Girl on the Platform (3 page)

‘I’ve no idea what you’re talking about.’ Pete gave her a shrivelling glance as he headed for the stairs. ‘I know nothing about any Mad Maggie!’

‘Goodnight,’ she said cheerily, ‘sleep well.’

Mark hung about, looking at her with sheep’s
eyes, wanting to say something, but lacking the courage.

After locking the door behind them, she gave Mark a little wink and was quickly gone.

‘Did you see that?’ Mark said, catching Pete up on the stairs.

‘See
what
?’ Pete was in no mood for conversation.

‘She winked at me!’

‘Don’t be daft!’ Pete tripped up the step. ‘She probably had a speck of dirt in her eye.’

‘No! You’re wrong. She really fancies me.’

Pete continued to crawl up the stairs. ‘Rather you than me! I’m finished with women from now on.’

‘What about that girl on the platform then?’

Pete shrugged. In fact, thinking about the girl on the platform was the only way he had kept sane while Maggie was taking him apart.

‘Will you be all right?’ Mark wondered, as he escorted Pete to his room. ‘Do you need me to stay in with you tonight?’

Pete leapt to his feet. ‘Do I hell! The last thing I need is to wake up with a bloke!’

‘Don’t
you
start!’ Mark’s feelings were hurt. ‘You ungrateful sod! I’m only looking out for you.’

‘Sorry. I really am grateful, but I’m okay. Once I’m in that bed, I’ll be out like a light.’

‘Right, well, if you feel ill in the night, come and get me.’

‘There’ll be no need for that.’ Wincing, Pete gingerly touched his ribcage. ‘Though to tell you the truth, I reckon she might have broken a few bones.’

‘Shouldn’t we go to hospital…get you checked out?’

‘What, and have them question me? I don’t think so!’

‘Goodnight then…or should I say Good morning.’ He glanced at his watch. ‘
It’s half past midnight.
’

‘This business about Mad Maggie, and all that…’

Mark grinned. ‘What about it?’

‘I want you to promise that you’ll never talk about it to anyone back home.’

‘If that’s what you want.’ Mark chuckled.

‘I want you to promise!’

‘I’ve already
said,
haven’t I?’

‘Not properly. I want you to promise!’

Mark groaned. ‘Give it a rest!’

Terrified, Pete grabbed him by the lapels. ‘You’re not to say anything. Promise me, dammit!’

‘Okay, okay! If that’s what you want.’

‘It is.’

‘Then I promise.’ Mark shook himself free and started chuckling again. ‘It
was
funny though. You should have seen your face—handcuffed to the bed like that…’ When he saw the menacing look on Pete’s face he stood back. ‘All right, all right! I won’t tell a soul!’

Pete nodded. ‘Thanks, mate.’

‘What for?’

‘For getting me back, and giving me your word, and all that.’

Mark strolled away. ‘See you in the morning then?’

Pete grinned. ‘The way I’m hurting, I might never wake up.’

‘You’d better wake up,’ Mark said, ‘…you’ve got the train-tickets home,
and
our last tenner.’

It was in the early hours when Mark sensed he was not alone. Leila slid into his bed and suddenly they were entwined in each other’s arms. They kissed tenderly but then in a rush of passion they were making love.

In the morning she was gone, and Mark couldn’t decide whether it had really happened, or if it was all a dream.

He washed and dressed and called in on Pete who was busy collecting his things together. ‘You’ll never guess what happened to me,’ Mark told him.

Aching from top to bottom, Pete reluctantly humoured him. ‘I can see you’re itching to tell me…so go on then, what happened?’

‘I had a visitor.’ Mark’s face melted with the memory of it. ‘Oh, mate! It was something else, I’m telling you.’ Coming closer, he lowered his voice. ‘I spent the night with the Italian goddess. She came into my room last night, into my
bed!
’

Dropping his jacket on the bed, Pete was
open-mouthed. ‘What! You mean…you…’ He gave a little grin, ‘
…
you and her? You actually
did it…
I mean, you and her…in the bed,
together
?’

‘That’s right. Me and her…in the bed.’ He rolled his eyes and grinned. ‘It was really something!’

Pete laughed out loud. ‘You’re kidding me?’

‘Nope!’ Mark shook his head. ‘She was amazing! I’ve never known anything like it.’

Pete didn’t know whether to believe him or not, especially when they went downstairs for breakfast and Leila completely ignored Mark.

‘I’m glad you enjoyed your stay,’ she told Pete, as the two boys were about to leave.

‘Will I see you again?’ Mark whispered.

‘I’m afraid not,’ Leila replied coldly, ‘I’m selling up and moving to Italy.’

‘But…we…I mean…’ He lowered his voice. ‘Are you saying it didn’t mean anything to you?’

She replied with a stony stare. ‘Goodbye. Have a safe journey.’ She opened the door and stepped back, allowing them to pass. When they were gone she quietly closed the door, and returned to her ledger.

‘I don’t understand it.’ Mark was confused. ‘How could she do that? How could she come into my bed, make love to me then treat me like a total stranger?’

Feeling miserable, he glanced at Pete. ‘Do you think it
was
a dream after all?’

Pete thought so. ‘It
must
have been a dream. Either that, or she was sleepwalking. I’ve heard of how people do things in their sleep, and afterwards they can’t remember a thing about it.’

‘Well,
I’ll
never forget.’

‘Like I said…that’s because you remember it, and she doesn’t.’

‘So, she really
was
there then?’

‘If you say so, I suppose she was.’ Though Pete found it hard to believe.

‘She really was sleepwalking, is that what you’re saying?’

‘I don’t know Mark, it seems so’.

They travelled by taxi to Euston station, which was already heaving with people.

Pete remarked that everyone seemed in an unusually good mood. Some of them even turned to smile as Mark and Pete went by.

Mark wasn’t aware of any of it. He was too busy recalling the heavenly night he’d enjoyed.
Pete let his thoughts drift back to the girl on the platform.

It was when they were boarding the train that Pete realised why people had been so amused and interested in them.

Mark was the first to climb onto the train, and Pete was horrified to see a note written on the back of Mark’s jacket. In Tippex Leila had had her revenge:

YOU’RE A LOUSY LOVER, YOU SNORE LIKE A PIG I HOPE I NEVER SEE YOU AGAIN

Falling into his seat, Pete doubled up laughing, but he didn’t know what to do. Should he tell Mark, or was it best to leave it and let him find out for himself? He decided not to say anything.

Mark was confused. ‘What the hell’s wrong with you?’

‘Nothing.’

‘Have I got egg on my face or what?’

‘No, not that I can see. Why?’

‘Because you keep looking at me and sniggering!’

‘You’re imagining things. I was just thinking about that Maggie woman.’ Pete had been
genuinely frightened. ‘Do you realize, she could have ruined me for any other woman.’

‘It serves you right for sneaking off with her in the first place.’

The journey home was a nightmare, with Mark rattling on about how beautiful Leila was, and how cold she’d been to him that morning. ‘I reckon she’s playing tricks with me. You know what! I’ve a good mind to go back and give her a piece of my mind!’

While Mark chatted on, Pete fought with his conscience. It was hard not to tell Mark about the writing on his jacket. It was even harder for him not to laugh. At the same time, Pete also couldn’t stop dreaming about the girl on the platform and how deeply she has crept into his thoughts.

After they got off the train, Pete offered his jacket to Mark. ‘Why would I want
your
jacket when I’ve got my own?’ Mark was curious at Pete’s strange mood.

‘My jacket’s longer. I thought you might be cold, that’s all.’

‘I’m absolutely fine. You’re in a weird mood. I reckon Mad Maggie must have put something in your drink.’

Out on the platform, surrounded by people, the sniggering began again. ‘Don’t you worry
about it, son. I dare say you’ll learn as you get older,’ a fat woman told Mark as she waddled by.

Her male partner had his say too. ‘A man needs to stay one step ahead,’ he advised, ‘we’ve got to keep women in their place!’

A group of girls giggled as they ran past. ‘We’ve met a few like you…
loser!
’

‘Too right!’ Her mate made a V sign at him. ‘Us girls have to stick together.’

‘What’s wrong with them?’ Mark was puzzled.

‘Search me.’

‘I’m sure that girl meant the V sign for me!’

‘Don’t talk daft!’ Pete wanted to get him home as quickly as possible. ‘Why would she do that? The V sign had nothing to do with you and me. I bet she’s had a bad experience and doesn’t like men…
any
men, full stop!’

Mark was not convinced. ‘To tell you the truth, I’m going off women fast,’ he grumbled. ‘They’re a different breed.’

When they arrived at Mark’s home, Pete shoved him in through the door and made a hasty retreat. ‘Aren’t you coming in?’ Mark couldn’t understand Pete’s behaviour. In fact he was beginning to think that people as a whole were strange.

‘No thanks, mate.’ Pete was off at a run. ‘Got to go! See you later.’

A few minutes later, just as Pete was turning the corner at the bottom of the street, he heard Mark shouting from the doorstep, ‘Hey! I thought you were a mate…more fool me! Why didn’t you tell me, instead of letting me walk about looking like a first class idiot!’

From behind Mark came the sound of hysterical laughter as his family saw Leila’s message.

Mark’s angry voice echoed down the street. ‘I won’t forgive you for this!’

Pete however, had no doubt that sooner or later he would be forgiven.

Late on Sunday night, Pete was lolling in front of the television, his mind wandering back over recent events. Large in his thoughts was the memory of the girl on the platform.

Try as he might, he could not shake her image out of his mind. ‘I’ve got to pluck up courage and speak with her…find out who she is, and whether we could go out sometime.’ The idea of taking her out on a date warmed him right through.

The shrill tone of the telephone echoed through the room, snapping Pete out of his quiet thoughts. It was Mark. ‘I’m sorry, mate,’ he apologised. ‘I shouldn’t have come down hard on you like that…it wasn’t
your
fault, it was mine. Anyway, I don’t suppose there was much you could have done about that damned thing she wrote on my coat,’ he confessed. ‘It was my own stupid fault for getting involved with a woman out of my league.’

Pete had his own regrets. ‘Put it down to experience,’ he suggested. ‘Leila was still out of
order though, doing what she did. I didn’t have the heart to tell you, and besides, what could either of us have done, even if I
had
told you?’

‘I dunno. Taken off my jacket for a start.’ Mark felt such a fool. ‘I suppose I’m a bit upset because I really liked her, and I thought she liked me.’

‘Don’t delude yourself,’ Pete warned. ‘She’s like all the others, out for what she can get and then to hell with you.’

‘You know what?’ Mark was finding it hard to come to terms with what she had done to him.

‘What?’

‘I’ve a good mind to write to her.’

‘I wouldn’t bother if I were you. Anyway, after she made a fool of you like that, why would you want to write to her?’

‘To ask her why she did it?’ A quiet smile flitted across Mark’s face. ‘It would be interesting to see if she writes back.’

‘Rather you than me!’ Pete needed to put the whole episode behind him. ‘How about if we meet up for a drink after work tomorrow?’

‘Okay.’ Mark was all for that. ‘Sounds good to me.’

As arranged, they met up the following night, laughed at their ordeals, and as they walked
home from the pub, they made a pact not to tell anyone about their sad escapade in London.

‘I’ve had the worst day at work ever,’ Mark said. ‘We had a whole fleet of lorries in for servicing, and six new arrivals to get ready for the road. On top of that, we’ve got two men down with the flu.’ He sighed. ‘Even with all that going on, all I could think of was Leila. Honest to God, Pete, I’ve never met anyone like her.’

‘Get over it, Mark!’ Pete warned him. ‘It was never going anywhere, and you know it.’

‘I expect you’re right.’ Mark’s voice trailed off as he started to feel a bit embarrassed.

Realising that Pete was watching him, he loudly declared, ‘But if she thinks she’s got the better of me, she can think again. I’ll put her right out of my mind, that’s what I’ll do! I’ve got enough to think about at work, without fretting over some woman who gets a kick out of sleeping with men then dropping them like they never happened!’

Even so, he had not given up on the idea of writing to her. In fact, he meant to do just that the minute he got home.

He turned to Pete. ‘
You’re
not saying much.’

‘That’s because you’ve said it all.’

‘Changing the subject are you? Okay, so how did your day go at work?’

Pete shrugged. ‘Much the same as yours.’ ‘We’ve had a rush on all day. That new develop ment at the top of Bridge Street has just been released, and there was a list of viewings as long as your arm. Some of the viewers were complete timewasters. I’ve had little more than an hour in the office, so what with the paperwork piling up, and countless phone messages, I had to work right through my break. I don’t mind telling you, mate, I’m shattered!’

Mark had an idea. ‘Why don’t we both take the day off tomorrow? You ring up and tell my boss I’m down with the flu, then I’ll do the same for you.’

‘I can’t.’ Pete would have liked to though. ‘The manager’s away on a course all day. We’re far too busy for me to skive off. Besides, I’m looking for promotion this year. We’re opening a country home department, and there’s three of us after the job.’

‘No worries. You’re bound to get it. You said yourself, you sell more properties than anyone in that company.’

‘You’re right, I do, you don’t always get your just rewards. This new department is worth a fortune to the man who can deliver the goods.
What I make now is nothing to the commission I could make there.’

‘How’s that?’ Mark could turn a car engine inside out, and sell a new car to somebody who only came in to have a look, but he didn’t know the first thing about selling houses. ‘How can you make more money selling one house against another?’

‘Think about it,’ Pete said, ‘one country property might be worth what…half a million quid? I’d have to sell three or four small properties in town to get the same commission. Do you see what I’m saying?’

‘Wow!’ Mark was impressed. ‘I see what you mean. I still think you’re the best man for the job, so just go for it!’

They parted at the bottom of Craig Street. ‘See you then,’ Mark told him.

Pete gave him a friendly wave as he went away, wishing he could win the lottery.

The following morning Pete looked hard at himself in the bathroom mirror. ‘With a bit of luck, today might be the day when you get to chat with the girl on the platform.’

A minute later he rushed downstairs, passing his mother, who was in the kitchen putting on her lipstick. ‘See you tonight,’ he called.

‘Make sure you’re home in time for dinner,’ she told him. ‘No going round to see Mark before you get home.’

He went out of the house and hurried down to the station, where he stood patiently on the platform, waiting for his train. It arrived ten minutes late, as usual.

The girl didn’t show that day, or the next, and Pete began to worry. ‘Where
is
she?’ he wondered. ‘What’s happened to her?’

On Friday, she was there, and it was like the sun had come out after days of gloom.

He saw her twice again that following week; both times she was on the opposite platform. She was on her own, and Pete toyed with the idea of missing his train to cross over and speak with her, but at the last minute he lost his nerve. ‘Next time,’ he promised himself, ‘I’ll pluck up the courage.’

The next time though, she appeared to be waiting for someone to get off the train. The man she met looked to be about thirty. His face lit up with joy when he caught sight of her and when they hugged, it was like he would never let her go.

All that day, Pete found it hard to concentrate on his work. He burned with jealousy, and
love, and hated the man who had dared to hold her so tightly. His mind was forever wandering. ‘Wake up, you mug!’ he told himself. ‘You mean
nothing
to her.’ But it made no difference. He needed to know who she was, and whether he stood any kind of a chance with her.

The following week was a nightmare. He looked for her on the way to work, and he looked for her on the way back, and in between she filled his thoughts, until he was sure he might go mad.

He couldn’t sleep or eat, and when his father asked if he was sickening for something, Pete told him he was fine. But he
was
sickening for something. He was sickening for the girl.

He told himself she might be the most awful person on earth if he ever got to talk with her. She could be a man hater, but then why would she throw herself into that other man’s arms if that was the case? And even if she was
all
of these things, he still wanted to know her, to hear her voice and look into her eyes. But how? When?

Somewhere deep inside him, he knew she was the girl for him. He had to believe that she was not married. But, who was the guy that she met at the station?