Page 50 of Things We Never Said
‘Jesus,’ Dave says, when he sees the menu. ‘Thirteen quid for fish and chips?’
‘It’s a bit of a gastro pub,’ Sean says. ‘So hopefully it’s worth it.’
‘Damn. Mags didn’t warn me. If I’d known I would have brought the Imodium,’ Dave jokes.
Sean looks up from his own menu to find the owner leaning on the bar in front of them. ‘It stands for “gastronomic”,’ he says, drily.
Sean senses himself blush.
‘That’s what I was just saying,’ Dave quips. ‘Astronomic.’
Sean clenches his teeth and beams a message of sympathy and apology to the owner. ‘Right,’ he says. ‘Well, I’ll have the celeriac, mushroom and chestnut pasty, I think. That sounds great.’
‘Ooh,’ Dave says. ‘Fancy, fancy. Astronomical cod and chips for me, I think. Sorry, gastronomical, I mean. And the mackerel for the missus. She likes a bit of mackerel.’
‘Do you not want to show her the menu?’ Sean asks. ‘I mean, that’s what we said. That we’d take out a menu.’
‘Nah,’ Dave says. ‘The mackerel will be fine.’
‘There’s a bit of a wait,’ the owner tells them. ‘We’re a bit short-staffed at the moment.’
‘That’s fine,’ Sean says. ‘We’re in no hurry, are we?’
‘It depends,’ Dave says. ‘How long is “a bit of a wait”?’
‘Thirty, forty minutes, max,’ the man says. ‘It’s this Brexit business, I’m afraid. They all keep buggering off home.’
When they get outside, Maggie smiles up at them. ‘Isn’t it a lovely day?’ she says.
‘It is,’ Sean agrees, placing his pint on the table and climbing onto the built-in bench.
Dave hands Maggie her white wine spritzer. The bubbles glisten in the sunshine.
‘Menu?’ Maggie asks.
‘I ordered you some mackerel,’ Dave says, handing her back her bank card. ‘That OK?’
‘Um, yeah ...’ Maggie says, doubtfully, slipping the card into her purse and then sipping at her drink. ‘Yes, mackerel’s fine,’ she says, with forced positivity. ‘What’s it come with?’
‘I forget,’ Dave says. ‘Anyway, I hope you’re not hungry. Apparently all the staff have buggered off back to Romania.’
‘They were Italian, I think,’ Maggie says. ‘The last time I came here they were, anyway.’
‘A lot of people are leaving, apparently,’ Sean says. ‘I read about it in the Graun. The NHS is really struggling.’
‘They can all fuck off as far as I’m concerned,’ Dave says.
‘Oh,’ Sean says quietly, almost imperceptibly wide-eyeing Maggie.
Maggie sighs and runs her tongue across her lips, visibly trying to decide whether to say something.
‘So, Mags,’ Sean says, deciding to save her from the dilemma. ‘How do you feel about taking up rowing again?’
‘Rowing?’ Maggie says. ‘Gosh! Where did that come from?’
‘Again?’ Dave queries. ‘Why, again?’
‘Oh, we used to row together years ago,’ Maggie explains. ‘Well, Sean did. I just dabbled, really. You did it for years, didn’t you?’
