School Reunion. Part Three.

I had just clocked out for the evening and I was now on my way to meet my girlfriends at our usual haunt to find out about their progress on finding out where the Irvell Bitch lived. I went inside the pub, and found only Katie and Shirley sitting at our normal table. I brought myself a drink, and slid in the seat opposite them.
“Hi bitches. Where’s Amy-Sue?”
“She cancelled on us at the last minute,” Katie replied. “She had some doctor’s appointment to go to.”
“Did you do it?” I asked.
“Yes,” Shirley said. “Well, I didn’t. I distracted the two ladies working at the shop, while Katie sneaked into the back room to look for the volunteer’s records.”
“It was quite funny,” Katie snickered. “I found them in a tray, but I couldn’t be bothered to look through them all to find Char Irvell. So I just took them all, and legged it out the back door.”
“Did you bring them with you?” I asked.
“Right here,” Katie smirked. She reached into her handbag, and pulled out a handful of documents, which she placed on the table.
The three of us started rifling through the documents, looking for ‘Char Irvell’. After I’d gone through my pile, I flopped back in my seat, defeated.
“Did you find her?” I asked the others.
“I haven’t found anything,” Shirley told us.
“I found a ‘Char Sning.’ Katie said.
“Are you completely sure it was her you saw the other day?” I asked Shirley.
“Yes. It was definitely her.”
“She may have got married since school,” Katie reasoned.
We all fell about in helpless giggles. Who would want to marry Char Irvell? She was really fat, and not very sociable. I could remember at school, she was extremely spotty, with large glasses. I couldn’t really see her getting married. Unless of course, there happened to be a male version of her.
“Maria? Hello?”
I snapped out of my thoughts. I hadn’t realised Shirley was talking to me. “Sorry? What?”
“Are we still going to send her ‘reminders’ or not? You know, to make sure she does actually come to the reunion?”
I grinned. “Yes, of course we are. If you say it’s definitely her, let’s do it. Though how on Earth she got married is beyond me.”
My friends both smaned.
“Okay, so step one, we send out ‘reminders’. Then step two, we need to set everything up for our little present. Cheers bitches.” All three of us raised our drinks, and chinked our glasses.

***

I had chickened out of going to the shop with Katie and Shirley. We were going to the shop to find out if it was definitely Char Irvell who had served Shirley the other day. But I was too wracked with guilt to go. So I’d just rang the girls and told them that I wasn’t able to go, because I’d had a doctor’s appointment I’d forgotten I’d had.
I had told Billy about my friends’ plan to totally embarrass poor Char Irvell at the school reunion, but that I didn’t want any part in it. I had also told him that it was actually my fault, because I was the one who’d suggested it. Billy had said then that there was something I could do about it. I could stop it. I had just put my nightie on, and crawled into bed. I was extremely tired, but now I felt completely wide awake. I was thinking about Maria, Katie and Shirley, and their prank they were going to pull on Char Irvell. I was thinking about Char Irvell turning up at the school reunion, and being embarrassed in front of everything, and having the taunting memories of school come flooding back. Memories she had probably tried to suppress for so long. I remember one incident at school, where we’d all distracted Char - I can’t remember how - while Maria slipped a dog turd inside her school bag at the beginning of one lesson. I can remember how the smell got stronger and stronger, and the teacher thought Char had done it on purpose and sent her to the headmistress’s office. We had such a big laugh about it afterwards. Well, I laughed on the outside, but inside I was disgusted at their behaviour, and disgusted at myself about giving in to peer pressure, and not standing up for poor Char Irvell.
I laughed to myself at the thought of Char turning up, and she had done well for herself. Maybe she’d lost weight, stopped wearing glasses, lost all her spots. Maybe she’d married a good looking guy, and had a nice family.
“Ames? You awake?” Billy had just come upstairs. I’d gone to bed earlier than him. He wanted to stay up late to watch a wrestling match on TV.
“Yeah. I’m still awake.” Billy turned on the bedroom light, almost blinding me. “Thought you were tired?”
“I was.” I sighed. “I started thinking about Char Irvell.” I told Billy about what I’d been thinking.
“You been thinking about what I said earlier?”
“Yes.” I looked my husband square in the eye. “I’m going to go through with it. I’m going to put an end to the prank, and stop Maria, Katie and Shirley from embarrassing Char Irvell.”

***

It was the next morning. I got up, had a shower and gone downstairs for my morning cup of hot chocolate. Yet again, there was another letter reminding me about the stupid school reunion next week. But this time, instead of crumpling it up and throwing it away, I folded it up to keep. As I was putting it into the drawer where I kept all my bits of paper, Chris wandered to the kitchen, and planted a wet kiss on my cheek.
“Morning Darling.”
“Morning Chris. Chris?”
“Yes Char?”
I’m going to do it. I’m going to stick my middle finger up to Maria, Katie, Shirley, Amy-Sue and the others. I’m going to the school reunion next week.”