Rebound

Chapter 4

Chapter 4It was only a short drive back to Kate’s flat and the 2 girls stayed mainly silent as they wrestled with their own thoughts. Lex kept having to fight off an urge to ask Kate on a date, while Kate was trying to form a plan as to how she was going to confront Debs.

Soon enough they arrived at Kate’s address and much as Lex wanted to accept the invitation for coffee she bit her tongue and said goodnight with a friendly kiss on the cheek.

When Kate entered her flat she walked straight to the phone hoping to see the red light blinking but there were no messages. Her mobile had also remained silent and she was strangely unsure of what to do next.

Should she just accept Lex’s explanation for Debs’ behaviour, or should she fight for their relationship? Maybe Debs had issues with commitment for a reason that Kate could help her overcome?

In the end she changed into some comfy shorts and a t shirt, poured a glass of wine and picked up the phone. She was going to have to speak to her at some point, it might as well be now.

There was no answer from her mobile or home number so she resorted to sending her a text asking Debs to call her a.s.a.p. When she’d had no response by midnight she resolved to go to bed and start a fresh the next morning. She slept surprisingly well and had curious dreams about being watched by brilliant blue eyes.

The next morning she was up bright and early and did something she knew would piss Debs off -- she phoned her home number before 8am, knowing there was a phone next to the bed that would wake her.

The answerphone kicked in, so she left another brief message asking Debs to phone her and saying that she’d call by later if she hadn’t heard from her.

She didn’t leave it long and arrived at Debs’ flat just after 9am & on getting no answer she let herself in with her key, entering the flat with some trepidation after hearing how Lex and Debs had split.

She called out to announce her presence but got no response, so she wandered around the empty flat picking up the few items that were hers, noticing the unused bed along the way and the message light blinking on the phone from her call earlier, and let herself out again.

When she hadn’t heard anything from her by early afternoon she was actually starting to worry. What if she’d been run over when she left the pub last night, what if she’d taken a short cut across the park and been attacked, what if she’d gone to the cash point and been mugged, what if, what if, what if..........

Eventually she resolved to try one more approach before she started ringing hospitals and walked down the road to a public phone box and dialled Debs’ mobile, knowing that she couldn’t link the number to her.

She answered on the 3rd ring with a jaunty ‘hello?’, well, she wasn’t dead then!

‘Hi It’s me, I’m guessing you’re avoiding me?’ said Kate with more confidence than she felt.

‘Oh hi, sorry I ended up having a late one last night and forgot to turn my phone on. What’s up?’

‘I was wondering if you fancied going out for something to eat tonight, my treat?’ Debs had a voracious appetite for restaurant food and never passed up the chance of a free meal.

‘I don’t think tonight’s a good idea. I had Jen and Josh round last night and we were watching a film until 3am this morning, I haven’t been up long and the living room is full of popcorn and beer bottles, so I think I might just do some housework and have an early night’

Kate knew this to be a lie, but decided to push a little further.

‘Oh ok, do you need some help?’ She NEVER turned down help with housework!

‘NO! I mean really, it’s my mess why should you have to clean it up.’

‘Ok then, I’ll catch you later.’ And as Kate put the phone down she was overcome with wracking sobs as the enormity of the lies her girlfriend (former girlfriend?) had spun her sunk in. She been to the flat and it was as immaculate as when her & Debs had left the previous evening, and she knew for certain that she hadn’t just got out of bed -- well, not her own bed anyway!

Kate trudged home dejectedly and sank into her couch as the sobbing subsided and she caught her breath. She fished around in her handbag for a tissue but came up with a business card instead.

“Alexandra Turner, Motorcycle Instructor & Examiner for the CBT, Full and Advanced Tests”