Marie and Neville stood together on top of the stone steps in front of the library while Marie locked the door. Neville recalled what Marie had said about completing her O'Levels about five years ago and calculated that she must be about twenty or twenty one years old, rather than his original estimation thinking she was a teenager. Was it her style of clothes or lack of makeup that made her look younger he wondered?
Neville's relationship with his girlfriend of two years had recently ended. They had been close friends at sixth form college, and after leaving the sixth form she had continued her education at an art college, but Neville decided his school days were over and joined a well known department chain store as a trainee manager. Both had moved away from home and their friendship continued, although they only met during the few occasions when each returned to visit their parents. His parents were not happy with Neville's decision not to go university, but his poor grades at A'Level, a reflection of his disenchantment with the educational institutions rather than his academic ability, probably made the decision for him. When his girlfriend completed her degree course she returned to live with her parents. Neville's flirtation as a shopkeeper had not gone well and within a year he had resigned and returned to live with his parents. They now met more often, their friendship gradually grew into something more serious and they planned to rent a house and live together, until his girlfriend received an offered of a graphics design job in America. Which was stronger their relationship or her career ambitions? His girlfriend moved to America and Neville moved into the house on his own.
"Marie, I'd like to thank you for your help today, can I buy you dinner, or perhaps a drink if you prefer?"
Without a moment's hesitation, and much to Neville's surprise, she said that dinner would be great. Neville explained he did not know the town, and asked if there was somewhere she could suggest. She said there was a very nice cafe, called the Wishing Well, serving homemade food from local farm produce, only a short walk from the library. She knew it very well. Her father owned the café and she lived there, above the café, with her family. Did he still want to dine with her?
"Well why not," he said shrugging his shoulders, "I still want to thank you and maybe you can help me with something else?"
The Wishing Well had two bay windows looking out onto the High Street and a glazed door between the bays giving access to a welcoming room with about ten tables. The style was farmhouse kitchen and Neville suspected that most of the furniture was genuine and had once stood pride of place in a farmer's dining room. Customers already occupied the tables with a view out of the windows. Marie suggested that Neville sat at the table in the corner and she would join him in few moments after she had changed. She was about to open a door at the rear of the room when a waiter appeared carrying a tray with two bowls of soup. This was Marie's father. They stood talking for a few moments. Neville could not hear what they were saying but it obviously included him as they both looked in his direction. The conversation ended and Marie continued through the doorway into the kitchen. Her father served the soup to one of the couples seated next to the window and then walked over to Neville. He asked if he would like a drink while he waited for Marie. Neville said an orange juice would be fine.
Marie changed the mini skirt for a pair of calf length tight jeans. She wore a similar long T-shirt of a different colour and the same low-slung belt and buckle. Her lipstick was a delicate shade of red, which answered Neville's previous thoughts about what colour lipstick she would wear. He was glad it was not a shiny vivid red. He saw this colour on so many girls working in the offices of his clients and realised this was one of the things that had annoyed him about his previous girlfriend.
Marie returned carrying a telephone directory.
"I'm guessing you want me to help you contact Miss Wheatley. I've found her address and number in the book. She was always one of the last to leave the school at the end of the day, she's probably not home yet so if you want to ring her I suggest you wait until after we have eaten. I recommend we have the steak and ale pie if that's OK for you?"
Neville said the pie sounded good. He was surprised Marie had guessed his next move was to try to contact Jane Wheatley and that his favourite meal was steak and ale pie.
During the meal, Neville explained why he was searching for this particular event in the war and he hoped that Miss Wheatley might help to fill in some of the gaps in Albert's memory of his life before the war.
"If you call her are you going to just come out and ask her what she knows about Albert?"
"I don't know yet what I'm going to say, remember everybody thinks that Albert is dead. It might come as a bit of a shock to find out he survived."
"Particularly as her own husband died," Marie observed.
Neville looked at his watch.
"I've booked a room tonight at the Punch Bowl hotel, I haven't checked in yet. Do you think I could use a telephone to call them and let them know I will be arriving later?"
"Of course, there's a phone in the kitchen, come this way, do you have the number?"
The meal finished with fresh fruit salad and cream. One of the alternatives was apple pie and custard, which Neville would normally have chosen, but thought two pies for a meal would be too much and promised himself he would have that the next time. Neville realised he was already thinking there would be a next time.
"Why don't you let me ring her?" suggested Marie, "I know her and she probably remembers me, I could make something up about a friend looking for some information about the war."
"It's unfair to involve you any more, you've been so helpful, but spinning a line about friends and the war, it's too much. I need to continue this on my own."
"I needn't spin a line, as you call it, I could tell her the truth. I met someone in the library researching the newspaper archives and he saw your name. He would like to ask you some questions about, oh I don't know, maybe, how's about you are doing a piece about war brides. We could even mention you work for a newspaper, that's not a lie and would sound like you were doing some sort of article."
"I'm not happy about this; she's your old teacher. What happens if it all goes wrong it could be very embarrassing for you? I'm leaving tomorrow but you still have to live here?"
"Think about it while we finish our coffee, I still think it will work. If you can come up with a better idea we'll do it your way."
Neville did think about it. Why was this stranger suddenly involved and wanting, practically begging, to help? Was this any different to his involvement with Albert, a stranger, a chance meeting in a pub and suddenly he's driving around the country trying to track down a mysterious missing brother and long lost friends. Why was he doing it? He told himself it was because he had suggested sending the birthday card, but it was more than that, it was something different, it was a chance to help someone, to make a difference to someone else's life. Was Marie also looking for this chance? He imagined her life at the library to be very boring. Did she imagine here was an opportunity to do something different, even to experience some excitement?
"We'll do it your way, you can call her, but once you make the introduction let me do all the talking, I want you involved as little as possible."
Marie agreed they would wait and try to call her about 7 o’clock; she should be home by then. Marie was quietly excited, she had met and agreed to have dinner with a complete stranger, and she was now to be party to a concocted meeting with her old teacher. Although she liked Miss Wheatley, she was still her teacher and remembered with a sense of awe. And Neville was rather good looking.
Neville's relationship with his girlfriend of two years had recently ended. They had been close friends at sixth form college, and after leaving the sixth form she had continued her education at an art college, but Neville decided his school days were over and joined a well known department chain store as a trainee manager. Both had moved away from home and their friendship continued, although they only met during the few occasions when each returned to visit their parents. His parents were not happy with Neville's decision not to go university, but his poor grades at A'Level, a reflection of his disenchantment with the educational institutions rather than his academic ability, probably made the decision for him. When his girlfriend completed her degree course she returned to live with her parents. Neville's flirtation as a shopkeeper had not gone well and within a year he had resigned and returned to live with his parents. They now met more often, their friendship gradually grew into something more serious and they planned to rent a house and live together, until his girlfriend received an offered of a graphics design job in America. Which was stronger their relationship or her career ambitions? His girlfriend moved to America and Neville moved into the house on his own.
"Marie, I'd like to thank you for your help today, can I buy you dinner, or perhaps a drink if you prefer?"
Without a moment's hesitation, and much to Neville's surprise, she said that dinner would be great. Neville explained he did not know the town, and asked if there was somewhere she could suggest. She said there was a very nice cafe, called the Wishing Well, serving homemade food from local farm produce, only a short walk from the library. She knew it very well. Her father owned the café and she lived there, above the café, with her family. Did he still want to dine with her?
"Well why not," he said shrugging his shoulders, "I still want to thank you and maybe you can help me with something else?"
The Wishing Well had two bay windows looking out onto the High Street and a glazed door between the bays giving access to a welcoming room with about ten tables. The style was farmhouse kitchen and Neville suspected that most of the furniture was genuine and had once stood pride of place in a farmer's dining room. Customers already occupied the tables with a view out of the windows. Marie suggested that Neville sat at the table in the corner and she would join him in few moments after she had changed. She was about to open a door at the rear of the room when a waiter appeared carrying a tray with two bowls of soup. This was Marie's father. They stood talking for a few moments. Neville could not hear what they were saying but it obviously included him as they both looked in his direction. The conversation ended and Marie continued through the doorway into the kitchen. Her father served the soup to one of the couples seated next to the window and then walked over to Neville. He asked if he would like a drink while he waited for Marie. Neville said an orange juice would be fine.
Marie changed the mini skirt for a pair of calf length tight jeans. She wore a similar long T-shirt of a different colour and the same low-slung belt and buckle. Her lipstick was a delicate shade of red, which answered Neville's previous thoughts about what colour lipstick she would wear. He was glad it was not a shiny vivid red. He saw this colour on so many girls working in the offices of his clients and realised this was one of the things that had annoyed him about his previous girlfriend.
Marie returned carrying a telephone directory.
"I'm guessing you want me to help you contact Miss Wheatley. I've found her address and number in the book. She was always one of the last to leave the school at the end of the day, she's probably not home yet so if you want to ring her I suggest you wait until after we have eaten. I recommend we have the steak and ale pie if that's OK for you?"
Neville said the pie sounded good. He was surprised Marie had guessed his next move was to try to contact Jane Wheatley and that his favourite meal was steak and ale pie.
During the meal, Neville explained why he was searching for this particular event in the war and he hoped that Miss Wheatley might help to fill in some of the gaps in Albert's memory of his life before the war.
"If you call her are you going to just come out and ask her what she knows about Albert?"
"I don't know yet what I'm going to say, remember everybody thinks that Albert is dead. It might come as a bit of a shock to find out he survived."
"Particularly as her own husband died," Marie observed.
Neville looked at his watch.
"I've booked a room tonight at the Punch Bowl hotel, I haven't checked in yet. Do you think I could use a telephone to call them and let them know I will be arriving later?"
"Of course, there's a phone in the kitchen, come this way, do you have the number?"
The meal finished with fresh fruit salad and cream. One of the alternatives was apple pie and custard, which Neville would normally have chosen, but thought two pies for a meal would be too much and promised himself he would have that the next time. Neville realised he was already thinking there would be a next time.
"Why don't you let me ring her?" suggested Marie, "I know her and she probably remembers me, I could make something up about a friend looking for some information about the war."
"It's unfair to involve you any more, you've been so helpful, but spinning a line about friends and the war, it's too much. I need to continue this on my own."
"I needn't spin a line, as you call it, I could tell her the truth. I met someone in the library researching the newspaper archives and he saw your name. He would like to ask you some questions about, oh I don't know, maybe, how's about you are doing a piece about war brides. We could even mention you work for a newspaper, that's not a lie and would sound like you were doing some sort of article."
"I'm not happy about this; she's your old teacher. What happens if it all goes wrong it could be very embarrassing for you? I'm leaving tomorrow but you still have to live here?"
"Think about it while we finish our coffee, I still think it will work. If you can come up with a better idea we'll do it your way."
Neville did think about it. Why was this stranger suddenly involved and wanting, practically begging, to help? Was this any different to his involvement with Albert, a stranger, a chance meeting in a pub and suddenly he's driving around the country trying to track down a mysterious missing brother and long lost friends. Why was he doing it? He told himself it was because he had suggested sending the birthday card, but it was more than that, it was something different, it was a chance to help someone, to make a difference to someone else's life. Was Marie also looking for this chance? He imagined her life at the library to be very boring. Did she imagine here was an opportunity to do something different, even to experience some excitement?
"We'll do it your way, you can call her, but once you make the introduction let me do all the talking, I want you involved as little as possible."
Marie agreed they would wait and try to call her about 7 o’clock; she should be home by then. Marie was quietly excited, she had met and agreed to have dinner with a complete stranger, and she was now to be party to a concocted meeting with her old teacher. Although she liked Miss Wheatley, she was still her teacher and remembered with a sense of awe. And Neville was rather good looking.