Chapter 3
Meanwhile, back in the Square
"Where's Sy?"
"Christian, hi; he's …" Tamwar begins.
"Is he still with Zainab?"
"Mum?"
"Yea, he said he was having lunch with her, but it's almost 3."
"Oh, well, um, I don't think they're …," Tamwar babbles nervously. "He said he was having lunch with Mum?"
"Yea," Christian replies, the beginning of a suspicion forming.
"Well, of course he would ... say that, because that's what they did; they did have lunch together. They didn't say where they were going, and Syed has his phone turned off; and mum, mum also has her's turned off, so I can't get hold of either of them," he laughs nervously. "It really is very inconvenient because I really need to get back to the restaurant," he concludes, his voice now rising in an exaggerated sense of annoyance.
"I'll pop around to the house, see if they're there," Christian assures, whilst privately thinking yet again that Tamwar is the oddest of guys sometimes, the complete opposite of Syed in every way. "I'll send him here as soon as I find him," he promises, quickly ducking away before Tamwar decides to blame him for anything.
Tamwar quickly texts Syed, "Where are you? Christian looking for you. Thinks you're with mum?"
###
"Hi Zainab, I need to speak to Sy."
"Christian, hi," she greets, stepping back for him to enter.
"Sy," he calls as he enters the sitting room, "have you got Sharon's number? And also, Tam needs to get back to the restaurant … Where is he?"
"He's not here; I was just about to tell you."
"But if you're back …"
"Where were you the last night?"
"I had to babysit for Rox," Christian quickly fabricates.
"Funny that, because Syed said you had a client."
"Well, I had a client first, and then …" he mumbles sheepishly.
"Yea, yea, forget it. Anyway, I need to talk to you about the curtains we were going to buy. You said you would come with me."
"Why don't you ask Afia?"
"Afia?" she asks puzzled.
"Or Tam, or Syed? You think I'm only good for choosing curtains; the gays know all about picking pretty patterns and colours?"
Zainab looks at him, with no understanding of what he's getting at. "You said you knew a guy," she hesitantly reminds him; and he realises that he is being unfair.
"You're right, I'm sorry," he sighs. "Show me the samples you got from Powell's." And they forget about Syed and Afia for a little while as they spread everything out on the table and work out what would be the best match, measure up, and calculate how much it would cost to replace the curtains in every room.
"What was that about earlier?" she murmurs, as they sit with a cup of tea and share a well-earned packet of biscuits.
"I'm sorry ..."
"Is something bothering you?" Is that why you didn't come to dinner?"
Christian bites his bottom lip, but says nothing.
"Just recently, you've been staying away. Are you and my son having problems?"
"I think so," he admits.
"Is there anything we can do to help?"
"I think I'm losing him." The words appear to surprise him more than they do Zainab.
"Would you like me to have a word?" she asks, instinctively leaning over to give his hand a comforting squeeze.
He looks up at the concern in her voice and catches a correspondingly anxious look in her eyes. "You would do that for me?" he asks in amazement.
"Of course, why not?"
Christian smiles, feeling absurdly happy. "I'm really glad I came here today," he says huskily.
"I am very good company, it has often been said," Zainab acknowledges.
#
When Masood returns a couple of hours later, they are in the middle of an animated conversation about Max and Jack and the apparent reason the brothers look nothing alike.
"Mas, you'll never guess what Christian told me," Zainab says urgently.
"You know I don't approve of gossip," he mock-sternly responds.
"Apparently, Jack has the same red hair as Max, but he's been dying it brown for years, and he wears make-up to cover his freckles."
"Are you sure?" Masood asks doubtfully.
"It's true, Rox would know - collars and cuffs and all that," Christian points out, without thinking.
"What?" Zainab asks, confused. "Because they both wear similar shirts sometimes? That's your proof?"
Masood smiles as he listens to Christian's tall tale about how you can tell if someone is a natural red head by the brand, style and colour of shirt they choose to wear. He removes his jacket, gets a drink and goes to join them.
###
That evening
"Surprise!" Christian cries, as Syed walks in the door of the flat.
"What's this?" he asks, trying to fain enthusiasm.
"What does it look like?"
"You've cooked," he responds, looking towards the saucepans bubbling away on the cooker.
"Not just that, but we've got the whole flat to ourselves; Zainab's got Yas. Now, get your coat off, have a relaxing shower, and come to me smelling all nice. We're going to have a romantic meal; it's been ages since we've spent some proper quality time together."
"Okay, I won't be long," Syed promises as he heads for the bathroom.
The meal (his favourite), the candles, the romantic music, snuggling up on the sofa to watch a romantic DVD (one of his favourites) are all meant to remind him that Christian Clarke knows how to please his man.
As they eat, he does most of the talking, and Syed is content to listen; his mind is still on the unsettling conversation he had with Nazim earlier.
"You're very quiet tonight," Christian observes, eventually.
"I'm a bit tired," he excuses.
"Where did you go today after you had lunch with Zainab?"
"Nowhere special."
"Is everything okay? You're not still mad at me for going awol last night?"
"No, I was just thinking …"
"I just didn't feel like spending the evening making polite conversation, or listening to your mother having a go at Tam or Masood one more time," Christian expands on his familiar gripe. "There's never a dull moment with your family, there really isn't; but sometimes after a hard day working, I just need to let my hair down, preferably somewhere where I can get some alcohol." At this point, he is reminded of the lovely alcohol-free afternoon he has just spent with his mother-in-law.
"Christian, dad brought this guy for home for dinner …"
"I know, you're right, I'm being unfair. I was round yours this afternoon and we had a lovely chat; and Masood joined in, when he got home after his rounds. Did you know that a few years ago Phil thought about getting a hair transplant, but Shirley talked him out of it?"
"Christian ..."
"I guess that what I'm trying to say is that sometimes it's easier to do something that takes no effort; and spending time with Rox is, well, very easy to do. She called me, said she needed a shoulder to cry on; she's broken up with Sean, again. Actually, in a way, he's broken up with her; she caught him with Kim." Christian fills Syed in on the latest instalment of Roxy's eventful love life. Syed tunes him out, the way he usually does when Christian starts on about Roxy. Sometimes, Syed wishes he could remove Roxy from their lives altogether.
###
"We had a lovely evening," Christian tells Roxy the next day; and we talked everything through. We're totally okay now.
"Did he let you shag him at the end of the night?"
"Roxy Ann Mitchell, you are just too nosy," Christian laughs.
"So he didn't."
"Of course he did, my man can never refuse me."
Sitting at the next table, Nazir smiles a brittle smile.
The Argee Bhajee
"What's going on, Syed; why didn't you tell Christian you were giving Nazir a tour around the Square?" Tamwar asks suspiciously.
"He was so busy talking about Roxy, I didn't get the chance," he replies evasively.
"Things are okay, aren't they, now that we're all one big happy family?"
"Yea, of course."
"Where did you bring Nazir? I can't believe you found anywhere interesting to show him around here."
"What's with all the questions?" Syed snaps.
"Well, there were only three ... questions, actually," Tamwar points out. "Is everything okay?"
"That's four," he shouts in a fit of temper. Throwing the napkins down on the table, he walks out, leaving Tamwar staring after him in surprise.
###
A couple of days later
"How are things with you and Christian?" Zainab asks seemingly out-of-the-blue, as she hands Syed the books for the Restaurant so that he can update them.
"We're fine, of course," he murmurs absently. "Did Tam give you the receipts for last night?"
"You should go away for a long weekend, we'll have Yasmin."
"Mum, are you listening to me? The receipts?"
"I'll bet it was nice spending time with someone from back home. Nazir was very impressed with you; he told Mas he thought you were wasted on the stall. He has contacts; he offered to introduce you to some very important people."
"Why do you keep trying to change me?" Syed snaps irritably.
"Okay, okay, I won't meddle," his mother lies.
###
That evening
"You want to go out?" Christian asks, despite knowing the answer.
"I'm not really in the mood," Syed says, without looking up from the book he is reading.
"You never come out anymore."
"You've got Roxy."
"You can't be bothered making an effort, is that it?"
Syed doesn't respond.
"Sy, look at me when I'm talking to you," Christian explodes, grabbing the book from him. "You've completely withdrawn into yourself for months now; you never talk to me, you never listen when I tell you stuff."
Syed gets up and goes to boil the kettle.
"Why won't you talk to me; tell me what you're thinking; it's the most annoying thing about you, I swear."
"There's nothing to say," Syed murmurs, his eyes fixed on the kettle.
"Of course there is. For a start, you can tell me why you're so quiet."
"I've always been like this."
"No, you haven't. You used to try, you used to look pleased to see me when I walked in the door; you used to want to spend time with me. I thought we were okay; after last night, I thought …?"
"I thought you were going out?"
"Please, Sy, talk to me."
"I don't want to go out, I didn't want to have a surrogate baby with Roxy, I never wanted to adopt a baby, I didn't want to get married, I don't want you coming home blind drunk all the time. Would you like some tea?"
Syed calmly puts a couple of t-bags in a couple of mugs and starts to pour the hot water over them.
Christian bangs the door on his way out.
###
The Vic, about five minutes later
"He is impossible, really impossible," he explodes.
"I assume we're talking about lover boy?" Roxy says mock wearily.
"Who else? I swear, I've no idea what he wants; every time I think I've got him sussed …"
"You mean every time you think you've got him around to your way of thinking," Roxy interrupts. "You should know by now that pushing Syed into doing something doesn't work. He'll agree with you now, and then go behind your back tomorrow and do the opposite. Then you'll feel betrayed."
"I don't push him into stuff; it's just that he usually needs a nudge in the right direction. I know what's best for him, what's best for us."
"Just because you understood better than he did that he needed to admit he was gay and end his marriage, doesn't mean you can ignore what he says he wants or doesn't want when it comes to other big decisions in your lives. Even though you want it all so much, Syed doesn't seem to me like someone who is ready for anything more than what you've got at the moment."
"You love slagging him off, don't you?" Christian pouts.
"Not as much as you, though," she teases.
"If I can't moan to my best mate …"
"And if you can't bear to hear the truth …"
"Let's go clubbing; I really fancy a mad night," Christian interrupts, and the subject is closed.