‘Then you need to try to stop worrying about them as much as you can. Sometimes it’s worse for the people at home, as they have more time to fret than if they were actually doing the job.’
‘Thanks, I guess you’re right. I never thought of it like that.’ I sniff.
‘What do you do anyway?’ he asks.
‘I’m a teacher – I’m looking after some of the key workers’ kids who still have to come into school,’ I say.
‘Bet that keeps you busy then?’ he asks.
‘Very, though I’ve only got six from the whole school. I love it, but I’m sorry for them. They worry about their parents too. You’d think they wouldn’t as they’re little, but sometimes children surprise you – they understand more than you would think. Freya asked me today if her mum was going to come home and what would happen if she got sick. She’s a single parent, all Freya’s got.’
‘That’s tough, but all you can do is stay strong for these kids, I guess. But you have to let it out sometime, so I’ll let you off having a noisy blub on your balcony and disturbing my quiet beer and packet of crisps.’
‘Rude!’ I chuckle.
‘That’s better,’ he says. ‘At least you can still laugh, which is a good sign. I bet the kids are entertaining too.’
‘Yes they’re so funny,’ I reply. ‘Milo, who is five by the way, asked me today why we can’t just call up Spider-Man to come and entangle the Cornyvirus in his web and tow it into space!’
‘Interesting idea.’ He laughs.
‘We should recommend renaming it to the government for the next update meeting. Talking about the Cornyvirus would seem much less sinister.’
‘I’ll tell Boris next time he calls.’
‘Yeah right,’ I reply with a smile. ‘I could do with setting you on my sister Jess too; she’s also a complete stress-head at the moment.’
‘About the virus?’ he asks.
‘No, about her wedding. She’s talked of nothing else for the last year and although I love her dearly, she’s making me wish that the government would ban all weddings until at least 2025!’
‘Not a Bridezilla?’ he asks.
‘Maybe a bit,’ I admit.
‘But when’s the wedding? Surely it can’t go ahead at the minute?’
‘No, she’s had to cancel the physical wedding reception. As you can imagine, she was totally devastated, and I was gutted for her. Although she can be really annoying, she put an incredible amount of work in. So the service will be on Zoom.’
The guy above really laughs now – I like it, a deep chuckle. ‘My God, I’ve never heard of such a thing. There really is no stopping her then!’
‘Absolutely not.’ The whole Hinge conversation reverberates disturbingly in my mind. ‘She is a real human dynamo, Jess.’
‘Well, good for her – although it sounds as though she might leave everyone steamrollered in her wake.’
I’m silent for a moment, as I’ve tried talking to Mum and Erica about Jess but it’s difficult. In spite of her pushiness, she does really care and I adore her. When the chips have been down, Jess has always been there for me yet she doesn’t always get where I’m coming from, especially not since my illness. It’s odd because no one really understands the love-hate relationship you can have with your own family – yet this random man, who is just a voice (for all I know he doesn’t even have a body) has hit the nail on the head.
‘I haven’t offended you have I?’ comes the voice.
‘No of course not, it’s just that right now a little of Jess seems to go a long way!’
‘Always does where weddings are concerned, but I’m intrigued anyway … How is she going to manage the service?’
‘Good question, but she’s got it all sorted.’
‘Naturally. Is there a huge wall planner and a bumper executive Filofax?’
‘No, but she has three huge lever arch files, two apps and a Countdown to your Wedding Plan she has distributed to all of us.’
‘Oh wow, this woman means business. What does the groom say about it all?’
‘He just said he’s going to turn up.’
‘That’s a good start.’
‘It seems pretty unavoidable, considering he already lives with her and they’re in lockdown.’
We both laugh.
‘To be fair though, he would need to hire security, if he let Jess down – we’re really close,’ I say, feeling disloyal.
‘I get it,’ he replies. ‘I have an older brother who is great, but he thinks it gives him a free ticket to tell me what to do