If You Ask Me To
It was another November night in Albert Square, the darkened streets were empty and void of any type of noise. Everything was still and silent. A red glow surrounded the epicentre of the Square, illuminating it so that the shadows slinked away into the darkness. A blonde woman carefully stepped out of a stationary black cab and handed the driver a fistful of crisp notes. She sucked in a deep breath and, with trembling hands, pushed open the double doors of the Queen Victoria Pub.
Her eyes swept over the balloons and birthday banner strung up over the bar and the smiling, glowing faces of the punters. She fixed her stare on the man serving drinks, a face that she wanted to forget more than anything, to never see again, but here she was. Again. "Is this a private party or can anyone join in?"
Every face in the pub stared at the woman as a shocked silence descended over them. I've never seen this place so quiet.
"Something I said?" The woman asked nonchalantly, stepping towards the bar.
"Ronnie!" Roxy exclaimed, snapping out of her shocked stupor and rushing towards her sister. "Where've-why, when did you- you're pregnant?" The questions tumbled out of her mouth half formed, her words running into each other.
Ronnie nodded. "Yeah," she replied, quietly. "Why don't we go upstairs, eh? We can talk there, yeah?"
Roxy nodded eagerly as she followed her sister up to the living area.
"Phil mind the bar, sweetheart," Peggy told her eldest son, who was still gobsmacked, as she too followed her nieces.
"Where've you been, Ron?" Her sister asked, the emotion evident in her voice, as they both entered the living room. Roxy couldn't take her eyes of her sister, she looked so different – her hair was longer and she was glowing with pride and joy.
"Ibiza mainly," Ronnie replied, sitting down on the sofa and resting her hands across her stomach. They both turned around when they heard their aunt come into the living room.
"Oh darling," Peggy gushed, embracing Ronnie. "Oh, look at you, aren't you a picture? How far along are you?"
"Thirty four weeks." Ronnie smiled, "I'll get to meet this little one soon."
"They let you fly when you're nine months gone?"
Ronnie didn't look at her sister, instead she changed the topic of conversation. "Anyway, today's not about me, where's that little niece of mine? I got her a present for her birthday and I er . . . wanted to see her."
"Ah, she's beautiful, an absolute treasure, she's sleeping now," Peggy answered, a proud smile on her face.
"Oh right, that's okay."
Roxy couldn't believe her older sister was here, just sitting in the living room as though she'd been gone the length of a couple of hours, not nine months. How can she pretend that nothing has happened? That everything's fine? And where the hell has she been all this time?
"You didn't answer my question," Roxy stated, clearly agitated about something.
"What?"
"Roxy, darlin', you're sister's just got here, why don't we-"
"No!" Roxy exclaimed. "Don't lie to me, Ronnie-"
"That's rich coming from you." Both sisters were silent for a moment, before Ronnie spoke once again. "I'm trying here, Roxy, I'm really trying-"
"If that were true, then where were the phone calls, the letters, telling us you were okay? You just upped and left one day without telling us, we were going out of our minds with worry – how d'you think that made us feel?"
There had been so many nights Roxy lay awake, long after everyone else had fallen into a slumber, just staring into the darkness. And then she'd hear a noise, quickly dart downstairs, thinking her sister was trying to get in, thinking she'd come back to her. But she never did. And only in those moments did Roxy finally realise what Ronnie had gone through with her.
"What – your precious father not tell you?" Ronnie enquired, the venom seeping from her voice.
