Chapter 12
Cath and Will could hear familiar voices chatting, giggling, and one – sounding very like Andreas – complaining about the weight of the cool box, and that his arms were feeling like they were ten feet long. Their supper club gang must be traipsing up the rather steep bank of the dune.
They couldn’t help but smile at each other.
It was the weekend after Will’s troubling PSA test result.
There was a hint of nervousness about Will’s health secret between them, but they were both looking forward to an afternoon spent with close friends at the bungalow on the coast. The appointment for the scan had come through for the end of the following week, and there was no point sitting at home and dwelling on things.
The beach hut was still very much a work-in-progress, more or less an empty shell, but at least the National Trust had agreed to the initial external works, and the building contractor – a friend of Will’s who’d fitted him in quickly after a last-minute cancellation, had managed to re-roof the bungalow and was coming back soon to replace several planks of rotten wood to its sides and floorboards.
In fact, after he’d finished, there probably wouldn’t be an awful lot of the original wood left, but that was no bad thing.
When the supper club group had last met up at the lads’ flat above the stores, moving forward the plans for the Tilldale Afternoon Tea, they’d ended up chatting about the coastal hideaway, with Dan desperate to take a look, and Andreas hinting again on the WhatsApp group that he’d love a trip to the coast to see the new inheritance, whatever its condition.
With the invite made, they then leapt in, offering to cook and make it the next supper club meet-up; which was a relief to Will who was well aware of the hut’s extremely limited kitchen facilities, or indeed, any other facilities at present.
Nosiness and excitement were a driving factor for the lads, for certain.
As for today’s ‘supper’ menu, well that was still under wraps.
Something that ‘reminded you of holidays and the sea’ was all Dan had hinted at.
Fish and chips, had come to mind for Cath, but unless it was a takeaway, that was more than a tricky task to create on a camping stove.
With no electric, there was, of course, no fridge in the place, either.
Cath and Will had warned the others, but they’d still insisted on coming over and cooking, rather than a picnic.
With it now being mid-May, they were having to use cool bags and ice packs for the fridge essentials.
Will had just been out to buy some big bags of ice cubes from the local mini-market, to fill an ice bucket for the white wine he and Cath had brought over.
And, not-standing on ceremony, a black plastic bucket in which to chill some bottles of beer and soft drinks.
‘Over here!’ called Cath, as the footsteps and voices approached. The dunes could be a bit of a maze, with the various huts dotted here and there.
The pair of them then spotted the top of Andreas’s dark hair. ‘At last.’ A rather bedraggled Andreas, in striped-pink-and-navy short-sleeved shirt and beige chino shorts, was sweating his way along the dune ridge. It was a rather warm day. ‘I feel like a bloody pack horse.’
‘Oh, stop it. I’m sure you’ve managed fine. You keep telling me how you’ve got the biggest muscles,’ Dan teased, appearing from behind him. ‘Anyway, we’re here now. Honestly, you’d think we’ve made him walk the Sahara Desert with that cool box. Hello, folks.’
‘Hi, and welcome,’ greeted Will. ‘Can I help?’ He got up from his chair – they’d brought over a few practical essentials – and reached to take one of the bags from Andreas.
‘Thank you. And well, I am rather parched,’ said Andreas, giving a hopeful wink. ‘Hi, guys.’
‘Hello, lads,’ responded Cath, smiling at their banter. ‘Brought the kitchen sink with you, I see.’
‘Nearly. I don’t think we’d figured quite how far the walk was,’ admitted Dan, a few droplets of sweat beading his brow.
Will headed in to grab some cold beers, whilst Cath gave Andreas and Dan welcoming hugs.
‘You’ll be ready for one of these, then.’ Will reappeared with a smile.
‘Now there’s a man who knows how to host.’ Andreas beamed.
‘As you all know, my pouring skills are better than my cooking skills,’ said Will.
Nobody argued with that.
‘Where are the girls?’ asked Cath.
Nikki and Lily were in fact bringing up the rear, loaded with fold-up camping chairs, a picnic rug and yet more bulky cool bags.
‘Welcome to the beach bungalow,’ Cath greeted them warmly.
‘Now then, don’t get too excited before you look in. Remember, it’s a work-in-progress,’ Will warned.
‘No worries,’ said Nikki. ‘And what a view.’ She dropped down her bags and took a breath, gazing around her.
‘Hey, Lily? You okay? How’s it going exam-wise?’ Cath asked.
‘Ahm, all right, I think. At least, I’ve managed to escape … for just the day. I’ve got one food practical left and two more A-level written papers, and then that’s it. I’m counting down. Nine more days, then I’m done. Exams will be over! I’m soo ready to stop and chill out. My brain feels fried.’
‘Ah, well done, Lils,’ said Nikki. ‘You’re nearly there, hun.’
‘We’ll be sure to help you with the R Will having warned them about the lack of facilities and cookware.
Gathered in the living space, and eager to take a look about, they soon began to realise that there wasn’t actually a lot to see.
The black-metal log burning stove, which was the nicest feature of the place, was positioned to the side wall of the living area, with the replacement second-hand sofa and Will’s two chairs beside it.
The compact ‘vintage’ kitchen zone took the space at the back of the hut with its basic cupboards within one unit, and old-fashioned stainless-steel sink.
There was the one bedroom which was sectioned off, just big enough for a double bed, but at present had nothing in it.
Will having also dumped the original bed along with the sofa that day – nothing had been safe from those pesky mice!
Plus, there was a small box-room of a WC with a wall sink and toilet, which Cath had now given a damned good scrub, armed with heavy-duty rubber gloves, a loo brush, bleach and disinfectant.
Several of the wooden wall and floor slats were flaking with rot in there.
At least, they were now in the summer months, so they currently had a water supply to flush the loo.
After the end of October, they’d been reliably informed by the solicitor, that it all got turned off.
So, other than a place to sit for a while with a flask after a chilly walk, the bungalow wasn’t going to be a space to use over the winter months. And well, that was it.
The underwhelmed faces around the group said it all.
‘It’s cosy. Bet it’ll be nice here with the fire on,’ said Lily politely, trying her best to find some positives.
‘Quaint, but yeah, it’s basic.’ Nikki was more realistic.
‘Needs a bit of work, mate.’ Dan was thinking practically.
Andreas merely came up with, ‘Oh my.’
Not surprisingly the group seemed rather dispirited. They had been warned, thought Cath.