Harry gazed at his surroundings, he was bored. Kerry his sister was sat reading her weekly Take a Break magazine and she seemed to be on another planet as the interest of the stories took over her mind. Jordan was sprawled flat out on the sofa watching the TV. He was lay like this so Harry couldn’t even sit at the bottom of it. This was his castle and he wasn’t willing to share it with anyone, not even Harry. Kerry had told Jordan that it was only a few weeks that her brother was staying with them, but three months later he was still there and he’d given them no signs that he was intending to leave.
Harry stood to his feet and stretched his arms over his head, yawning. “I’m going to go round to Amanda’s to sort a few things out.”
Kerry lifted her head up. She’d heard him talking a lot lately about this woman and delved deeper. “So, has this Amanda got girlfriend potential then or what?”
Jordan was listening too; he sat up and folded a cushion under his head. Harry was blushing. “You must be joking, it’s the girl I met at the therapy classes I go to. She’s more fucked up than me, and that’s saying something.”
Jordan screwed his face up and sat tall in his seat. He couldn’t hold his tongue any longer. “Well you better sort something out pretty soon because we want our house back to ourselves,” he nodded his head at Kerry. “Don’t we love?”
Kerry snarled at him, he was so ruthless and never thought about hurting anyone else’s feelings. “Harry can stay here as long as he wants Jordan, so stop making him feel uncomfortable. He’ll leave when he’s good and ready, won’t you Harry?”
Jordan rolled over on the sofa and gritted his teeth together punching his fist into the pillow. “He’s taking liberties now. Fuck me, he needs to sort his napper out and get home to his own gaff. We’ve babysat him long enough.”
Kerry was outraged; she flung the magazine at her partner’s head. “Shut the fuck up you inconsiderate prick.” World War Three was ready to start. Their eyes were locked and they were gunning for each other. Harry grabbed his coat from the side of the table and headed to the door. When these two were at loggerheads there was no stopping them, they could go on for hours. Turning his head back over his shoulder he spoke to them both. “Jordan, you’re right. I’ll go back home at the end of the month.” Jordan raised his hands over his head and cupped them together celebrating and cheering, Kerry was snapping at him. Harry was gone.
Strolling to his car Harry shook his head. He knew he’d outstayed his welcome at his sister’s house, but if the truth was known, he hated the thought of ever returning home to his empty house, a house full of bad memories. Turning the key in the ignition the engine roared. Reaching over he turned the dial for the radio, a song from his youth started playing. Dexy’s Midnight Runners always got his feet tapping. Nodding his head along to the beat he pulled out of the car park.
Amanda sat in her pyjamas. What did she have to get ready for anyway? It was only Harry coming around to visit her not the Queen of England. As she did every night without fail she sat wearing Paul’s old t-shirt. A grey patterned one with stains still on the front of it. She held the collar up to her nose and inhaled the last bit of body scent she could smell from her deceased partner. Every night since Paul had been gone she always made sure she wore it. It was her ritual and she would never change it, not for anyone. Yeah, it was nutty, she knew that, but this was how she coped. Pyjama bottoms tucked in her pink fluffy socks she got up to answer the door.
Harry smiled when he saw her; she was such a pretty girl but never made the most of herself. Her hair was tied back in a scraggy ponytail and he could see signs of tomato ketchup on the sides of her mouth. He never mentioned it though, he kept it to himself, he knew without a shadow of doubt she would have gone on the defensive with him for even mentioning it, thinking he was making a fool out of her. Harry kept schtum, even though he couldn’t take his eyes from the red sauce. Walking into the front room the smell from the lavender candles tickled his nose. Sweet calming fragrances circled the air. Six chunky candles were set up along the cabinet situated on the back wall. Paul’s photograph was in the middle of them. The lights were low in the house and it all seemed nice and cosy. “Make us a drink then,” Harry chuckled as he watched Amanda plonk back down on the sofa.
She looked blank, and then smiled softly. “See what I mean, I’m not used to having any guests round here. I’m not very sociable am I?” Amanda rolled off the sofa and headed into the kitchen. He was checking her bum-cheeks out as she left. Harry peeled his coat off and looked about the room. The photograph of Amanda’s dead partner seemed to be calling him. Checking she was still in the kitchen he crept to the back of the room towards the shrine. Harry picked the wooden frame up and looked at the man’s face; he was studying it for a few seconds when he heard Amanda’s shrieking tones behind him. He nearly jumped out of his skin. “Get your hands off that. Put it down now.” Harry quickly placed the photograph back in its original position. Amanda was like a bull in a china shop and barged passed him pushing him to the side. “Why, you feel the need to disturb my stuff is beyond me. Just sit down and don’t touch anything else.” Harry looked like a naughty schoolboy. He sat down slowly and avoided any eye contact with her; he could hear her stressed breathing at the side of him.
After a moment, Amanda reached over to get her drink from the table, she was calming down. “Sorry if I overreacted, it’s just,” she sucked on her bottom lip and her eyes welled up. “He was my life, and I don’t want anyone intruding on what we had together.”
Harry was confused. “Fuck me, I was only looking at it. I wasn’t going rob it or anything. You need to take a chill pill and relax. I swear to you if you carry on like this you’re going to give yourself a bleeding heart attack.”
“I know what I should do, but I can’t do it yet. Maybe in time I will, but for now just keep your fingers off my private stuff.”
Harry howled laughing and spoke in a sarcastic voice. He turned his head over to Paul’s shrine and started to press his two palms together as if he was praying. “Oh master Paul; please forgive me for touching your sacred photo. Please forgive me, oh holy one.” Amanda was in shock, he was really taking the piss out of her. He was holding nothing back and his shoulders were shaking as he continued. “Amanda, will always worship you Paul, she’ll never look at another man so don’t you worry about that, she will always be yours,” his voice had changed and he was speaking as if it was a spirit from another world.
Amanda ran over to him and grabbed him in a head lock, she was actually laughing. “Stop it now Harry, stop making fun of me. I’m still grieving I’ll have you know.”
Harry broke free from her grip, she was strong for a woman and it wasn’t easy, breathless he fell onto the sofa. “I was only messing about with you. Sorry if I’ve hurt your feelings, but come on, you’re not normal.” Amanda smiled and held a look at him for a lot longer than she should have. Harry was a good looking man and she was fighting with her feelings towards him. As she watched him laughing, her heart skipped a beat, quickly she shook her head and brought herself back into the real world, what was she even thinking? She was a grieving woman.
Harry was ready for action. Once he’d drank his coffee he yanked at her arms, he was restless. “Come on then slug, let’s surf the web for my next wife.”
Amanda chuckled. “Wife... Are you having a laugh or what? I think you need to start with a girlfriend first,” her hand rested on her hip and she was teasing him. “And, to tell you the truth, I think you’ll be lucky to get one of them the way you’re going on.” The banter had begun, these two just bounced of each other, they were getting on like a house on fire, they were so different yet the same, chalk and cheese some would say.
Amanda sat at the computer, her elbows resting on the table, Harry was gawping at her and he found himself studying her facial features, she was a beauty. He snapped out of it quickly. “Hurry up, bleeding hell. It’s so slow your computer you need to buy a new one,” Harry moaned.
“Say’s you, who doesn’t even own one yet,” she giggled with a sour expression.
Harry pulled a chair from the table next to her and watched the screen eagerly. The website appeared and Harry was like a child in a sweet shop, his fingers were pointing at the screen. “She’s mint, how old is she? Hold on, click on her, she’s hot too. I wouldn’t mind parting her tash given the chance, she’s mint.”
Amanda turned her head to face him. She was serious. “Harry you’ve not even read their profiles yet. Don’t you want to know what they’re all about first? They could be like Glenn Close out of that film Fatal Attraction for all you know; you don’t want that now do you?”
Harry was giddy, he wasn’t listening to a word she said. He wanted to look at more women. “Look at the jugs on that one; you don’t get many of them to the pound do you? I tell you what; I wouldn’t mind getting my mouth around them babies I can tell you.” Harry was looking at a picture of a blonde woman who was middle-aged. She was pretty, there was no getting away from that fact, but she looked plastic, everything about her was false. Amanda clicked on her profile and started to read her profile. The woman lived in Chorlton, which wasn’t that far from where Harry lived. She was looking for fun and someone to make her laugh.
Harry was getting excited as Amanda read it to him. “Oh, I’ll show her some fun all right. And, I’m funny too, so I can make her laugh. Send her a message and let’s bring it on.” Amanda hesitated; her fingers hit the key pad slowly. Something was wrong with her, she’d gone quiet. Harry was still on a high and chuckling to himself. “Tell her I’ve got a twelve inch nob and I can go all night long if she wants me too?”
Amanda bolted out from the chair and stood snarling at him. “There you go, you can do it yourself. I’m not your slave. You can do your own dirty work.”
Harry didn’t need to be asked twice; he sat in the chair and started typing with one finger. Amanda trudged back to the sofa and sat watching the back of his head. Pulling her t-shirt over her knees she listened to him talking to himself. “Amanda, come and look at this bird and tell me what you think. I’ll send loads of messages out tonight and see who replies. I’ve got fuck all to lose have I?”
Amanda paused; she was going to say something but stopped at the last minute. Standing to her feet she came and sat at his side again. It was nice to see Harry smiling for a change; he looked so different when he wasn’t upset, kind of dishy, kind of hunky. Eyes concentrating on the screen she looked at the next woman on his hit list. They were good looking women and she smiled at Harry. “I think you’re punching above your weight with these you know. If we were to put you in a pecking order, let’s see,” she howled laughing. “You’re more like a Ford Cortina and these women you’re looking at are more Ferraris.”
Harry’s jaw dropped low, the cheek of this woman. “No way Amanda, that’s well out of order that is. I just need an MOT and a service and I’ll be back to my fighting weight. I’ve just been out of action for a while that’s all.”
She dipped her head, she hadn’t meant to hurt his feeling but she just couldn’t help herself, it was in her personality. If the truth was known she hated that he was moving on and she couldn’t handle it. Speaking in a low voice she held his hand in hers. “I’m joking with you Harry. I’m just a bit jealous that’s all.” Harry was alert, what, was she saying that she fancied him too. Realising what she’d just said she backtracked. “I’m jealous that you’re finding your feet and getting back on the horse, so to speak.”
Harry blew his breath and held a serious look. “This is me trying to be happy Amanda. Inside I’m still hurting but if I don’t try and move on how will I ever know if I can be happy again?” He smirked and his cheeks started to go bright red. “My nob’s been out of action since Jenny left. I swear its dead. It’s like a coiled snake. It doesn’t even get hard anymore. It used to be my pride and joy you know? So, I’ve got to sort that out before I can move on. Come on,” he paused and patted his hand on her lap. “If I can’t have sex, what woman is going to want me if I can’t do the deed?”
Amanda shook her head and pushed his hands from her body. “It’s not all about sex Harry, it’s about the connection of two people. Sex comes later in a relationship, you need to know someone first. Well,” she was embarrassed and turned away from him and swung her hips slowly. “Before you start having sex.”
Harry was confused, he delved deeper. “So are you telling me when you take a woman out on a date, she doesn’t want banging at the end of the night?”
Amanda’s eyes were wide open; this was a lot harder than she first thought. This man didn’t have a clue about what a woman was really looking for. She seemed in a trance, she was thinking hard. “Right, I will be your sample date. We can start from the beginning and I will teach you how to date a woman properly.”
Harry rubbed his hands together and looked directly at her. “What, you want me to have sex with you?”
Amanda was shocked; she punched him playfully in his arm and grabbed his cheeks with her slender fingers. “Listen will you? I’m saying I will be your dating Guru that’s all. I will teach you how to act on a date, because at the moment you’re heading for disaster. A walking car crash in fact.”
Harry liked the sound of this and dug in his pockets for his cigarettes. “So, are we on a date now then?”
Amanda headed back to her seat. “No we’re not. You can come around here tomorrow night and that can be our first date. Do you think I would see someone on a first date dressed like this?”
Harry followed her back to the sofa and blew the grey smoke from his mouth. “So, let me get this right in my head. I’m coming back here tomorrow night for our first date, well, not our first date, my first practice run?”
Amanda rolled her eyes at him. “Derrrrr... Bleeding hell. I can see you’re going to be hard work. Just come back tomorrow night and we’ll take it from there. I want you to act as if you don’t know me and treat me like it’s our first date.”
Harry held a cunning look in his eyes, he was teasing her again. “So, I’ll be sleeping with you at the end of the night then won’t I?”
Amanda threw a cushion over at him, “No you won’t be sleeping with me. You’re not my type anyway.”
Harry felt a movement deep in his groin. Rubbing at his crotch he looked surprised. Something was stirring between his legs. “What is your type then Amanda? Come on; tell me, just out of interest?”
Sat tapping her fingernail on her front teeth she held her head to the side, she licked her lips slowly. “I don’t really have a type so to speak. I don’t even go for looks in a guy. It’s all about, well, it’s friendship to start with then I guess I kind of fall in love.”
Harry looked bewildered. When he’d met Jenny for the first time, it was all about ragging her knickers off and having sex, it was pure lust, none of this getting to know her better. “So how long were you with Paul before you slept with him?”
Amanda’s eyes were wide open; this was personal stuff she wanted to keep to herself. Twiddling her blonde hair she kicked her feet up onto the sofa. “That’s my business Harry; you can’t ask me things like that, it’s private.”
Harry wasn’t giving up, he probed deeper. “Was Paul your first love, or was there someone before him?”
Amanda was beetroot, her chest was rising twice as fast as normal and she was stuttering. “Stop being so bleeding nosey. Why are you so interested in me anyway?”
Harry was taken by surprise; he didn’t even know why he was asking about her love life and he just sat gawping at her with a blank expression. He changed the subject quickly. “I’m going to move back to my own house at the end of the month. I’m not looking forward to that I can tell you. Staring at four walls is the last thing I need at the moment.” Amanda checked her wristwatch; it was late and well past her bedtime. Usually at this time she would sit talking to her deceased partner Paul, but tonight she seemed to have forgotten all about him. Taking the hint, Harry stood up and grabbed his coat from the side. “What time is our date tomorrow? Do I need to bring anything with me?”
Amanda stood up and stretched her arms above her head and yawned. “Just bring yourself. I’ll cook for us. Oh, you can bring a bottle of wine if you want?”
“I can do that,” Harry sniggered. As he got to the front door he smirked. One last tease before he went home. “How many condoms do I need to bring? Or are you going to provide them too?”
A swift kick up his arse let him know the answer. “See you tomorrow,” Amanda said as she closed the door. Harry zipped his coat up and tonight he seemed to have a bounce in his step and a twinkle in his eye. Usually he would have gone around to Jenny’s house and stalked his family from afar, but not tonight, he headed home.
Amanda switched the TV off and went straight to bed. Gazing through the window she lay looking at the moon. It was calming tonight and she was at peace. Rolling on her side she pulled the duvet over her shoulder. “Goodnight Paul,” she whispered as she closed her eyes.