Nosy Neighbors by Freya Sampson

Author:Freya Sampson [Sampson, Freya]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Penguin Publishing Group
Published: 2024-04-02T00:00:00+00:00

Twenty-Eight

DOROTHY

If Dorothy had been expecting a quiet day to recuperate in hospital, she was sorely mistaken.

Her first uninvited visitor was Tomasz, who turned up shortly after Kat left, bearing a bunch of grapes and looking extremely ill at ease. Dorothy felt equally uncomfortable, and once they had exhausted the topics of last night’s events, the Shelley House planning application, and the weather, they quite ran out of things to say. Dorothy was therefore relieved when Tomasz said he had to get to work. Yet as he was turning to depart, Gloria came sweeping onto the ward dressed in some ridiculous skintight outfit and carrying what transpired to be a box of doughnuts. At the sight of her, Tomasz suddenly seemed in considerably less of a hurry to go, and he listened intently as she waffled on about her job and flat-hunting problems. For her part, Dorothy tuned out and focused on the doughnuts, which were really quite delicious. If only someone in here knew how to make a decent cup of tea to go with them, as opposed to the pathetic excuse of a hot beverage they had served Dorothy earlier. Really, how were patients supposed to get better without the fortifying aid of a properly brewed tea?

By the time Dorothy had finished her second doughnut, Gloria had swept out again, leaving Tomasz staring forlornly after her.

“For goodness’ sake, why do you not ask the woman out for dinner?” Dorothy asked, at which point the man blushed bright pink and scurried off.

And yet that was far from the end of Dorothy’s visitations. At six o’clock, as she was explaining the difference between tea steeping and stewing to a young nurse, Ayesha appeared, full of apologies at having not come sooner. Now that her GCSEs were over, the girl had a summer job working in a small local law firm, stuffing envelopes and other equally mundane tasks. The job had been secured for her by her father, who hoped it might give Ayesha an insight into the fascinating world of law. Unfortunately, and rather predictably, the opposite was true.

“It’s so boring,” she lamented as she flopped into the chair next to Dorothy’s bed. “I’m spending eight hours a day sitting at a desk in a silent office, counting down the minutes until five o’clock. Today the most exciting thing to happen was when I accidentally misfiled a letter and Sharon from accounts told me off.”

“It does sound rather uninspiring,” Dorothy said. “Have you told your father how much you dislike it?”

“Nah, he’s got enough on his plate and he’ll only tell me I’ve got to stick it out. I just hope I can get through the next six weeks without going mad and killing Sharon with a stapler.”

Dorothy promptly changed the subject to Reggie, at which point the girl became decidedly more animated. They chatted for another twenty minutes before Ayesha sighed and said she had to head home.

“Just keep the stapler away from Sharon,” Dorothy said, and felt a flush of pride when Ayesha laughed.

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