Taking Off
Chapter 17
Chapter 17
Aurélie checked herself in the mirror once more before leaving. Her new pair of Gap jeans hugged her bum nicely and she smiled at her reflection. She fussed over which book to take with her as she was reading two at the moment. Lisa Jewell’s Thirty something might appear too straight and Angela Davis’ Race, women and class too political. She resolved her dilemma by favouring her new Creative MP3 player instead.
Katie had provided her with good directions and she found her place with no problem. Katie’s eyes glinted as she welcomed her into her home.
“Hi ya. Or shall I say bon-jea.”
“Bonjour.”
“Bon-jour.”
“Yeah, you got it.”
“Well, that’s the easy part. I’m getting all confused with the grammar, I really need your help.”
Aurélie skimmed through the course book, jotting down a few notes. She recounted to Katie the trick to conjugate the verb avoir in present tense, the trick her primary school teacher had taught her and that she still relied on when in doubt about spelling. It was very easy if you remembered that they all start with a, except for the last which got tired and lost a leg, the a becoming an o. The next letter, for pronouns je and tu is the letter preceding the first letter of the pronoun, respectively i and s, giving j’ai and tu as. Then the verb rests, with no additional letter, preparing itself for the complicated three forms coming up, so that’s il a/elle a. Avoir is a cheeky one so for nous, it adds the following pronoun vous with the u upside down, so we have nous avons. The next one has to be learnt, it is vous avez. Then you finish like for être but remember, you’re supposed to start with an o, effectively dropping the s from ils sont, to make ils ont. Katie laughed and Aurélie admitted it didn’t help much as it sounded more complicated than she remembered it. For the next hour, Katie recited what she had learnt, Aurélie only interrupting her to correct her pronunciation. They paused for tea and laid on the bed.
“I’m so impressed. At this rate, you’ll get an A with no problem.”
“Do you think so?”
“I’m sure.”
“Thank you, it is good to know I’m doing something right.”
Katie threw her arms around Aurélie and they hugged tightly. Aurélie wiped a strand of hair away from Katie‘s face and tucked it behind her ear. Then, Katie kissed Aurélie. Katie’s lips, thin and soft, tasted of raspberry lip gloss. Aurélie shivered as Katie’s tongue trailed over her palate and she returned the delicacy. Bells chimed in the background. Aurélie briefly gasped for air then plunged her own tongue deeper. The bells soared. Their tongues danced together for a second or two, until Katie broke off the kiss to answer the ringing phone.
“I’m sorry, it was my friend Beth.” Katie frowned.
“You OK?”
“Yes. No. I… I shouldn’t have kissed you.”
“It’s OK. It takes two to tango.”
“What an expression, hey,” Katie laughed. “Are you OK?”
“Yes.” Aurélie smiled.
When Katie turned around to pick her French folder, Aurélie trailed her tongue over her lower lip, savouring Katie’s scent, the impression by Katie’s flesh, Katie’s lips, Katie’s tongue.
***
Aurélie graded Katie’s mock French GCSE paper. A. She packed it in her rucksack, picked up her coat and left the house. If she remembered Katie’s schedule right, Katie worked in the pub this afternoon and she could announce the good news face to face. She imagined Katie’s smile, her shiny cheeks, her bright- The bus screeched to a halt. The boy next to Aurélie flew into the protective plastic barrier and she banged her knee against it. Outside, a motorbike blocked the way, its driver lying on the floor. The shaky bus driver called an ambulance and passers-by covered their children’s eyes with their hands as the pool of blood grew bigger. Sirens. The rescue crew lifted the injured biker from the ground with a stretcher and drove away at full speed while the police manoeuvred the traffic around the damaged vehicle. The driver apologised profusely and asked all passengers to board the bus behind as he needed to return to the bus garage. One by one, they obeyed him without a word of complaint and Aurélie chose to walk to Aldgate tube station instead.
“You passed,” Aurélie shouted from the end of the bar.
Katie looked around and frowned at her friend. “I passed?”
“Yes, your French GCSE. You totally got it.”
“Have I? Cool.”
“But I thought you weren’t taking them until June,” Patricia said.
Katie smiled. “I’m not. It’s a mock one.”
“I’m so excited for you,” Aurélie said.
“Thank you.” Katie wiped two taps with a wet towel which she then threw into a bucket behind her.
Aurélie sat on a stool. “Are you OK? You don’t seem very happy.”
“I am really, I am. This is wonderful news. But…”
“But?”
“I’m pissed off with Beth.”
“What has she done?” Aurélie rolled a coaster on the bar, from her left hand to her right and then back.
“We had this huge fight last week-end. She wanted to go clubbing and I couldn’t because I had to study on Sunday morning.”
“She’s so rude. And wrong.”
“I know.”
“You should drop her. You deserve much better than her.” The coaster swerved off and landed on the floor.
“Do I?”
“Of course you do. Someone who is supportive, someone who understands, someone who respects you.” Aurélie grabbed another coaster. “Someone who loves you.”
“I know. Someday maybe.”
“Why not now?”
“I’m having so much fun with Beth, how could I push her away?”
“Look around you. Where is she when you need help? Does she believe in your dream to become a pilot? Does she help you at all? She’s selfish.”
“You’re right, I know it.”
“She’s with that guy, lying to him. She’s disloyal. I wouldn’t want her as a friend, let alone a girlfriend.” Aurélie slammed the coaster on the edge of the bar and it fell off on her lap.
“She is a bit selfish, yeah.”
“A bit? She doesn’t care about what you want to do, it’s all about her, her, her.”
“Is this really what you think of her?”
“Yes. I’m sorry to be so rude but that’s the truth.”
“No, no, don’t be sorry. I guess I wasn’t really seeing the big picture.”
“You’re not mad at me?”
Katie patted Aurélie’s shoulder. “Not at all. What is a friend for if she doesn’t look out for you?”
“I’m glad you see my point.”
“I do, I totally do.”
“Good.”
“But-”
“But?”
“Well, we both know why I’m sticking around.”
“I don’t.”
“She’s hot. So, so hot.”
Aurélie’s elbow slid off the bar. She bent down and rummaged through her bag. “I thought I heard my mobile ring.”
“I haven’t.”
“It wasn’t. Someone else must have the same ringtone.” Aurélie retrieved a tissue and blew her nose.
