the Pepperstock Bay end with Ben’s sister Abi and her husband on board and they were still making better time than his Mum and Dad.
With the introductions done and Dorcas thoroughly interrogated by Abi they made steady progress towards the Dulcets.
“You’ll like Uncle Herbert” Abi said either to Dorcas or Bijs, Ben wasn’t sure which
“He’s Professor of Medieval Studies at Cambridge University” Ben said proudly
“Just like CS Lewis” Dorcas contributed
“That’s right” he said surprised “How on earth did you know that?”
“Well I’m not just a pretty face” she said
“Clearly” he concurred
“He’s at Magdalene College” Abi continued
“Also like Lewis” Dorcas responded
“Have you been swatting?” Ben asked suspiciously
“No I’m just a big fan” she replied
“Of Lewis or my Uncle?” he asked with a smile
“He is also a wit” Abi added
“A raconteur, a lay preacher and an all-round good egg” Abi and Ben said in unison and laughed, as it was a well-worn phrase often quoted by the family in relation to Uncle Herbert.
Bijs and Dorcas looked on in bemusement.
When they reached Dulcet-on-Willow Ben drove onto the driveway of chez Cush, more formally known as Willow House, just before one o’clock and Ben took a moment to take in the familiar vista before he took Dorcas inside to do the introductions.
Edgar, the elder of the Cush brothers still lived in the ancestral pile built by Ben’s great great great grandfather at the height of the industrial revolution as a country retreat.
Dulcet-on-Willow was a large sprawling village beside the gentle shallow River Willow, which ran unhurriedly from the Pepperstock Hills to the more vibrant River Brooke.
Willow House had featured prominently throughout Ben’s life, where all the family gatherings had taken place, and he wanted very much to feature in Dorcas’s future.
It was not a particularly esthetically pleasing structure but it was typically Victorian and it held fond memories for Ben.
The harshness of its hard lines had been somewhat softened over the years by the matured sympathetic planting which blended it into the unfussy landscape of the Vale where many a long summer holiday had been spent.
At the time Ben was remembering the past the birthday boy Herbert was still at Cambridge University about to depart for the weekend, but Edgar had a light lunch prepared for the guests which they ate on the terrace.
They had just finished when Ben’s, Mum and Dad arrived followed shortly by Danny and Siti.
“Well better late than never” Ben said
“I thought we made good time” his Dad replied
“Not you Dad” he responded “You’re actually early, I was talking to desperate Dan”
“I have just one thing to say to you bruv” Dan said punching him on the arm
“Finchbottom contra flow”
Enough said everyone concurred.
(Part 03)
After lunch as they had a couple of hours to kill, there was some debate as to how they should spend the time, but in the end they left the oldies and the baby to doze on the terrace and set off for a walk along the river on a route that the Overton’s had taken many times before.
What began with a huddled chattering group eventually spread out into a ragged strand.
Danny and Ben were at the back about 20 yards astern of Dorcas and Siti who appeared to be getting on like a house on fire.
Danny and Siti lived in Millmoor where he was an Estate agent and she was a primary school teacher so he didn’t get to see him as often as he’d like.
It was only on one of the mass family gatherings that they were able to catch up, they spoke on the phone regularly but that wasn’t quite the same so they wanted to make the most of the time they had.
“I have a question for you bruv” Danny said
“What’s that mate?”
“How the hell did you, of all people, manage to snatch up a little gem like Dorcas?” Danny asked in utter disbelief
“Well she obviously fell for my charm” Ben said smugly
“You don’t have any charm” his brother pointed out
“Au contraire” Ben said “I clearly ooze charm”
“You ooze something” Dan retorted “I thought she had better taste than that”
“Dorcas has excellent taste” Ben said
“She knocked me back you know?” Dan said in disbelief
“I know” he replied
“Turned me down flat” he continued
“Which just goes to prove she does have good taste” Ben said and then Danny tried to push him in the river.
The commotion caused the girls to turn around to see what they were up to and they both gave their respective other halves a look that said
“Just behave yourselves” so they returned to their previous positions and smiled then Ben whispered
“You know you’ve got yourself a good one in Siti”
“I know” he said smugly
About half an hour later we were in sight of Dulcet on Brooke and Abi shouted back from her place in the vanguard.
“PUNTS”
And in response Danny and Ben started jogging towards her.
“What’s going on” Dorcas said with alarm
“Were going punting” he said and took her hand and they ran hand in hand along the path
“But I’ve never punted” she exclaimed
The reason for all the excitement was that because of all the summers spent by the River a disproportionate amount of time was spent Punting on the River Willow.
The Willow was perfect for punting, shallow and slow moving, and it was appropriate that punting was a tradition in the family as it was Edwin and Herbert’s father who brought the punts to the Willow from Cambridge in the 1930’s.
They hired 4 punts and divided up into their respective couples, and apart from punting being a tradition, so was the competiveness.
(Part 04)
The Overton’s and their respective partners hired 4 punts and divided up into their respective couples, and apart from punting being a tradition, so was the competiveness.
And when the Overton clan took to the water the object of the exercise was not to get wet.
They had all been in the river at one time or another over the years, some more than others, but when they were punting the winners were the ones who stayed dry.
One of the occupational hazards with punting was getting your pole stuck in the mud and if that happened you should just let it go, if that unfortunate situation arises then you stay with the punt and not with the pole, its simple really, or should be.
Now to say that the object of the exercise is to stay dry isn’t strictly true, what the object of the exercise actually was, was to get your opponents wet and once both occupants of a punt have been dunked then they can take no further part.
Now under normal circumstances hostilities wouldn’t begin until all craft were out of sight of the dock and the prying eyes of the boat keeper.
But on this occasion Bijs missed his footing and fell in the river without even setting foot onto his punt.
“God Bijs your whole country is below sea level” Danny shouted “you should be more at home on the water than any of us”
It wasn’t long before Abi, the least sea worthy of the Overton’s, succumbed to an early bath and the contest was down to 3 boats.
Once the flotilla had travelled sufficiently up stream so as to be out of sight of the boat station the hostilities could begin in earnest.
There had been a number of harmless skirmishes when Danny, who normally wins hands down, narrowly avoided a ramming by Helens punt only to find himself heading straight for a weeping willow.
Siti panicked and ran to the rear of the vessel and then she and Danny slid down the pole together.
During the ensuing laughter Mark and Ben collided, and the pair of them got dunked.
Dorcas stood up and laughed like a drain before she shouted
“Abandon ship” and jumped in and joined him.
“I’ll save you captain” she said and wrapped her arms around him as they stood in the cool water, Ben up to his thighs and Dorcas waist deep and they laughed in the summer sunshine, which was when he knew for certain sure that he had fallen in love with her.
As he stood in the waters of the Willow kissing his girlfriend, Helen noisily declared herself the winner.
She had never won before and she wouldn’t shut up about it on the walk back to the Cush’s so they picked her up threw her into the river.
Her last words before she hit the water were
“You can’t do that I’m a mother”
(Part 05)
After the family Overton had done battle on the River Willow they squelched their way back along the river bank to Chez Cush in high spirits.
As they got closer to the house they could hear a happy chatter and the sound of glasses chinking.
We walked around the side of the house towards the terrace and found the family gathered.
“Oh goodness you’re all wet” Mum said “You’re worse than you were when you were children”
“Aha the motley crew return” Uncle Herbert said jovially “Who won the Battle of the Willow?”
“I did” Said Helen triumphantly as she squelched onto the terrace.
“So why are you dripping wet?” asked a bemused Uncle Edgar
“They threw me in river” said Helen indignantly
“Why did they do that?” Edgar enquired
“Because they’re mean” she replied, this information was greeted with raucous laughter and not with the wave of sympathy she had been expecting so she flounced off to get changed.
The rest of soggy group decided to have a drink on the terrace first.
During their absence a large white marquee had appeared on the lawn on the west side of the house in preparation of Uncle Herbert’s 60th Birthday party the next day.
Over the next hour everyone slowly drifted off in their ones and twos to get ready for the evening meal until there was only Dorcas and Ben left and they spent a romantic hour cuddling in the hammock watching the sun go down.
“This is nice” Ben said
“This is perfect” Dorcas corrected him
Ben was up early on Saturday morning, as was his Mum, there were only the two of them, and everyone else was sleeping in after the severe over indulgence at dinner the night before.
So they sat in the conservatory having breakfast and watched a procession of vans arrive on the drive and disgorge their various cargo into waiting hands who transported them to the marquee or its environs.
“What do you think of Dorcas?” Ben said suddenly, although his Mum had known her a lot longer than she had as she had been at school with Helen.
“She’s very nice dear” she replied as she stood up
“Of course she’s far too pretty for you to keep” she continued and left the room before he could respond.
““She’s far too pretty for me to keep” What on earth did she mean by that?” he thought to himself
Ben spent the rest of Saturday morning wondering what the hell his mum had meant by her remark, it was very cryptic.
Did she mean Dorcas was too pretty for him? Not good enough for him? Or too good for him?
Anyway the conclusion he reached was that he loved Dorcas Fox-Martin and he was going to keep her, end of story.
At two o’clock people started to arrive and the party slowly got going with the garden quickly filling with familiar faces.
Ben was appointed one of the “meeters and greeters” which was a great opportunity for him to introduce Dorcas to all and sundry.
After about an hour she went off to babysit Connor so Helen was free to mingle and he had a chance to catch up with old family friends and acquaintances but as a result he hardly saw Dorcas all afternoon and he really felt her absence.
(Part 06)
As the evening gave way to dusk all but the hardiest of the guests had moved into the marquee where shortly before the band started their set Ben’s kid brother Danny said he had an announcement to make and a murmur spread around the room in anticipation.
“I would just like to make a short but significant announcement” he began and everyone was intrigued but Ben was reasonably sure it was not a marriage declaration as he knew Danny’s position on marriage very well indeed.
He loved Siti with all his heart but he would never marry her because he thought marriage was a nonsense.
Ben himself had no strong opinion on marriage himself as he never thought the opportunity would ever arise.
Although Danny was anti marriage and Ben suspected he might change his mind if given sufficient incentive to do so, namely if there was a chance he might lose Siti.
So when the announcement was imminent he was certain sure it wasn’t marriage but wasn’t prepared at all for what he did say as he stood holding Siti’s hand.
“We are having a baby” he said excitedly and the tent erupted in cheers and then his Mum cried.
The excited chatter rippled around the room and about an hour later Ben was on his way back from the bar when he walked behind his Mums table out of her line of sight.
“You must be very proud Eleanor” Aunt Alexandra said
“Yes all my children are married or settled down” She Replied “apart from Ben of course”
At that remark he stopped in my tracks.
“But he has a very pretty little girlfriend” Alexandra corrected her.
“I know and she’s lovely” Eleanor said “but he’ll never keep hold of her, she is way out of his league”
There was a brief pause and then she continued
“He really needs to find himself a horsey type, not a pretty little brunette”
Well they say eaves droppers never hear anything good about themselves well that would teach him and as he continued on his journey he was feeling absolutely gob smacked.
I approached our table and Helen slurred loudly
“Then they threw me in the river”
Everyone laughed, but he rather uncharitably thought
“For God’s sake let it go”
He sat down next to Dorcas who gave him a smile as he sat down, Ben smiled back but inside he wasn’t smiling.
It was only when they were on the dance floor smooching along to 10cc’s “I’m not in love” that he felt at peace and he thought to himself
“Oh yes I am”
It was the next morning when he was getting ready for church that he made the decision.
Because he had woken up that morning having had an epiphany.
He quickly finished getting dressed and rushed downstairs and into the kitchen.
“Where’s Dorcas?” he asked abruptly
“And good morning to you” Abi said sitting at the table still wearing her dressing gown.
“Have you seen her or not?” he asked
“She’s in the shower” she snapped
“Thanks” he said and turned on his heels and left
“And I’m next” she shouted after him
(Part 07)
It was the next morning when he was getting ready for church that he made the decision.
Because he had woken up that morning having had an epiphany.
He quickly finished getting dressed and rushed downstairs and into the kitchen.
“Where’s Dorcas?” he asked abruptly
“And good morning to you” Abi said sitting at the table still wearing her dressing gown.
“Have you seen her or not?” he asked
“She’s in the shower” she snapped
“Thanks” he said and turned on his heels and left
“And I’m next” she shouted after him
Ben sprinted upstairs to the guest bathroom and pressed his ear against the door.
He could hear the sound of the shower running and some very tuneless singing.
So having detected it was Dorcas and not his mother he knocked on the door.
“I’ll be out in a minute” she called
“I need to talk to you” he called back
“I’ll be out in a minute hon” she said
The door was locked but it was an old house with a lot of the original fittings, including the door latch on the inside of the bathroom door.
He couldn’t wait a minute, what he had to say to her was urgent so as Dorcas wouldn’t let him in he had to let himself in.
So he used his credit card, sliding it between the frame and the door and lifting the latch and then he pushed open the door which squeaked as it opened.
“Who’s that?” she called in alarm
“It’s only me” he answered
Dorcas was just stepping out of the shower and hastily covered herself with a towel.
Although in the two months they had been seeing each other they had, to put it as delicately as possible, been intimate, but they were not at that stage of intimacy that allowed naked converse.
“Get out I’m not decent” she shouted
“I have something important to say” he insisted
“Can’t it wait?” she asked
“No it can’t” he said
“Well you can’t just barge into the bathroom when someone else’s is in there” Dorcas said crossly
“It’s not decent, we’re not some old married couple you know”
“That’s just the point” Ben said
“What is?” she said still very cross
“I want us to be” he explained though not very clearly
“You want us to be what?” she said with a puzzled expression
“Married” he said quietly “I want to marry you”
Dorcas just stood there in silence looking at him with a vacant look on her face.
“Well what do you think?” he asked
“I think you should come over here and kiss me” Dorcas replied
“Is that really decent?” he queried
“It is now we’re engaged” she answered and they kissed and it was a steamy kiss almost as steamy as the bathroom it.
They decided not to tell his Mum until after church as they thought her head might explode.
They did tell Danny though but only as he happened to be passing the bathroom as they came out but they swore him to silence until lunchtime.
“I’d better be your best man” he said
“But you don’t believe in marriage” he replied
“That’s not the point” he said
Following Ben Overton and Dorcas Fox-Martin’s unusual first date back in June on the Tree Top Trail in Dancingdean Forest, Dorcas and he had spent a lot of time together on the full range of more conventional dates, country walks, museums, art galleries, pubs, restaurant’s, cinemas and bowling alleys.
Over which time they had gotten to know each other very well and he discovered that quite apart from being gorgeous, which was plain to everyone, she was also witty, intelligent, sensitive, loving and a totally rubbish bowler, even worse than him.
As the weeks went they virtually became inseparable which was why at the beginning of August on a bright Friday morning they were driving along the Pepperstock Express Way on their way to celebrate, Cambridge Professor, Uncle Herbert’s 60th birthday by which time Dorcas and Ben were well and truly a couple.
It was to be a full on family weekend, which was something they did rather, but even by his families standards this one was to be even more special because this was one of the rarest of occasions when absolutely everyone would be in attendance.
Apart from the birthday boy Herbert and his wife Alexandra, there was his elder brother Edgar, Ben’s eldest sister Abi and her husband Bijs, who were coming over from Holland, his younger brother Danny and his girlfriend Siti, who were driving down from the Millmoor, baby sister Helen, hubby Mark and baby Connor who were a few hundred yards ahead of them on the motorway and his Mum and Dad who were about 50 miles behind them, despite the fact that they left home in convoy, because Ben’s Dad never broke the speed limit.
Although Dorcas was a longtime friend of his sister Helen, she didn’t know all the players involved in the weekend’s events and was a little apprehensive about meeting them all, so on the journey he filled in any blanks in her knowledge of them.
“Have you met Abi before?” he asked as they approached the junction for Finchbottom.
“Not really” she replied “She was in the back of your Dads car once, I think she was on her way back to Uni, but I didn’t meet her exactly”
It was hardly surprising really as she never really came home again after Uni.
Abigail met Bijs at University and went out to Southern Holland almost as soon as they graduated.
Now they both worked at the City Hall in S-Hertogenbosch and lived a few miles away in Rosmalen and only got back to the UK once in a while.
“You know Danny though” he said as Helen’s car took the exit for Finchbottom and the Dulcets.
“Yes but then he is nearer my own age” she said
“And he asked me out once”
“I didn’t know that” Ben said with surprise
“I said no” she assured me
“I’m pleased to hear it” he retorted
“How come we never met?” he asked
“I don’t know” Dorcas said thoughtfully “Just my good fortune I suppose”
“Bloody cheek” he said as she laughed hysterically
(Part 02)
After his sister exited the Express Way he and Dorcas stayed on and head for Pepperstock bay and the ferry terminal.
Forty five minutes after parting company with Helen they rejoined the Expressway at the Pepperstock Bay end with Ben’s sister Abi and her husband on board and they were still making better time than his Mum and Dad.
With the introductions done and Dorcas thoroughly interrogated by Abi they made steady progress towards the Dulcets.
“You’ll like Uncle Herbert” Abi said either to Dorcas or Bijs, Ben wasn’t sure which
“He’s Professor of Medieval Studies at Cambridge University” Ben said proudly
“Just like CS Lewis” Dorcas contributed
“That’s right” he said surprised “How on earth did you know that?”
“Well I’m not just a pretty face” she said
“Clearly” he concurred
“He’s at Magdalene College” Abi continued
“Also like Lewis” Dorcas responded
“Have you been swatting?” Ben asked suspiciously
“No I’m just a big fan” she replied
“Of Lewis or my Uncle?” he asked with a smile
“He is also a wit” Abi added
“A raconteur, a lay preacher and an all-round good egg” Abi and Ben said in unison and laughed, as it was a well-worn phrase often quoted by the family in relation to Uncle Herbert.
Bijs and Dorcas looked on in bemusement.
When they reached Dulcet-on-Willow Ben drove onto the driveway of chez Cush, more formally known as Willow House, just before one o’clock and Ben took a moment to take in the familiar vista before he took Dorcas inside to do the introductions.
Edgar, the elder of the Cush brothers still lived in the ancestral pile built by Ben’s great great great grandfather at the height of the industrial revolution as a country retreat.
Dulcet-on-Willow was a large sprawling village beside the gentle shallow River Willow, which ran unhurriedly from the Pepperstock Hills to the more vibrant River Brooke.
Willow House had featured prominently throughout Ben’s life, where all the family gatherings had taken place, and he wanted very much to feature in Dorcas’s future.
It was not a particularly esthetically pleasing structure but it was typically Victorian and it held fond memories for Ben.
The harshness of its hard lines had been somewhat softened over the years by the matured sympathetic planting which blended it into the unfussy landscape of the Vale where many a long summer holiday had been spent.
At the time Ben was remembering the past the birthday boy Herbert was still at Cambridge University about to depart for the weekend, but Edgar had a light lunch prepared for the guests which they ate on the terrace.
They had just finished when Ben’s, Mum and Dad arrived followed shortly by Danny and Siti.
“Well better late than never” Ben said
“I thought we made good time” his Dad replied
“Not you Dad” he responded “You’re actually early, I was talking to desperate Dan”
“I have just one thing to say to you bruv” Dan said punching him on the arm
“Finchbottom contra flow”
Enough said everyone concurred.
(Part 03)
After lunch as they had a couple of hours to kill, there was some debate as to how they should spend the time, but in the end they left the oldies and the baby to doze on the terrace and set off for a walk along the river on a route that the Overton’s had taken many times before.
What began with a huddled chattering group eventually spread out into a ragged strand.
Danny and Ben were at the back about 20 yards astern of Dorcas and Siti who appeared to be getting on like a house on fire.
Danny and Siti lived in Millmoor where he was an Estate agent and she was a primary school teacher so he didn’t get to see him as often as he’d like.
It was only on one of the mass family gatherings that they were able to catch up, they spoke on the phone regularly but that wasn’t quite the same so they wanted to make the most of the time they had.
“I have a question for you bruv” Danny said
“What’s that mate?”
“How the hell did you, of all people, manage to snatch up a little gem like Dorcas?” Danny asked in utter disbelief
“Well she obviously fell for my charm” Ben said smugly
“You don’t have any charm” his brother pointed out
“Au contraire” Ben said “I clearly ooze charm”
“You ooze something” Dan retorted “I thought she had better taste than that”
“Dorcas has excellent taste” Ben said
“She knocked me back you know?” Dan said in disbelief
“I know” he replied
“Turned me down flat” he continued
“Which just goes to prove she does have good taste” Ben said and then Danny tried to push him in the river.
The commotion caused the girls to turn around to see what they were up to and they both gave their respective other halves a look that said
“Just behave yourselves” so they returned to their previous positions and smiled then Ben whispered
“You know you’ve got yourself a good one in Siti”
“I know” he said smugly
About half an hour later we were in sight of Dulcet on Brooke and Abi shouted back from her place in the vanguard.
“PUNTS”
And in response Danny and Ben started jogging towards her.
“What’s going on” Dorcas said with alarm
“Were going punting” he said and took her hand and they ran hand in hand along the path
“But I’ve never punted” she exclaimed
The reason for all the excitement was that because of all the summers spent by the River a disproportionate amount of time was spent Punting on the River Willow.
The Willow was perfect for punting, shallow and slow moving, and it was appropriate that punting was a tradition in the family as it was Edwin and Herbert’s father who brought the punts to the Willow from Cambridge in the 1930’s.
They hired 4 punts and divided up into their respective couples, and apart from punting being a tradition, so was the competiveness.
(Part 04)
The Overton’s and their respective partners hired 4 punts and divided up into their respective couples, and apart from punting being a tradition, so was the competiveness.
And when the Overton clan took to the water the object of the exercise was not to get wet.
They had all been in the river at one time or another over the years, some more than others, but when they were punting the winners were the ones who stayed dry.
One of the occupational hazards with punting was getting your pole stuck in the mud and if that happened you should just let it go, if that unfortunate situation arises then you stay with the punt and not with the pole, its simple really, or should be.
Now to say that the object of the exercise is to stay dry isn’t strictly true, what the object of the exercise actually was, was to get your opponents wet and once both occupants of a punt have been dunked then they can take no further part.
Now under normal circumstances hostilities wouldn’t begin until all craft were out of sight of the dock and the prying eyes of the boat keeper.
But on this occasion Bijs missed his footing and fell in the river without even setting foot onto his punt.
“God Bijs your whole country is below sea level” Danny shouted “you should be more at home on the water than any of us”
It wasn’t long before Abi, the least sea worthy of the Overton’s, succumbed to an early bath and the contest was down to 3 boats.
Once the flotilla had travelled sufficiently up stream so as to be out of sight of the boat station the hostilities could begin in earnest.
There had been a number of harmless skirmishes when Danny, who normally wins hands down, narrowly avoided a ramming by Helens punt only to find himself heading straight for a weeping willow.
Siti panicked and ran to the rear of the vessel and then she and Danny slid down the pole together.
During the ensuing laughter Mark and Ben collided, and the pair of them got dunked.
Dorcas stood up and laughed like a drain before she shouted
“Abandon ship” and jumped in and joined him.
“I’ll save you captain” she said and wrapped her arms around him as they stood in the cool water, Ben up to his thighs and Dorcas waist deep and they laughed in the summer sunshine, which was when he knew for certain sure that he had fallen in love with her.
As he stood in the waters of the Willow kissing his girlfriend, Helen noisily declared herself the winner.
She had never won before and she wouldn’t shut up about it on the walk back to the Cush’s so they picked her up threw her into the river.
Her last words before she hit the water were
“You can’t do that I’m a mother”
(Part 05)
After the family Overton had done battle on the River Willow they squelched their way back along the river bank to Chez Cush in high spirits.
As they got closer to the house they could hear a happy chatter and the sound of glasses chinking.
We walked around the side of the house towards the terrace and found the family gathered.
“Oh goodness you’re all wet” Mum said “You’re worse than you were when you were children”
“Aha the motley crew return” Uncle Herbert said jovially “Who won the Battle of the Willow?”
“I did” Said Helen triumphantly as she squelched onto the terrace.
“So why are you dripping wet?” asked a bemused Uncle Edgar
“They threw me in river” said Helen indignantly
“Why did they do that?” Edgar enquired
“Because they’re mean” she replied, this information was greeted with raucous laughter and not with the wave of sympathy she had been expecting so she flounced off to get changed.
The rest of soggy group decided to have a drink on the terrace first.
During their absence a large white marquee had appeared on the lawn on the west side of the house in preparation of Uncle Herbert’s 60th Birthday party the next day.
Over the next hour everyone slowly drifted off in their ones and twos to get ready for the evening meal until there was only Dorcas and Ben left and they spent a romantic hour cuddling in the hammock watching the sun go down.
“This is nice” Ben said
“This is perfect” Dorcas corrected him
Ben was up early on Saturday morning, as was his Mum, there were only the two of them, and everyone else was sleeping in after the severe over indulgence at dinner the night before.
So they sat in the conservatory having breakfast and watched a procession of vans arrive on the drive and disgorge their various cargo into waiting hands who transported them to the marquee or its environs.
“What do you think of Dorcas?” Ben said suddenly, although his Mum had known her a lot longer than she had as she had been at school with Helen.
“She’s very nice dear” she replied as she stood up
“Of course she’s far too pretty for you to keep” she continued and left the room before he could respond.
““She’s far too pretty for me to keep” What on earth did she mean by that?” he thought to himself
Ben spent the rest of Saturday morning wondering what the hell his mum had meant by her remark, it was very cryptic.
Did she mean Dorcas was too pretty for him? Not good enough for him? Or too good for him?
Anyway the conclusion he reached was that he loved Dorcas Fox-Martin and he was going to keep her, end of story.
At two o’clock people started to arrive and the party slowly got going with the garden quickly filling with familiar faces.
Ben was appointed one of the “meeters and greeters” which was a great opportunity for him to introduce Dorcas to all and sundry.
After about an hour she went off to babysit Connor so Helen was free to mingle and he had a chance to catch up with old family friends and acquaintances but as a result he hardly saw Dorcas all afternoon and he really felt her absence.
(Part 06)
As the evening gave way to dusk all but the hardiest of the guests had moved into the marquee where shortly before the band started their set Ben’s kid brother Danny said he had an announcement to make and a murmur spread around the room in anticipation.
“I would just like to make a short but significant announcement” he began and everyone was intrigued but Ben was reasonably sure it was not a marriage declaration as he knew Danny’s position on marriage very well indeed.
He loved Siti with all his heart but he would never marry her because he thought marriage was a nonsense.
Ben himself had no strong opinion on marriage himself as he never thought the opportunity would ever arise.
Although Danny was anti marriage and Ben suspected he might change his mind if given sufficient incentive to do so, namely if there was a chance he might lose Siti.
So when the announcement was imminent he was certain sure it wasn’t marriage but wasn’t prepared at all for what he did say as he stood holding Siti’s hand.
“We are having a baby” he said excitedly and the tent erupted in cheers and then his Mum cried.
The excited chatter rippled around the room and about an hour later Ben was on his way back from the bar when he walked behind his Mums table out of her line of sight.
“You must be very proud Eleanor” Aunt Alexandra said
“Yes all my children are married or settled down” She Replied “apart from Ben of course”
At that remark he stopped in my tracks.
“But he has a very pretty little girlfriend” Alexandra corrected her.
“I know and she’s lovely” Eleanor said “but he’ll never keep hold of her, she is way out of his league”
There was a brief pause and then she continued
“He really needs to find himself a horsey type, not a pretty little brunette”
Well they say eaves droppers never hear anything good about themselves well that would teach him and as he continued on his journey he was feeling absolutely gob smacked.
I approached our table and Helen slurred loudly
“Then they threw me in the river”
Everyone laughed, but he rather uncharitably thought
“For God’s sake let it go”
He sat down next to Dorcas who gave him a smile as he sat down, Ben smiled back but inside he wasn’t smiling.
It was only when they were on the dance floor smooching along to 10cc’s “I’m not in love” that he felt at peace and he thought to himself
“Oh yes I am”
It was the next morning when he was getting ready for church that he made the decision.
Because he had woken up that morning having had an epiphany.
He quickly finished getting dressed and rushed downstairs and into the kitchen.
“Where’s Dorcas?” he asked abruptly
“And good morning to you” Abi said sitting at the table still wearing her dressing gown.
“Have you seen her or not?” he asked
“She’s in the shower” she snapped
“Thanks” he said and turned on his heels and left
“And I’m next” she shouted after him
(Part 07)
It was the next morning when he was getting ready for church that he made the decision.
Because he had woken up that morning having had an epiphany.
He quickly finished getting dressed and rushed downstairs and into the kitchen.
“Where’s Dorcas?” he asked abruptly
“And good morning to you” Abi said sitting at the table still wearing her dressing gown.
“Have you seen her or not?” he asked
“She’s in the shower” she snapped
“Thanks” he said and turned on his heels and left
“And I’m next” she shouted after him
Ben sprinted upstairs to the guest bathroom and pressed his ear against the door.
He could hear the sound of the shower running and some very tuneless singing.
So having detected it was Dorcas and not his mother he knocked on the door.
“I’ll be out in a minute” she called
“I need to talk to you” he called back
“I’ll be out in a minute hon” she said
The door was locked but it was an old house with a lot of the original fittings, including the door latch on the inside of the bathroom door.
He couldn’t wait a minute, what he had to say to her was urgent so as Dorcas wouldn’t let him in he had to let himself in.
So he used his credit card, sliding it between the frame and the door and lifting the latch and then he pushed open the door which squeaked as it opened.
“Who’s that?” she called in alarm
“It’s only me” he answered
Dorcas was just stepping out of the shower and hastily covered herself with a towel.
Although in the two months they had been seeing each other they had, to put it as delicately as possible, been intimate, but they were not at that stage of intimacy that allowed naked converse.
“Get out I’m not decent” she shouted
“I have something important to say” he insisted
“Can’t it wait?” she asked
“No it can’t” he said
“Well you can’t just barge into the bathroom when someone else’s is in there” Dorcas said crossly
“It’s not decent, we’re not some old married couple you know”
“That’s just the point” Ben said
“What is?” she said still very cross
“I want us to be” he explained though not very clearly
“You want us to be what?” she said with a puzzled expression
“Married” he said quietly “I want to marry you”
Dorcas just stood there in silence looking at him with a vacant look on her face.
“Well what do you think?” he asked
“I think you should come over here and kiss me” Dorcas replied
“Is that really decent?” he queried
“It is now we’re engaged” she answered and they kissed and it was a steamy kiss almost as steamy as the bathroom it.
They decided not to tell his Mum until after church as they thought her head might explode.
They did tell Danny though but only as he happened to be passing the bathroom as they came out but they swore him to silence until lunchtime.
“I’d better be your best man” he said
“But you don’t believe in marriage” he replied
“That’s not the point” he said
Tales of Love # 10
I FINALLY FOUND THE ONE
I finally found the one
The one for whom I’d yearned
And everything was going well
Until my fortunes turned
When the joy became sorrow
And I suddenly got burned
RED ROSES
Red roses
For my true love
Each stem symbolic
One for each year
Each unopened bud
A year yet to come
RED SUNSET
The red sunset is for lovers
Who sigh with lovesick bliss
And in the glow of a blood red sky
The lovers stand and kiss
HOW COULD SHE BE REAL?
Is she not a mirage?
Born in my arid heart
To confuse my senses
Conjured from my dreams
To give false hope
This wild imagining
Is so cruelly meant
For someone so unworthy
How could she be real?
I FELL FOR YOU
I fell for you
Like a stone
And I am in heaven
I’m walking on air
As I imagine
Your arms around me
And If you fall for me
You’ll leave me breathless
UNHINGED, UNLOCKED
Unhinged, unlocked
Old wounds reopened
A love turned to hate
The passion and desire
Now for revenge
TOWARDS YOU MY LOVE
Towards you my love
My heart conveys me
Drawn towards your beauty
And your healing heart
The cherished moments
Of your tender embrace
Sustain me on my journey
Towards your open arms
YOUR KISS UPON MY MOUTH
Your kiss upon my mouth
Your breath against my skin
Your almost palpable touch on my heart
A PASSIONATE DESIRE
A passionate desire,
Made manifest
First in a perfect kiss
Then in a carnal embrace
Entwined with you
In an act of bliss
My love for you
Made complete
SOME PEOPLE SEEK
Some people seek
A maelstrom
Or a whirlwind
A breathless passion
Of eternal desire
But for me
I just need to be loved
A KEEP-SAKE
A keep-sake
That speaks of love
A handkerchief
Bearing a lipstick kiss
A rose dried and pressed
Within a weighty tome
A missive couched
In terms of love
Or a photograph
Kept beside your heart
THE LANGUAGE OF LOVE
Sending signals
And reading
The replies
A look or gesture
That holds a message
To be relayed
Is as ancient
As hieroglyphs
And as difficult
To translate
I finally found the one
The one for whom I’d yearned
And everything was going well
Until my fortunes turned
When the joy became sorrow
And I suddenly got burned
RED ROSES
Red roses
For my true love
Each stem symbolic
One for each year
Each unopened bud
A year yet to come
RED SUNSET
The red sunset is for lovers
Who sigh with lovesick bliss
And in the glow of a blood red sky
The lovers stand and kiss
HOW COULD SHE BE REAL?
Is she not a mirage?
Born in my arid heart
To confuse my senses
Conjured from my dreams
To give false hope
This wild imagining
Is so cruelly meant
For someone so unworthy
How could she be real?
I FELL FOR YOU
I fell for you
Like a stone
And I am in heaven
I’m walking on air
As I imagine
Your arms around me
And If you fall for me
You’ll leave me breathless
UNHINGED, UNLOCKED
Unhinged, unlocked
Old wounds reopened
A love turned to hate
The passion and desire
Now for revenge
TOWARDS YOU MY LOVE
Towards you my love
My heart conveys me
Drawn towards your beauty
And your healing heart
The cherished moments
Of your tender embrace
Sustain me on my journey
Towards your open arms
YOUR KISS UPON MY MOUTH
Your kiss upon my mouth
Your breath against my skin
Your almost palpable touch on my heart
A PASSIONATE DESIRE
A passionate desire,
Made manifest
First in a perfect kiss
Then in a carnal embrace
Entwined with you
In an act of bliss
My love for you
Made complete
SOME PEOPLE SEEK
Some people seek
A maelstrom
Or a whirlwind
A breathless passion
Of eternal desire
But for me
I just need to be loved
A KEEP-SAKE
A keep-sake
That speaks of love
A handkerchief
Bearing a lipstick kiss
A rose dried and pressed
Within a weighty tome
A missive couched
In terms of love
Or a photograph
Kept beside your heart
THE LANGUAGE OF LOVE
Sending signals
And reading
The replies
A look or gesture
That holds a message
To be relayed
Is as ancient
As hieroglyphs
And as difficult
To translate
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