Page 21 of Six Steps to Happiness
“A mini break.” Gaye threw herself at Nick again. “When do we go?”
Ronnie stood there lost for words.
“This weekend.”
She couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
“But it doesn’t say where?”
Ronnie rolled her eyes in disdain.
“That’s because it’s a surprise.”
Ronnie shook her head, furious as Gaye hugged Nick again. “You’ve got to be kidding me,” Ronnie said. She recalled the last time she’d tried to embrace her husband like that, on their wedding anniversary to beat all wedding anniversaries. She could still feel her husband’s cold response, followed by the heartbreaking realisation that she couldn’t have gotten it so wrong, she wasn’t heading for anywhere except the divorce court. “How could you?” she asked, and as she continued to take in the scene before her, she yet again felt like she’d been kicked in the stomach.
“After everything we’ve been through,” Nick carried on.
Ronnie narrowed her eyes. What were they talking about? After everythingthey’dbeen through? Ronnie felt her blood pressure begin to rise. She was the one who’d been tossed aside like a piece of garbage, not them. She was the one forced into watching her husband begin a new life with another woman, simply because that same said woman was too selfish to move.
“I thought some time away would do us good. Give us a chance to relax, away from you know who.”
Ronnie almost spluttered, knowing full well that Nick was talking about her. How dare he mock her like that.
“It hasn’t exactly been fun, has it?” Gaye replied.
Fun!Fun!What did they expect? Was Ronnie supposed to simply let them get on with it? Should she have faded into the background? As if life had been all rainbows and sunbeams for her of late.
“Not in her dictionary, I’m afraid,” Nick said, much to Gaye’s amusement.
Ronnie felt sick. Is that what the two of them did? Laugh at her?
She opened her mouth to say something, to tell them what she thought about their much-needed few days away from it all, but the words stuck in her throat. Suddenly unable to catch her breath, Ronnie tried and failed to fill her lungs. She forced herself to take short sharp gasps, at the same time grabbing the door frame to steady herself. She began to feel dizzy, her body becoming increasingly overwhelmed by a need to pass out. But Ronnie refused to give in, and she struggled back to her seat and plonked herself down.
It took a few moments of concentration for Ronnie to finally regulate her breathing.In, out. In, out,she insisted, over and again, until she regained control. Why were Nick and Gaye doing this to her?
Sitting there, she dropped her head in her hands, wondering how they could be so cruel. It wasn’t enough that they’d ruined her life, they seemed to have painted themselves as the victims. And to laugh at her like that. In all the time she’d been married to Nick, she’d never witnessed that side of him. It was as if, since getting together with Gaye, he’d had a personality transplant as well as a new wardrobe. Unless he had always been like that and Ronnie hadn’t paid attention?
She turned her head to glance at their adjoining houses, knowing she wasn’t asking for much. All she ever wanted was for them to do the decent thing and move, something Ronnie felt sure anyone else in their position would have done from the off. She scoffed, as she looked their way.Decent.They didn’t know the meaning of the word.
Straightening herself up again, Ronnie pushed her hair from her face, at the same time clocking her notebook and pen. A steeliness came over her as she realised Nick and Gaye had provided her with the perfect opportunity forOperation Poltergeistto begin in earnest. “You want fun,” she asked of Nick and Gaye, deadly serious. “Then you can have it.”
Determined never to let either of them get the better of her again, Ronnie rose to her feet and smoothed down her clothes. “Let the games commence.”
14
Ronnie stood in her lounge bay window, her determination tinged with excitement as she observed Nick and Gaye loading up their car. “Come on, come on,” Ronnie said, as they manhandled bag after bag. She shook her head. With that number of suitcases to squeeze in, anyone would think they were going away for a month, not on some two-night break.
The masses of luggage might be frustrating, but it didn’t come as any real surprise. Having kept an eye on next door’s movements all week, Ronnie knew that Gaye had spent many an afternoon hitting the shops. With no clue as to where she would be spending her weekend, the woman clearly wanted to cover a range of eventualities. Day after day, off Ronnie’s neighbour went, a big smile on her face and handbag in hand; only to return a few hours later, laden with designer carriers. Ronnie smiled. Gaye’s shopping sprees had certainly played into her hands. Waiting until the coast was clear, they gave Ronnie the chance to get the next stage ofOperation Poltergeistunderway – making a hole in the adjoining loft wall.
She pictured herself creating her entry point, how she’d painstakingly used Nick’s screwdrivers and chisels to carve out a hole, brick by brick, big enough to comfortably crawl through. Going from bottom to top, she’d individually numbered them with chalk, ensuring she knew where each one sat when it came to blocking the void back up. And thanks to her grit, Ronnie had become quite adept when using her newly acquired stepladder.
She chuckled as she looked back on the previous few days. It was surprising what a scorned woman could achieve if pushed hard enough. After much practice, she seemed to have tackled her fear of heights. She’d gotten to the point where she could whip the ladders open, nimbly hotfoot up the rungs and into the loft, then reach down to snap them shut. All before hoisting them up through the hatch, ready to reverse the procedure once she was through to the other side. Not that she’d gotten that far. She’d been saving her first trip into number eight until she could wander through the house at leisure.
Half nervous, half keen to get on with it, Ronnie giggled. That day was the day.
She watched Nick and Gaye put the last of their bags into the car, before getting in themselves. “At last,” Ronnie said as the engine started up and the vehicle pulled away. “Have fun,” she called after them. “Because I know I will.” She kept her eyes on the car until it disappeared from view, telling herself that the next time that scene played out it would involve boxes instead of suitcases, a couple of removal men, and a great big truck. Waiting a few minutes until she felt sure they weren’t coming back, she clapped her hands. “Let’s do this,” she said, spinning and leaving the room.
Stopping at the front door, Ronnie tried its handle to make sure it was locked; the last thing she wanted was anyone letting themselves in and discovering what she was up to. Satisfied everything was well, she headed upstairs and made her way into her bedroom, smiling at the outfit she’d laid out in readiness. She laughed. Gaye wasn’t the only one to do a spot of shopping this week, except unlike her neighbour, Ronnie hadn’t had to leave the house. The only thing she’d had do to was delete her Internet browsing history.
