My Dinosaur Era Chapter 12 *Rewrite*

 

I woke up on the sofa

a note on the coffee table from ginny

sleep well timmy xx

movement brings pain

pain brings retreat back into the cushions

could be any time of day

can’t see the oven clock or phone from here

 

I throw my legs onto the floor

my body partially follows

the oven says ten eighteen am

no idea what time I fell asleep

I stand, my legs scream at me

my back joins in

in the kitchen I pop open a tube

chuck an electrolyte tablet into a glass of water

the modern elixir

useless against the dozen pints

accumulated shots

all the other shit

 

somewhere in the room my phone is ringing

feels like it is coming from everywhere

I stumble around

throwing cushions to the side

on the floor it flashes away

looking up at me

petula’s name crying out

 

I stoop to pick up it up

crack knee on table

hold the pain with one hand

grab the phone with the other

 

hiya

 

I feign bright and breezy

whilst the pain spreads up my leg

 

hey you

 

probably actually bright and breezy

 

I was about to call you

 

a gentle lie, I would have called her

 

oh right, I thought I’d call you as I was just sat here

yeah, great, cool

 

are you ok?

yeah, I’m fine, just hungover, went out with ginny last night, that never ends well

 

did you have fun?

 

yeah we did

 

good, I think she’d be fun on a night out

 

yeah, she’s that alright

 

you sound terrible

 

look, I’m going to need an hour, assuming you still want to do something?

 

sure, that’s fine, shall I meet you outside your building in an hour then?

 

yeah, yeah, all good, I say

 

goodbyes come and go

I realise that I stink

need a twenty minute gas guzzling shower

cleanse me real good

 

return to the electrolytes, chug it

nausea rises up inside me

no food in me for a day or more

wait though, there may have been crisps last night

glance around the flat

neater than when we got in last night

the ginny tidy fairy flitted around on her way out

my master plan to only have cleaning obsessives visit my domain

 

down the stairs to the main door, holding on

sweaty hands slide down the banister, squeaking

big breath at the door, rub my face with both hands

at least I smell good now

 

beyond the door, there she is

the sun is out today

sat on the wall, smoking

resplendent in a jumpsuit

the pinkiest pink on earth

she stands, walks towards me, gentle smile

she’s taller than me today

those boots are three inch motherfuckers

I stand up a bit straighter

just about match her height 

she doesn’t stop walking

puts her arms around me

a hug to replenish every cell in my derelict body

I hug back, feebly, grasping

 

um, that was a nice hug

 

when I am hungover I usually want a hug, so I took a punt that you might

 

I mean, I didn’t know I did until about twenty seconds ago

 

she smiles down at her feet

 

so, what shall we do now?

 

when it’s a nice day, I like to walk to shoreham, have lunch there then get the train back

 

if that’s what you want to do, then yeah, let’s do that

 

if you’re ok with that?

 

sure yeah, that’s fine, the only thing is, I didn’t really eat yesterday

 

we can get bacon sandwiches from the meeting place on the way

 

sold

 

sitting in a shelter by the lawns

sandwich half inside me

a heartfelt hug, fatty meat, cheap bread

from near death to sublime hope

every piece of me thrives

I take a huge bite of the bread

petula eats her halloumi wrap delicately

desperately trying not to drip sauce down her jumpsuit

 

the sea is gentle today

the waves barely break on the pebbles

it oozes into the spaces, no crashing today

sandwiches done, we walk, along the lawns

personal trainers train people personally

a half grown dog flits in and out of the kettlebells

we reach the lagoon

water ski wannabes fly through the air

landing awkwardly in the shallow water

have you ever tried water skiing?

 

fuck, no, I say

 

she laughs, nudges into me

 

what’s so bad about it?

 

I dunno, the speed, the falling off, the very real risk of breaking yourself in two

 

I think it looks fun

 

perhaps we have very different risk profiles

 

perhaps we do

 

the beach starts to hide away behind fences

the landscape switches to industrial

lawns replaced by piles of aggregate and sand

a lorry passes us slowly, laden with a stack of timber

 

this part of the walk is a bit grim

 

it’s my favourite part

 

really?

 

yeah, I like looking at the silos, the trucks, the piles of whatever that is

 

I’m learning so much about you today already

 

oh yeah, like what?

 

hi, I’m petula, I like hugs, halloumi, the notion of water skiing and monster trucks

 

she laughs, a proper head back laugh

 

yeah, you’ve got me sussed

 

soon the beach reappears

right next to the power station

we get coffee from the cafe

take the walkway to the locks

 

I always forget that they are here

 

I love the locks, took me ages to come across them but now I’m hooked

 

I’ll add locks to your list of likes

 

right at the top, just behind hugs

 

in the locks lies a huge ship, it gives me vertigo

 

ooh, a dredger

how the fuck do you know it’s a dredger?

 

they have arms and legs

 

the ship does have arms and legs, huge metal limbs

 

are you a ship spotter?

 

kinda, I do have a marine app that shows me what ships are around

 

that’s weird and cute

 

that’s my vibe