Nick has offered to stay on for another two weeks. He has already been in London, so far away from home, for three months. He has extended his stay twice. There is considerable pressure on him to go home. Obviously, he hasn’t worked in three months. Added to that, his twenty-one year old son has been running off the rails and getting into trouble. Nick is terribly worried about him. Nick’s ex-wife says that he should be there to support his son.
In principle I agree with her. I cast my mind back over my previous boyfriends: Ray, the junkie; Brendan, the self-obsessed photographer; Trevor, the sociopath criminal. Would any of them have stuck by me when faced with illness and fear? I already know the answer to that. Just this once I’m going to be selfish. I bite my tongue and accept Nick’s offer to stay with me. It seems that I’ve found a good man at last.
From: Lily
Subject: Nick’s farewell dinner - AGAIN!
To: Sheldon, Flossie, Seraphina, Ben, Antony, Doug, Jimmy, Jamie, Ted
Owing to unforeseen circumstances, Nick’s farewell dinner is once again being postponed for a couple of weeks.
Will advise new date shortly.
Love
Lily
From: Antony
Subject: Re: Nick’s farewell dinner - AGAIN!
To: Lily, Sheldon, Flossie, Seraphina, Ben, Doug, Jimmy, Jamie, Ted
oh ..........????
xx
From: Flossie
Subject: Re: Nick’s farewell dinner - AGAIN!
To: Lily, Sheldon, Seraphina, Ben, Antony, Doug, Jimmy, Jamie, Ted
Hurrah!
Flossie
From: Sheldon
Subject: Re: Nick’s farewell dinner - AGAIN!
To: Lily, Flossie, Seraphina, Ben, Antony, Doug, Jimmy, Jamie, Ted
I am retrieving my wedding suit from the pawn shop...
I don’t know how to tell people what’s going on. Do I pick up the phone and say “Hey, guess what...?” Do I send a round-robin email?
I don’t want this cancer to be a big secret, neither do I want it to start defining who I am.
Of course I should tell my mum before the word gets out on the grapevine. But I can’t bear to make that call. The thought of it brings me to tears.
Mum moved to Tasmania twenty-one years ago. I don’t know how she will cope with the news, being so far away and helpless in the situation.
So I suppose whenever friends ask: “how are you?” I will just have to tell them the truth.
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