It Always Rains in November

by Richard Hoffman

  “You can’t speak to me like that,” he screeched. “I’ll fire you both.”

  Carl stood also, side by side with Janice. Louis shook his head. If this turned into a fight, he’d have to separate them. Not in his job description.

  “Martin,” Marie interjected in a measured tone, “they won’t be fired. Your behaviour is appalling and belongs in the Dark Ages. This audit cannot begin, and that’s because you and Jeffrey Parker try to bully staff into submission. It doesn’t work in this day and age and whatever you decide to do, my report about you two will be a lot more damning.”

  Martin Miller remained standing but had no more to say. He stood there, staring at each of his enemies in turn. Carl broke the silence.

  “Come on. Let’s get out of here.”

  Louis and Marie stood up to leave. Louis tripped on one of the chair legs and dropped his papers (but saved his laptop). The others traipsed out of the office, leaving Martin at his desk and Louis scrabbling on the floor for his paperwork. When Louis gathered his paraphernalia together etiquette demanded him saying “Goodbye. Nice to meet you”, to Martin. The reward for his good manners was “Fuck off baldy,” as Martin sat, head in hands.

  Despite the last half hour, Janice looked through the window and felt sorry for him. Maybe she had gone too far. They stood outside Martin’s office and Marie suggested that they should all go to the pub for a celebration drink. As they left Janice turned to see what Martin Miller was doing. He remained sat there, but his right hand had moved from his head. He was consoling himself with extra proteins.

  Chapter 27

  Wednesday November 10th – Nathan at school

  Wednesday was Carly’s first day on suspension. She intended to enjoy her day off school by lazing in bed all morning and having the house to herself in the afternoon. Watching Kiss on cable TV without her dad changing the channel, or blasting out tunes on her CD player without him moaning. Instead, she woke up at 10.30, made herself toast and sat in the living room for a couple of hours bored and pissed off. Her dad had a new girlfriend, her mum didn’t give a shit, and her best friends were not interested in listening to her talk about her issues with her parents.

  Feeling irritable, she wondered if her period was due. She’d had her first one in September and one last month, but nothing yet this month. The first one was a nightmare. She knew about periods, Jacquie and Bethany had both already started, but she was home when she started the blob, and did not want to tell her dad. She threw her knickers away, took £10 that her Gran had given her, from her purse, and went down the road to buy sanitary towels, grateful that the shop assistant was a woman.

  She had been similarly bad tempered before the others, but there was nobody around to be angry with. After she got back from the chemist she sat in the living room, without TV, and started to cry. Over her mum not caring, or the relationship with her dad, or feeling lonely, or pre menstrual. She put on Kiss FM on the TV and began singing to Britney’s Womaniser. For the next couple of hours, apart from a visit to the kitchen to microwave some beans for herself, Kiss FM alleviated Carly’s gloom.

  As soon as school finished at three, she phoned Jacquie and Bethany and asked them to meet up with her. Neither could and Carly was convinced that they were doing something together and leaving her out. When she hung up the phone to Bethany she muttered, “Fuck ‘em both. Who gives a shit about them anyway?”

  Deciding to take a shower, she opened the bathroom cabinet and saw an old bottle of pills that her dad had been prescribed years ago when he’d had trouble sleeping, after he’d been dumped by her mum. It crossed her mind to put them to good use. The sell by date had not passed and who would give a shit if anything happened to her? Carly studied the bottle and thought about what her parents and friends would say if she took the pills. They’d probably all feel guilty and blame themselves. She was about to unscrew the lid when she had another thought. If she took an overdose and died they’d all get over her quickly. Her dad had his slapper, her mum had her work and Gemma – in that order – and Bethany and Jacquie had each other. They might even reckon they’d be better off without her. Well, she wouldn’t give them the satisfaction. Carly replaced the bottle.

  After her shower, she straightened her hair, put on make up and dressed as if going for a night out. She had nowhere to go and nobody to go with, but dressing up made her feel good. She was glammed up for nothing when the doorbell rang.

  * * *

  Nathan was nervous about his return to school on Wednesday. Not because of the teachers or the lessons or because his uniform was much less comfortable than he remembered it being six months before, but because he was dreading seeing his mates. Full of regret for having phoned the police the night before, he had thought about phoning his best mate to find out whether he was in the shit with the crew, but he decided to face them out.

  Going to school for the first time in six months was itself an issue. Nathan woke up late and arrived twenty minutes late. He had missed the start of year 11, so he had no idea which classes to attend. Still, being late meant he avoided his mates, so it was no biggie. He went to reception where he was told he was still registered as a pupil but no lessons had been assigned to him. He spent the first two hours of his day in various offices while admin staff worked out a timetable for him.

  Lunchtime was the first opportunity to renew acquaintances. Apart from a couple of “Alright, Nath” greetings from a neek or two and an ugly girl, he hadn’t yet seen anybody to talk to. As he walked to the canteen he saw Michael in the corridor coming towards him. Michael was with Paige, a year 10 girl, who was quite fit, but he stopped to face Nathan, and Paige walked on without him.

  Nathan had hoped that his mates might suspect someone else, a neighbour perhaps, but that straw was about to be declutched.

  “What the fuck are you doing here? Come to gloat?”

  Nathan winced. “Michael, can we talk somewhere?”

  “Not much you can say to explain this, is there, mate? Mark’s gonna be killed by his dad; Charlotte, Billy and Hannah were all charged with possession and the rest of us were cautioned. So thanks a lot, mate. Been good to know you…. NOT.”

  Michael walked off leaving Nathan stood on his ones as kids streamed passed him on their way to munch. Two days ago, Nathan had two girlfriends, loads of mates and an easy life without school. Now he had no girlfriends, no mates and was stuck at school in a uniform he’d outgrown. He also had no money for lunch and considered beating up a year seven kid for some food. It might have been a laugh if accompanied by his mates, but bullying some little prick when he was on his own was not a fun option.

  Hanging about behind the lockers, Nathan used his mobile to phone his mum, to find out what time she would be home so he could borrow some cash from her. She told him she was going to her new boyfriend’s after work. He asked for the address so he could meet her there and borrow a tenner. Then he hung up.

  Nathan found out his new class, signed the afternoon register and then walked out the classroom and the school gates before lessons began. His return had lasted half a day.

  * * *

  Nathan took the bus home, changed from his school clothes, into jeans, t-shirt and Nike hoodie, and made his way to Carl Price’s house. It was only a twenty minute walk and he was there before four o’clock. He rang the bell anyway, in case his mum and her boyfriend had left work early.

  To his surprise, a reasonably fit young looking girl answered the door. She stared at him without speaking. After a few seconds, enabling a rapid evaluation of her body, Nathan introduced himself.

  “Hi, I’m Nathan. I think my mum and your dad are doin’ it.”

  Carly cocked her head on one side, appraising him.

  “Yeah, like, I know. I’m Carly.” She paused. “Your Mum’s OK. I really like her,” she lied.

  “You’re listening to Eminem? Good taste.”

  “Yeah, do you, like, want to come in? I think your Mum will be here lat
er.”

  “Yeah, she told me, she’s gonna give me dosh for munchies.”

  Nathan followed Carly inside to the living room and both sat on the settee. This girl was worth making a bit of an effort for.

  “How come you’re not at school?”

  “I’m on a three day suspension. How come …”

  A bad girl. This was getting better. She was up for it, no danger. Just a bit young. He didn’t want to be a Gary.

  “How did you…no sorry, you go first?”

  “I just wondered why you weren’t at school.”

  “I’ve been on a six month holiday. Went back today for the first time. Couldn’t take it so after lunch I left.”

  He smiled at her. She smiled back. They were sat at opposite ends of the settee but she was leaning towards him, cross legged. Defo gaggin’ for it. But how old was she?

  “And what did you do?”

  “Some bitch at school, dissing me. I was like, ‘do that again and I’ll floor you’. She did, so I did and they’ve given me a three day holiday.”

  This was a great early birthday present for Carly – a proper chung boy. She was keen to exploit the opportunity.

  “Do you wanna go upstairs and listen to some tracks?” she asked, trying to sound casual.

  “Sounds good.” He grinned at the prospect of being back on the sniff. But then he frowned, there was still an unanswered issue. “How old are you by the way?”

  Carly knew he wasn’t going to go out with a kid.

  “I’m 15 on Friday”

  The grin was back. “Lead the way, Carly.”

  She could hear her own heart beating, and it was fast – did this mean she was she falling in love? She hadn’t had a boyfriend since year six, when she was 10. Now she was moving from zero to a top banana. Nathan followed Carly upstairs where she replaced Eminem with Avril Lavigne as being more conducive to lipsin and petting. She hoped Nathan was not going to pressure her for sex on this, their first date, but if he did she would not risk saying no to this guy. By the time Avril began singing “I’m with you”, Carly was allowing Nathan to paw her body and caress her immature breasts.

  Chapter 28

  Wednesday November 10th – Office celebrations

  By two o’clock on Wednesday afternoon, Marie and Louis had packed up their audit papers and laptops, left their basement office for any homeless ghosts and were drinking bottles of Becks at The Surrey Arms.

  “This place reminds me of the local Carl used to drag me to. Old, dirty and anti-female. I’ll be sending my suit to the dry cleaners after this,” Marie said with a sniff.

  Louis chuckled. “Your shoes probably cost more than all the furniture in this Pub.”

  “Louis, even your shoes prob…look, talking of my ex. Here he is.”

  The four greeted each other and Carl kissed Marie’s cheek. She offered to buy a round but Carl was insistent.

  “Good to see you, Janice. Let me buy you a drink.”

  However, Carl was adamant.

  “No, Marie, I’m celebrating Martin Miller being exposed for the arsehole he is. I’ll get the drinks in.”

  Louis went with him to help carry the drinks, leaving the women with an opportunity to chat.

  “Janice, I want you to know, I am happy for you and Carl. He needs someone nice in his life,” Marie said with a warm smile.

  “Thanks. That means a lot. I also wanted to apologise to you. When we talked the other day I said things about Carly and about you…”

  Marie interrupted. “Forget it, Janice. You didn’t know and, anyway, you were probably right. I’ve got a lot to learn about being a better mum – but don’t be too hard on Carly, she’s having a tough time, although I know she can be difficult.”

  Janice rolled her eyes.“Tell me about it. Nathan is hard work at the best of times. He’s supposed to be back at school today. He phoned me before and he’s going to meet me at Carl’s place later. I hope him and your Carly get on. It might make our life a bit easier.”

  “Not too well I hope,” Marie warned. “Carly’s only twelve.”

  “Don’t worry about that. Nathan’s had two girls on the go and Carly is a bit too young. Mind you,” she added with a rueful smile, “I wouldn’t want my daughter going out with him. Sadly, he’s a bit like his dad was.”

  Carl and Louis returned with the drinks. The four of them spent some time castigating Martin Miller and Jeffrey Parker and raising a toast to their intended or impending departure from Crouts Furnishers. Marie told the others that she had already emailed an honest but damning indictment straight after the meeting. They raised a few more toasts, voicing the hope that Miller and Parker would finally be punished for their lack of morality towards employees. Marie phoned her mum to make sure that Gemma could stay there. There was an “ahh” from Janice as Marie whispered “Goodnight, Poppet,” to her baby, Gemma.

  After her fourth vodka and orange, Janice ordered a cab. The drink and the camaraderie had removed their initial reticence and they all hugged each other goodbye.

  Marie and Louis stayed on in the pub. Louis had drunk six lagers, and Marie two bottles of wine, and the conversational boundaries were down.

  “So, Louis, how come you haven’t got a girlfriend that you’re rushing back for?” Marie slurred.

  “I did have, up to about a month ago. I’d been going out with this girl for about six months. But it was going nowhere and she one night she flirted with one of my mates. We argued about it and finished. Since then, too busy working for you.”

  Marie looked at him through her lashes.“She must be a silly girl, messing you about…”

  Louis hesitated, drained his glass, replaced it on the table and looked straight at her.

  “OK, being really honest, after six lagers. I was in bed with her and called her Marie; that was the day before she flirted with my mate.”

  Marie felt a flush warm her cheeks. “If I was ten years younger….”

  “You don’t need to be ten years younger, Mrs. O’Brien.”

  Marie looked at the man opposite her. She’d had plenty of men before, but none so much younger than her. She moved her face towards his and they began attempting to swallow each other. As they kissed, Marie wondered whether her twelve year old daughter was ready for a toy boy in her mum’s life.

  * * *

  Carl and Janice fell out of the cab with their arms around each other. Carl gave the cabbie a tenner and told him to keep the change. They were laughing as they walked up the path, but then Janice put her fingers to her lips.

  “I don’t want Carly to see us like this. She might have another go at me.”

  Carl dropped his keys and went down on his knees to find them. Opening the door they stumbled inside. She tripped over the step. Grabbing on to Carl to break her fall, she started laughing again. She wanted to stop because if Carly saw her laughing and tipsy, it would be a great day spoiled by a pre teens temper. She followed Carl to the kitchen and was surprised to see Carly there, making fried egg sandwiches. More surprise followed via a pleasant greeting.

  “Alright, Dad, alright, Mrs. Richardson?”

  Janice and Carl both covered their surprise and said “Hi”. Carl smiled, obviously pleased.

  “Carly, not often I’ve seen you doing any cooking. What’s come over you?”

  “We were, like, hungry, Dad. That’s what you do when you’re hungry.”

  “No, don’t get me wrong. It’s great that…wait a minute. Who’s ‘we’?”

  Janice had already seen Nathan, sat on the settee in the living room watching TV and went in, sitting down in an armchair.

  “Hello, love, are you OK?”

  “I’m good.” He looked over at her. “What about you? Look a bit pissed.”

  “No, not at all,” Janice denied. “We have had a couple of drinks but that’s all. Anyway, you look at home here. Everything OK? You getting on with Carly?”

  Nathan stared at the TV.
“Yeah, she’s OK. She’s doing me a bit of food. Saved you a tenner – I don’t need cash for munch now.”

  “So I see, very nice. I’ve not seen her this friendly before.”

  Nathan grinned. “That’s me, innit, marjay? Get the best out of people.”

  Janice narrowed her eyes at her son.

  “Get the best out of impressionable young girls. Go easy with her.”

  “’Course Mum. Anyway if you two get together, she’d be my sister. How weird would that be?”

  Carl and Carly came in to the living room, Carly bringing Nathan’s egg sandwich. Janice watched her gaze at her son whilst he managed a “Cheers, Carly” before scoffing the food. Carl had brought in a cup of tea for her and Janice wondered if she looked as infatuated as Carly.

  Janice was no longer sufficiently at ease to show any affection and seeing her boyfriend’s twelve year old daughter mooning over her rampant sixteen year old son sobered her up quicker than any number of black coffees. Carl was in his favourite armchair whilst Janice perched on the other, on the opposite side of the lounge. Carly and Nathan owned the settee but Janice was thankful that they weren’t touching. Nathan concentrated on finishing his sandwich after which he announced that he was going to walk back home.

  “Do you want me to come back with you?” Janice offered. “We could order a cab.”

  “No need marjay. I fancy a walk. You stay here.”

  He got to his feet and Carly scrambled to follow him.

  “I’ll see you out.”

  Janice shook her head. This was not looking good. Carly was so young, her previous aggression replaced by pathetic fawning. Janice cast her mind back eighteen years to a similarly lovesick submissive, another setback for female empowerment. How stupid she had been with Nathan’s dad, and how similarly callous he had been with her feelings. The sperm had passed down its genetic structure. Janice took the empty cups to the kitchen in an intentional eavesdrop.

  She caught sight of Carly panting after Nathan and going to kiss him. He moved his head away.