Taking Off
Chapter 12
Chapter 12
“You could have brought a bottle of wine,” Linda said.
“I’ve brought a cake.”
Linda winced. “I’m out of wine.”
“That’s fine, I don’t want any.”
“That’s fine for you! I’ve had such a day, I’d kill for a glass.”
“I’ll take you to the pub after if you want.” Katie sighed and crossed her arms. “Anyway, I’ve come over because there’s something I need to tell you.”
Linda’s eyes sparkled, but with anxiety, not excitment.
“Is it about drinking?”
“No, it’s not.”
“You would tell me, wouldn’t you?“
“Of course.”
Linda pressed her hand on her mouth and massaged her chin.
“It’s important.”
“Is it your health?”
“No.”
“Are you in trouble with the Police?”
“No.”
“Are you pregnant?”
“No!” Katie stood up and paced towards the back door.
“So why don’t you tell us what it is then?”
“It’s hard. Please don’t get mad at me.”
Katie explained to her mother everything from the start. How she had lost her bag, how it turned out to be stolen, how she had no adequate travel insurance, how she tried to get an evening job to pay off her debts, how she got fired and how she decided to train to become a pilot. Linda listened in silence.
“Please, say something. I need your help,” Katie said.
“You always do, don’t you?”
“What do you mean?”
“You don’t tell me anything unless you have a favour to ask for.”
“That’s so not true.”
Katie swallowed the saliva which had accumulated in her mouth.
“It is. What can I say? I think it’s a good idea to educate yourself but to be a pilot? It’s nonsense.”
“That’s what I want to do, you know I’ve always wanted to.”
“You could have done it if you hadn’t failed your GCSEs, you’ve got no one to blame but yourself.”
“This is my second chance.”
Katie pushed the palm of her right hand down on the worktop and guided it around the kettle and the tins of sugar and tea.
“Get your GCSEs, by all means, but get a job too. You’re in debt, and you’re thinking about going further into it? I don’t understand.”
“This isn‘t my debt. I might as well owe money for a good reason.”
“How will you pay all of this back?”
Katie smiled. “I’ll have a good salary as a pilot.”
“What if you fail?”
“I won’t fail.”
“I wouldn’t be so cocky if I were you, you’ve not even passed your GCSEs yet.”
“Well, that was kind of my next question.” Katie inched towards her mother.
“You want money for your GCSEs?”
“Yes please. The only course I could find is two hundred pound per subject, and I need five.”
“No. Matt paid for his own education, you will pay for yours.”
“It’s not the same. I can’t get a grant like he did.”
The oven timer beeped. “So, you want to stay for dinner or not?”
“No thanks, I’d better go home now.”
Katie left her mother’s house without kissing her goodbye. She walked to Camberwell, drying her eyes with her sleeve every few minutes. Two children stopped their game of football so she blew her nose as if she had a cold. She turned right into Wilson Road and sat in the small park behind the church where she used to go as a child but the imposing monument didn’t comfort her so she carried on with her journey towards Coldharbour Lane. She couldn’t understand her mother’s refusal to help and tried to pin down her reasons. Discarding madness, one possibility remained and it involved Matt letting the truth slip by mistake.
