Welcome to Rosie Hopkins' Sweet Shop of Dreams
Page 56
‘Don’t you think that was amazing?’ she said to Lilian, hoping to elicit a word of praise – hoping that Lilian might congratulate her of her own accord, even say that it was just how it used to be, or thank her for her hard work, or do anything in fact but what she’d been doing for the last three hours, which was pretend to listen to Radio 4 while actually staring out of the window.
‘I do,’ Rosie said loudly to herself. ‘I think I’m amazing. Let’s order in a curry.’ She thought about it. ‘Is that even possible? Is there Indian food here?’
‘Is there what?’ asked Lilian, as if Rosie had asked her if there was any chance of getting an elephant burger to go.
‘What about pizza?’
In fact, it turned out, there was pizza, a little van that parked up at the side of the school, and Rosie wandered down, feeling curiously content and like she did sometimes coming off a successful nursing shift when everything had gone well, and the sun was coming up over the Thames. Except now the sun was sinking gradually over the top of the distant hills, turning them purple and pink and sending huge shadows shooting out for miles against the undulating fields. It was exquisitely beautiful, as if the country were showing off just for her, the houses of the main street turned the other way.
‘Wow,’ said Rosie, as her mobile rang, and she didn’t even notice for a second, or realise till she heard it that it hadn’t rung in days.
She snapped back when she heard it ring a second time; it was Gerard.
‘Hello?’ she said, tentatively, then more fondly, ‘Hello, sweetie.’
‘Where have you been?’ came the voice, sounding cross. ‘Every time I call your phone is switched off.’
‘It’s not switched off!’ said Rosie. ‘It’s just really hard to get a signal up here. Middle of nowhere and all that.’
There was a pause.
‘Hmm,’ said Gerard.
‘How are you, sweetie? It’s amazing here, the most gorgeous sunset, wow. The sky is just totally pink and …’
Rosie sensed a pause on the other end of the line, as if he were just waiting for her to stop talking.
‘… anyway,’ she found herself finishing, ‘it’s cool.’
‘Sounds like you’re loving it up there,’ said Gerard, a slight edge to his voice.
‘No, it’s not that,’ said Rosie. ‘No. No. There’s nothing to do.’
As if in mockery, suddenly Jake and his friends passed by, shouting and laughing and nut brown from the sun.
‘Hey, Rosie!’ they called out. ‘Coming for pizza?’
‘I’m all right!’ She waved quickly.
‘Who’s taking you out for pizza? I thought you were in the middle of nowhere, not Pizza bloody Express.’
‘It’s nothing,’ said Rosie. ‘Just a van they have here some days. Nothing. Honestly.’
‘Where you’re going with a whole load of men?’
‘Gerard,’ said Rosie, feeling this was somehow going wrong and not quite sure how to get the conversation back on track. ‘Darling.’
‘You didn’t phone yesterday.’
‘Well, lots of times when I called you were out, or on your way out.’
Gerard’s voice was sullen. ‘Well, I was just enjoying … you know, first few days of freedom and all that.’
‘Freedom? What kind of freedom?’
‘Nothing like that. I mean, just going out with the lads and that. Then back to Mum’s.’
‘Well, that sounds reassuring.’
His voice changed. ‘But, you know, I miss you, Rosie. I really do.’
‘Now you’re tired of being on the booze and have run out of socks?’ Rosie teased gently.
‘No! Yes! Maybe. A bit.’
Rosie smiled. ‘I miss you too,’ she said. ‘All the time. I mean, well, I have been really, really busy and everything, but …’
Rosie paused. Something struck her. She’d been working, making friends, seeing the countryside, making an idiot of herself. And Gerard had been going out, seeing his mates, dossing at his mum’s.
It hit her forcibly that someone really ought to have been missing somebody else a bit more in this scenario. That at least one of them should have been a little sad.
‘So,’ said Gerard finally, ‘so I thought I’d come up this weekend!’
‘Oh yes!’ said Rosie, relieved. ‘It’s market day! They have a fête! Apparently it’s great, everyone brings their cows and stuff and there’s a fair and it’s going to be amazing, and brilliant for the shop.’
‘OK, whatever,’ said Gerard. ‘You know this is only a temporary job, this shop thing. It’s just a favour to your family, you have to get rid of it.’
‘I know, I know,’ said Rosie. The pizza smelled amazing now she was closer; the van had been fitted with its very own brick oven.
‘Well, have you advertised it yet?’ ‘Uhm, no, not exactly. I’ve been really busy.’ ‘And what about your career? Have you seen anything in Nursing Times? Have you spoken to your agency?’
Rosie had to admit that she hadn’t done any of those things, but she was close to perfecting her recipe for cauliflower cheese, as Lilian loved it so much.
‘Well, I’ll drive up on Friday night,’ said Gerard. ‘OK!’ said Rosie. ‘Hang on, I’d better ask Lilian.’ ‘Ask her what, if it’s all right for unmarried people to spend the night under her roof?’ Gerard let out an incredulous guffaw.
‘Yes!’ said Rosie. ‘It is her roof. It’s only polite.’ ‘Yeah, whatever,’ said Gerard, and, rather unsatisfactorily, they rang off. It was hard, Rosie reflected, to get your meaning across properly on the phone. She was sure all they needed was a proper cuddle and they’d be fine.
Jake smiled at her from over by the pizza stand. ‘This is great,’ he said, and introduced her to some of the lads who worked with him, or were down for the fair. All of them were friendly and chatty and Rosie ordered a large ham and mushroom with extra pepperoni and cheese for her and Lilian (it was the fattiest thing she could think of; this feeding-up-Lilian project was going to have the most appalling effect on her own waistline, and that was before she took into account the odd flying saucer she snaffled out the back in a break from work). She passed a pleasant ten minutes with the lads and then went home to the cottage.
‘I do,’ Rosie said loudly to herself. ‘I think I’m amazing. Let’s order in a curry.’ She thought about it. ‘Is that even possible? Is there Indian food here?’
‘Is there what?’ asked Lilian, as if Rosie had asked her if there was any chance of getting an elephant burger to go.
‘What about pizza?’
In fact, it turned out, there was pizza, a little van that parked up at the side of the school, and Rosie wandered down, feeling curiously content and like she did sometimes coming off a successful nursing shift when everything had gone well, and the sun was coming up over the Thames. Except now the sun was sinking gradually over the top of the distant hills, turning them purple and pink and sending huge shadows shooting out for miles against the undulating fields. It was exquisitely beautiful, as if the country were showing off just for her, the houses of the main street turned the other way.
‘Wow,’ said Rosie, as her mobile rang, and she didn’t even notice for a second, or realise till she heard it that it hadn’t rung in days.
She snapped back when she heard it ring a second time; it was Gerard.
‘Hello?’ she said, tentatively, then more fondly, ‘Hello, sweetie.’
‘Where have you been?’ came the voice, sounding cross. ‘Every time I call your phone is switched off.’
‘It’s not switched off!’ said Rosie. ‘It’s just really hard to get a signal up here. Middle of nowhere and all that.’
There was a pause.
‘Hmm,’ said Gerard.
‘How are you, sweetie? It’s amazing here, the most gorgeous sunset, wow. The sky is just totally pink and …’
Rosie sensed a pause on the other end of the line, as if he were just waiting for her to stop talking.
‘… anyway,’ she found herself finishing, ‘it’s cool.’
‘Sounds like you’re loving it up there,’ said Gerard, a slight edge to his voice.
‘No, it’s not that,’ said Rosie. ‘No. No. There’s nothing to do.’
As if in mockery, suddenly Jake and his friends passed by, shouting and laughing and nut brown from the sun.
‘Hey, Rosie!’ they called out. ‘Coming for pizza?’
‘I’m all right!’ She waved quickly.
‘Who’s taking you out for pizza? I thought you were in the middle of nowhere, not Pizza bloody Express.’
‘It’s nothing,’ said Rosie. ‘Just a van they have here some days. Nothing. Honestly.’
‘Where you’re going with a whole load of men?’
‘Gerard,’ said Rosie, feeling this was somehow going wrong and not quite sure how to get the conversation back on track. ‘Darling.’
‘You didn’t phone yesterday.’
‘Well, lots of times when I called you were out, or on your way out.’
Gerard’s voice was sullen. ‘Well, I was just enjoying … you know, first few days of freedom and all that.’
‘Freedom? What kind of freedom?’
‘Nothing like that. I mean, just going out with the lads and that. Then back to Mum’s.’
‘Well, that sounds reassuring.’
His voice changed. ‘But, you know, I miss you, Rosie. I really do.’
‘Now you’re tired of being on the booze and have run out of socks?’ Rosie teased gently.
‘No! Yes! Maybe. A bit.’
Rosie smiled. ‘I miss you too,’ she said. ‘All the time. I mean, well, I have been really, really busy and everything, but …’
Rosie paused. Something struck her. She’d been working, making friends, seeing the countryside, making an idiot of herself. And Gerard had been going out, seeing his mates, dossing at his mum’s.
It hit her forcibly that someone really ought to have been missing somebody else a bit more in this scenario. That at least one of them should have been a little sad.
‘So,’ said Gerard finally, ‘so I thought I’d come up this weekend!’
‘Oh yes!’ said Rosie, relieved. ‘It’s market day! They have a fête! Apparently it’s great, everyone brings their cows and stuff and there’s a fair and it’s going to be amazing, and brilliant for the shop.’
‘OK, whatever,’ said Gerard. ‘You know this is only a temporary job, this shop thing. It’s just a favour to your family, you have to get rid of it.’
‘I know, I know,’ said Rosie. The pizza smelled amazing now she was closer; the van had been fitted with its very own brick oven.
‘Well, have you advertised it yet?’ ‘Uhm, no, not exactly. I’ve been really busy.’ ‘And what about your career? Have you seen anything in Nursing Times? Have you spoken to your agency?’
Rosie had to admit that she hadn’t done any of those things, but she was close to perfecting her recipe for cauliflower cheese, as Lilian loved it so much.
‘Well, I’ll drive up on Friday night,’ said Gerard. ‘OK!’ said Rosie. ‘Hang on, I’d better ask Lilian.’ ‘Ask her what, if it’s all right for unmarried people to spend the night under her roof?’ Gerard let out an incredulous guffaw.
‘Yes!’ said Rosie. ‘It is her roof. It’s only polite.’ ‘Yeah, whatever,’ said Gerard, and, rather unsatisfactorily, they rang off. It was hard, Rosie reflected, to get your meaning across properly on the phone. She was sure all they needed was a proper cuddle and they’d be fine.
Jake smiled at her from over by the pizza stand. ‘This is great,’ he said, and introduced her to some of the lads who worked with him, or were down for the fair. All of them were friendly and chatty and Rosie ordered a large ham and mushroom with extra pepperoni and cheese for her and Lilian (it was the fattiest thing she could think of; this feeding-up-Lilian project was going to have the most appalling effect on her own waistline, and that was before she took into account the odd flying saucer she snaffled out the back in a break from work). She passed a pleasant ten minutes with the lads and then went home to the cottage.
