Page 26 of The Reboot
‘It was kind of inevitable. I don’t blame anyone. My friends were all travelling, getting married, starting their careers … taking the world by storm,’ she said, nodding to him. ‘And I was stuck at home in my bedroom, watching TV. They had their own lives to lead, and I just couldn’t keep up.’
‘So you got left behind.’ He knew what that felt like.
‘We had nothing in common anymore. Even when I did see them, we had very little to talk about. They had news. I never had any news.’ She looked down at her mug broodingly. ‘But it didn’t all suck,’ she said, brightening. ‘I mean, I got to watch a lot of Netflix. And I was on top of every Twitter ruck going.’
Roly laughed, but he could sense the sadness behind her bravado, the effort she made not to wallow in self-pity, and he felt guilty all over again for being one of the friends who’d left her behind.
‘Hazel, my best friend from college, stuck around, though. We’re still friends.’
‘Still – it sounds lonely.’
‘It was. Thank goodness for the internet.’
‘Hah!’ He gave a harsh laugh. ‘I can’t say the same thing. Anyway, you’re up and about now. And I’m not taking the world by storm anymore, so…’
‘No more excuses?’
‘Right. Let’s not lose touch again.’
‘Deal.’ She smiled. ‘I could use a friend.’
‘Me too,’ he said simply, and it felt good being able to admit it.
‘So, what have you been up to?’
‘Oh, you know – broke, unemployed … spent most of the last few years stuck at home eating biscuits and feeling sorry for myself. So yeah – riding high.’
‘Oh, sorry. You’re not really broke, though, surely?’
‘I wish! But I really am.’
‘Oh?’ She frowned. ‘How come? Surely being in Oh Boy! should have set you up for the rest of your life?’
‘That’s what I thought until a couple of weeks ago. But it turned out my accountant was ripping me off. All my money’s gone.’
‘Your accountant? You mean Marty?’
‘Yeah.’ He’d forgotten she knew Marty. But it stood to reason. He’d always been around. He’d been like family … so Roly had thought. Of course she’d have met him.
‘Shit! Can’t you sue him? Try to get it back?’
He shook his head. ‘No. He died, and he blew it all before he shuffled off this mortal whatsit. So … that’s that.’
‘Oh, I’m sorry. That’s horrible.’ She reached out and put a hand over his, and he felt a rush of affection and gratitude. He realised he’d been bracing himself for a different reaction, half expecting her to get on her high horse and tell him off for not realising how privileged he was to have that kind of money to lose. He was used to any bad luck that came his way being met with schadenfreude and barely concealed glee, so her sympathy took him by surprise. He knew he didn’t deserve it. He’d lucked into a fortune and lost it all again through his own stupidity. He had no one but himself to blame. But that just made Ella’s genuine sympathy all the more comforting. He was glad he’d decided to look her up again. Even though they’d seen so little of each other over the years, she was a real friend, someone he could count on to be on his side. It was weird, but he immediately felt close to her every time he saw her.
‘Yeah, it’s shit.’
‘I can’t believe Marty of all people was stealing from you. That’s awful.’
‘Yeah, that’s kind of the worst thing. I thought he was a friend, you know? I really trusted him.’
She nodded. ‘I know. I mean, I can’t say I was his biggest fan, but—’
‘Yeah, I know I was a chump to trust him with my money.’ Of course Ella would have known. She’d have seen right through Marty with those big clear eyes. ‘But it wasn’t just me. He ripped off loads of people.’
‘That’s not what I meant. You had every reason to trust him. You hear about that sort of thing happening all the time – stars being swindled by managers and agents. I’m not saying I’d have been suspicious of him or anything. I didn’t like him very much, but I thought he was on your side … at least when it came to your finances.’
‘What else?’ He frowned. ‘I mean, he was an accountant. It’s not as if he was involved in the artistic stuff – if you want to call it that,’ he added with a self-deprecating laugh, feeling arsey for talking about Oh Boy! in those terms. ‘He had nothing to do with decisions about the music or the shows.’
