Page 67 of The Day Shelley Woodhouse Woke Up
‘And then I remember that I spend most mornings at the shelter and most afternoons and evenings standing here, andI’m not sure when I’d fit in a love life. And I also remember what happened to me last time I fell in love,’ I say.
Dee makes an angry face. ‘Not all men are like David.’
‘We’re not,’ Liam agrees.
‘But how do I know?’ I ask. ‘Nobody thought David was like David until he was.’
Neither Liam nor Dee has an answer for this, and the man from the corner table is standing at the bar with two empty glasses, so I slide off my stool and go to serve him.
When I sit down again, Dee gives me a tentative smile.
‘Liam’s got this friend…’ she says.
‘I can vouch for him, Shelley. He’s one of the good ones,’ Liam adds.
I want to be cross with them for this intervention in my love life, but I find I can’t be, really, because I know they both want the best for me. They want there to be double dates, and all of that.
‘What’s his name?’ I ask.
‘Pete,’ Liam says. ‘Pete Parker.’
‘Peter Parker? Like Spiderman?’
‘Yes! He’s a gem, Shelley, honestly.’
‘Why is he single?’
Liam shrugs. ‘Why is anyone? He hasn’t met the right woman yet. Can I give him your number?’
I’m mulling this over when the door is pushed open with force and a frantic-looking woman bursts in.
‘We need help! My boyfriend, he’s been attacked, outside. Please help us!’
Then, action. Liam, Dee and I rush to the door, followed by the man from the corner table. He steps forward.
‘I’m first aid trained. Can I help?’
I watch him, relieved. I, too, have done first aid training, and I was going to tell them, of course I was, but it’s been along time since I sat in that church hall learning about bandages and bleeding, heart attacks and the recovery position. The man who’s volunteered is confident, and he kneels on the cold, wet ground before the man who’s been attacked. The man whose face is a mess of blood and pain.
‘Has anyone called an ambulance?’ I ask, and then I go inside to do it in the quiet and calm of the pub.
Derek is still sitting at the bar, unperturbed. I glance over to the corner table and the woman has gone. I’m not sure when that happened.
Once the ambulance is there and everything is being dealt with, I invite the first aider back inside for a drink on the house.
‘Oh, I should go,’ he says.
I find myself thinking that I don’t want him to disappear. I take him in. He’s messy and dishevelled, his hair looking like it needs a cut and his clothes rumpled and damp from the rain and the kneeling. But when he looks at me, I sense a kindness in him, and I am warmed by it.
‘Stay,’ Dee says. ‘We absolutely insist.’
I wonder whether I’m giving off some kind of vibe of being interested in this man, or whether Dee’s just being friendly.
‘Well, okay,’ he says, coming back inside.
Derek finishes his third pint and leaves. If he’s even noticed any of the kerfuffle, he doesn’t show it. So now it’s just the four of us. Me and Dee on one side of the bar, Liam and the helpful stranger on the other. As I get us all a drink, I think again about double dates, and laugh to myself.
‘I don’t think I’ve seen you before,’ Dee says. ‘Are you local?’
