Page 27 of Calling Frank O'Hare

Frank opened his up:

‘A road trip for fuck’s sake. What are you, the fecking Blues Brothers?’

Siobhan was indeed not happy.

Martin read it over his shoulder. ‘That’s actually quite funny. Hey, we should get some dark glasses. D’ya think we could find somewhere that sold trilbies around here? We could do a selfie and send it to her.’

Frank pictured his sister’s face as she opened up such a photo. ‘Absolutely not.’

‘First round’s mine.’ Martin was already on his way to the bar, so they didn’t argue.

They left Martin to make himself at home chatting to the locals at the bar and found a table. He’d always had an easy way with him that people warmed to. It was the only thing Frank envied about him.

Finn was studying the drinks menu. It seemed as good a time as any to ask him about his loss. ‘What you said earlier about losing someone. Do you want to tell me about it?’

Finn put down the menu. ‘There’s not a lot to say. I met the woman I wanted to spend the rest of my life with, and then she died.’

‘Jesus, Finn. I had no idea. I’m so sorry.’

Finn shrugged. ‘I wasn’t the only one to lose someone then. She was one in a cast of thousands.’

‘Covid?’

‘Yeah. She was a nurse. This is her. Her name is, was, Orna.’ He passed his phone over to Frank. ‘Scroll through as many as you like. It’s mostly her on there.’

Frank looked at one picture after another of a middle-aged woman smiling into the camera. She wasn’t classically beautiful but there was an obvious warmth and vibrancy about her. There were some of Finn and Orna together. It was Finn as Frank had never seen him. He seemed to be glowing. ‘She looks lovely, mate. I wish I could have known her.’ It was an insincere thing to say. Frank knew it and by the look of Finn’s expression, so did he.

‘Yeah well, you could have, Frank. But it was your loss.’

‘Will you look at the faces on yer. We’re supposed to be enjoying ourselves.’ Martin put three pints on the table.

‘We were talking about Orna,’ said Finn.

Martin sat down next to Finn and put his arm around him. ‘Ah fuck, I’m sorry fella. Me and my big mouth. Let me take a look at those photos again. You can see the loveliness of her shining through, can’t you Frank?’

‘You can,’ said Frank, keen to leave the talking to Martin.

‘She was one of the nicest women you could meet. And funny too, yer know? She’d have you laughing, great big belly laughs. She must have been a great nurse.’

Finn cleared his throat. ‘She was.’

Martin squeezed Finn into him. ‘I know you only had a few years with her and you’re still hurting like hell, but one day you’ll look back on your time together and realise you were lucky to have known that kind of love, Finn. Lucky.’

‘I was. I’m just away outside for a…’ And with that Finn got up and walked away.

Frank felt bad all over again. He shouldn’t have asked. He should have let it lie. ‘Shall we go after him?’

‘Nah. Let him alone. He’ll be back when he’s swallowed enough sorrow.’

‘That was a beautiful thing you said to him. I didn’t–’

‘Think I had it in me? I’m not always the complete shitebag you think I am, FB. And she was a lovely woman.’

‘I was going to say, I didn’t know. Why did no one tell me?’

Martin’s head jerked back. ‘What would you have done if we had? Would it have made any difference?’

‘Of course it would. I’d have called him, or mailed him.’

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