Page 27 of Wish You Were Here
‘He started a property search company back in the early noughties for high-end investors, mainly from abroad, the Middle East, China, the US, and has his own portfolio of properties across London.’
‘Right, that’s—’
‘I think he does very well, although property isn’t really my cup of tea.’
‘What is it you do?’
‘Journalism. Fashion journalism, to be more precise,’ she says, and it makes sense, given her stunning outfit and the jewellery pieces that match it perfectly. ‘I started off at a newspaper, then magazines, but now I mostly freelance.’
‘Oh, gosh, that must be—’
‘It’s a little scary Ben, but the freedom it gives me is incredible, and I love what I do,’ says Annabelle, as a waiter appears, we order drinks and Annabelle suggests getting a starter to share because it is absolutely divine and then we get back to our conversation. It is clear that Annabelle likes to talk. I can barely get a word in edgeways.
‘So, Annabelle,’ I say quickly while she’s taking a sip of her drink. ‘I’m not sure what Hugh told you about me, but I’m just out of a terrible relationship, and I’m really looking for something meaningful, and—’
‘Hugh mentioned the awful ex, Saffy something. I think it’s great you’re looking for something meaningful, Ben, because so many men I date are just after one thing, and I’m tired of it. The London dating scene is exhausting.’
‘Right? I’m so glad you feel—’
‘I have actually created a list of questions that let me cut straight to the chase, so we’re not wasting our time. Once the main courses arrive, I’ll get into it.’
Annabelle stops talking, and I am quite taken aback that she has a list of pre-prepared dating questions, and apparentlyas soon as our mains arrive, I’m going to be put under the microscope. I’m not sure how I feel about this. As we eat the starter – arancini with bolognaise and black truffle – I am already thinking that despite how lovely she looks, I’m not feeling much of a connection with Annabelle. My mind has already started drifting off and thinking about Saskia. I have to keep telling myself to stop it. I need to give Annabelle a chance, and perhaps her list of dating questions might actually be helpful.
Our main courses, along with fresh drinks, arrive, and the interrogation gets underway. I ordered a mushroom risotto while Annabelle went with a tuna steak and a small side-salad. Once the waiter is gone, we both say the usual thing of ‘yours looks nice’ and I wonder if Annabelle is the sort of person who shares her food or if she’s very much a ‘this is mine, that’s yours, and that’s it,’ sort of date. Before I can test the waters, she looks at me and begins the ‘pre-written questions’ portion of the evening.
‘Before we begin, Ben, I don’t want you to think that you’re on trial. I just don’t want to waste my time if we have nothing in common, and I’m sure you don’t want to waste yours either. This is just a fun way of speeding things along.’
‘No, it’s fine, Annabelle, honestly,’ I say, although I’m not entirely sure it is, but it feels like whether I want to do this or not, it is happening – like playing charades at Christmas. I take a bite of my risotto, and it’s creamy, cheesy and quite delicious. Outside it’s dark, and the weather is quite drab, but in the restaurant it's light, warm and they are playing Italian music that gives the whole place quite a romantic ambience. If I close my eyes, take a bite of my risotto, I could almost be in Italy. At least until Annabelle says quite sharply.
‘Question number one! Where do you see yourself in five years?’
Clearly, this isn’t going to be easy. I was expecting something more mundane like favourite flavour of ice-cream, and she comes straight in with a hard-hitting life question. It feels more like a job interview than a date.
‘Gosh, five years. That’s quite a long time, isn’t it?’
‘Not really, Ben. Time moves so fast and I feel like if you don’t have clearly defined life goals, you’re just going to find yourself in the same situation as you are now, bobbing about on the sea of fate, hoping something works out and we can’t have that, can we?’
‘Oh, right,’ I say, trying my best to think of a perfect five-year plan. I have often pondered this myself – I am not completely devoid of forward-thinking – because if I asked my twenty-five-year-old self what I’d be doing at thirty, I’m fairly sure it wouldn’t be what I am doing now. Basically, in the last five years, nothing has changed except a slightly flabbier stomach, an ever diminishing ability to deal with alcohol and a relationship with Saffy, which dented my belief in the possibility of love. Have I essentially wasted the last five years of my life? Where have I travelled? What adventures have I been on? Didn’t I want to learn a language? Before I answer for myself, I decide to turn the wheels on Annabelle. ‘What about you? Where do you see yourself in five years?’
Annabelle has clearly spent time thinking about this because when I ask her, she sits up straighter, composes her face, and gives her clearly well-rehearsed answer.
‘In five years, I’ll have a flourishing online fashion blog. I want to grow my social media presence, and I have been dabbling with the idea of a podcast. So perhaps that’s a new creative landscape I’d like to explore. I want to be married or at the least engaged, and we’ll buy a house somewhere in South London. Victorian. Hopefully, a project so we can really putour own stamp on it. I’m not sure about children yet, but it’s definitely a conversation.’
‘Blimey! You’ve really got everything figured out.’
‘I think you have to, Ben. So, what about you?’ says Annabelle, taking a bite of her tuna.
Where do I see myself in five years? What’s the big plan?
‘Obviously progressing in my career, and I hope I’ve met, you know,The One, and we are happily married. I definitely want children, and we’ve probably moved out of Clapham because house prices are ridiculous. I just want the usual, I suppose.’
‘Okaaay,’ says a straight-faced Annabelle. Clearly, she isn’t impressed with my answer. I feel like if she had a clipboard and a pen, she’d be making notes. ‘Worst personality trait in a potential partner?’
‘Jealousy?’
‘Why?’
‘Because I think trust is so important, and if my partner doesn’t trust me then I think we’re probably doomed, don’t you?’
