Janet had told Joe-Nathan that he didn’t need to apologise for Chloe’s swearing. ‘On occasions it can suit a person. I think Chloe is one of those people who suits swearing. And I don’t say that very often!’ she said, smiling at Chloe in exactly the same way as she had been smiling at Joe lately: definitely happy and sort of sad. It worried Joe, that confusing smile; he wasn’t quite sure what it meant.
Joe had four half-pints of beer, and Janet kept up with Chloe, having one more sherry than normal, to calm her nerves after the excitement.
‘I’d be too scared to punch a great big man like that,’ said Janet.
‘Bullies really push my buttons,’ said Chloe. ‘I didn’t have time to think about being scared. I punched him before that signal reached my brain.’
‘Do you get into a lot of fights?’
‘Not physical, Janet. But I can get quite verbal,’ she winked at the older woman. ‘I expect that surprises you.’
‘Indeed, it does,’ said Janet, winking back.
‘Please do not talk in codes with the winks and things you do not mean. It is hard work trying to follow the conversation.’
‘Sorry, Joe,’ said Janet. She turned to Chloe and started to explain what Joe meant.
But Chloe raised her good hand to stop her. ‘No need. I get it,’ she said. ‘Sorry, Joe.’
When Janet invited Chloe back to their house for something to eat after the pub, she noticed Joe startle slightly. Chloe hesitated but said, ‘I’d love to.’ Which made Joe startle again.
Janet suggested that the two of them sit in the lounge and watch some TV while she prepared dinner. Chloe rubbed her fingers over the corduroy covering on her chair; it was comforting. The room smelled of Shake n’ Vac and when Janet – wearing a brightly flowered apron – brought Joe a large glass of orange squash and asked Chloe what she would like (‘Something stronger if you want?’), Chloe felt like she and Joe were two kids pretending to live in an old-people’s home.
‘Can I have some squash too, please?’ Chloe said.
While Janet went to get Chloe’s drink, Joe pointed the remote control at the television, his face creased in concentration. He turned to Chloe as the screen came to life.
‘Season nine, episode two,’ he said.
‘Season nine, episode two of what?’ she said.
‘Of Friends. It’s called “The One Where Emma Cries”. I thought this would be a good one to watch because of what happened in the pub.’
‘Why?’
Joe looked at Chloe as if this were a trick question. ‘You do not know?’ he said.
‘I really do not.’
Joe turned more fully in his chair. ‘In this episode Ross is angry at Joey and Joey invites Ross to punch him. Ross does not want to punch him, but in the end, he does. Joey ducks without really meaning to, and Ross hits the metal post that is behind him. The way Ross reacts when he hurts his hand is like you in the pub after you hit that man. It was not funny when it happened to you. But it is funny when it happens to Ross, you will see.’
‘Okay, cool,’ said Chloe, and Joe hit play on the remote.
The sound of their laughter filtered through to the kitchen and in to Janet, who took her time grating cheese and cutting tomatoes. When the sandwiches were made and bowls of crisps and cucumber and a small coffee and walnut cake were laid out on the table, Janet quietly made her way back to the living room as the episode was ending, and she hovered outside for a moment.
Her hand was just touching the door handle when she heard Joe say, ‘Am I your boyfriend?’
Janet held her breath. She knew the answer and she guessed that Chloe could probably handle the question quite well, but she wasn’t sure how Joe would feel. Rejection is always painful.
‘No,’ said Chloe. ‘We’re friends.’
‘Good friends.’
‘Yeah, good friends, Joe, like them on the TV show.’
‘On the TV show some of the friends are girlfriend and boyfriend.’
‘I know. But not Phoebe and Joey. They are just friends. You’re Joey, and I’m Phoebe. You do look a bit like Joey y’know.’ Janet heard Chloe say.
‘You do not look anything like Phoebe,’ said Joe.
‘I don’t look anything like anybody,’ said Chloe.
‘No.’ Joe agreed.
And Janet breathed again, because it wasn’t a rejection: Joe wasn’t hoping that Chloe would be his girlfriend, he was simply after clarity. And what could be better than having a bit of clarity about who your friends are? All evening, Chloe had made it abundantly clear what a good friend she could be. Janet opened the door and invited them both to come through to the kitchen.
‘This is nice. Feels like a tea party,’ said Chloe, sitting where Janet indicated she should. ‘Is that your dad?’ she pointed at Mike’s framed photograph.
‘Yes,’ said Joe.
‘He looks like a really nice person,’ said Chloe. ‘Oh, Janet, I’m so sorry, will you think I’m rude if I take the tomatoes out of my sandwiches?’
‘I’d think you were ruder if you tried to eat them when you really don’t want to.’
‘It’s funny, I like ketchup, but I can’t do a real tomato.’ Chloe carefully pulled the thin slices out and laid them on the side of her plate.
‘I am the opposite,’ said Joe. ‘I am scared of red liquids. They make me think of… you know… all the bad things. Blood. My dad…’ Joe swallowed hard, ‘he cut his finger off once and…’
Chloe and Janet waited for him to finish the sentence, but he never did.
‘What about baked beans?’ Chloe asked.
‘They are fine. They are within the orange range. In addition, I can eat a real tomato. Texture is important.’
Chloe nodded. ‘I get it,’ she said. ‘But one of the reasons I don’t like real tomatoes is the texture; that blobby wet bit, there.’ She touched the part she meant, on the side of her plate with her cake fork and grimaced. ‘I can’t stand the snotty bit on an egg either.’ Chloe made a soft gagging sound. ‘Eggs in general make me think of eyes.’ She shrugged. ‘People are strange, though, aren’t they?’
‘Yes, they are,’ said Janet. ‘Strange and rather lovely.’