Six months has passed...
Tim roused wondering why music was playing. As he came to, he realised Rod Stewart was singing about how the first cut is the deepest. Then he felt the weight of Julie's leg on his. He opened one eye to the time on the musical culprit and sighed.
He had to get up, but he wanted to stay with Julie listening to the words, "Try to love again," on the new clock radio they received as a wedding gift. He reached over and turned off the singing. Since Julie could sleep a bit longer, he tried to slip out of bed without rousing her.
He walked into the kitchen looking out the hatch into the sitting room. He shook his head, because they needed furniture. Still he loved the flat. It wasn't the one he had lived in growing up, just a bit smaller.
He put the kettle on and poured a bowl of Corn Flakes. Most everything in the kitchen had been wedding gifts. He smiled. Jules had been beautiful, but most of the day was a blur.
His Dad had given them a night in a hotel and a day off to set up housekeeping. He was due to arrive at the surgery in thirty minutes time as a married man. He and Julie had spent two nights together and already he was accustomed to having her burrow into his side with her leg on his.
They had a bed and not much else. Although he teased her that was all they needed, he knew they'd need to acquire some furniture. Perhaps they should have waited longer to marry until they had savings. Still Tim had just started at the surgery and was now earning. That was why they couldn't afford the time for a honeymoon.
He looked up from his bowl and saw her looking radiant as she sleepily stumbled into the kitchen.
####
Tim smiled at her in a way that said, mine. She smiled at her husband who was eating cereal with his messy hair.
"Good morning Mrs. Turner."
"Good morning Dr. Turner," she replied. "Do you want toast? I can make you something."
"No, this is fine. I haven't much time."
Julie set to making toast and found herself singing softly, "The first cut is the deepest baby I know… What?" She had turned to see Tim smiling at her.
"Nothing… I liked waking up with you and the music."
"I liked going to sleep with you," she replied as she turned to retrieve her toast.
Then he was behind her and whispered into the sensitive spot behind her ear, "I liked being in bed with you too. I wish I didn't have to go or I'd…"
Julie giggled and turned and kissed him. Then she abruptly push his away. "Go. You'll never hear the end of it from Dad if you're late."
"I know I already feel guilty. When he told me about the hotel, he gave me a talk about being patient. I couldn't dare tell him that ship had sailed."
She sat at the sad little table, she'd found in a charity shop. Perhaps they should have waited until they had some money saved to marry, but they'd been waiting four long years. They were both anxious to finally be married.
Julie was starting a new job at a nursery. The pay wasn't much, but it would help. At least she'd be working with children until she had her own. She hated to leave Oliver, but that had always been the plan. Paula and David had been so good to her. She was certain they'd always be friends.
They were guests at the wedding as well as so many others. It seemed that all of Poplar was in attendance including a handful of nuns. She couldn't remember half of who she met, but more than one told Julie that she had once been Timmy's Akela. She smiled thinking of little Tim as a cub.
For all the guests, only a few were there for Julie. Kate was her matron of honor. Paula and David wouldn't have missed it. Her brother Albert with his wife Linda came up to London, but the rest of her family was too far away or refused to come.
Julie's father was too angry with everyone to come. He was angry with Julie, Carole and Charlie for deserting him. He was angry with all doctors, especially Tim, for not saving his wife. This Julie found painful seeing as he had been angry when Tim tried to help her. Most of all he was angry that his wife was dead.
He'd be angry with Albert soon too. Apparently since he'd been made redundant at the factory, he and Linda had decided to try their luck up the Manchester way. He hoped to find work in a textile mill. Julie hated that they'd be so far away, but knew now she had no reason to return to Sussex except perhaps to see Kate.
She tried not to be a sad bride, but she often thought of her mother. Tim's mother, Mum, said things like, your mother is smiling now or she'd be so proud. Julie was glad when Mum spoke about the things that Julie was feeling and seemed to understand her.
When Julie saw herself dressed in white, she asked, "Do you think my mother and Tim's mother are together?"
Shelagh who stood behind her adjusting her veil, replied, "I hope so."
Both of their first mothers might have known she shouldn't have been wearing white, but they were keeping her little secret. Julie smiled.
Tim came into the kitchen dressed with his hair in place. The smell of his aftershave made her feel heady, as he kissed her goodbye. Leaving, he said, "Goodbye wife."
Julie went to get ready for work. She would come home and make dinner for her husband. Since they had no furniture to sit on, they'd have nothing to do, except go to bed. Perhaps they'd read, but she wasn't too convinced.
####
Tim got to the surgery before his father. When Dad arrived looking rather harried, he teased Tim.
"I expected you to be late."
"Dad, I'm not the one who is always late."
"Yes, but now…"
"Don't start you were late when you didn't have a wife."
"Yes, but now we both have wives."
Patrick winked and Tim rolled his eyes.
The surgery was busy. People were coming in to see young Dr. Turner with ailments that they'd been ignoring for quite some time. Many times a day, he heard statements like, "I remember when you were a rascal running around in short trousers."
Every time he got a glimpse of the gold band on her finger, he smiled. Tim wished he could be two people. One who could be doing the job he had longed to do since he was a boy. The other who could spend every minute with Julie. Truthfully that wish wasn't new, he had it since the day she was standing alone at the cinema.
####
Julie had come home from her first day at the nursery exhilarated. She had stopped at the shops and purchased fresh vegs. It was the first real meal she would prepare for her husband. My husband.
She couldn't stop herself from singing to the radio whilst she worked in her very own kitchen. As she laid the table and she kept glancing towards the door ready to greet Tim the moment he crossed the threshold.
Instead the food sat on the cook top and she sat at the tiny table adorn with two new place settings, made up of wedding gifts. She had spent the previous day washing and storing all the kitchen items.
When she couldn't sit any longer. She blew out the taper she had lit with a sigh and went to the phone.
"Turner residence."
"Hi Angela, it's…"
"Julie!" Angela exclaimed. She had been a lovely bridesmaid.
"I was wondering where Tim is?" she asked.
She heard Angela holler, "Dad, Julie's looking for Tim."
Then she heard mumbling before Dad said, "Sorry! I should have thought to let you know. He was called to hospital. He left in a hurry. You probably have a cold dinner by now."
"Maybe not cold, but…"
"Looks like you're officially a GP's wife."
He said a few other things that basically amounted to get used to it. The truth was she was prepared for this life, but she was disappointed it happened tonight. She was hoping that it would be special.
Tim came home after she'd gone ahead and ate on her own. He was full of excitement. He'd been called in to use forceps. It was his mum's patient.
"Julie, it was my first time working with Mum like that. Every time she called me doctor, she'd smile." He look towards the cooker and said, "I'm starving."
She started reheating the food.
"I called Dad looking for you," she said tentatively.
"I'm sorry. I should have asked Dad to tell you. It's still so new to me… I was a bit excited."
"No sorry needed. It's not like you were at the pub. Come on then and eat. Once I've done the washing up, we can go to bed."
Tim smiled and said, "Sit and tell me all about your day whilst I tuck in. We can wash up together."
Julie hugged him from the back and said, "I love you Dr. Turner."
"I know Mrs. Turner and that's why I'm the luckiest man alive." Tim added, "Not just because this is delicious."