by Jacqui Penn
They went to bed after the football had finished. Somehow it seemed awkward on the landing going into separate rooms. Simon hovered around not saying anything until Julie made the move.
‘Night then. See you in the morning, hope you sleep well.’
‘Night gorgeous.’
Julie’s mind was quite alert as she climbed into bed. Oh my God! Simon was in the next room! She wasn’t the least bit tired so picked up a book and read. She turned the first page and Simon knocked on her bedroom door.
‘Yes, come in,’ she said.
‘I saw your light on. Can’t you sleep either?’
‘I’m reading. It usually settles me down. There are some books on the shelf there.’
Simon glanced in the direction she pointed. ‘Don’t think they’ll be my sort of thing. I could hop in with you and warm you up, or tire you out, don’t mind which.’
‘Cheeky!’
Simon padded barefoot over to her bed and climbed in. ‘That’s better, isn’t it?’
‘Simon, it’s not safe. The doctor said it’ll be a month before the pills are effective.’
‘I’ll pull out. Don’t worry.’ His hands went up her night shirt.
‘I don’t think we should.’ She felt as though she was spoiling his fun.
‘Shh!’ His fingers began to probe between her legs. ‘How many do you think you can take?’
Afterwards, Julie felt short of breath and hot. Sex was definitely better in bed! Wow! She felt good! A worry flashed through her mind. She ignored it.
Julie made scrambled eggs for breakfast and served them with toast and coffee. Simon rubbed his hands together.
‘Lovely. Oh! I might be home late tonight. Duty calls. Do you have a spare key?’
Julie went to the kitchen drawer and fished around. ‘There you go.’ She handed him a key. ‘I might go out tonight if you’re not going to be here.’
‘Where?’
‘Only to the pub with a friend.’
‘Nothing raunchy I have to worry about then?’
‘No!’ She liked his concern. ‘I’ll see you at breakfast then. Bye,’ she said as she grabbed her jacket and bag and headed off to work at the school.
‘You might see me before the morning if I’m cold when I get home!’ He winked at her. ‘Bye.’
Julie called into the supermarket on the way home from work. She piled groceries and two packets of condoms into her basket. Better to be safe than sorry; it seemed she had a permanent sex life now.
Simon crept into her bed at twelve thirty. He snuggled up to her and they fell asleep.
‘Good morning, gorgeous. Look what I’ve got for you!’ he pulled her hand between his legs.
Julie rubbed her eyes. Light peeped in through the curtains. ‘An early morning wake up call. Hold on!’ She reached into her bedside cabinet and passed him the packet of condoms.
‘What’s that?’ He looked for a moment at the packet. ‘I don’t use these.’
Julie frowned. ‘We need to be safe.’
‘You know I’ll pull out.’ He ran his hand up her leg.
‘You said that last time.’
His fingers probed. ‘This time I promise.’
Julie didn’t want to stop him; she trusted him.
Chapter 4
Simon had been staying at Julie’s for two weeks when a knock at the front door interrupted her television programme. She uncurled her legs and went to answer it. An attractive, blond-haired woman of around her own age stood before her.
‘Is this the right address for Simon Truscott?’
‘Yes, but he’s not here at the moment. Can I give him a message?’ Julie asked.
‘Is this yours?’ She held out Julie’s missing earring.
‘Yes.’ Julie was mystified. Who was this woman? ‘Thank you.’ She took the earring.
‘You must have dropped it when you were shagging my boyfriend.’
‘I beg your pardon!’
‘It’s alright. I kicked him out as soon as I found it. I’d been away for a few days. He’s all yours. Silly bastard left a forwarding address. Ta ra!’ She strutted off down the path and then turned back. ‘Oh I nearly forgot, watch out for the prostitutes. He told me he was at the gents’ club on business. Only one sort of business he ever did there!’ She turned to leave and then turned back. ‘He’s a taker and a user; you’ll find out for yourself in the end.’
Julie closed the front door. She looked at the earring and took a deep breath. She felt shaky. Simon had said the flat belonged to him. She flicked off the television and went to bed. She needed some time to think.
In the early hours, Simon crept in bed next to her, but Julie pretended to be asleep. Her head spun and her heartbeat quickened. What game was he playing? She’d have to confront him, only the truth would clear her mind. His steady breathing crashed through her head like an engine. He shouldn’t even be in her bed. Why had she let him move in? It had been a stupid rash decision; she hardly knew him. That woman’s visit had proved it. Julie felt a jolt in her stomach. She didn’t want it to be true, but how did that woman have her earring? Her stomach jolted again and she rolled over with her back to Simon and felt sick.
The following morning, she swung her legs out of the bed the moment she woke. She didn’t want sex with him. He appeared in the kitchen mid-way through the morning.
‘You were up early.’ His eyes fell on the earring. ‘Any coffee going?’
‘There’s some in the pot.’ She stared at him and then took a deep breath. ‘I had a visit from an ex of yours last night. She returned my earring and said I must have dropped it while I shagged her boyfriend.’
Simon carried on pouring his coffee. He looked unfazed by Julie’s words. ‘Bitch. That’ll be Candy. I had been going out with her for a while, then I met you and finished with her. She must have found the earring when she came around begging me to change my mind.’
‘She said she kicked you out. I thought you said the flat was yours?’
‘It is! Rubbish!’ He took a mouthful of coffee. ‘How could she kick me out of my own flat? Look love, she’s jealous; she’d do anything she could to cause trouble between us.’
‘She said I should watch out for the prostitutes. What did that mean?’
‘She accused me of all sorts when I had to work late. Don’t take any notice. It’s you I’m with and she isn’t going to ruin things for us. Do you want me to go and see her and make her come and apologise for all her lies?’
Julie scoured his face for signs he’d lied, but he seemed confident and looked back at her straight in the eye. Why would he offer to go and see the woman to sort it out if he wasn’t telling the truth? ‘No. I guess she’s upset at losing you. I’m glad I’ve got the earring back, they’re my favourites.’
‘How about going out for lunch?’
‘Great. I’ll go and have a shower.’
Julie let the water cascade down her body. All that worry, she’d hardly slept a wink. Poor woman, she must be bitter losing her man like that. Julie had her earring back; she’d wear them today.
Simon never did use the bed in his own room, nor did he contribute to any food or bills. Julie wasn’t sure how much longer he’d be staying, but she’d got quite cosy with their little set up. She still had plenty of evenings to share with Paul and Dave, when Simon had to work.
Julie liked having someone around at home. Life was perfect. She couldn’t help acknowledging sex wasn’t all she had thought it would be. Mostly they had fun, but it certainly didn’t have the ‘wow’ factor she had been expecting. That book had made it out to be something special, what a load of tosh! Sex with Simon always seemed to finish before it had properly begun. Paul had put it down to a heterosexual problem; they didn’t know what they were doing!
Three mornings in a row, Julie had been sick when she got out of bed. It had continued when she arrived at school and several times she had to leave the classroom to rush to the loo. As she came out for the third time that day,
Sheila, the head teacher, stopped her.
‘Are you alright? Do you need to go home?’
‘No, I’m fine. It wears off after a while then I’m fine for the rest of the day.’
‘Oh! Maybe you should see a doctor.’
‘No. Like I said it wears off after a while.’
‘I hope I’m not speaking out of turn, but you couldn’t be pregnant?’
Julie felt herself blush. ‘No I couldn’t.’ She walked back to the classroom. What a question to ask! How embarrassing was that?
The sickness continued for a week until Julie finally went to the doctor.
‘Could you be pregnant?’ the doctor asked after hearing the symptoms.
‘I’m on the pill.’
‘You know the pill isn’t one hundred per cent safe. I think we’ll do a test in the first instance.’
Julie felt flustered as she left the surgery. She couldn’t be! She’d only been having sex for six weeks. It must be a bug, but no one else seemed to have it.
Julie had cooked a chicken curry for supper. Simon, for once, came home early and they sat in front of the television as they ate.
‘I’ve got to take an early morning sample of urine to the surgery on the way to work tomorrow.’
‘Oh yes, I forgot you were going to the doctors. What did they say?’ He kept his eyes fixed on the TV.
‘She said she’d do a pregnancy test first—’
‘Pregnant! You can’t be! What about the pill?’ He now looked straight at her, his fork in mid-air.
‘Apparently it’s not one hundred per cent safe.’ Silence fell in the room as they carried on with their meal.
The following evening, Simon arrived home as Julie was dressing to meet Dave.
‘Oh, I thought you were working late tonight, I’ve arranged to go out,’ she said.
‘Good news. You’re getting rid of me; I can move back to the flat.’
‘Right... When?’ Her voice quivered with disappointment.
‘Might as well go tonight. You get going, don’t want to make you late for your friend.’
‘My friend’s picking me up.’ Simon had no problem with her seeing Dave. ‘When will I see you?’
‘Not sure. I’ll ring you.’ He pulled a ruck sack out of the wardrobe and started tossing his things into it.
Julie felt apprehensive as she climbed into Dave’s car.
‘Good evening.’ He leaned over and kissed her cheek. ‘How’s things?’ Her well-being was always his first question.
‘Not sure. How about you?’ Julie had found Dave to be a good listener and easy to talk to, always open minded with a valuable opinion to offer.
‘Oh you know me, never much happening apart from the norm. Not like you, always a tale to tell.’
‘Dave, I might be pregnant. I find out on Wednesday.’ There, she’d said it! She wasn’t sure why she’d been worrying about how to tell him.
He kept his eyes on the road. ‘Is that a good thing for you?’
‘No! At first I thought it wasn’t possible, but now I’m not so sure. I’m trying not to think about it until I know for definite.’
‘Well, let’s have a good evening and we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.’
Dave could see her slipping further away and there was little he could do about it. He should have manned up a long time back. She was worried and tried to make light of it. Poor Julie. They had a meal and by the time he took her home she seemed to be feeling better.
The house stood in darkness. ‘Doesn’t look like Simon’s home yet,’ Dave said, as he opened her car door.
‘He moved back to his flat.’
‘Oh!’ He was momentarily lost for words. ‘Well, it’ll be good to have your own space again. Good night. You take care of yourself.’
‘And you. Thanks Dave. See you soon.’ They kissed on the cheek.
Dave waited until she was safely inside the house before driving away. He couldn’t help thinking it strange that Simon had moved out just when Julie needed him to be around. He’d never understand some people. Julie deserved better.
Dave hadn’t been quite truthful when he told Julie he hadn’t been up to much that week. He’d joined a dating site. Having Julie’s friendship just wasn’t enough. She wasn’t interested in him; she only had eyes for that Simon bloke. If Dave ever wanted a life again, he’d have to make an effort.
He met Sheila in a restaurant in the next town. She was older than him, but intelligent. She’d lost her husband and they shared common emotions. They were going to meet again the following week. He felt bad not telling Julie, but she had so much on her plate, it didn’t seemed appropriate.
In her lunch hour on Wednesday, Julie stood outside the school and called the doctor’s surgery. The test result had come back positive. She put her phone in her bag. Shit! Now what? A couple of birds fluttered past and a couple of mothers walked past the school with youngsters in pushchairs. Julie felt sick. She rummaged for her phone again. The first person she rang was Paul. The call went to answer phone. Damn! Pregnant! A baby! Julie didn’t know how she managed to get through the afternoon. Her mind was in turmoil. What the hell would she do? What would Simon say? At least they were in this together.
When she got home from work, she wanted a large vodka, but made herself a cup of tea instead. She sat in an armchair and rang Simon. No answer! Why couldn’t anyone answer their bloody phone? She tried Paul again. This time he answered.
‘I’m coming to yours right now. Shall I bring rubber gloves?’ Paul always managed to make light of a situation.
Julie laughed. ‘You might need them in a few months’ time. Thanks, see you soon.’
Paul drank three-quarters of the vodka bottle, while Julie stuck to tea. Paul used the word ‘bizarre’ to express his thoughts on everything they discussed. Julie felt her whole world had turned bizarre
‘The thing to do is enjoy it. These things are sometimes meant to be.’ He stopped, deep in thought for a moment. ‘Bizarre!’
‘Yes, you’re right. I think it will be alright. It’ll just take time to adjust.’
‘We’re in this together. You with a baby! Bizarre!’ He shook his head in wonder.
‘Will you stop saying bizarre. It frightens the hell out of me. Thank you for being there for me.’
‘Now, don’t get sentimental on me. I’m doing my best to be nice.’
Julie’s calls to Simon went unanswered for days. Finally she decided there must be something wrong with his phone, so one evening, after work, she called to his flat.
The same woman who had come to her house with the earring, answered the door.
‘Hello. Is Simon here?’ Why was his old girlfriend here? Julie felt an uncomfortable lump in her throat.
‘No, I told you, this is my flat and I chucked him out.’ She had her arms folded across her chest. ‘Have you lost him?’ she asked. ‘That’s what happens when you steal someone else’s man. If you could steal him then he’d be up for being stolen again. Don’t you get that?’ The woman had a bitter look about her.
‘Sorry to have bothered you.’ Julie turned and walked away.
‘Hold on,’ the woman said and Julie turned back. Her look had softened. ‘He did a dirty on me too you know. He’s a male chauvinist pig who cares about no one but himself. I couldn’t see it when I lived with him. I followed him to a brothel one night. Always working till all hours, but couldn’t tell me what work he did. You’re better off without him.’
Julie nodded. ‘You’re right.’ She slowly walked away.
Julie drove home in a daze. She sat in the kitchen and wept. She had always thought of herself as an intelligent woman and now look at the mess she was in. She couldn’t believe she’d been so gullible. She thought back to when Simon moved out. He ran as soon as he knew she might be pregnant. He didn’t even wait around to make sure. She’d been deceived and had made a complete idiot of herself. Had he even liked her, or was her place just convenient when he had nowhere el
se? He hadn’t even paid his way. He never paid his way. He’d taken her for a fool and she’d let him. Tears of self-pity fell incessantly.
Later that evening, Dave rang. At first she was tempted to ignore the call, but then had a change of heart and answered.
‘Hello, Julie. How did you get on at the doctors on Wednesday?’
‘I’m pregnant, Dave.’ She burst into more tears and tried to mop her eyes with her already wasted tissue.
‘It’s not that bad. Do you fancy meeting up for a drink? A soft one of course, we have tiny toes to think about now.’ She gave a chuckle. ‘That’s better. I’ll come and pick you up in half-an-hour, if that suits you, of course.’
‘Yes, I’d like that. Thanks Dave.’ She was lucky to have good friends around her. Tiny toes! Her hand went to her stomach and she sighed. She went to the bathroom and stared into the mirror. A baby. She looked a right mess. Hair all over the place, a blotchy nose and red eyes. Dave wouldn’t mind. Lovely Dave.
Settled in a cosy pub, they ordered a meal and both drank fruit juice.
Dave leaned across the table and took her hand. ‘A baby is a blessing. I know it might seem a bit daunting now, but it’ll all turn out okay. My wife, and I tried for a baby for years until they discovered she couldn’t have them. She would have given anything to be in your position.’
‘Yes, but she was married and I haven’t got anyone. This baby will be born to a single parent. Simon’s disappeared. I feel like such a failure.’
Dave’s forehead tightened into frown lines. He knew that bloke of hers was no good. He’d never heard one thing about him he liked. ‘Julie, this baby will have you and believe me, he or she won’t go short of love. You’ve got people around you who do care and that means a lot. You haven’t failed at anything. You’re going to have a beautiful baby, and there doesn’t sound a lot wrong with that. You’re a lucky girl.’ She looked distraught, he had to try and help her feel good about this. Poor girl must be worried sick.
Julie gave him a weak, watery smile. ‘You always say the right things. I’m glad I’ve got you.’
‘And I’m glad I’ve got you. You always brighten my week. I think I’ll push the boat out and get another orange juice. How about you?’
