Day Thirty. Dinner
Chapter Nineteen
“Never seen the place empty, mate,” Biff said You closing up shop or what?”
I sighed. “Had to use the mobile phone. There was a troublesome customer.”
Biff nodded. “Fair enough. Just happen, did it?”
Dunno. Only a moment ago, only a lifetime ago.
It was rare for Biff and I to be alone. I hadn’t really known him on the outside, though our paths had intersected here and there. Mainly through Angela when she had been a member of Biff’s group. And afterwards, of course, which was how he had ended up here on the volunteer crew.
“How’s business outside?” I asked, gesturing at the night with citylights.
“Same old same old.” He shrugged his shoulders.
“Meaning you’re galloping ahead in leaps and bounds?”
“Yeah.” Big smile. “Played your hospital today.”
I was all ears.
“It was for the kids, obviously. A few staff members came along, sneaking off work some of them. Had a doctor join us on stage for the birthday lineup. Cheerful chap, name of Simon Woo. Lucky we only give them one candle each, otherwise the cake might have been declared a bushfire.”
“Simon Who?”
“A doctor. Simon Woo. Asian extinction, big smile, forty two, he said. You know him?”
“He was here a few minutes ago. With my wife.”
“No!” He stared. He knew who I’d been waiting for. “Dee was with another man? Here?”
Yeah, I couldn’t believe it either. “No doubt about it. They did the old one-two arrival thing, neither of them with any clothes on, sat down together, whispering in each other’s ears. It was too much for me.”
“Oh, no. That’s not good.” He looked at the deserted café, and you could hear his thoughts. “She was the troublesome customer you were talking about. Wasn’t she? The one you used the phone on?”
I nodded glumly. I’d chased my own wife out of my café after waiting a year for her. Not good indeed.
“Have a drink, mate. Let’s both have a snort.”
A couple of Scotches under my belt already, but why not. I poured us a shot each.
“Hey, this is smooth.” Biff looked at the label. “Don’t see too many of these around.”
“A customer hoiked them out of the backroom. Just gathering dust. He was very glad to find them. Started telling me how to pronounce the names.”
“Yeah. They should come with a phrasebook, these things.”
“I’m having a night off, anyway. Might as well get loaded.”
“Mind if I join you, boys?”
We looked up. Bella. She must have gone straight back to sleep, though of course Biff wouldn’t know that. I patted the seat beside me, and she sat down. Biff poured a glass while I leant my head on her shoulder.
“You poor man!” I thought she was about to pat my head, soothing a crying child. “I had no idea, none at all.”
“I should have guessed. It’s been a year, after all. I just didn’t expect it of her.”
“You aren’t quite legally dead, Bertie, but I have to say that you aren’t far off it.”
“I thought you couldn’t tell me anything like that?”
“I’ve changed my mind. I left you thinking your wife was sick or dead earlier on, and I’m sorry for that.”
“You’re sorry? She was about the only thing I had to keep on going. You took that away from me.”
“But now you know that was wrong. For what that’s worth now.”
“Yeah. I’ve got nothing now. And I’m barely here, you say.”
“Perhaps one fact explains the other, Bertie. Perhaps you shouldn’t feel too bad about your wife.”
Perhaps I didn’t care at all. Understanding is one thing, liking it another. Yet here I was, all but crying on the shoulder of a woman I’d only met a few hours previously. How could I blame Dee for seeking comfort?
“I did the wrong thing, didn’t I? Wow, that was really stupid.”
“If you get another chance,” Bella said, meaning that I probably wouldn’t, “you might want to talk to her. Hear her side. Let her hear yours.”
“If I get a chance,” I agreed. And if you think about it, a chance was a big improvement. For the past few hours I’d been thinking that even that was denied me.
Customers were beginning to come in. Biff got up to attend to them.
“Give it to me straight, Doc.”
Bella looked at me thoughtfully. She shook her head and took my hand, holding it for a long moment. There was a message in that, and I couldn’t say that I liked what she was all but telling me.
“Never seen the place empty, mate,” Biff said You closing up shop or what?”
I sighed. “Had to use the mobile phone. There was a troublesome customer.”
Biff nodded. “Fair enough. Just happen, did it?”
Dunno. Only a moment ago, only a lifetime ago.
It was rare for Biff and I to be alone. I hadn’t really known him on the outside, though our paths had intersected here and there. Mainly through Angela when she had been a member of Biff’s group. And afterwards, of course, which was how he had ended up here on the volunteer crew.
“How’s business outside?” I asked, gesturing at the night with citylights.
“Same old same old.” He shrugged his shoulders.
“Meaning you’re galloping ahead in leaps and bounds?”
“Yeah.” Big smile. “Played your hospital today.”
I was all ears.
“It was for the kids, obviously. A few staff members came along, sneaking off work some of them. Had a doctor join us on stage for the birthday lineup. Cheerful chap, name of Simon Woo. Lucky we only give them one candle each, otherwise the cake might have been declared a bushfire.”
“Simon Who?”
“A doctor. Simon Woo. Asian extinction, big smile, forty two, he said. You know him?”
“He was here a few minutes ago. With my wife.”
“No!” He stared. He knew who I’d been waiting for. “Dee was with another man? Here?”
Yeah, I couldn’t believe it either. “No doubt about it. They did the old one-two arrival thing, neither of them with any clothes on, sat down together, whispering in each other’s ears. It was too much for me.”
“Oh, no. That’s not good.” He looked at the deserted café, and you could hear his thoughts. “She was the troublesome customer you were talking about. Wasn’t she? The one you used the phone on?”
I nodded glumly. I’d chased my own wife out of my café after waiting a year for her. Not good indeed.
“Have a drink, mate. Let’s both have a snort.”
A couple of Scotches under my belt already, but why not. I poured us a shot each.
“Hey, this is smooth.” Biff looked at the label. “Don’t see too many of these around.”
“A customer hoiked them out of the backroom. Just gathering dust. He was very glad to find them. Started telling me how to pronounce the names.”
“Yeah. They should come with a phrasebook, these things.”
“I’m having a night off, anyway. Might as well get loaded.”
“Mind if I join you, boys?”
We looked up. Bella. She must have gone straight back to sleep, though of course Biff wouldn’t know that. I patted the seat beside me, and she sat down. Biff poured a glass while I leant my head on her shoulder.
“You poor man!” I thought she was about to pat my head, soothing a crying child. “I had no idea, none at all.”
“I should have guessed. It’s been a year, after all. I just didn’t expect it of her.”
“You aren’t quite legally dead, Bertie, but I have to say that you aren’t far off it.”
“I thought you couldn’t tell me anything like that?”
“I’ve changed my mind. I left you thinking your wife was sick or dead earlier on, and I’m sorry for that.”
“You’re sorry? She was about the only thing I had to keep on going. You took that away from me.”
“But now you know that was wrong. For what that’s worth now.”
“Yeah. I’ve got nothing now. And I’m barely here, you say.”
“Perhaps one fact explains the other, Bertie. Perhaps you shouldn’t feel too bad about your wife.”
Perhaps I didn’t care at all. Understanding is one thing, liking it another. Yet here I was, all but crying on the shoulder of a woman I’d only met a few hours previously. How could I blame Dee for seeking comfort?
“I did the wrong thing, didn’t I? Wow, that was really stupid.”
“If you get another chance,” Bella said, meaning that I probably wouldn’t, “you might want to talk to her. Hear her side. Let her hear yours.”
“If I get a chance,” I agreed. And if you think about it, a chance was a big improvement. For the past few hours I’d been thinking that even that was denied me.
Customers were beginning to come in. Biff got up to attend to them.
“Give it to me straight, Doc.”
Bella looked at me thoughtfully. She shook her head and took my hand, holding it for a long moment. There was a message in that, and I couldn’t say that I liked what she was all but telling me.