The Lonely Hearts Lido Club by Charlie Lyndhurst

Author:Charlie Lyndhurst
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Hera
Published: 2022-01-15T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 23

July

Helen had been living with Gabriella for a few weeks.

The heatwave continued with temperatures reaching the low thirties, no rain since May and the country descending into a mild panic about hosepipe bans and garages unable to keep up with requests to fix cars’ air con units. The ice cream van arrived twice a week, playing a song from Helen’s childhood. She wished Jack and Thomas were there during the day so she could treat them. Gabriella said she was watching their teeth after a bollocking from their dentist, but it was kind of her to offer.

Helen had returned to her home, hoping to meet Bill, but hadn’t.

He had phoned her after four days, asking where she was. ‘Are you okay?’

‘Depends how you define that.’

‘Can you not speak in riddles, please?’

Helen wanted to tell him it was none of his business to dictate to her how she spoke, but didn’t have the energy to argue, so she’d ended the call.

He tried calling back again – which filled Helen’s heart with not quite hope, but a flutter of optimism – until she turned the phone off and resumed her life in Gabriella’s home.

‘And?’ Gabriella asked now.

Helen shook her head solemnly.

‘I was going to take the boys into town for shoes and clothes. They’ve grown out of everything. Don’t suppose you fancy coming with, do you?’

‘I do. Very much so.’ This, having spoken to friends her age, was a grandparent rite of passage she’d missed out on. Must call Peter, see what he thinks about my moving out.

Peter had sent her a text a week after Helen had left, it simply read: WTF you’ve left Dad???

She’d texted back: Correct. And???

Peter: Why???

Helen: Because he doesn’t love me.

Peter hadn’t replied to that and Helen hadn’t felt the need to explain herself any further. Perhaps he thought it best not to become embroiled in his parents’ marriage.

‘Are you okay?’ Gabriella asked. ‘You looked miles away.’

‘Nothing. Just thinking about Peter. Wonder how he’s coping with all this.’

‘He’s a grown man, he’ll be fine. It’s hardly like you’ve split up when he was nine.’

Helen shrugged.

‘Sure you want to go shopping?’

‘Absolutely so!’

They bundled the boys into Gabriella’s large van-like car and went to Uxbridge town centre. She sat them on a bench, explained to the sales assistant they both needed new shoes and went on to explain which type.

It seemed, in a feat that Helen found impressive, they had both grown out of different types of shoes at the same time, meaning Gabriella couldn’t hand down the too-small shoes to the younger sibling, instead needing to buy two different varieties of footwear at the same time.

She started to ask if her parents-in-law helped with this sort of thing, but Gabriella had changed the subject. Evidently the regular dinners must be putting some sort of strain on her she wasn’t ready to discuss.

Thomas tried on a new pair of plain black school shoes – his old ones far too small for his brother.

Jack kicked his legs back and

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