Twenty-Five
When Norah pulled up to her mother’s house in the white rental van, an unconsidered problem smacked her in the face. Poppy was with her. Norah didn’t know if her mother had noticed Poppy was back living on Orchid Street, but she definitely didn’t know Norah and Poppy were friends again. She didn’t know because Norah had made very sure never to tell her.
The whole situation had felt a bit fraught. Despite the length of Poppy’s absence, Norah didn’t know what her mother thought of Poppy now. She’d never liked her, and she was a legendary grudge holder.
But that wasn’t exactly what was worrying Norah at this moment.
‘Just wait in the van for a second. I’m going to get my mother ready for my arrival,’ Norah said carefully.
‘But she knows you're coming?’ Poppy asked, confused.
‘Yeah, but she doesn’t know...’ Norah trailed off.
Poppy’s lips parted in horror. ‘Oh. She doesn’t know I’m coming today?’
Norah licked her lips anxiously. ‘It just might seem a bit odd to her...’ she began. But she didn’t want to end the sentence. Because the end of the sentence was, ‘If you suddenly appear, it’s going to look to my mum like I left Max for an old flame, so maybe hang back?’
But Poppy wasn’t picking up on the subtext. ‘Does she still hate me after all this time?’ she asked.
Well, that was a simpler question to answer. ‘She never hated you.’
Poppy’s brow deepened. ‘Maybe she won’t realise it’s me.’
Norah considered that. ‘Maybe.’
‘So I just... won’t introduce myself. You just say I’m your friend, your very vague friend. I doubt she’ll ask,’ Poppy said.
Norah nodded. ‘OK, let’s try that.’ Honestly, she wasn’t sure it was gonna work, but what else could she do?
They climbed out of the van.
‘Hold on,’ Poppy said, running around to the back of the van and coming back with a large rolled-up rug held in front of her face.
Norah laughed. ‘Jesus. Are you scared of her?’
Poppy looked at her in astonishment. ‘Obviously. Where have you been?’
Norah chuckled her way to the door and rang the bell. Freddie opened the door. He’d been there all morning, under his grandma’s/new roommate’s watch.
‘Hey, look at you answering doors, big kid!’ Norah greeted him and swooped in for a hug.
As Norah was squeezing him, she saw her mother step out into the hall. She looked straight past Norah, at Poppy, hiding behind her rug.
‘Poppy Jennings, is that you?’ she said immediately.
OK, so that was that.
Norah turned to see Poppy give a little sigh from behind the rug. She lowered it, fear in her eyes. ‘Hi, Mrs Cauldwell.’
‘She moved back to the area recently,’ Norah jumped in.
‘I’m aware of that. You have that ridiculous car,’ Norah’s mother said.
‘I sold it,’ Poppy said apologetically.
It was weird for Norah to see her like this—so apologetic and cowed.
‘Her daughter is in the same class as Freddie,’ Norah said, trying to steer things in a different direction. ‘That’s how we met again.’
‘And where is your child right now?’ Norah’s mum asked archly.
‘I left her in a crack den,’ Poppy replied with a smile.
Norah snorted, but her mother didn’t crack a smile.
‘She’s at kids’ camp today,’ Poppy tried again. ‘For dancers. She loves to dance, and I love her being tired out by someone who isn’t me.’
‘Right,’ said Norah’s mother. Then she arched an eyebrow at Norah. ‘So, she’s back in with you, is she? Funny timing.’
‘Mother...’ Norah warned.
‘Well, I better put the kettle on,’ her mother said coldly and vanished into the kitchen.
Norah turned to Poppy. ‘I’m sorry.’
‘That went better than I thought it would,’ Poppy said, wiping an actual bead of sweat off her brow.
‘What did you think she’d do?’ Norah asked.
‘Slap me round the face?’ Poppy suggested.
‘God, she didn’t hate you like that,’ Norah assured her. ‘She’s just like that with people. Don’t take it personally.’
Poppy went quiet for a moment, and then something struck her. ‘Hey, what did she mean about timing?’
Norah knew full well, but she wouldn’t say it without a threat to her life. ‘Beats me,’ she shrugged.
Poppy didn’t look like she fully bought that, but she only said, ‘Where the hell am I putting this rug, anyway?’ She looked down at Freddie. ‘Sorry for the swear word, buddy.’
Freddie looked confused. ‘What swear word?’
Norah snorted. ‘That curse wouldn’t even crack the top ten in our house.’
That reminded her that there wasn’t such a thing as ‘Our house’ anymore. As much as Norah believed that was going to be a good thing in the long run, it would be an adjustment for all concerned. Including her mother. She just hoped she could curb her bloody rudeness toward Poppy.
Poppy was being a really good friend. She didn’t deserve this bullshit. She’d dropped a lamp for Norah. Not everyone would have seen it as a sweet gesture, but Norah wasn’t everyone. To Norah, it beat a bunch of flowers any day.
But thinking about how much Norah liked having Poppy around automatically led to a worry. Poppy wouldn’t just vanish on her again, would she?
That was then, and this is now, Norah told herself. And it wasn’t the same anyway. They were just friends, as they always should have been.
They should never have crossed that line when they were young. That was where it went wrong. But this was just a good buddy situation. Norah had much less to fear under these circumstances.
So why was she still anxious about it?
‘Where’s my toy box?’ Freddie asked.
‘I’ll get it next,’ Norah assured her son.
‘I know exactly where it is. I’m on it,’ said Poppy. ‘You guys chill for a minute.’
‘Thank you,’ Norah said. She turned to Freddie. ‘Give me another hug, you!’ she said.
He jumped up into her arms, and she squeezed him. Her back would pay the price later, but she didn’t care. She desperately wanted him to feel minimal upheaval. That’s why it was probably good they were moving to his grandma's for a bit, at least for him.
He knew the house, and his grandma was a comforting presence. She bought him sweets and made a fuss of him. Nothing complicated there. For Norah, it was a little different, of course. But you couldn’t have everything.
‘Toy box coming in hot,’ said Poppy not a minute later, staggering into the house with Freddie’s very full and pretty heavy toy box. ‘Fuck me!’ she yelled as she dropped it.
‘That is a swear,’ Freddie pointed out.
Norah’s mother was drawn in by the noise. ‘What have you done to my floor?’ she demanded.
Norah had a quick look, and it was indeed scratched.
‘It’s OK, I can sort that out,’ Norah tried to assure her mother.
‘Oh, you’re a floor fitter, are you?’ her mother snapped at her.
‘It’s just a scratch. It’ll come out,’ Norah said.
‘That’s a permanent mark,’ her mother said.
‘I’m so sorry,’ Poppy said. ‘I’ll pay to get it sorted.’
Her mother let out a noise that was somewhere between a tut and a scoff. ‘Flinging your pop-star money at it, are you?’ she asked with horrid derision.
Norah would have loved to have told her to get a grip and let them fix the mistake, but unfortunately, the woman was now her landlord. She couldn’t afford to piss her off.
Poppy cleared her throat anxiously. ‘Mrs Cauldwell, I don’t have pop-star money anymore. That was a long time ago.’
‘Yeah, she works at The Sugar Cube,’ Norah added despite herself.
‘I don’t go there. Three pounds for a cup of tea?’ her mum snorted.
‘I don’t set the prices,’ Poppy said. ‘But if you come in, I’m sure I could slip you a freebie.’
‘Hmm,’ she said. ‘I think I’ll stick to my own tea.’ She waltzed out.
The second she was out of earshot, Poppy had her phone out. ‘Apparently, I need to get wood putty.’
‘Right, off to B&Q,’ Norah said decisively. She turned to her son. ‘Freds, you coming?’
Freddie already had his head jammed in his toy box. ‘No,’ he said flatly. He pulled out a sack of Legos. He would be good for about thirty minutes. They had to make the best of the time.
‘Mum, we’re nipping out!’ Norah called. ‘Keep an eye on Freds, would you?’ She pulled Poppy out before her mother could start a fresh row about babysitting duties.
***
‘Is this it?’ Poppy asked, holding up a jar of wood putty.
‘God, I don’t know,’ Norah shrugged, baffled.
‘Fuck’s sake,’ Poppy groaned.
A young woman with a tight ponytail suddenly appeared. Her name tag read Sally. ‘Can I help?’ she asked.
‘I scratched some floorboards, and I need to fix it, fast,’ Poppy told her.
‘How deep was the scratch?’ the woman asked, a little smile curling up her lips. Norah realised why she’d dashed over to help.
‘What do you think?’ Poppy asked Norah.
‘They weren’t that deep,’ Norah said.
‘You might just want to try a stain pen,’ the woman said. She led them down the aisle to the right section. ‘Do you know the colour?’
Poppy’s eyes widened in horror. ‘Uhh...’
‘It’s dark walnut,’ Norah told her.
‘How do you know that?’ Poppy asked.
‘She had the floor redone about five years ago and it was dark walnut this, dark walnut that for weeks,’ Norah explained.
Sally grabbed a stain pen. ‘That will do it.’
‘Great,’ Poppy said, relieved.
Sally smiled brightly. ‘No problem. If you have any problems with it, come back. I’ll sort you out.’
I just bet you would, Norah thought.
They paid and got back on the road.
‘Thank god for that saleswoman. I’d have bought the wrong thing,’ Poppy noted.
‘Yeah, lucky she was such a horndog,’ Norah said, putting her turn signal on.
‘What?’ Poppy asked, confused.
‘You’re gonna tell me you didn’t notice she was trying to hit on you?’ Norah asked, stunned.
There was a big pause. ‘I think she was just doing her job.’
‘Poppy, she was on the bloody till!’ Norah said, exasperated. ‘She left a queue of five to come and help you.’
‘I did think that was a bit odd,’ Poppy said, befuddled.
‘Man, you’re oblivious,’ Norah laughed.
‘My mind was on your mother’s wrath,’ Poppy pointed out.
‘What if it hadn’t been?’ Norah asked carefully.
‘What do you mean?’
‘I mean, are you... dating?’ Norah asked. They hadn’t touched this subject. Norah wasn’t sure why she was delving into it now.
Poppy looked as though she’d forgotten what the word meant. ‘Oh. No. Not since Luna.’
That made sense. But it was only half of what she wanted to know. ‘So, if you were, would you have been... shopping from that side of the store?’
Poppy exploded with laughter. ‘Good god,’ she managed to splutter. ‘Where the hell did you come up with that little expression?’
‘What’s wrong with it?’ Norah asked, offended.
‘Horrible euphemism, Cauldwell,’ Poppy said, bright red from laughter. ‘It was like something from the forties.’
Norah realised she actually should be embarrassed. Why was she being so euphemistic about it? ‘You know what? It’s the kind of thing my mum would say.’
‘She’s rubbing off on you,’ Poppy said.
‘That was quick. I’ve only been back twenty minutes.’
‘Give it a week. You’ll be wearing gilets and talking to me like shit,’ Poppy said. She paused before clearing her throat. ‘And yes, I’m only “Shopping from that side of the store.”’
Now that she had that confirmation, Norah didn’t know what the hell to do with it. She wasn’t even sure why she’d asked. Maybe it was just the sudden realisation that she had no idea what Poppy’s sexual orientation was. It was bound to come up sometime. Poppy wouldn’t be a nun forever. She was probably fighting them off daily.
‘Speaking of dating, I assume you’re not ready to jump back in?’ Poppy asked casually.
‘Not bloody likely,’ Norah told her, suppressing a shudder. ‘I think I’ll just wait until Freddie leaves for university. I might think about it, then.’
‘Shutting up shop?’ Poppy asked with a grin.
‘Shut up,’ Norah said with an eye-roll.
They fell into silence until Poppy cleared her throat. ‘Which side of the store do you shop at, by the way?’
‘Oh,’ Norah exclaimed, surprised. ‘Both.’
‘Yeah?’ Poppy questioned sceptically.
‘Yes, obviously,’ Norah said. She should have known that. Why was it such a surprise?
But Poppy said no more about it. Eventually, they pulled into the house, and Poppy said, ‘OK, gimme that thing.’
‘I could do it,’ Norah offered.
‘No, I can’t let your mum think I don’t own my mistakes,’ Poppy said.
Norah thought that was a rather intense reaction to a scratched floorboard, but she handed her the pen.
They went in, and Poppy set to work with the pen (after watching a YouTube video several times).
Norah checked it out. ‘Perfect.’
‘You reckon?’ Poppy asked anxiously.
‘Yeah. Let’s get my mum in and watch her try to find fault with it. It’ll be fun.’
‘If you say so,’ Poppy said with a nervous smile.
‘Mum!’ Norah yelled.
Her mother came in from the back garden. ‘Yes?’
‘Poppy fixed the scratch.’
Her mother raised a cynical eyebrow. She pulled up her specs from a chain around her neck and slid them on, bending down. ‘Where was it?’ she asked.
‘Exactly,’ Norah said with deep satisfaction.
Her mother gave her an irritated look. She got up and turned to Poppy.
‘I think that’ll probably do.’
She left. Norah turned to Poppy, who looked oddly ecstatic.
‘I don’t know what you’re grinning about,’ Norah said. ‘We’ve still got to unload the rest of the van.’
‘Ahh, fu...dge,’ Poppy said with a glance to Freddie, who’d built a large castle in their absence.
‘I know what she was going to say,’ he told them smugly.