The Single Mums' Secrets - Janet Hoggarth Page 0,50
been released earlier in the year. We’d bonded over our love of it, and finally divulged the long-held secrets of losing our virginities, the kind of conversations that now occurred since we’d left home for university. Once out of our full-time family environment, our tenuous sisterly bond had transformed from that bickering, hairbrush-stealing annoyance that went before, into more of a grown-up alliance. Of course it wasn’t without its niggles (Louise’s obsession with boys drove me nuts), and I’m sure I drove her mental too, but being perfect I couldn’t think what I could do that would irk her!
Her first time had been way more stylish than my bloodbath; with Richard, her school boyfriend after she’d finished her mock GCSEs. She’d made a promise to herself that her treat at the end of exams would be that. I didn’t see what was wrong with buying a new pair of Levi’s or a spangly top from New Look.
‘Did it live up to your expectations?’ I’d asked in her bedroom at home where we’d been listening to Pulp’s His ’n’ Hers CD, catching up after time apart. She’d still not ditched her framed Pierrot poster from a few years back, though all the Madonna posters had come down, replaced by the ubiquitous Athena poster of the hot man cuddling a baby.
‘Oh yes, it was lovely. Rich was so nervous, but we managed it. And then did it again straight after and that was way better!’
‘No blood?’ I’d asked sceptically, recalling my own catastrophe that had deterred me for about six months. I managed it at uni with a first-year medic called Lorcan once I’d settled into my course. That had fared better, no blood, and I did enjoy it incrementally as we practised. We dated for a while before the summer holidays intervened – he was from Inverness in Scotland so meeting up was tricky. When I returned for my second year, he’d met someone else and failed to tell me in his catch-up letters over the summer. Nice.
‘No, no blood!’
I then went on to reveal my own inaugural shag. Louise had convulsed in disgust at the description.
‘No wonder you don’t want a boyfriend!’ It wasn’t so much that I didn’t want one, it just didn’t happen to me like it did to Louise. I wondered if my height, frizzy hair and general gawkiness put boys off.
‘Shall I just divide the rest out?’ I asked everyone, my nose poking in the Body Bag, as we loitered at the back of the Melody Maker tent shrouded in half-light. We were waiting for Shed 7 to come on. ‘Now, the other half of the stash is a completely different batch – they’re blue. I don’t know what that means. So if you’d rather not have them just say. There are enough for two people to have the normal ones. I don’t mind taking a punt on the blues.’
‘I’ll go blue with you,’ Louise offered.
An hour later (to be honest, time had now become a nebulous concept, I was measuring it by who was on stage) it was time to leave for Pulp. We found a spot in a similar position to the night before but on the other side of the field under the corresponding lighting tower. There was enough space to jump around, but to be honest, the blue pills were quite trippy; I felt like I was encased in lead after only half a tablet. Louise began sagging at the knees just as Steve Lamacq started introducing Pulp and the crowd surged behind us, propelling Louise with them. Jason ran after her, dragging her back to the relative shelter of the lighting tower.
‘Louise, have you taken more than half a pill?’ I asked concerned, as she leaned her head on Jason’s shoulder, her eyes rolling. The crowd roared in appreciation of Pulp sauntering onto the stage, Jarvis Cocker waving enthusiastically, a matchstick man in the distance.
‘I may have had a whole one. And then a bit more.’ Her jaw was wobbling and she couldn’t focus her eyes.
‘You div! You know the drill, quarters at a time. See how it affects you before you take more.’ I was rushing in tandem with scolding her for ruining Pulp for us. Jason sighed and shook his head. He looked battered but kind of in control.
‘I’ll take her to get a can of Coke and go to the loo,’ Jason shouted in my ear above the noise. ‘We’ll be back, don’t go anywhere.’