Straight to You Page 0,5

who were lucky enough to have the choice had stayed at home to make the most of the relatively tropical conditions outside.

There had been no overnight respite in the weather and by midday the brilliant sun stood high and proud in the deep blue sky, burning everything that it touched with its powerful and undiminished rays. I spent the morning trapped in my sweat-box of an office catching up with the paperwork which I had taken home last night with the intention of completing there. A telephone call from a friend was a welcome interruption from monotonous sheets covered in endless lists of repetitive figures.

'Sorry to bother you, Steve,' Carol said as she poked her head around the door and into my room. 'I've got a Rebecca Marsh on the phone for you, she says it's a personal call.'

'Thanks, Carol,' I said. 'That's fine. Could you shut the door on your way out please?'

My secretary obliged by slamming the door and almost pulling it from its hinges. I picked up the phone quickly to speak to Rebecca.

'Hi Becky How are you?'

I had known Rebecca for the last four or five years I couldn't remember how or where we had originally met, I just knew that she was the best friend I had ever - or would ever - have. One of the biggest regrets of my life was the fact that I had met her shortly after she had married. I knew that if she had still been single I would have found the perfect partner to share the rest of my time with.

'I'm all right, Steve,' she replied 'How are things going with you today?'

I sighed.

'They're going, that's all I can say.'

Rebecca laughed and I relaxed. It was good to hear her voice again as she had been out of town for a couple of weeks. One of the few advantages of the location of the branch which I managed was that it was only a couple of minutes' walk from Rebecca's office a little way down the high street.

'Are you very busy?' she asked.

'Not particularly Do you fancy meeting for lunch?'

'I was just about to suggest that. Shall I meet you here at about one?'

'That's fine,' I replied, cheerfully. The thought of spending some time with Becky made the prospect of the rest of the day seem a little more palatable.

'Great,' she said 'I've got to go now, I've got an appointment in a couple of minutes. I'll see you later.'

'Okay, I'll see you in a while.'

I put the down the phone.

It was a source of continual amazement to me just how much better I always felt after speaking to Rebecca. I only needed to hear her voice for a moment and I was suddenly torn away from my depressing, humdrum career and thrust into a calmer, safer world.

I got up from my seat and walked across to the open window. Looking down, I saw that the street below was momentarily quiet and I watched as crowds of children suddenly spilled out of the gates of a nearby school, heading en masse towards the nearest shops. Dressed in shorts and T-shirts, the children ran out into the sunlight as they would on any other summer's day. I had to remind myself that it was the middle of October.

The hour between Rebecca's call and one o'clock dragged incredibly. A combination of the heat, the continual stream of work which arrived on my desk and the prospect of finally seeing my best friend again made the seconds feel like minutes and the minutes feel like hours. One o'clock eventually arrived and I quickly left the office.

I met Rebecca outside the building where she worked as we had planned, and we discussed where to go.

'It's too hot to go for a drink,' she said, 'and anyway, I can't really afford it.'

I knew exactly what she meant. It always seemed to be the same at the middle of the month - pay-day was still a couple of weeks away and my bank account was already beginning to slip heavily into the red.

'We could go to the park,' I suggested, searching for cheap alternatives for something to do. Rebecca nodded.

'Good idea. You can hear yourself talk there.'

'And it's free,' I added quickly.

We crossed the main road and followed the twisting path of a narrow side street which led to the park. As we walked, we caught up on the fortnight's worth of gossip and developments which we had missed while Becky had been