Winner Takes it All - Part 3

Five

The older Cusacks decided to stay away from Joanna’s twenty-first birthday celebration. She was home from university and the last thing she wanted to do was party with her dad, stepmum and aunts and uncles. She’d wanted to go somewhere different and Mel had suggested Chicken Coup, the gay club off Shaftesbury Avenue that her friend ran. It was one of Dan’s favourite clubs and he offered to DJ for the night. In his gap year before he went to university he’d worked in Pascha in Ibiza and by the end of his time there he had his own night of a Monday so he knew what he was doing.

Alex arrived alone. A night listening to cheesy Europop was hardly Tim’s thing, and even if he wasn’t furious with Alex, he’d have still remained at home. They both knew their relationship was reaching the end of the road but neither had the courage to say it. When she’d come home from her shopping trip with Mel and showed Tim the clothes she’d bought, he went mad, asking why she wanted to look like a streetwalker. Alex reminded him that she just looked how she had when he’d first met her and couldn’t keep his hands off her.

Mel had orchestrated Alex’s make-over, but all she’d done was restore her friend back to her former beauty. At Toni and Guy’s she had her fluffy hair dyed back to it’s usual light gold. For years Alex had got all her clothes from Mother Earth, the boutique run by Tim’s’ friend Skye, who sold clothes that were practical, in neutral colours and made with ethically sourced fabrics.  Mel reintroduced her to Top Shop, All Saints, Diesel, French Connection and a host of other high street names. Dressing in short skirts, jeans and strappy dresses made Alex feel as though she was emerging from a deep sleep and for the first time in ages she actually felt excited about the future.

She walked in to Chicken Coup to find Simon, Dan’s partner on the dancefloor, wriggling around to Spacer by Sheila B Devotion. Alex laughed, threw him a wave and headed for the bar where she poured herself a large glass of champagne. She needed something to steady her nerves, she was still smarting from the row she’d had with Tim before leaving the house. When he’d seen the dark red shift dress with knee length black boots she was wearing, he’d launched into another lecture. He took no notice of her when she said she felt sexy and confident and that if she was hoping to one day be the head of Sheridans, confidence was pretty important.

When he hadn’t been able to win the argument, Tim had launched another tirade at the location of the party. He hated dance music and felt these gay clubs were nothing more than meat markets that perpetuated the stereotype of gay men being sexual predators just interested in dancing, having a good time and pulling casual partners. By now Alex had heard enough and walked out.

Alex didn’t miss Tim. Instead she felt as though she’d been released from prison; able to enjoy the company of her family and friends. She knew she couldn’t get too drunk because tomorrow she and Mel were heading up to Liverpool to meet Jack Byrne, Mel’s cousin.  It would have to be a whistle-stop because that evening, the two girls were flying out to Ibiza for four days to look at the Felicidades Complex with a view to building a hotel there. Alex was so excited at how quickly things were moving and was so glad she had Mel at her side. She’d also taken on a secretary called Naseem and an accountant called Trevor who was helping her manage her money. It was a small team, but Alex was confident that for now they’d be able to cope.

Looking round, she spotted her brother, conked out on a sofa. No doubt he had been burning the midnight oil and was exhausted. Hating herself for it, Alex was quite glad to see Michael looking a complete mess. She loved her brother to bits, but he was now her competitor and the more a catastrophe his life became, the more chance she had of making a success of herself.          

She was shocked to see her cousin Tara at the party. She was such a timid little mouse, it was hard to envisage her at a club like this. Alex always thought it such a shame with Tara. She had the potential to be absolutely stunning. She was tall and thin like Paula, and with her coffee coloured skin and huge brown eyes she could have been a model. Instead she kept her long, dark hair in two plaits either side of her head and even on an occasion like this, her choice of outfit was a black long sleeved t-shirt and jeans. Alex had no recollection of Tara ever having a boyfriend. She seemed to prefer rattling around in Claremont Hall and running errands for Andrew McDonald.