Conflict
It sat looking smug and assured of its position in society. An old red Mini polished to perfection. All its metal gleaming, the sun sparkling and reflected in its bumpers. If it had been a person it would have been an ageing movie star basking in the admiring looks that she knew were her right. She sported her own personalised numberplate, BEN 1.
Ben loved his car. To him she was more than a means of transport; she was a refuge, a sanctuary, a father (or mother) confessor, a sounding board and a confidante. When he had a problem of any kind he would go for a long drive and try to resolve it. She had heard things that no other living person had, about his break up with Leo and how he had really felt; about Grant Perkins at work and his snide comments about his sexuality. And now it was about his concerns for Lisa. There was something he needed to tell her and he just did not know how to do it.
Lisa had invited him over for lunch and he knew that this was the ideal opportunity to tell her, especially with Phil out of the way at work. He decided to take the scenic route to her house to give himself time to think things through and he was now stuck behind an enormous lorry trying to manoeuvre its way through road works. He put the car into neutral and began drumming his fingers on the steering wheel, and started to voice his thoughts out loud for the benefit of the car.
‘Lise, do you know where Phil was last Saturday?’ no that wouldn’t do.
"How IS Phil these days? I haven’t seen him in ages.’ That wouldn’t work either.
‘You’ll never guess who I saw last Saturday!’
The traffic began to move again and Ben continued his ‘conversation’ with the car.
‘Have you met any of Phil’s new friends from work?’ how was he supposed to know that there were any new friends.
Should he be very brutal, ‘Phil is a bastard and you should leave him!’
Or should he say it as it was, ‘I went to a Gay Club on Saturday and Phil was there. He had his arms around a young man and he was kissing him.’
He had arrived at Lisa’s without coming to any decision. As he locked the door of the mini he said ‘You weren’t much help today!’
Lisa was doing some weeding in the front garden and looking as gorgeous as ever, although she did look a little pale. ‘I’ve put the coffee in the summer house, we’ll have lunch later.’ She linked her arm with Ben’s and they walked through the garden, which was her pride and joy. ‘I want to show you my new roses I’m so pleased with them.’
They were old friends and conversation was not important, they were quite happy being in each other’s company. They walked around the garden and Ben dutifully admired the roses and was given a bunch to take home.
At last they got back to the summerhouse, the coffee laid on a silver tray with china cups and dainty biscuits in Lisa’s inimitable style. Ben’s mind was in turmoil. ‘It’s now or never.’ He thought to himself.
He looked over at Lisa who was twisting her hair round and round her fingers, a habit she had when she was nervous. ‘Lise, there’s something I’ve got to tell you.’ She had not heard him and said,
‘Ben, I can’t wait any longer I’ve got some news. You’re the first I’ve told.’ Ben held his tongue.
‘Ben. I’m pregnant.’
Ben looked at her and saw that the look of joy had transformed her normally attractive face into one of beauty.
Ben was astounded; he didn’t know what to say. How could he congratulate her when he knew that there was little hope for the future of the marriage? He looked at her face; he had never seen her look more beautiful. He knew that she was desperate to become pregnant. After a particularly late night when they had both drunk slightly too much she had confided in him her hopes and dreams and the biggest of these was to have a family. She had also said that it was not quite so important to Phil but she knew he would come round.
The smile left her face, "What’s the matter. Aren’t you pleased for me?" he gave her a big hug so that she could not see the look of despair on his face.
"It’s just shock. Of course I’m pleased. How’s Phil taken the news?"
"He doesn’t know. I did a test, which was positive, but I didn’t want to tell him until I was certain. You know all those false alarms I’ve had. I got confirmation from the doctor today and I just had to tell someone. I’m going to cook a special meal and tell him tonight."
Ben knew that he couldn’t tell her now and spoil her happiness. He managed to have his coffee and then the lunch that she had prepared for them. He never found it difficult to talk to Lisa and kept going on small talk and funny stories from the office. She was quieter than usual but managed to make him laugh with her tales from the florist shop where she worked part time. She kept returning to the subject of the baby. She had thought of names and had even looked up local schools on the Internet.
Ben made the excuse of a headache and left earlier than he would normally do. He needed time to think. He gave Lisa another hug and told her to take care. "I’ll ring you tomorrow and let you know how Phil takes the news. I know he’ll be shocked but when he recovers he’ll be as pleased as I am." Ben saw a slight flicker of doubt cross her face as she bent forward to kiss him goodbye.
