Chapter 7

As the day that the boy left drew closer, Patsy felt as if she could feel it more and more. It was not a prospect she was overly looking forward too.

She liked having Dan close to her and she didn't want him to go away.

"I can't believe the lads are going to go soon," she said to Liz. It was a sentence she felt as if said a million times a day. And she knew she had expressed that sentiment more than once since there shift had begun.

Now it was at an end.

Normally she would go and see Dan, but that night he had said he was going for a drink with the boys. She could only guess it was because they were leaving base and wanted a bit of a send-off. Yet it did leave her at a loose end, and she was not going to go home. She turned and was almost sure Liz was going to be there to answer her. For one moment, she was nowhere in sight at all.

It was then she saw her coming out the back. She had got her bag out the back already, which was something they nearly always did together.

"Sorry Patsy," said Liz as she came back into the room.

"I was just going to say do you want to go out for a drink tonight – I assume Jim is at the boys drink."

To her it sounded as if it would be a piss up but if that was what they wanted to do…

It was only then she saw her friend was looking awkward.

"No – no, he is not going to be. He is coming over to mine to meet my mum and dad," Patsy felt as if she had been punched in the gut. She did not think there was a thing in the world that she would like more than for her mum and dad to welcome Dan into their home.

But it was happening – for Liz it was. And she had only told her as she had happened to ask.

"Oh."

"Patsy, do not be like that," but Patsy had no time of the fact she had held back on her.

Liz sighed. She had not wanted to get into with Patsy for fear she was going to hurt her for that she was the last thing in the world that she wanted to do.

"I am not being like anything. I hope you all have a nice time."

Liz knew in her heart there was no need to say sorry for she and Jim were doing nothing wrong. So, she was not going to act as if they had been saying sorry.

And yet she was sorry – sorry Patsy could not have this too.

With that Patsy got her bag and Liz had a feeling that she had been dismissed for the night.

She left the Greasy Spoon on her own. It would not be as easy walk if they left together that day.

Patsy in the back meanwhile thought on. If Liz was going to see Jim that night, then she was going to see Dan. And when she did, she was going to make damn sure the two of them had a better time than Liz and Jim. They could keep their soppy meal with her folks – they were going to do something much more adult.

Much more meaningful.

Deep down she knew she should not take all of it out on Liz – but she needed someone to take it out on. And she was doing everything she wanted to do. And, as far as she was concerned, it was not fair in the slightest way.

X x x

"How are your ribs?" Dan asked Jim. It was true, they were sore. They had been suffering since he had said to the other lads he was going to go and spend the night with Liz instead of them - he had had a fair amount of stick.

"Surviving," he said with a grin. He was sure a night with his Liz would soothe away any frayed feathers for him.

"Glad to hear it," his friends said with a smile. There was a silence for a moment. "So, you are going to meet Lizzie's parents? Someone might think you are getting serious about her," he said with a cocked eyebrow.

"Watch yer tongue. I am serious about that wee girl," he was not going to have him think any different.

"Well, James McDonald, missing out on a boys drink and serious about a girl – I never thought I'd see the day."

Jim humped. Well, he was missing the drink and he had been serious about Liz since the day they met. One thing was for sure. He did not think he had ever felt about a woman the way he felt about Elizabeth, his Lizzie. He was not sure what it was. All he knew was it was real.

"So – so tonight is the big night and the big meet. Are you going to be minding you P's and Q's?" Dan asked.

Jim smirked at the question as he pulled a blazer out. "Of course, I bloody am - and I am going to take her mammy some flowers for good measure."

If he had his way, then they were all going to have a long future together, and tonight he would lay the groundwork for that. He had been told once you only ever got one chance to make a first impression and the older, he got the more he found that advice to be true.

If he wanted to show her parents, he was worthy of her daughter's love. This then had to be a good first impression and then some, which was just what he was going to make.

"Flowers for her mother, my friend it must be love," Dab quibbled.

"Aye," Jim smiled – and don't you forget it."

Please review!

Hi all – so its been over a year since I updated this, so I am sorry to return with a bit of a short offering! However, there's been so big changes in my life – namely I've had a baby (!) – so I haven't quite always got the time to write the long chapters I used to, and I really want to get cracking on this again, so I've decided little and hopefully more often is the way forward! Thank you for reading if you are and I hope your well in the crazy times we're living in xxx