Hug It Out

October 2011

I'm gonna lose my WiFi again, so thought I'd better upload this to keep you all busy nowt like girly hugs when you're feeling down!

Previous:

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Given how little she really wanted to be at the barn dance, Ellie's suggestion that they go somewhere quieter for a chat for some strange reason almost made Jemima meep in protest. As for where to go, she was briefly at a loss. Until she remembered Marion's response to her getting locked out of the B&B the other night. "Um.. I have a spare key to Marion and Jason's house. They'll be here for a while yet, I think," she added, nodded over to where the couple where chatting happily with the Petplan people (it seemed as most-sober-stable-owner Marion had managed to land that thankless task).

The stable yard was pretty dark, but it was a matter of seconds before they were at the house. Fumbling slightly with the unfamiliar key - not to mention those six or seven drinks (though they were probably singles) - it took a minute for Jemima to manage the lock on the front door. And then they were in. The girls had paused in the entrance to the house. "OK, first, this," Ellie hugged Jemima, "Is for all the stuff you told me in the school."

Jemima gratefully returning the currently pink-haired girl's hug, murmuring her thanks and sniffing quietly as she broke away. She was definitely threatening to cry now, and it was only the sudden rush of Ellie's words that managed to stop her. A slightly teary smile cracked on her face - a genuine one this time, albeit a lot wetter than the fake one from the indoor school.

Ellie stepped back, "I just didn't know whether to hug you in public because, you know, like, some people get a hug and, like, become emotional wrecks and like most people don't like crying in public and I wasn't sure what you'd be like so..." She stopped and took a breath. "Yeah. And also in here Pod can't overhear when we bitch about Marcus, which, you know, is obligatory. Pod hears like a bat."

Ellie cast around for some tissues and saw a dusty box sat on the windowsill, faded by sunlight. Shaking it off, she brought it over and offered them to Jemima, who'd taken a seat on a charmingly battered-looking sofa.

"So. Why on earth did you dad kick you out?" Ellie started, kicking off her boots and sitting with crossed legs on the sofa next to Jemima.
"Because he's a prick," was Jemima's immediate throw-away response to Ellie's question. The blonde smiled tearily again when she was offered the tissues and grabbed a few, using them to give her nose an extremely loud and unladylike blow, and then gulping down some of her drink before continuing.

"He's always been a bit shit at the work-life balance thing. 'swhy he started that bloody polo school, 'spend more time with the wife and kids'"-she gave this phrase some pretty scornful air-quotes-"but he's.. he's awful about Fifi. He never spends any time with her and she probably spends more time with Ian than with Dad! She's only 10 and she never sees Mum because Mum's always away, and the one time he actually promises - he promised, and he keeps promises! And I told him off about it, and he kicked me out."

She realised that her explanation had become somewhat unhinged and nonsensical, and also that she'd actually started crying somewhere around 'Ian'. She sniffed again, and took another swig of her drink. Ellie made sympathetic noises and tuts at all the right moments, giving Jemima a comforting arm rub when she started to cry.

"Not that I generally like to bitch about people's parents, because people tend to be bipolar about their parents, but your dad sounds like a right tosser." Ellie said fervently, taking some of her own drink. "My parents didn't really care what I did, as long as I was out of their way, but at least they never actually kicked me out.”

"He is a tosser though, you're right about that.” There wasn't any telling yet when the strength of her resolve in that thought would weaken, but the roughness of the last few days had really solidified it for now. Bitching was definitely good for a wounded soul, she thought. Her eyes were still red and her face was still puffy (thank god she didn't have a compact with her to check), but the threat of tears was definitely receding, and as long as she avoided specifically talking about her Dad and/or Marcus she might manage to head back to the barn dance at some point.

"The other night was so uncalled for. Wait til he hears everything you told me, he'll feel a million times worse and throw himself off his next ride! Would save me a job... Honestly, boys are so not worth the problems they cause…"

Jemima gave a watery smile at the idea of some form of come-uppance happening to Marcus. "I didn't even know I had boy problems until yesterday!" she almost wailed, suddenly. "What happened between him texting to say he was looking forward to seeing me and last night?"

"Boys are always problems!" Ellie said with a long-suffering tut, "Boys cause problems where there are none. They say that us girls are the high-maintenance ones but they're just trying to cover up the worst offenders." She shrugged. "His lame excuse was nerves, although, Marcus being Marcus, that's probably quite true. He was nervous about taking Sebby out to his first big show and, more importantly, nervous about seeing you on your home turf. 'Spooks easily'." She said with air quotes, flexing her middle and index fingers. "But you can't let that put you off, you know." Ellie added, shaking her head enthusiastically, "Whilst part of me wants him to man up and seek you out...I think it might be good if you go find him and demand an explanation."

Jemima snorted dryly, thinking about Ellie's boy problems - they usually seemed non-existent, but then Nate was rarely around to cause them. Though that in itself was probably a problem.. she thought about mentioning this, but her friend's determined expression and tone of voice told her she wouldn't get away with causing distractions again.

"He does know he blew me off completely, right? I suppose he doesn't know the other stuff. Unless Aaron got to him before I did and that's why he blew me off, didn't want to deal with a mess before a show," she said, sniffling a little as she trailed off at the end, some small, more sober and sane voice in the back of her head screeching that she was being a bit mental and self centred. Jemima ignored that part of her brain resolutely. "Is he coming to the barn dance later or is he just hiding out in your horse lorry?"

"Haha, oh, he knows..." Ellie couldn't help but giggle at the thought of the Dubarry-shaped bruise on the back of Marcus' head. "When I gave him an earful his exact words were 'she caught me off guard'. If it makes you feel any better, he barely spoke to anybody all that night and I think it was more you than horses that was distracting him. So...yeah, I think, since I didn't know, he doesn't know, unless he has stumbled upon Aaron since the other night. But I don't think he knew then." Ellie pulled a face. "I am so sorry for everything that's happened. If you haven't already seen a mechanic I can have a look at your car, by the way, I forgot to mention. My dad taught me a few tricks before I left home in an effort to help save the pennies.

"But yeah, back to the task at hand." Ellie made sure the box of tissues was still in reach just in case. "He's actually quite good at handling emotional people, you know, because he is one himself. He's sort of the resident shoulder to cry on. I mean, he's put up with Laura for all these years and we know how unbalanced she is." Ellie grinned knowingly. "So that's no excuse! And I did try and guilt-trip him into coming tonight, he said something about maybe appearing later.”

The thought that Marcus had been thinking about her.. well, that was nice. It still didn't explain why, but it did at least make her feel less like a rented bike - taken for one ride and then returned without comment. "Could... could you get him to come down to the house? Aaron's sure to've seen the light on, he'll notice if it goes off and I disappear and I don't want him gossiping to Charlie about this."

"I'll see if I can't work my magic. Shall I drop him a text?" She fished her phone out of the front of her dress, and brought up Marcus' name on the screen, "What to say, what to say..." she tapped out a message and read it aloud. "Marcus, I'm really sorry for hitting you on the head with my boot the other evening. Can you come down to the house so I can make up for it?" She pursed her lips and cocked her head at Jemima, "Does that read too suspiciously?" She asked with a ghost of a giggle.

Jemima double-took, "You hit him in the head with a boot?!"

Ellie laughed sheepishly, "Did I not mention that bit? Haha, yeah, he'd barely closed the door on you - I dunno, I was so angry with him! And my angry aim is pretty good and I caught the back of his head with one of my Dubarrys."

A boot. In the back of the head. "Yeah.. that sounds about right," Jemima replied after a brief pause where she imagined this very scene, amusement flushing to her face and eyes, which brightened considerably at the thought. Admittedly, she sort of wished she'd been the one throwing it, but Ellie was probably a good proxy.

“So, do I send this to Marcus?"

Jemima nodded, slowly. "Um, yes. Send it."
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Next: Be Nice!The thought now that she was going to actually have to tell Marcus about all the stuff that was going on retied the knot in Jemima’s stomach with all the skill of a scout-master. She hoped Marcus was as tense. He certainly deserved to be. That said, there weren't any boots in here to throw.
"Right! Off we go!" Ellie hit the "send" button and the message flew away into cyberspace. "Now we sit...and wait..." She picked up her can and was a little sad to realise she'd finished her drink. "Do you want me to scarper once I've convinced him to come over?"
"N-no. Stay," she replied. "Maybe we can both find ammunition."
"Hmmm, I think I might be better mediating to make sure nobody is concussed." Ellie joked. Her phone pinged and she immediately unlocked it. "Oh my God, he's on his way! That was surprisingly easy..." She gave Jemima a confused glance, "He says he'll be ten minutes. You, er...might want to touch up your eyeliner." Ellie suggested flippantly.
Jemima blinked and jumped up,

Jem courtesy of femalefred