‘Well, if it does end up going that way, I’m still going to take you for a spin on the dance floor.’ Michael grinned mischievously.
‘You’ll have a tough job of it. I’m not sure I’m going to be able to walk in my shoes, never mind dance in them.’
‘It’s going to be weird seeing you with something on your feet other than trainers. I just can’t imagine it.’
‘Hey…’ Sophia slapped him on the arm playfully. ‘I can make myself look presentable sometimes, you know.’
Michael laughed openly. ‘I know, I’m only playing. I bet you’re going to look great. Oh, I have updates on the online dating by the way. I’ve had a few more messages, and some of them actually sound rather promising.’
Sophia’s smile tightened. ‘That’s wonderful news. I’m really happy to hear it. Do you think you’ll go and meet any of them?’
Michael shrugged, keeping his eyes on Harry the whole time. ‘Who knows? It’s a bit too early to tell, I think. I’ve chatted to some of them. Just general chit-chat, you know. One woman in particular sounds like she’s got her head screwed on. Shelly, her name is. She’s got a young girl, so we have that in common. In fact, we’ve organised a chat this evening. She works shifts at her local hospital. She’s got a nice, easy nature, and doesn’t take herself too seriously, which is appealing to me.’
As Michael continued to tell her more about the Shelly woman, Sophia’s mind began to wander. Sure, she sounded nice enough, but what if she turned out to be another version of his ex, Tanya?
It had taken such a long time for him to get over his last relationship, to get back to being himself again. He’d been a mess for months, but had tried his best to keep it together in front of his son. Sophia’s heart had broken for him as she watched him fall apart and then try to put the pieces back together. She’d worried about him endlessly and supposed she felt protective of him, probably more than she should have.
‘She’s divorced,’ continued Michael. He hadn’t stopped speaking since she’d faded out of the conversation. ‘She says she wouldn’t ever get married again. Her husband was abusive. Not physically, but emotionally. He was controlling. He wouldn’t let her go out with her friends or anything like that. She had no freedom whatsoever. I can’t understand how a man can ever be like that with a woman.’ He shook his head in disgust.
‘Wow. Sounds as if you’ve found out loads about her already.’
‘She’s pretty open about herself and her past, which is another reason I like her. Better that way than to have secrets, don’t you think? I’ve told her about Harry too.’
Sophia felt a tug of something in her gut. She eyed Harry up ahead, and tried to imagine another woman coming into their life. ‘Aurwh, that’s nice,’ she muttered. Suddenly feeling stifled, Sophia took a breath to calm herself and picked up the pace just a little bit. ‘Come on, Esther. Let’s get inside. Spag bol for tea!’
Chapter Nine
Since arriving in town, Magda had hardly left the house. While Charlie pottered about, doing his own thing, she’d decided to take it upon herself to give the place a good clean and dust. If Charlie seemed bothered by it, it didn’t show. He remained in his chair, parked in front of the television, oblivious to her presence, or at least pretending to be. In turn, Magda simply cleaned around him, refusing to be put off. The ridiculous truth was, it felt nice to be able to clean. Back at home with Greg, the house was always spotless thanks to the cleaner. Even if she’d wanted to clean, she would have had a hard time trying to find something that needed tidying.
She gave the windows a much-needed wash, outside as well as in, and couldn’t believe the difference it made. Charlie blinked when the sunlight swooped into the room. It was alien to him after so long. She tidied up the front porch and even spent a good few hours de-weeding the garden path, finding it therapeutic almost, as patches of it began to become visible for the first time in God knew how long. From time to time, she’d stand up and eye the sea in the distance from the small front garden. She’d close her eyes and ground herself, and realise that, for the first time in a long time, she felt calm. There was no chaos here and it felt good to be completely in the moment. Next on her list was to source a lawnmower from somewhere, and after that? Well, she and Charlie had a lot of talking to do.
‘Do you know if the next-door neighbours have a lawnmower? I fancy giving the garden a trim, and the one in the shed isn’t looking too healthy.’
‘Oh, don’t bother with the garden. I’ll get around to it myself. Just leave it be for now, eh, kid?’
Magda blinked. ‘Well, I may as well do it while I’m here. I mean, I can easily just…’
‘Magda. I said no. Just leave it, okay?’
Taken aback, Magda frowned. She didn’t think she’d ever heard Charlie raise his voice before. Not once. Charlie glanced at her, then returned his gaze to the television screen.
‘Dad, please. I’m only trying to help.’
‘You’re not helping, okay? In fact, you’re making everything worse. You’re just reminding me of everything I’ve let go to shit. So just stop it. Stop it now. Go out somewhere. Visit some old friends. Take a walk about town. Just leave me alone for a bit. I’m tired, okay? I’m tired.’
And Magda could see just how much he meant those words. She wanted to go to him. To hug him and comfort him, in the same way he’d done so many times when she’d been a child, but the atmosphere was frosty now and he remained silent with his head down. He was waiting for her to leave, she realised, so she did. She nodded at him, despite his not acknowledging it, and walked out.
Once outside the house, Magda knew exactly where she was going to go. On her way there, while passing through the busy part of town, she stopped off at the local florist’s and purchased a big bouquet of flowers. She dipped her head towards the heads of roses and inhaled the sweet scent deeply. Yes. They were perfect.
She continued on her way, trying not to think too much about the deep sadness etched into her father’s face as he’d told her to go. She’d thought, stupidly, that after so much time had passed, he would have sorted himself out, got a new job and got back into the swing of things, but that hadn’t happened and the guilt was gnawing away at her like nobody’s business. She’d hoped he’d be better now. More like his old self. But he was still stuck in the past, heart breaking day by day from loneliness and sadness.
The cemetery appeared up ahead and Magda paused to peer at it from afar. They were odd places, she’d always thought. The first time she’d come here, after her mother died, she’d tiptoed across the grass, careful not to tread on a single resting place. Even then, at such a young age, she’d known what lay beneath the earth, and she’d been respectful in every way she could manage.
Magda stepped through the open iron gates and made her way up the gravel path, gazing about at the headstones, trying to make out dates and names as the small stones crunched beneath her feet. Most of them were weathered, battered by years upon years of rain and wind. With some, the markings were impossible to decipher. She’d always wondered about the people buried here. The lives they’d led when they’d been alive. She found it fascinating and could quite easily become lost in her thoughts.
She found her mother’s headstone and placed the flowers down in silence. Someone had visited not too long ago, and the flowers they’d left had withered and died in the time since, so Magda busied herself with tidying them away. Once finished, she sat down cross-legged and closed her eyes, feeling the slight cool breeze brush past her.
She could remember the day they’d lost her as clear as day. It had been a terrifying couple of months for all of them following her mother’s diagnosis of breast cancer. She’d slipped away from them so gradually, Magda had barely noticed at all until the moment she had gone for good. Once she was gone, everything had collapsed around her. Her world had shifted and felt so different without her mother alive. Everyone had loved Helena, and everyone had mourned her death. Her
funeral had been one of the biggest Worthington Green had seen in years. The church had been rammed full of her mother’s friends and people who’d known and loved her just as much as Helena’s daughter and husband. She’d been such a massive pillar of the community. She’d run painting and pottery classes, been part of the choir, and the main flower arranger in the church whenever weddings or ceremonies took place. Even after her diagnosis, she’d tried her absolute best to carry on with it all, but she’d seemed to hit a brick wall and had stopped, too exhausted to continue. It had broken Magda’s heart, and shattered Charlie’s. After Helena’s death, Magda had wanted to encourage her father to try to move on. She hadn’t been nasty about it. She’d just wanted him not to give up on life because he was all she had left then. She’d wanted him to still try and make her smile, for them to sit around the table and eat dinner together, even if there was a spare space that would never be filled again. But he’d flinched away from anything that even remotely meant moving forward in life. He simply hadn’t wanted to. Not without his wife. And Magda hadn’t been able to stand it.
‘Hello, Mum,’ she began. ‘Sorry it’s been so long. I guess I’ve just been…’ Busy? The word almost tripped off her tongue but she stopped herself, realising she’d be lying if she were to say it, because the truth was that she hadn’t been busy. Not really. ‘I suppose I got sidetracked.’ It was pathetic and she knew it was. She groaned out loud, feeling hopeless. ‘Okay. The truth is, I haven’t done anything at all while I’ve been away. My life is shit. My husband isn’t in love with me any more and has been having sex with other women. He thinks I have no idea, when I do. Lately I’ve been wondering whether I did the right thing leaving this place. Dad is angry with me and I know why. It’s because I buggered off with Greg when he was still hurting, which I know I shouldn’t have done, but I was young and excited and bowled over by all that Greg had to offer. In reality it’s been nothing like what I thought it would be, and I’m sadder than I ever was before. I thought we’d be happy but we’re not. I can’t stop thinking about this place. My old friends. How happy I was when I was younger. I know that when you get older you have more responsibilities, so of course life isn’t like it was when you were a child, but surely there’s got to be more to life than this, Mum? Am I destined to be this miserable for the rest of my life?’ She realised, when she paused, that she was waiting for an answer. She stared at the headstone and felt tears rising. ‘I just… I just feel like I’ve gone wrong somewhere. Somewhere along the road, I got lost and messed up and went down a path I shouldn’t have. How the hell do I get back now?’
It was an impossible question but it felt good to finally ask it out loud, rather than have it circling her mind endlessly. All was quiet around her apart from the odd rustle of leaves on the trees as the breeze whistled through. Magda sighed hopelessly. She was the one who had got herself into this mess, so she was the only one who could get herself out of it.
‘Anyway, Mum, sorry to load all of that on to you. I hope you’re okay, wherever you are. Dad misses you so fiercely, even now. Even after all the years that have passed. He’s not the man he used to be. I need to make him better. To let him know he wasn’t the reason I left. I’m sure that’s what he thinks. And I miss you too. Always have and always will. When I was little, I wanted to be just like you when I grew up. Now look at me. I’m nothing like you at all, am I?’ Magda pushed herself up and took a last lingering look at the headstone, placing her hand upon it. ‘I’m going to change that. I’m going to make myself happy again. I promise.’
She turned away and began to walk back the way she’d come. Back down the gravelly, crunchy path, back towards the rusty iron gates, and back to the house where Charlie was no doubt still in the exact same place she’d left him. Her poor Dad. She needed to show him he wasn’t the reason she’d left. She just wasn’t sure how.
*
Magda was on the sofa in her pyjamas. Once she’d finished at the cemetery, she’d returned home and, just as she’d known she would, found Charlie flicking through the television channels, stony-faced and silent. He had remained that way for the rest of the day, but now Magda had had enough of it. There was only one thing she could think of that might make Charlie open up and talk to her and she was more than ready to try it, no matter how ridiculous it might seem.
‘Why not?’ Charlie finally said after she asked. ‘Haven’t had one of those in a while.’
Magda smiled to herself in triumph. ‘Great!’ She hopped up and put her coat on before shoving her feet into a pair of boots. Despite the days being mostly filled with sunshine, it was still chilly at night, especially when the wind swept in from off the harbour. ‘Pie and chips?’
Charlie smiled but didn’t remove his eyes from the TV screen. ‘That’s right. Surprised you still remember.’
‘Of course I do. I remember everything. Small tub of gravy?’
‘Now you’re just showing off.’ Charlie grinned and rummaged around in one of his trouser pockets, rooting for change, but Magda stopped him.
‘No, don’t worry. I’ll get this. It’s well overdue. Back soon.’
She stepped outside and made her way into town. Passing by houses lit up warmly from within, Magda hoped that before she went back to Greg, she and Charlie would have cleared the air. She missed him. The old him. The him who would crack jokes that had her sides splitting with laughter. That man seemed so far away these days. Magda lost herself in her memories as she carried on towards the chip shop, guided by the orange glow of the street lights.
‘Well, if it isn’t little Magda Crossley!’
Taken aback, Magda was surprised to find old Mac Archer behind the counter. She hadn’t expected him to still be here. She’d thought he would have moved on by now, or at least retired. She wondered where his son, Tom, was. God, she’d had the most monumental crush on him when she’d been younger. Looking back now, it was embarrassing how much she’d wanted him to notice her.
She glanced around the chip shop quickly, expecting to find him there, but thankfully only Mac’s presence filled the shop. ‘Hi, Mac. Long time, no see. How are you?’
‘Just grand, thanks, love. But look at you! You’re all grown up. How’s your old man? I don’t see too much of him anymore. Keeps to himself, he does.’
‘He’s doing okay, thanks. I’m here to pick up his favourite, actually. Pie and chips, small gravy to go with it.’
‘And for yourself?’
Magda peered at the menu board. It had been so long since she’d simply ordered a takeaway, never mind stood in a fish and chip shop and decided what to eat. ‘You know what? Make it a double of the pie and chips, gravy included. Is that okay?’
‘Sure it is. Coming right up. Take a seat.’
Sitting down at one of the small tables, Magda took a good look around. She had so many memories of being here as a teen with her friends. She inhaled and felt her stomach grumble in anticipation of what was to come, the smell of the food smothering the place. It was absolutely tantalising. It was the scent of her youth. Of excitement and laughter and friendship. She smiled to herself sadly.
‘What are you doing back in town then?’ Mac was busy behind the counter with her order. ‘Any particular reason?’
‘A school reunion actually.’ Magda laughed lightly. ‘I mean, I was overdue a trip back anyway. It’s been a while since I’ve spent any time with Dad. So, when I got the invitation, it just seemed right to come back for a little holiday.’ With a small shrug, she rose from the seat and approached the counter. ‘What have you been up to? I didn’t think you’d still be working here. It’s been how long now? Twenty-five, thirty years?’
‘Can’t give the old place up, can I? It’s my baby!’ He chuckled as he rolled a hearty serving of hot chips in paper. Magda got a whiff of the tang of vinegar as he did so. ‘Plus, where would I go? Nah, I reckon I’ll stay here till I die. It’s not so bad.’
‘What’s Tom up to these days? Is he stil
l around?’
Mac shook his head. ‘Nah, he buggered off travelling a couple of years ago. He pops back now and again, and it’s nice to see him, but he’s got his own life and seems to be doing well for himself. He sends me postcards to keep me updated, you know. I’ve got a load of them pinned up in the kitchen and like to have a flick through them from time to time. Thailand, I think he mentioned the last time I saw him. Meant to be nice there.’
‘So I guess he won’t be coming back for the reunion then?’ Of course he wouldn’t. Who in their right mind would leave the silky shores of Thailand to come back here? Magda certainly wouldn’t, that was for sure.
‘Can’t say he will, love. Here you go.’ The chips, pies and two tubs of gravy had been put into a plastic bag with the chip shop’s logo printed on it. A thrashing sea with a lighthouse in the background. As Magda picked it up, she could feel the heat radiating from the food within. She couldn’t wait to dig in.
‘Enjoy your school reunion. I’m sure it’ll be a blast.’
‘Thanks, Mac. Great to see you! Say hello to Tom for me, won’t you?’
‘Will do, love. Tell your old man I said hello! Ask him if he fancies coming fishing with me sometime. We used to be pretty close before… Well, you know. Before everything happened with your dear mother. Bless her soul. Be nice to see him again.’
‘I’ll let him know, Mac. See you!’ Magda left and hurried back home.
That was a nice offer from Mac. Surely Charlie couldn’t turn it down? It would give him the perfect excuse to get up and out of the house for a change. She’d be sure to mention it to him while they ate their pies and chips this evening. Everyone needed a friend sometimes, didn’t they?
Chapter Ten
The night of the reunion had finally arrived, and Sophia was a bundle of nerves. She was yet to get into her dress and heels, but her hair had been curled to within an inch of its life and her make-up, which she’d spent hours perfecting, was complete. She eyed herself in the mirror and angled her face left and right to make sure there were no foundation marks. She’d never been the most accomplished when it came to applying make-up, but this evening it seemed her care and gentle pace had paid off. She barely recognised the woman looking back at her. It was amazing what a little bit of make-up could achieve.
Right Here Waiting for You Page 6
