Blog 3. A date with Sarah

14th July 2004

"Morning Jean," I called out as I entered yesterday.

"Good morning, Derek. Thank you for coming again. You really were such a help yesterday. I washed your lab coat but I'm afraid it hasn't come out too clean." <<"I wonder if he expects to fuck me again when we finish as payment? I feel so guilty at having seduced him like that? What would Miriam think if she found out?">>

"Thanks Jean. It's only an old one that I won't use in the lab any more." I donned the coat and seeing Jean's troubled face and reading her thoughts I went on, "Jean? You look worried. If it's over what we did yesterday, don't be. I enjoyed what we did and I think you did too. I doubt if either of us will blab about it. It's something that happened, something we'll both remember but it is not going to be the start of a permanent relationship. If it happens again, fine, if not we still have the memories. Don't let it spoil or colour our being together here and don't worry, I'm not going rape you in one of the old bedrooms."

"Thanks Derek. I did feel so guilty afterwards."

"Don't be. Now let's finish clearing these rooms." I know both of us kept thinking of what happened and both wondered if it would occur again but in the event mother stymied that. She invited both of us to dinner, a dinner that neither of us accepted.

I managed to keep my head during the morning and forced myself not to ask any questions. We didn't find any more treasures, only a few Victorian copper coins, two of them very thick pennies and a shop token from under the living room carpet.

"I'll see if the baker's will take them," I laughed. It was nearly lunchtime and I volunteered to go while Jean finished stripping the paper from a wall.

There was a short queue and while I waited I recognised Sarah Larkins as one of the two serving. She'd been in my class at high school but left at sixteen to go to work. Since I'd seen her last she'd filled out considerably. At school she was fairly plain and what the teacher's would say, 'a good B stream pupil' intelligent but not in an academic way. Her companion at the counter looked a few years older but I did not recall seeing her before. I managed get Sarah to serve me.

"Good morning Dr. Meeks, what can I get you?"

"Oh you are formal this morning Sarah Larkins. Is it still Larkins?" Immediately I regretted my lapse at asking a question.

For a moment she looked bewildered and I could hear a jumble of thoughts. "Yes, it is again now. I was married for four years to Terry Machin but that ended and I now use my maiden name again." <<"He's grown to be a good looking man. Pity I didn't go to university.">> "So what can I get you this morning? Jean told me yesterday you were helping her." I gave my order and while I waited for her to fill the sandwiches, listened in to her thoughts. Mostly they were about me. <<"He used to be such a gawky kid, with his head always in a book. Not very practical. I always beat him in woodwork class. Surprised that Jean wanted him to help. I suppose it is only labouring work.">>

"You fancy him?" Maggie her companion whispered just loud enough for me to hear. "If not perhaps there's a chance for me!"

"You've got a husband!" Sarah hissed. <<"Yes, I guess I do fancy him a bit but I doubt if he'll even look at a dunderhead like me.">> It was then that I decided to make a play for Sarah. "Two pounds thirty-six please Derek." She gave me a lovely smile as she handed me the bag. I handed her the two old copper pennies and three farthings. For a second or two her mind didn't register as she automatically closed her fingers over the coins, then opened them again. "What's this then?" she laughed and looked at them more closely, "They weigh enough but I don't think there is much value here."

"I've a shop token as well if that will help."

"You one of those crazy forgetful professors now? So much science in your brain you don't know what day of the week it is or the coins we use?"

I laughed too and handed her a five-pound note. "Just trying to see if you were awake."

"Don't get much chance to sleep here. There's already a line forming so be off with you and let me get to serving them." She grinned widely as she said it.

"Only if you agree to come to the pictures with me tonight." I'd been racking my brain to think of a way to ask her out without asking a question.

"<<He's asking me out! Hell I never expected that. He must have learned to chat up the girls in the university. Maybe I'll go just for the hell of it. Mustn't sound too eager, not in front of Maggie.>>" "Perhaps," she answered slowly, "I'll pop in at Miss Read's when I get off at three and see if Jean thinks you really are a mad professor. No telling what you boffins might get up to with a poor innocent young lady."

"You innocent?" Maggie chipped in, "Not after being married to Terry for four years you're not."

"I was about to send a search party out for you," Jean joked when I returned, "Thought you had forgotten this poor starving lady working her guts out here."

"Sarah wouldn't take the old coins."

"I hope you didn't give her a hard time. She seems a nice girl. Her husband was a bit of a bastard though. According to all the stories he still kept up with his old girlfriends even after he and Sarah were married and he knocked her about a bit. They say he brought several of them home and did it with them while Sarah was in the house. In the end he went off with one of them that had a bit of money." Jean's thoughts gave a few more graphic descriptions of the relationship.

"I may have a date with her tonight Jean. I've asked her to go to the pictures and she's going to come by on her way home and let me know."

"I'm sure you'll have a nice time but don't expect too much to come of it. Once bitten... well you know what they say."

For the next couple of hours we worked together. I'd finished clearing the rubbish from the rooms and started helping her strip the tatty wallpaper. I decided to test myself by keeping the ring on in her company to see if I could control my reactions. For the most part I did pretty well and in fact it was fairly easy. Jean's thoughts were mainly concerned with what she was doing but her mind wandered a little to our escapade yesterday. <<"If he gets a date I doubt if he will want to have me beforehand just in case she gives out to him. Still last night was really good. Doubt if Sarah will find out this quickly. Probably only be a one night stand until he goes back to Uni. He must have fucked a lot of girls before in order to be able to please me like he did.">>

Fortunately I resisted the urge to tell her that I'd only had four girls in the seven years I was there.

Sarah did come in at a little after three and we went through to the back yard to sit on a wall in the sun. "Well, well Doctor Meeks. You look more like a coal miner than a professional man," she teased. My lab coat was once again black and so apparently was my face. Her thoughts had me crawling in a dark tunnel wielding a pickaxe. I couldn't help laughing almost hysterically. "I didn't think it was that much of a joke," she commented but my laughter was infectious and she too was chuckling loudly. When we calmed down she went on, "Derek I know you asked me to go to the pictures with you but there is only a war film on at the Odeon and I'm not too keen on them, so I wandered if we could go out for a meal or something."

"That will be fine with me Sarah as long as you are not expecting to go to Flixingham Country Club. I may have got my doctorate but I've had to live hand to mouth for the last seven years to get it. Until I actually start work..."

"You have to pay with old coins," Sarah interrupted. "What about going to The Swan? It's fairly quiet and the meals are reasonable and I'll pay my share." I could see she was worried about my finances.

"No, no Sarah, I invited you out and I may be able to find a few more old coins if I lift the floorboards. The Swan sounds fine. I have a little money to spend as long as my car keeps going."

"Jean, Derek?" Mother's shrill voice came through the open door.

"O' Lor. What does she want?" I muttered and then realised I shouldn't have asked the question. Fortunately mother was out of earshot. Sarah came in the house with me.

"Are there you are. Good afternoon Sarah. My goodness Derek, what a mess you're in. And you Jean are just as bad." Mother rambled on about the state of the place without giving anyone a chance to answer and then said, "I'm cooking a special meal for you both so try and get cleaned up by six o'clock."

"Mother, I have already arranged to take Sarah for a meal at The Swan this evening."

"Well you'll just have to do that another day." <<"Does he think that shop girl is more important than I am? He can only have known her a few minutes. Probably just wants a girl that he can get into her knickers.">>

Her thoughts irked me. Why should I allow myself to be bossed about by my mother? I'd been home five days already and this would be the first time she'd been home to cook a meal for me — or my dad for that matter although he mostly had his main meal in the works canteen.

"No mum, tonight for once I am going out." I tried to sound firm.

"So I've gone to all the trouble, spent half the day shopping and cooking and now you say I shouldn't have bothered? All for the sake of a girl you met only a few minutes ago. I can't believe this of you Derek. Is that what you learned at university?"

Sarah finally managed to get a word in. "It alright Mrs. Meeks, we can go out another night. I didn't intend to cause any trouble."

"It's not you that's causing the trouble Sarah," I put in, "Had mother told me this morning I would have known but she springs this out of the blue and expects everyone to conform to her plans. No, we'll go for a meal like we planned." I could hear from Sarah's thoughts that she was upset about it. Fortunately Jean stepped in.

"Miriam, your son has worked his arse off for months and as soon as he comes home you make him come and work his arse off again with me. He's not a little boy now and can make up his own mind. Now, I've no doubt the food you've made will be more than enough for five or six if Jenny is home. Why not invite Sarah along and then they can go out for a drink at The Swan or wherever afterwards?"

<<"I don't really want that shop girl with my Derek but I suppose it will just be a short term thing.">> I felt my anger rise again but remembered to control it. Mother went on, "Perhaps you're right Jean. Would you like to come to dinner with us Sarah?"

"Please say yes," I added mainly for rather selfish reasons. Having Sarah alongside me would lighten the conversation a great deal and spare me mother's ideas of what I should do with my life.

"I don't know Derek, it seems that I have caused enough trouble already. Your mother doesn't really want me to be with you, she's made that quite clear. I don't want to come between you and your family." Sarah was very unhappy at this turn of events and so was I. "I'll go home and won't spoil your meal."