21 August 2012
Bollocks.
It's ten past nine. She's late. She's not coming.
Those were all the thoughts running through my head as I sat on my perch in Lloyd's place. It was getting a little busy, a steady flow of customers were coming in and out, and Lloyd was loving chatting up the female clientele and winding up their boyfriends at the same time. It was his special talent.
He could see me looking around more than I usually would unless I was working a shift for him, and he brought me over another beer. I had hardly touched my first one.
As usual, he'd left the lime in, and as usual, I took it out and threw it at him. The juice of the lime stung the cut on my hand. This time I hit him with it. He stopped and looked at me as if to say, 'Well there's a first'. We shrugged it off. It didn't mean anything. Did it?
I took a long swig of my beer, and looked at my phone. No messages. No calls. Twenty past nine.
'Lloyd, you did say nine, didn't you?'
'Will you relax? She'll be here, man, she'll be here...'
I watched a few of the other customers. Some couples, laughing and drinking. A guy on his own engrossed in his newspaper and his coffee. It always amused me to wonder what kind of lives these normal, everyday people came from. Did the couple model for catalogues? Did the guy work? And what did he do? Stock exchange? Spy? The possibilities were endless, and it made me think back to the uneasy feelings I'd had earlier, as if something weren't quite right, but I just couldn't put my finger on it...
I put it to the back of my mind, and drained my beer bottle.
A few more people left, and now the place was quietening down.
Half past nine. She's not coming.
And then, a sudden movement from behind the bar. It was Lloyd, making for the back of house in quite a hurry and with what looked like a very worried expression on his face. Lloyd was known for a little hysteria from time to time, but what the hell was that about?
I turned my gaze from bar to door and froze. I could see, through the front door and across the street, Marianne. She was here. My view was a little obstructed by traffic, so I waited for some cars to pass.
Oh yes, it was Marianne alright.
But what the bloody hell was that she was wearing...
she pt. 9 • Opuss № I