Babyville Page 0,34
of coffee.
But no kettle.
By this time Julia is becoming desperate, and finds a saucepan that she fills with water and puts on the stove. She finds a cup, no saucer, lurking under the sink, and almost starts to cry when she realizes the coffee isn't instant.
Starting all over again and looking in every cupboard again, she sees that this is a no-win situation, and perhaps she will manage to fish most of the coffee grains out of the cup before she drinks it. She has, after all, found a teaspoon.
The coffee is revolting. Gray (the milk in the fridge was definitely suspect, but by that time Julia didn't really care), with black coffee grounds floating up to the surface, in any other circumstances it would be undrinkable. She drinks it through a grimace and walks over to the huge picture window, smiling as she pinpoints the Chrysler Building, the Empire State.
God. The memories.
She considers making the bed and curling up on the sofa to watch television, but instead climbs back under the covers with her revolting cup of coffee, and switches the volume down low to channel surf.
“What are you doing?” Bella stumbles blearily into the living room, a short lilac kimono wrapped around her, and Julia smiles at how immaculate she looks, even at four in the morning.
“Can't sleep. Too excited. Did I wake you? I'm so sorry, did I make too much noise?”
“Nah. Don't worry, it's not your fault. I think they made these walls out of paper.” She yawns and stretches, then stops still. “Julia, what the fuck are you drinking?”
“Coffee.”
Bella steps cautiously toward the coffee cup, leans her head down and sniffs. “That's not coffee. That's dog pee.”
“I know.” Julia looks miserably at her now lukewarm cup. “It tastes as disgusting as it looks.”
“Darling, it can't possibly taste as disgusting as it looks or there's no way in hell you'd be drinking it. Why didn't you use the percolator, for God's sake? I've even got filters.”
“I haven't even heard the word ‘percolator' since nineteen seventy-six,” laughs Julia, feeling rather stupid as Bella points out a large percolator complete with glass coffee jug sitting slap bang in the middle of her kitchen worktop.
“What did you think that was, then?” Bella shakes her head as she reaches for the filters and starts filling a jug with water. “Chopped liver?”
Julia laughs. “Sorry. But more to the point, what the hell do you eat when you're home? Your kitchen cupboards are disgraceful. Mark would have a heart attack.”
“Despite liking Mark very much, he can basically go screw himself.” Bella turns on the machine and leans against the counter. “And as for food, nobody in this city eats at home.”
“What, never?”
“Never. Look.” She reaches down and opens the oven door to reveal what looks suspiciously like a stack of sweaters. “The perfect place for cashmere,” she laughs, as Julia shakes her head in amazement.
“So the only thing you ever have at home is coffee?”
Bella shakes her head. “Basically, and usually I don't even have that. I grab a skinny latte from the Starbucks on Second on my way to work every morning. I haven't used this bloody thing for years.”
“Great.” Julia picks up the tin. “Then I suppose it should be no surprise that this expired last February?”
“What do you care?” Bella swishes Julia's cup under the tap to prepare it for the new coffee. “You were willing to drink it, grains, sour milk, and all. This, my darling”—she hands Julia a full cup of steaming coffee—“is going to feel like you've died and gone to coffee heaven. Right. I'm off to bed.”
“Don't go to bed,” Julia pleads, but Bella shakes her head as she disappears into her bedroom.
“Early to bed, early to rise, gives a girl energy and skinny thighs. See you in the morning.” She blows Julia a kiss and she's gone.
“What the hell?” Julia squeezes open her eyes to see Bella bouncing round the living room in purple bootleg exercise pants and a black crop-top, noisily opening all the blinds.
“Rise and shine, rise and shine. Remember what I said about skinny thighs? You and I, my darling, are off to the gym.”
“You must be joking,” Julia groans, turning her face into the pillow to block out the shafts of sunlight now streaming through the room. “Jesus. What time is it?”
“Six-thirty. Just the right time for an hour's workout.”
“Six-thirty? I only went back to sleep half an hour ago.”
“Why? What have you been doing?”
“Watching TV.”
“Find anything interesting?”
“Yeah. The E!