"Otto!" Angela shouted as she ran down the street from the Regency Café. Otto turned and walked towards her.
"Who was that?" he asked. Angela hesitated.
"my-my husband, Joe. We're getting divorced." Otto's face lit up.
"and" Angela continued.
"he said that I could get into a new relationship as soon as I wanted." Otto smiled and took Angela's hand in his.
"Well, shall we find an alternative café and I can explain everything." They got into Otto's car and found a secluded café off the main road.
"First off" He started.
"Thomas isn't my son. Elizabeth was engaged to a US Marine and got pregnant, he died in a car crash in Cyprus which I was responsible for. My marriage to Elizabeth is a pact, to protect Thomas. Mulligan is dead, I won't go into details. He forced Elizabeth, and she's pregnant, but I cannot stay in the marriage any longer. Mrs J has taken Thomas to live with her and her parents. Elizabeth is moving in with her parents. Would you care to move in with me?" Angela was shocked, but smiled.
"I'd love to, Mr Powell." Otto kissed her hand.
"If we're going to be living together, I really think that Mr Powell will become very tiresome. I would much rather that you call me Otto."
"Of course" She said, and smiled. She looked worried though, there were going to be a million things to sort out and explain, moving in with a man before wedlock, not the 1961 ideal. Who was going to look after her father? obviously Maureen Mulligan was there but If she would agree to look after him full time she'd need paying, She'd always had Angela's income to keep them going. If Angela moved in with Otto, Maureen would need a wage, and she needed to be home all day looking after Angela's father, so that would have to become her job. What about Angela's job? Nurses weren't allowed to be married, so she'd have to stop work and become a housewife like Jeannie or Lily. This one, however, she would only have to worry about if they got married, which they wouldn't be able to do for a couple of years, only once they were properly divorced. Otto had already thought about this, and he had talked to Matron, who said that Angela was one of the best nurses they had and that she would be allowed to keep her job, as they needed her in the Hospital. Angela and Otto left the café hand in hand. They drove back to Angela's house, to break the news to Angela's father and Miss Mulligan. They took it well, and Maureen loved the idea of becoming a full time carer for Angela's father. Angela packed her things, and got ready to move in with Otto Powell.
2 years later
The phone rang. Mrs J answered it in the usual way. She had returned to the house after Thomas moved in with Elizabeth, her parents and the new baby, a girl called Caroline, after Mrs J. Angela had just walked down the stairs, much to the convenience of Mrs J. It was Jeannie, who was phoning to say that she and Richard were expecting again. She put the phone down and walked out to the car where Otto was waiting.
"Who was that?" he asked.
"Jeannie. She's pregnant. She obviously thinks that she can trust Richard again. He's probably been on his best behaviour trying to impress her." Otto chuckled and opened the car door. They drove to the hospital. They met afterwards at 5pm and drove home. They didn't want to be late, Mrs J could be terrifying when she wanted to, she could make grown men (Otto) weep with her shouting. They walked through the door to see Mrs J beaming.
"What are you looking so happy about, Mrs J?" Otto asked.
"Phonecall today. Your divorces have come through. You can get married!" angela literally jumped for joy and launched herself at Otto. He slid to one knee once Angela had let go.
"Angela, darling. Will you marry me?"
"Otto! Of course I'll marry you!" Otto pulled a ring from his pocket and slid it onto her finger. They sat down and ate their dinner as quickly as they could. They were running late, they only had 20 minutes until Charlie and Lily Enderbury would arrive, and they had to change out of their work clothes. Mrs J took the Enderburys through to the front room where Otto and Angela were waiting.
"What are you two looking so smug about?" Charlie asked. Angela had made sure that no-one could see her ring. "Angela, darling, do you want to tell them?" Otto asked as he poured Charlie a single malt whiskey.
"Tell us what?" Lily said.
"We're getting married!" Angela announced, smiling madly.
"The divorces came through today" Otto added. He set Charlie's whiskey down on the coffee table and took Angela's hands in his.
"Congratulations!" Charlie said, grinning.
"Oh, how wonderful!" Lily exclaimed. Charlie looked at Angela worriedly.
"What about your job?" he asked.
"Otto has sorted anything out, and apparently Matron said that she's never going to let me leave." The evening carried on thus, with Otto giving Angela the latest Beatles present as a gift. The next morning, they went to tell Matron about their engagement, so she could tell the rest of the staff. Everyone congratulated them, and in the evening they went out for drinks with Richard and Jeannie.
Otto and Angela were married 3 months later. Jeannie went on to have another miscarriage. Otto and Angela had twin daughters in 1966. Otto was killed in a car accident in 1981 along with the twins. Angela sank into depression and committed suicide 2 years later. Richard and Jeannie stayed together through thick and thin. Richard died of cancer in 2001,and Jeannie is still going today, at the grand old age of 82. Angela and Jeannie's father died in 1965, and Maureen Mulligan went on to get married and have 3 children. She died in 2006.
Elizabeth went on to marry again, and have another child. Thomas died of cancer in 2009, and Elizabeth passed away of natural causes a few months later. Her husband lives on.
Charlie and Lily Enderbury had 4 children and had a very long and successful marriage. Lily had a heart attack in 2012 and died. Charlie died a few months later.
This is where our story ends. For as long as they were together, Otto and Angela lived happily and loved each other until the end. Richard and Jeannie worked out how to have a successful marriage, and put it into practice. Charlie and Lily Enderbury had a wonderful, long life together and loved each other until Lily's death in 2012. Maureen Mulligan showed us just how kind some humans can be, she showed us the meaning of selflessness and of wisdom. Elizabeth showed us persistence, and Thomas showed us the importance of love.
