Chapter 39

I got up on Sunday and went for a run. I ran down to the park, around its perimeter twice, then to the school and back home. Mom was up and cooking breakfast when I got home. I took a shower and tucked into bacon and eggs.

“Are you working today, Mom?” I asked.

“Yes, but only the morning shift!” she said with a smile. She was enjoying her job, and it seemed to be doing her the world of good.

We washed up between us, and then Mom headed off to get ready for work. I made a pot of tea just in time as Mom came downstairs. She had just sat down when the phone rang. Mom answered it, and I heard her chatting away. When she was done, she put the phone down and walked into the kitchen.

“Well, well, Anna has invited us to a BBQ this afternoon!” she said as she sipped her tea.

“I don’t see why not!” she said, “We need to be there at four o’clock, I finish work at one, so we have plenty of time!”

“That’s great!” I replied. It was good that Anna was talking to my mom; she didn’t have many friends now that Laura had gone to Wales to look after her sister.

So, mom left for work, and I got out my list of jobs. So I emptied bins, mowed the grass, and did some weeding. I was interrupted by the phone ringing. It was Sue just checking in on us. She thanked me for my letters and told me all her news from the stables.

She asked me if I would be able to go back during the summer, and I said it was all down to the Navy and how I got on at the training camp. Sue asked me to get my mom to call her.

Mom got home as I was putting the bins out. She made us coffee and went off to call Sue. It seemed funny not having to worry about exams, school, and stuff. My only worry now was how I scored in my exams and if I would pass the Navy training camp.

I showered and changed, then mom and I walked around to Siobhan’s. Mom got two bottles of wine from the shop on the way.

The BBQ was well underway when we got there. Terry was cooking burgers, sausages and chicken. There was a table with bowls of salad and rolls, along with condiments.

Anna and Mom sat in deck chairs, chatting; Siobhan was helping her dad, and I sat in the sun, feeling like a spare part.

We had been there for half an hour when a lady who looked like Anna turned up with two kids. A girl around my age and a lad who was about five or six: Siobhan introduced us. The lady was Anna’s sister, Mandy, and the girl was Debbie; the lad was Tony. More deck chairs were set up, and the food was served—the adults at one table and the kids at another. The weather was good and the food was excellent. Terry got me working as the barman, topping up drinks and stuff. It was well past nine o’clock when we got a taxi home. Mom had had far too much wine for us to walk.