Authors: Kay Brooks
“Gill, are you sure you want to get in a taxi with Mike?” Theo’s voice was calm and I knew he was trying not to come across as being too controlling. He must have thought I was choosing to go home with Mike.
“No, you don’t understand.” I put my hand over the phone to stop Theo from hearing. “Mike, look, I need to go home alone, ok? I can’t get in a taxi with you!” The taxi had arrived and Mike was dragging me over to it.
“Gill, get serious. You can hardly walk. Look, I know it’s hard to take in when you’ve had so much to drink, but I like you and I don’t want anything happening to you while you’re trying to get home.” Now he was pulling me into the taxi after him.
“Just one second.” I put the phone back to my ear, but Theo had gone. He was obviously really mad with me and I didn’t blame him. He thought I was going home with another man. My options were either to try and get a taxi on my own; everyone from work had already disappeared. Or I could allow Mike to accompany me home, making it very clear that nothing else was going to happen. It seemed safer to take the second option.
Mike was giving an address to the taxi driver. It wasn’t mine. “Actually,” I said, panic making my mind and voice clearer, “I just want to go home, thanks.” Mike started to protest, but I spoke over him, giving my address to the taxi driver who seemed to realise what was going on and headed towards my house
.
22
The journey home with the window open, combined with batting off Mike’s advances sobered me up quite a bit, but not enough so that I noticed the car already parked outside my house. The taxi pulled up and I opened my purse to give some money to Mike.
“Put that away, doll,” Mike insisted. “I’ll take payment in the form of a kiss!” Then he leaned over with his mouth open. I pushed myself against the door, fumbling for the handle, but it opened before I could find it. I tumbled out, but was immediately lifted to my feet again. Mike scrambled out after me, finding himself face to face with Theo. I hadn’t seen him look this way before; his forehead was wrinkled and his eyes seemed hard.
“Thanks for bringing her home,” he said firmly, and gestured for Mike to get back in the taxi.
“Who are you?” Mike asked, looking up at Theo.
“He’s my boyfriend,” I hiccupped.
“I’m her boyfriend,” Theo repeated. Then while Mike watched open-mouthed, he lifted me into his arms and carried me to the door. When the taxi had gone and between us we had finally found the house keys and opened the door, I turned to look at Theo.
“This seems much worse than it is. I can explain.”
To my surprise, he laughed.
“Are you going to spout any more clichés or are you going to shut up and let
me kiss you?”
“I’ll shut up.” The second his lips touched mine, my legs felt even more unsteady. His arm slipped behind me and supported me. Gently, I pulled away from him and tried to pull him upstairs.
“I am going to take you to bed, but I’m going to leave you there to sleep this off,” he said, allowing me to lead him.
“No, you can stay!” I protested. “I want you to.”
“That’s not a decision I want you to make when you’ve been drinking. Trust me, if it’s up to me this won’t be the last time you say that and next time, I’m taking you up on it.” He pulled back my covers and turned round, his back to me.
I realised he was waiting for me to get undressed so I did, clumsily. Once I’d put my nightdress on, wishing I’d left something sexier out than my tatty Mickey Mouse one, I dived under the covers.
He turned round and kissed me again.
“Please don’t go,” I begged.
“There’s a song in there somewhere!” he teased. “I’ll come back in the morning. I promise.”
Even drunk, I knew begging wasn’t attractive, so I let him go resorting to childishly sticking my bottom lip out to show disapproval. Once I’d heard the front door click shut, I fell straight into a restless sleep.
In my dreams, Mike was there and I was trapped. Every so often the location would change from the taxi, to the pub, to my bedroom but, no matter where we were, he was pawing at me and I wasn’t strong enough to fight him off. The dreams were so vivid, I could feel the wetness of his mouth on my neck and the rough, calloused skin of his palms forcing themselves up my top.
When I awoke, it was daylight. I hadn’t shut my curtains before getting into bed. I wished I had. The light was blinding and did nothing for the pounding going on in my head. I lifted my jacket from next to the bed and felt inside for my mobile phone. It was eleven o’ clock. There was a text from Theo asking me to let him know whether I still wanted him to come over. The events of the night frittered back into my mind with ever increasing levels of embarrassment. At least I had a week off before I had to see Mike again. Remembering trying to drag Theo upstairs, I wondered that he’d texted me at all today. I forced myself out of bed and made a cup of tea, which I sipped whilst watching Spongebob Squarepants; the perfect solution to a hangover from hell. After that, I went for a shower. Just as I was starting to come round under the hot spray, I heard my mobile ringing.
It was Morgan. “I heard you had a wild night last night!”
“A little bit,” I admitted. “You sound like a frog croaking, by the way! How do you know what I was up to last night?”
“I got lots of random texts from Sarah, all arriving between one and two in the morning. I didn’t appreciate being woken up so I returned the favour at eight this morning with a phone call asking for the full scoop!”
“I bet that went down well.”
“She was surprisingly chirpy. Anyway, what’s this I hear about you and too cool for school Mike? According to the gossip grapevine, he’s got the hots for you!”
“Oh my God, Morgan! It was all so cringe-worthy!” I filled her in on the events of the night while she laughed with me and at me in equal measures.
“So, Theo was your knight in shining armour! I’m so jealous!”
“You don’t need to be. You could have your own in the form of Will Bennett if you wanted.”
“Have you ever seen me speaking to him?” she asked.
“No.”
“There’s a good reason why! I go to pieces whenever I’m near him. For someone who is supposedly educated and speaks for five hours a day to make a living, all I can do is blather every time I speak to the gorgeous creature. So now, I only ever talk to him when we’re out on staff do’s and I’ve had some Dutch courage! Anyway, enough about my love life. How funny is it going to be when you see Mike back at school?” We both laughed and I wondered whether anyone who could hear our conversation would know that we were teachers and not giggling school girls.
After Morgan had hung up, I texted Theo. Really, I knew I should have phoned him, but I was still too embarrassed. He phoned back within seconds to ask me how I was feeling.
“I’m fine now, but I think I deserved to be a bit rough this morning!”
“Good, I’m glad. Look, I know this is short notice and a little bit weird, but my family is having a bit of a get together tonight for my sister’s birthday. My mum and dad are going, obviously my sister and her husband, too. Firstly, I don’t want to be the only single one there and secondly, I’m back on shift tomorrow so I won’t be able to see you. I don’t suppose you would accompany me?”
“Erm, well, I’m not sure. What will I…What if they…I don’t know whether this is a good idea.”
“That’s fine. Really, I know we haven’t been seeing each other for very long and it’s a weird request. Don’t worry about it, ok?” He sounded really disappointed and it was only my own insecurities stopping me from accepting.
“No, I’ll come, but could we go together rather than meet there?”
“Definitely. I’d say we’d have a drink first to settle the nerves but…”
“Theo, I have to go. I’ll ring you back!” I threw the phone down and ran to the toilet, throwing my tea up along with whatever wine had managed to last the night in my stomach. Looking at myself in the mirror, I realised I would have to get myself sorted if I didn’t want to make a bad impression on Theo’s family.
23
Theo turned up at half six, giving us half an hour to get to the restaurant. We were going for Chinese, so I’d deliberately worn black, just in case they all used chop-sticks. I wasn’t prepared to be the odd one out, but I didn’t want to decorate myself in sauce, either. “You look beautiful, but how do you feel?” he asked.
“Embarrassed. I’m sorry about last night. Not just for trying to drag you up to bed, but also the whole Mike thing. I just couldn’t seem to get myself out of the situation.”
“It’s fine. Maybe you just need to be a bit more assertive. I mean that strictly in relation to the Mike situation, and not the whole dragging me off to bed issue!” He laughed, kissing my cheek. “Thanks for doing this. I know it’s a bit soon for this kind of thing, but the opportunity arose and I want you to be there.” His words went a long way to reassuring me. I felt confident right up until we entered the restaurant door and I saw that his family were all already there, chatting amongst themselves. Together, they made a very attractive group. They could have been posing for a magazine. When we approached the table, they quietened and all looked round.
A well-muscled man with a full beard and little hair on his head stood up to greet us.
“You must be Gillian. I’m Paul, Theodore’s dad, and this is my wife, Sofronia.”
Sofronia stood up to give me a light kiss on the cheek. “You can call me Sofie. It’s much easier to say!” Her accent made me smile. She seemed so friendly and I understood instantly why Theo adored her.
Theo’s sister made no pretence of looking me up and down, but she smiled while she did it. “I’m Keres, the birthday girl!”
“Happy birthday!” I said, handing her a bouquet of flowers I’d brought.
“Ahh, how sweet!” she cried. Her accent was strong like her mothers. She must have spent more time in Greece than Theo, who only had a slight twang every now and then. “This is my husband, Andreas. We call him Andy
.
”
I smiled at them all, feeling slightly uncomfortable until Theo pulled out a chair for me and poured me a glass of wine. My stomach turned in response. I didn’t think I was going to be able to drink much, but at least that meant I couldn’t make a fool of myself.
“So, Gillian, you are a teacher, Theo tells me,” Sofie said. “Andreas here, he is a teacher too.”
“Oh, where do you teach?” I asked him.
“I teach at a small school in Keres back in Greece, but my job is not so hard as yours. I teach the small ones!”
“Ahh, so you live in Greece,” I said.
“Yes,” Keres answered. “We spend many of our holidays over here so we can see Theo, but he should come to us, we keep telling him!” Theo opened his mouth to speak. “Theo, we know the hospital is very important, but everyone needs a break and Karia is so beautiful. You must convince him, Gillian, so that you can see where we live and where Theo was born.”
I realised that I wasn’t on trial at all at this moment. They seemed to have
accepted me as Theo’s girlfriend without question. I wondered whether they were
disappointed that I wasn’t Greek, too. If they were, they weren’t showing it.
As the evening went on, I found myself genuinely relaxing and enjoying myself. Listening to Sofie talk about silly things that Theo and Keres had done when they were little had me in fits of laughter. Paul was very quiet in comparison, but he looked upon his wife with adoration, keeping her wine topped up and occasionally interrupting her to ask if she wanted to try some of his food. Keres and Andreas were equally affectionate. It was easy to see where Theo got his caring nature from.
Towards the end of the meal, Sofie insisted we order coffee. She clearly didn’t want the evening to end. “So, Gillian, tell me how you met my Theo!” she insisted.
I glanced over at him.
Do I tell her about the car crash or do I tell her about the night we met in the club?
Neither option was particularly inviting.
“We met in the hospital,” Theo said when I didn’t reply. “Gill had been in an accident and I was her doctor. It sounds a bit strange when it’s put like that, but we basically bumped into each other after Gill was better and we got to know each other from there.”
“Was it a bad accident?” Sofie asked.
I felt the heat rise in my cheeks, not sure what to say.
“Ach, that doesn’t matter. What matters is that you are fine now. You will have an interesting story to tell your children, yes?” She laughed.
“Mum!” Theo said in mock horror. “Are all mothers this embarrassing?”
“Well, you already know mine is,” I said, remembering when she’d badgered Theo into staying the night.
When it was time to go, mainly to appease the hovering waiters, there were hugs and kisses to be shared, and I wasn’t left out. After only two glasses of wine, which I’d sipped deliberately slowly, I felt light-headed. I must have just topped up on the alcohol still in my system from last night.
Theo must have been tipsy, too, though he didn’t show it. We waved as Paul drove them all away. “Would you like to go on to a bar?” he asked.
“I’m sorry, but I’m just too tired,” I said with a shake of my head that made me feel slightly dizzy.
“I’ll get you home, then.” He pulled out his phone to ring for a taxi. All around us, people were milling about now, moving on to other places or sorting out their own transport home. “They’ll be about ten minutes.” He led me to a low wall at the side of the restaurant and we sat down. “That went well, I think.”
“Your family are lovely, Theo. I was really nervous but they’re good fun, especially your mum!”
“I knew I was doing the right thing by asking you.” I leaned my head against his shoulder as he continued, “I mean, I know people say it’s always best to take these things slow, but I’ve met your mum now and you’ve met my parents. This just feels right. Do you know what I mean?”
“Mmhmm,” I murmured, totally agreeing. It did just feel right.
“After you had that vision in the park, I just knew.”
At his words, my eyes widened and my head shot up. “What do you mean?”
“You know, you saw us walking through that department store together and it kind of sounded like we were shopping for something for a home that we shared. It just got me thinking about signs. I think that was a sign that this is right.”
“I thought you believed it might be epilepsy? Now, you’re sure I’m a
psychic,” I snapped.
“I don’t understand. Have I upset you?”
“You’re assuming that I’m the one because I had a daydream?” All my insecurities about our relationship came rushing to the surface. I wasn’t sure what to make of my visions; how could he be so certain of their truth? Even worse, what if he was only seeing me because I had foreseen a safe future?
“You can hardly call them daydreams, Gill. You know they come true. What about what happened with Amelia? You knew the truth before the police did. I’m saying I believe you. How can that not be what you want?”
“How can you believe me when I don’t know what to believe, myself? This is wrong, Theo. You think we should be together because I saw something in my head! God knows how many things I’ve seen in my head that I’ve forgotten about which haven’t happened and possibly never will! There has to be more to it than that.” I was crying now.
Theo looked completely at a loss as the taxi pulled up and the driver got out.
“Taxi for Arnold? Are you all right, love?” he asked me.
I wiped my tears away. “I’m fine, thank you. Theo, you take this one. Could you ask for another car to come for me?” I asked the taxi driver. He nodded and got straight on his radio.
“No, Gill, you take this one. I’ll get the next,” Theo said, turning around so I couldn’t argue. People walking past were starting to stare now, so I got in and looked down as the taxi drove away.
Half way home and I was berating myself. Could I not have just ignored what he said and left a beautiful evening untarnished? Could I have handled it better and calmly explained to him that I wanted him to feel more than just reassurance from one of my stupid visions? I wanted him to feel with his heart that I was the one, if not straight away then in time. Before he’d said that, the intensity of our relationship emotionally had made it exciting. Now I was scared that everything he felt was based
on physical attraction and backed up by something I’d unwillingly predicted.
As I was paying the taxi driver who had remained respectfully silent throughout the short journey, my phone beeped. I had a text from Theo asking me to let him know that I was home safe. Quickly, I typed ‘I’m home,’ and sent it. Inside the house, I held the phone up in the darkness waiting for him to ring. It was daft after what had happened and my abrupt reply, but I wanted him to. More than anything, I wanted to rewind and tell him not to say anything about the vision. Just leave me to believe that you’re falling in love with me because that’s what your heart is telling you. After the background light on my phone faded into darkness, I switched it onto silent and left it downstairs. That way, I wouldn’t be lying awake for hours hoping it would ring.