Take a Chance on Me (11 page)

T
he phone rang
shortly after Charlie returned home. She knew who it would be. She heard excited barking in the background. Bentley and Ryan were back from their exile. They had been banned during the filming after Bentley had attempted to chew the cables and had urinated over the sound engineer's foot.

‘Well?' Charlie asked.

There was a pause and then a high-pitched squeal. ‘I won! Oh Charlie, I won! I can't thank you enough. It was such a laugh, and thanks to your challenge, I met Fatima and learnt to cook, I've got a fat, content husband who enjoys my cooking, and we've just won one thousand pounds. Can you hear that?' She rustled the notes. ‘I think your belly dance clinched it. You should have seen Patrick afterwards. He couldn't speak properly. I think he'll dream of you tonight, or he'll get his wife Gloria to take up belly dancing. Maurice was very sweet. He invited me and Ryan to go and have dinner with him and Hassan next month, when Hassan comes over from Morocco. Even Claudine congratulated me and asked for the recipes. Oh Charlie, what a hoot. I can't tell you how much I enjoyed it. When I read it on your list I felt truly daunted by the prospect. After all, I've never been what you'd call a foodie. I existed on a diet of chocolate and Pot Noodles until I met Ryan. But now I feel liberated. It isn't difficult to cook and it isn't hard to cook exotic meals. It's been huge fun. But now it's time for you to take on your next challenge.'

‘Go on, what is it?'

‘You'll find out tomorrow. Sam is going to announce it on his show. Then you must come back home with me and celebrate. I owe you a glass of mint tea at the very least.'

‘
T
hat was
Fat Larry's band and a particular favourite of mine “Zoom”.
Actually, that's quite an appropriate track for one member of our team. I have in front of me a pre-challenge for Charlie, just to get her limbered up, so to speak, for the next challenge on the list. Mercedes wants Charlie to go to Alton Towers with her this weekend and go on Oblivion, which for those of you who don't know was the first vertical drop roller coaster in the UK and reaches a maximum speed of sixty-eight miles per hour. It's the UK's third fastest roller coaster. I'm sure our timid Charlie will enjoy the thrill. But that's only part of the challenge; Charlie has to perform one extra task that should raise a smile as she plunges down the one hundred and eighty foot drop. I'll tell you more about that later. For now, here's another track, just for you, Charlie – “Crazy” by Gnarls Barkley.'

Charlie groaned. She loathed heights. Mercedes knew she hated heights. She couldn't even go up a ladder without feeling dizzy. There was no way she would be able to go on the wretched roller coaster without throwing up. On cue, her phone rang.

‘I have the tickets and we're going this Saturday. I'll pick you up at seven a.m.'

‘Mercedes, I can't.'

‘There's no such word as can't. Come on. It'll be fun. I've always wanted to go on a vertical roller coaster. You can enjoy it for me. You'll be fine once you're on it. Remember your promise? Trust me?'

Brow-beaten, Charlie agreed. If Mercedes could be brave about her injury and get on with life, then Charlie could manage a roller coaster ride, couldn't she?

As she made her way out of the studio, she bumped into a young nurse leaving the staffroom.

‘Just heard the show, Charlie. Good on you. I went to Alton Towers a couple of years ago with my boyfriend. I couldn't get on Oblivion or Air. I was too petrified. It looked proper scary. I'll be cheering you on. I wonder what Mercedes has lined up for you after the roller coaster.'

That was the very same thought going through Charlie's mind, and knowing her friend, she had a feeling it would be something even worse.

T
he queue
of youngsters and couples was far longer than she had expected. There was an air of expectation and joking as they teased each other about the ride. They snaked upwards in a straggling line through a large drawn out helix, crossing buildings and structures. The build-up to the ride was clever. Video screens were displayed above them. On each, a sinister man gave the group briefings and hinted at how terrifying the ride was going to be. Mercedes had ensured they arrived early and now Charlie found herself near the front of the queue. Mercedes was below on the viewing platform.

‘It only lasts just over a minute,' she told Charlie on the way to the amusement park. ‘Bet you'll want to do it again.'

Charlie wasn't so sure. Plunging down a sharp drop on a roller coaster was about as miserable a challenge as she could anticipate.

A group of eighteen to twenty-year-olds were behind her. A tall blonde-haired girl dressed in jeans and a smart hooded cream jacket was part of the group. She looked a little like Amy. She had similar cobalt blue eyes and that same spirit of adventure and confidence. The girl caught her glance and smiled back. Yes, she definitely reminded Charlie of an older version of Amy.

Charlie often imagined what Amy would have been like had she reached eighteen. Her darling daughter would have been beautiful that's for sure. Amy would probably have been the sort of girl who would travel the world, taking in sights in exotic locations, making friends wherever she went and trying her hand at any challenge. Although Charlie would have been proud of her no matter how she turned out. If only she had been allowed to watch Amy grow into a young woman.

Thoughts of Amy being there prevented her from bolting. Amy would be egging her mum on and giggling. Charlie would do it for her. It would be difficult to run anyway, sandwiched as she now was in a crowd of excitable people.

Gavin had always teased her, saying she was a scaredy-cat. When Amy was ten, they travelled to Paris. It was Gavin who went on the more adventurous rides at Euro Disney with her, laughing crazily as they raced off on Big Thunder Mountain, waving at Charlie as they flew high on the Dumbo ride and screaming together in glee on the Tower of Terror. Charlie had preferred the more sedate rides like It's a Small World, where they rode on boats through a magical animated world filled with music and colour.

Amy was more like her father, in terms of her character. She was always up for fun or adventure. As a young child she was fearless, begging Gavin to throw her in the air when she was a toddler, then asking for Charlie to push her higher on the swings in the park. Amy would have enjoyed this trip to Alton Towers.

The group of visitors crossed a metal bridge onto an elevated station building where they were put into rows to board the ride cars. Charlie thought she'd escaped but suddenly she found herself being pushed towards the front row of the ride to make up seat numbers.

A man in a brown leather jacket and jeans slipped into his seat beside her. A young boy took the position next to him. He looked up at the man and grinned cheekily.

‘You okay, Dad? You look a bit white.'

His father, who looked decidedly pale, patted him on the head. ‘I'm fine. Of course, I'm worried you'll scream and I'll have to hold your hand.'

The boy laughed and waved his mobile phone at him. ‘I'm going to take a selfie. You wanna be in it?'

‘I'll pass this time,' replied the man. ‘I'm sure your mates at school won't want to see a photo of your old man on a roller coaster. I can't believe you talked me into coming here.'

‘You said we could do anything I wanted. This is it!'

‘I hoped you wanted to go to McDonalds or the zoo.'

‘Zoo? I'm thirteen not five!'

The man turned and glanced at Charlie who was fumbling with her seat belt which wouldn't buckle up thanks to her shaking hands. He leant across and snapped it into place.

‘Don't worry,' whispered the stranger. ‘Don't tell Toby, but I'm nervous too. I'm only doing this because he begged me to. It's a belated birthday treat.'

Charlie sat dumbstruck. It was the Piggy man. Again. Did he recognise her? She held her breath for a minute. But the man had turned away to talk to his son. Thank heavens. Charlie was just about to release a sigh of relief, when the man turned back.

‘You're not following me by any chance are you?' he asked quietly so his son could not hear.

‘No, I'm not. I could ask you the same question,' spluttered Charlie.

‘Must be karma then,' he answered. ‘Nice to see you again,' he added with a wide smile.

‘Happy belated birthday,' she called out to Toby.

‘Thanks. It was last week but I was at school and couldn't get a pass out cos it was a weekday.' He took a photo of the crowd below.

‘I see you've dressed more appropriately today,' the man whispered. ‘Last time I saw you you were wearing next-to-nothing and trying to hide behind a veil.'

‘Be glad I'm dressed normally today. I hate to think what happens to harem pants on roller coasters.'

He guffawed.

Behind them, a group of teenagers joked as they settled into the seats and waited for the ride to start.

‘Don't you puke on me, Gaz.'

‘As if. But if you want to keep your eyes shut, feel free.'

They were preparing to depart. The sinister voice on a video screen announced some doom-laden message intended to terrify the passengers. Charlie was too nervous to listen to it. Large yellow cage-like belts were automatically lowered, holding the passengers down in their seats and Charlie just had time to check her seat belt again before the creaking and groaning of steal chains signalled they were being lifted upwards.

‘Isn't this brill?' said the young man sat behind. ‘I read about a girl whose seatbelt broke on this ride. Imagine that. That would be well cool. Extra scary!'

‘Shut up, Gaz, or I'll twat you,' one of the girls said.

‘Just sayin'. My bad. Anyone here seen the film
Final Destination 3
? I just had a premonition that the car would break off and fall over the― ow!'

‘I told you to
shut up
,' said the girl.

Charlie clutched at her seatbelt to ascertain it was still attached. The cars had almost reached the top and were levelling out. From here she could see the towers of Alton Towers Hall.
Not too bad, so far
, she thought. Then she remembered the challenge.

‘Um, excuse me,' she mumbled to the man, ‘I have to do something silly now. It's for a challenge. I'm not mad or anything.' He looked back at her and waggled his eyebrows in feigned surprise. She didn't care. She was getting used to being caught in stupid situations by him.

‘Nothing you do would surprise me,' he said and gave a wink.

She unbuttoned the top pocket on her jacket and pulled out a plastic blue kazoo.

‘Any requests?' she asked.

‘“Who's Afraid of the Big Bad Wolf” or what about “If I Could Talk to the Animals”?' he replied with a chuckle. ‘Sorry. I can't help myself. I'll cut the pig-related references.' She smiled back at him, shook her head in mock irritation and began playing. She held the kazoo tightly. She did not want to choke on it.

Toby looked over at the sound. ‘Hey, I know that song. It's by the Red Hot Chilli Peppers. It was in the Beavis and Butthead movie.'

She nodded and continued playing ‘Love Rollercoaster'. The boy hummed in time to her playing.

The ride car stopped at the end of the track. Charlie saw nothing but open space under her and ahead of her. They were suspended in air. The car hung for a few seconds. She was going to fall from the sky. Her eyes widened. She concentrated on the kazoo to prevent the panic from rising any further. The car suddenly descended and she gripped the kazoo tightly to prevent herself from swallowing it. She heard the man beside her whistling the tune. Behind her, the teenagers joined in, singing the lyrics, and as the car plunged into the dark hole of Oblivion, Charlie could hear her kazoo parping out the tune and a chorus of voices accompanying it. She didn't have time to scream.

‘Wow! Awesome,' said one of the girls as the cars returned to the platform and the passengers disembarked. ‘We'll have to try that again, next ride.'

‘Cool!' said Toby. ‘Can you play any other songs by the Red Hot Chilli Peppers?'

‘No, sorry. That's the only one that works well on a kazoo. I mostly do themes to old television shows or
Star Wars
. But it's a kazoo you can hear in the chorus of “Love Rollercoaster”. And they feature on quite a few other songs too: Jimi Hendrix's “Crosstown Traffic”
,
at
the end of Dionne Warwick's
“This Girl's in Love With You”
and Pink Floyd's “Jug and Blues”. Guess you haven't heard of them though,' she added. Toby shook his head.

‘No, but I have, and I used to be a huge Pink Floyd fan,' said his father, smiling. ‘And “Jug and Blues” was the last track to feature Syd Barrett as a member of the band,' he added wistfully. ‘Well, well. So you are into music? Me too. I've got a stack of old vinyls I refuse to throw away by bands from that era. Much to Toby's dismay,' he added, grinning. ‘He believes I'm a stuffy old dinosaur. I have all Pink Floyd's stuff. In fact, as I recall, Pink Floyd did a song about pigs and, of course, were famous for using inflatable flying pigs,' he grinned at Charlie. She refused to rise to the bait.

The man helped her out of her seat while his son meandered ahead, chatting to the teenagers from their ride. She noticed he was nice-looking. He sported a slight designer stubble that reminded her a little of Gavin. She had liked it when Gavin allowed his perfectly shaven face to grow a little stubble. It made him look sexier. She enjoyed the feel of it as it gently rubbed her face when they kissed.

‘Thanks,' he said.

‘For what?' she asked, holding onto the rail. Her legs were being uncooperative.

‘For making me feel younger again. It was Toby's idea to come out today and I had my reservations but I felt twenty years younger on that ride. It was mostly down to you. It was enjoyable whistling along with your kazoo. Liberating, even. It also took my mind off that horrendous drop. It's a fun instrument. Maybe I should buy a kazoo.'

‘Here, take mine. It's magical. When you blow it, you are transformed into a ten-year-old,' she said, handing over the toy instrument with a shaking hand.'

‘Are you okay?'

‘Just a little weak-kneed. The ride wasn't my idea, as you might have guessed. I'm not fond of roller coasters. My friend put me up to it. It's a long story, but I am trying out new adventures and challenges on her behalf.'

He held out his arm to her. ‘One good turn deserves another.'

She took it, grateful to have his support as they returned to the entrance to the ride. They chatted about music and bands they had both seen in concert over the years. She no longer needed his arm but kept hold of it, comfortable to be with him and enjoying the animated conversation as they discovered a mutual taste in music. She released him with some reluctance.

‘Thanks. I feel much better now. One roller coaster ride is enough for me, though. I'll try the teacups next.'

‘Been a pleasure. I'm Jake, by the way, Jake Meredith,' he added.

‘Charlie Blundell.' She felt a slight flutter in her stomach. There was definitely an attraction there. She wondered if he felt the same.

‘We keep meeting under odd circumstances, don't we?' he began, looking deep into her eyes. ‘So far, I've discovered you've got a spirit of adventure when it comes to food and a head for disgusting drinks. You're also a farmyard animal impersonator, a master kazoo player and an exotic dancer. What else do you get involved in?'

‘Nothing else extraordinary. You've seen my mad side. The rest of my life is pretty dull.'

‘Somehow I don't believe that,' he said. He looked at her, head cocked onto one side as if he wanted to say something else. She had the crazy notion he was going to ask her out.

At that moment, Toby appeared and pulled at Jake's sleeve. ‘Dad, Abigail's here. She made it, after all,' he said, pointing out an elegant young woman dressed in tight grey jeans and a stylish red jacket. Her hair hung like a glossy brown curtain.

‘Abigail!' called the boy and raced off towards her. She enveloped him in her arms then looked over at the man and blew a kiss at him. He waved at her.

‘Well, this is where I have to leave you. Are you all right now?'

‘Yes, fine thanks. I hope you and Toby enjoy the rest of the day,' she replied, somewhat deflated. She recognised the woman. She was the woman who had been in the café with him – the woman with red-soled shoes. He was spoken for. Of course he was. Good-looking single men didn't generally materialise like that, only in romance stories.

‘Hum into your kazoo if you need a laugh,' she added. He smiled, slipped the kazoo into his jacket pocket, and then left her. She headed off to find Mercedes, willing herself to not turn back and look at him one more time. Her legs were still rubbery when she returned to where she had left Mercedes.

‘Well done! You're officially no longer a scaredy-cat. So, did you enjoy it?'

‘In a way, yes, I did. I almost didn't though. The kazoo helped.'

‘I thought it would take your mind off the drop, although I think you had other distractions,' she said in a knowing tone.

‘Funny lady! He just stopped me from falling over when we got off the ride.'

‘He'd be welcome to pick me up any time I fell over. Now, do you fancy a go on Wobble World with the tiny tots or would you like to go on this again?'