After Tim

Story contd

I had always known there was no future for Tim and me and I knew the end would be painful, but after what I had been through with Jamie, years ago, this was bearable, and I was in the driving seat calling the shots. I had no regrets and believed I deserved to suffer. It was time to come down to earth and accept that for me, romance had gone forever. How little we know. One day, driving through the town I saw an accident; a man was lying prostrate on a zebra crossing. I was overwhelmed with the realisation that if Tim had an accident and was lying helpless I would never know. I had to drive into a side street to have a blub

We had outgrown the shop and left our first floor eyrie on the High Street for a street- level emporium with a huge basement. It was in the road parallel to the High Street and facing the Common. The front of the shop was all plate glass with a small area near the door for a display window. Our accountant told us we could afford it and we enlisted all friends and family to help us decorate. Once more one of the big stores was refurbishing and we acquired three large glass- topped counters and various shelves and cupboards

Downstairs in the basement there were four stalls in the large room, which we made into changing rooms with bright orange curtains. Then there was a room where we kept all foot wear- hockey, soccer and rugger boots and gum boots. The riding boots – being more valuable, we kept upstairs – in view. There was a small office, loo and kitchen. The worst thing that happened was the time when we discovered someone had peed in a gum boot.

On the ground floor our desk was by the window, looking out on the common. We felt naked with all that glass so had a brass pole fitted and hung, what were then fashionable restaurant curtains, which came half way up the window so we could see all that was happening outside. One day I noticed rats on the common and was told that they follow the same tracks for years. No more picnics on the Common for me then.

We had fun choosing the type of lettering for our shop sign which ran the width of the shop and was most impressive. That was the easy part; the actual move was a nightmare and I have managed to block it out of my memory. We had to buy lots more hanging rails and vowed that this was definitely our last move. We had gradually built up our part- time staff and were now down to two partners again. I had urged Jan – our third partner, to have investigations to see why she couldn’t get pregnant and she was found to have fibroids. After having them removed – again with much encouragement, she became pregnant which we were very happy about in spite of losing such a treasure. It was a girl and Mary and I became god-mothers. We considered looking for another partner until our accountant assured us that we didn’t need one.

I got great pleasure from driving into the town, leaving my little sports car in the middle of the common and walking down - it always seemed to be sunny- towards our magnificent shop. Friends would pop in at lunch-time and we had a choice of at least half a dozen good places for lunch. There was little crime in those days, fortunately, because in the school holidays we were turning over vast sums of money and in term time we needed to have a large amount to pay the customers whose garments we had sold. In the busy periods there was little time to enter up all the sales on the customer’s cards so I would often go in and work when the boys were in bed.

On the whole things ran smoothly although one day some schoolboys came in larking about, using foul language and drinking coke. I spoke sharply to them and one of them spat at me. That sort of thing didn’t happen and I was very shaken. I wasn’t going to let it lie – how dare they behave like that in my shop? I managed to trace which school it was – from the uniform, and informed the head- master. Then I forgot about it until one afternoon that same boy came in and apologised. I asked him if his mother knew about it and he said no and, with tears in his eyes, asked me not to tell her. I asked him how he would feel if someone had spat at his mother. Both of us, I think felt quite emotional and I had to restrain myself from giving him a hug. Even in the late sixties William was shocked and said I should never stand up to them. How times have changed.

Footnote. Years later after being re-united with MTL, Julia my talented friend in the theatre club bumped into Tim on one of her frequent trips to town. They only had a quick chat and Tim was never very forth coming but it appears he was married and Julia told him I had married Jamie. We had been each other’s confidantes so of course he knew who Jamie was and was happy for me