when we went to the cinema last month. Will these work? I put them on and am instantly disorientated by the lenses. I’m attracting all sorts of weird looks. Again, I think that I really must sort out this bag; I dread to think what damage I’ve done to the interior.
A passing lorry beeps its horn at me. Lovely. I attempt a second search for my glasses and after some heavy-duty rummaging write it off as a bad job. I do however find my phone and remember that I should text Cassie to check that she isn’t planning to quit and run off to join the circus.
As I look at the display I realise that I must have accidentally knocked it onto silent last night as I have five missed calls from Serena, two from Robert and three from a number I don’t recognise. Helpfully, no-one has left me a voicemail. Oh well, if it’s important, they’ll call back.
I text as I walk, reminding Cassie that we all went through twelve months of torture before being made permanent fixtures in Chambers and inviting her to call me if she ever needs a chat, or bitch, about anything.
She’s a decent girl, although often undervalued given her blonde hair, blue eyes and ample cleavage. Her pupillage ends in late October and I expect I’ll be summonsed to the usual meeting to decide her fate in due course. She’s allowed to conduct her own cases in now and appear in court in her own right. As you’d expect, she’s understandably nervous.
So far I’ve heard mixed reviews of her progress from people who have asked her for help with research and seen her in court, although I can trace the negative comments back to male barristers she’s turned down or female barristers who are jealous of her youth and beauty. She’s by no means the complete package yet, but in time I’m sure she’ll be able to hold her own.
I clearly remember being a pupil barrister, being thrust into a glamourous new world full of ambitious people working on the front line of the justice system. Believe it or not, I never really drank alcohol before starting my foray into the world of law; my father always disapproved of anything that could impact on my studies. That changed though when I started the Bar course and then spent the first six months following my ‘pupil supervisor’ around the courts and pubs of the Midlands, drinking until closing time each night, with Friday always being the finale to the week. During the second six months, I was allocated briefs of my own and trekked to various Magistrates Courts making an idiot of myself, misinterpreting evidence and points of law. Those twelve months were stressful and high impact. I was seen as ‘fresh meat’ for the old perverts and a ‘challenge’ for the young bloods.
The day I was told that I was to be taken on as a tenant, a permanent member of Chambers, was quite possibly the happiest day of my life, firstly as it meant I had officially made it and secondly as I could tell all of the unwanted suitors to sod off. Don’t get me wrong, I’m no Kelly Brook, but in this environment, I might as well be.
Ah, home. As I turn the familiar left hand bend I see my family house in front of me I’m struck by an unexpected pang of nostalgia. I walk to the front door and let myself in. I’m immediately assailed by Siddy, our family Shih Tzu. What he lacks in size he more than makes up for in spirit and within a matter of seconds I find myself liberally coated in black and white hair. I bend over to rub his ears and he leans in to me, obviously enjoying the fuss. My mother walks into the hall from the kitchen, wiping her hands on a towel that she’s carrying.
“Darling! How are you? Gosh you’re looking thin, are you eating properly?” She comes over and envelopes me in a hug. I breathe in her familiar perfume, happy to be back in her company.
“Don’t be daft mum, I eat more than you and dad put together!”
We part and walk through to the kitchen, Siddy at my heels, where I can see a host of Waitrose bags on the counter.
“Just been shopping?” I walk up to the stash and have a good rummage, stopping when I find a particularly delicious looking packet of flapjacks.
“Help yourself,” she