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‘What?’ Melanie and Louisa said in shocked unison.
‘Yes well, I’m dealing with it.’
‘Not very well, this person had the health inspector pay us a surprise visit and they’ve been trying to tag us in fake negative reviews.’ Melanie’s anger was way too near the surface after earlier.
‘Whatever this person has been doing to you, they’ve been doing to us too. They’ve made this personal. It could affect our business — it very nearly did, it still might!’ Louisa explained.
‘Sounds like harassment to me,’ Selena said, folding her arms.
‘Yes well, like I say this is a very popular area and for good reason, we have to make sure we vet all possible applicants. I will be speaking to this person and making it very clear they will never be considered for a property in this community again if they don’t stop. But please let me know if you have any more incidents. I will take this on myself.’
Louisa and Melanie were both stunned into angry silence.
‘Now as for the second thing I need to talk to you all about, the scaffolding has gone up on the wall, I believe. And I was able to secure one of our housing associations to base paint it. So from tomorrow it will be ready. However, given that the scaffolding has caused some minor inconveniences to the units and the foot traffic round there, the council are asking that this is done within a week.’
‘A week!’ Melanie exclaimed.
‘Yes, I’m aware it’s not ideal. But that’s what we have and I’ve tried my hardest but my hands really are tied with this one. But I have to say you’ve already done such an incredible job, Melanie, that I’m sure you can pull this out of the bag. Right, I need to be off. I have a scrutiny to prepare for.’
‘Councillor Houghton, I’ll be in touch with you about the funding,’ Selena reminded.
‘Yes, yes, of course. Have a good day.’
And with that newest of bombshells, Councillor Houghton left the bar.
‘A week!’ Melanie cried again.
‘It’s fine, it can be done, but we’ll need more volunteers, and we’ll need more hours. And weather wise, I’ll guess we’ll just have to do what we can.’ Selena sounded all calm and reasonable.
‘Sorry, I’ve just spotted something I need to help with,’ Louisa said as she shot up out of the chair. Melanie looked around and could see that one of their staff was struggling with an iPad next to the till.
Melanie sighed.
‘You’ve not been using that crystal, I can tell. I’d give you another one for heart ache but I’m not wasting my crystals on you.’ Melanie looked back at Selena and saw she was smiling warmly. ‘You OK?’
‘Yeah, no. I’m . . . yeah.’ Melanie went with a nod in the end.
‘Some of the people I work with at the shelter ? you know the shelter where people can escape abusive relationships, families? ? well, in some cases they literally have nothing but the clothes on their backs. Their whole lives just completely gone in an instant. It’s no longer safe for them so they leave everything behind.’
Melanie’s eyes widened, her throat restricted. ‘Oh God, that’s—’
‘Awful, yes. But we do what we can and at least they’re safer now and we can all begin again. But don’t your worries feel small now?’
‘Oh my God, are you allowed to do that?’ Melanie said.
‘Do what, and I’m not wrong, am I?’ Selena said with a shrug.
‘Well, no. My problems feel really small in comparison.’
Selena smiled. ‘Everyone has hard times, and sometimes it’s the small things that tip us over. But sometimes we need perspective too. It’s a balance. But I’m not trying to belittle your experience, in my own way I’m trying to help.’
‘Yeah, well. It’s a lot to process, I guess.’
Selena nodded. ‘Well, you’ll have plenty of time to process when you’re up on that wall, painting. We start tomorrow. Wrap up warm. I’ll email you a rota schedule tonight with my folks in it and you can fill in the gaps.’ Selena finished her whisky sour and floated out the door. One of these days Melanie wanted to walk away from a meeting. She wanted to be the one setting the demands and just disappearing straight after, confident that her demands would be met.
Instead, Melanie opened up her app to see what hours she could put in to painting a wall, and cursed again at the app as she threw the phone on the table.
But it wasn’t the app’s or her phone’s fault. Picking up her phone she once more looked at her to-do list. She still needed to pick up Alfie’s present for the weekend, and double-check the booking with the entertainer for his party, so head down, Melanie did what she did best. She planned and she organised and she updated her app. And if it meant her brain couldn’t wander, and she wasn’t paying attention to her heart hurting, then so much the better.
