‘Please, my face is frozen. Did the pastry lady come? I’ve been dreaming about her chocolate twists.’
‘Yup,’ Victoria replies. ‘We’re actually organised for once. Even Brian the bread man was early.’
I throw my coat and bag in the back and wash my hands while Victoria makes me a tea.
‘Meant to say,’ she shouts over the noise of the machine, ‘I have some clothes that are too small for me. Think Charlie might want them? Some really cute tops and skirts.’
‘Maybe, I reply. ‘Though currently she’s going through an emo/goth phase. Got anything with skulls or parental contempt?’
‘Always,’ she replies. ‘God, I love that kid.’
‘Well, according tothat kidI work too hard,’ I inform her, enjoying the warm water against my skin. ‘I’ve been ordered to have more fun.’
Vic places my tea on the counter as I emerge from the bathroom. ‘She’s not wrong, you know.’
‘Hey, I watched the first three episodes ofSchitt’s Creekthe other night!’ I reply indignantly. ‘That was fun! Took me ages to realise that the woman who plays Moira is actually Kevin’s mum from—’
‘I think Charlie means something you don’t do every evening, Nora.’
I lift my burning-hot tea and sip cautiously. ‘Really? Wow. So, crying uncontrollably is out of the question as well then?’
Vic’s face drops.
‘I’m kidding, lighten up. This needs more milk.’
She tuts loudly and picks up a large jar of gherkins. ‘Listen, Benjamin’s at some dental conference until Sunday, fancy doing something tonight?’
I glance over as she wrestles with the lid. ‘Hmm, like what?’
‘Oh, I dunno,’ she replies, her forehead breaking into the tiniest of sweats. ‘Whatever we like! Skydiving, salsa dancing, road trip to Vegas—'
‘New Tom Cruise at Cineworld?’
She frowns. ‘Anyone but him. You know how I feel about him.’
I smile because I do; she cannot stand him, but she rarely says it out loud in case someone overhears and informs the Church of Scientology. ‘OK, a different film then.’
The jar lid finally comes away with a disappointingly quietpip,given the amount of energy she’s just expended.‘I’m sure we can come up with something a bit more exciting than the bloody cinema,’ Victoria insists. ‘Remember the fun we used to have pub-hopping around the Grassmarket? We should totally do that.’
‘I do remember.’ I reply, ‘But we were at uni, Vic. We also used to crash house parties, wear checked shirts and gracefully throw up in bus stops. Shall we do that too? Ooh, alcohol poisoning sounds exhilarating.’
‘I’d rather do that than watch Tom Cruise,’ she mumbles, flipping the door sign to open. ‘But come on, Nora, don’t you want to do something just a little wild? Be spontaneous, like the old days?’
I shake my head. ‘No, thank you. These days I prefer my fun to be planned, completely predictable and preferably with easy access to parking and popcorn.’
I hear Vic chuckle because she thinks I’m joking, but she doesn’t understand. I may be acting flippant, but I’m entirely serious. The choices I made as that carefree spontaneous idiot are still haunting me to this day, choices that resulted in a broken heart and a broken home. Victoria’s choices led her to an amazing job in New York and a husband who’s king of clear braces or something equally lucrative. She was never naïve like I was, and now that naivety has been replaced with something far colder and guarded. So, no I do not want to relive my former glory days. I do not want to ever be that person again.
My inner turmoil is thankfully interrupted by three sixth-year students entering the café for takeaway vanilla lattes and croissants. I happily oblige – if only to give myself a rest from thefunconversation which has become anything but. To their delight, I throw in the croissants for free, thus proving once and for all that our café is indeed un-shite.
Victoria finally relents and agrees to the cinema, but only if we see Olivia Colman bethe Queen that she is,ifI don’t drive and if I buy her a beer and hotdog combo.
‘Why can’t I drive?’ I ask. ‘We could go to the place at Fountain Park.’
‘Because you’ll need to go home and get the car,’ Victoria informs me, ‘and when you get home, you’ll get all comfy and warm and then you’ll cancel.’
It’s a fair point. I might have previous for this.
‘Fine, we’ll go after work then? Happy?’
