Page 22 of When We Were Friends
‘You softened Mlle Vachon today, made her happier to help us, what with those kind comments about her being your best teacher and in some ways being a mother to more children than anyone. How you fussed over her when she sat down, with the chair and tube of mints… It helped tease out the more personal details she wasn’t sure about giving in the first instance.’
‘Morgan is right,’ said Paige. ‘You gave a perfect lesson in how to put someone at their ease.’
Emily blushed and sat up straighter.
Tiff returned. ‘The villa’s available. It’s got a view of the sea. Only two bedrooms but we can share, right? I’ve gone ahead and told her we’ll take it.’
‘I’m guessing you and Paige have up-to-date passports?’ asked Morgan. ‘I got one last year. Took Olly on a trip to northern France.’ She was determined 2022 would be the year he got to fly on a plane, the year that he, for once, could go back to school talking about a triphe’dhad abroad. They flew from Manchester to Brittany, stayed in a mobile home for four nights. Every morning, Olly got up early to go to the on-site shop and fetch a fresh baguette and croissants. Their budget allowed for eating out once and they found a cheap restaurant in the local town. Olly loved a bean stew called a cassoulet. He took photo after photo and couldn’t wait to show his friends. He also made an album for Morgan when they got back. The French break made up for his disappointment over the school physics field trip to CERN, the largest particle physics lab in the world. Olly couldn’t have been more excited to be going to Geneva. It was heavily subsidised but Morgan had fitted in extra hours to pay their contribution, a few here, a few there, so that Olly wouldn’t notice and worry. However, the trip had to be cancelled at the last minute – the plane suffered engine trouble. So he and Morgan went to France instead, and, as it turned out, this year, Year Thirteen pupils who still wanted to go to CERN – like Olly – were being allowed to tag along with Year Twelve, as long as it didn’t affect their studies. ‘What about you, Emily?’
‘Lewis and I were due to celebrate our ten-year anniversary this year with a couple of nights in Amsterdam. Both of us had always fancied going there with the canals and tulips, the pancakes. Looking back, we already knew we were dreaming when we applied for our passports. Both of ours had gone out of date the last year. We could hardly afford them, let alone the trip.’ She studied the other three. ‘But us four going away together… really?’
‘I’ll book open-ended tickets,’ interrupted Paige. ‘We might come straight back if we find nothing there.’
Emily threw down her burger. ‘You’re all totally mad. We’re practically strangers. We can’t willy nilly jet off abroad for a few days, to live together.’
‘Willy nilly? Your mum used to say that,’ said Paige. ‘She was always up for a laugh, even when she was ill.’
‘She was very young at heart too, wasn’t she?’ said Tiff. ‘She’d joke about sex and drink in a way my mother never did, even during those last months. I’ve never forgotten in Year Seven how she explained to us what French kissing was.’
Morgan smiled. ‘She was always so full of life.’
‘Sure was,’ said Emily, in an emotionless voice. ‘Right to the very end.’
‘You were so young, Emily,’ said Paige. ‘I can’t imagine life without my mother, even now.’
Emily broke eye contact and stared out of the window. ‘Oddly, it was a massive relief when she went.’
Morgan forced herself not to react, not to look at Paige and Tiff. She could understand such sentiment in terms of the hours of care Emily had put in, but it was the sincerity that caught her attention, almost as if Emily’s mum’s death hadn’t bothered her on any level.
‘You were an angel,’ said Tiff, ‘you sacrificed so much, gave her baths, shaved her legs, made sure your brother didn’t tire her out. See, we know stuff about each other, intimate stuff… We aren’t strangers at all.’ Tiff waved her hand in the air. ‘What have you got to lose apart from one week in dreary old Blighty?’
‘My sanity?’ Emily’s eyes crinkled at the corners. She met the gaze of the others again. Their eyebrows raised as ‘Hey Ya!’ by OutKast came on.
‘The one song that actually all of us liked,’ said Paige.
‘Because despite its cheerful beat, the lyrics are actually sad and about how couples sometimes stay together even though they are unhappy,’ said Morgan. ‘I think we connected that to the idea of how appearances can be deceptive and people shouldn’t be judged by how they look.’
‘I just remember the lyrics being kind of fun,’ said Tiff and they listened. She shook her bottom, in her seat, when the words about shaking it came on, like they always used to. Smiles appearing, the others followed suit.
Paige cleared her throat and consulted her watch. ‘Right. I’ve got to get going. I’ll message you for details I need to book the tickets. Departure two weeks today, yes? We’re… we’re sure we want to do this? Morgan? It’s your decision.’ Paige bit her thumbnail. ‘I’ll go with whatever is best for you.’
Excitement hadn’t infused Morgan like this since last year’s trip with Olly. But it had nothing to do with going away to pastures new, and more to do with treading old ones that used to feel like home. ‘Yes. Let’s go shake it in France.’
14
PAIGE, EMILY, TIFF
Paige wrote a short, last-minute email to the others, confirming they should meet her inside Terminal 1, tomorrow, at midday. Their flight would leave at two thirty. They were flying directly to Nice and would then get a train from there to Fréjus. She pressed send and put down her phone. Felix sat opposite at their dining room table, by the window. He hadn’t even been aware of her typing. The distant lights of a helicopter flew past. He followed them with his eyes, the plate of beef goulash in front of him no longer steaming. It had been like this, the last year, before each trip. Paige had urged him to look for another job but his was more like a vocation when it came to helping disadvantaged youngsters. His flight left at 7a.m.
‘How was tonight?’ she asked. Felix had never looked more handsome, post-shower skin glowing. He brought the best out in her; she now offered free advice to struggling businesses. Paige had set up a page on her website where small enterprises could apply for her to visit and speak to the staff, to assess how they could improve their image and communication with clients.
‘Jamal was on fine form. He’s just turned sixteen. I’ve mentioned him before…’
Paige nodded.
‘The lad’s getting way too cocky for his own good and I told him as much.’ A flicker of a smile. ‘He can do fifty push-ups now, faster than me.’ Felix tore off a chunk of bread roll. ‘When he first turned up, a year ago, Jamal hardly spoke, wouldn’t look anyone in the eye, had no direction. It took a while, but he’s made good mates and when he leaves school next year, he wants to become a personal trainer.’
‘That’s brilliant, Felix. Has he got it in him?’
