GUIDESTAR

Chapter 2 'The Core'

"Are you gunna be long? Only I've got a do this room and the one next door before I go 'ome and my Kenneth don't like being kept waitin', he never has." Paige tried her best not to giggle as Carrick politely assured the cleaning lady that they had indeed finished with the room for the evening. Paige had to bite down hard on the knuckle of her thumb as she passed the lady in the doorway, desperately trying not to laugh. The task was not made any easier by the fact that the lady started to go into graphic detail about her job.

"You wouldn't believe some of the things I find in these lecture halls, it don't stop at crisp packets and orange peel y'know. Oh no, last week I found a full size inflatable lady right on the back row. Bold as brass she was without so much as a stitch on."

It was too much for either Paige or Carrick to bear and they both fell into uncontrollable fits of laughter as they tried to walk as quickly as possible up the corridor to escape the rambling diatribe from the poor, tormented woman. They burst out through the doors, out into the cool night air of the bright, bustling city campus and Paige let out a scream of laughter before trying to mimic the strange purple-haired woman.

"An inflatable lady without so much as a stitch on, Kenneth! It sounded like she expected it to be wearing a bloody cardigan and a nice two piece, oh Jesus that was priceless." Paige had to stop walking and wipe the tears from her eyes. By now she was laughing so hard that she was actually starting to gurgle like a baby. Carrick tried to preserve her dignity slightly by handing her his clean white handkerchief. She gradually came to her senses and eventually she spoke.

"I'll not forget that in a hurry. Oh wait 'til I tell Rachael she'll wet herself." Carrick smiled and felt a warmth inside him as he just watched her alternating between fits of laughter and stopping to wipe the tears from her eyes. Some people did that he thought to himself; laughed so much that they cried. Others, like himself, only ever laughed or cried. It made her special but it didn't mean he'd ever tell her that, he had enough on his plate without getting involved with his staff as well. Carrick decided to speak before he did something he might regret.

"Right. Come on, if we're quick we've got time for a swift one in the Mandela bar, we can count badges if you like before we get back and meet the Core." Just the mere mention of the Core was sobering enough and Paige quickly pulled herself together.

"What time are we meeting them?" she said coldly.

"10:30 at the van, it's parked up at the canal basin, I didn't want the MoD-Plod taking an unhealthy interest in it back at the camp, it's got a few things inside I'd prefer them not to find." Paige gave Carrick a sly, sideways glance then spoke.

"I doubt the MoD Police would go anywhere near your van they haven't got an effective enough deterrent against those socks you leave everywhere." Carrick looked up to the sky and mockingly held his stomach.

"Oh you're so funny I can hardly control my raucous laughter? You know it's people with scarily-tidy narrow boats and pens that all line up perfectly on the coffee table that are screwed in the head, don't you?" Paige was ready,

"No. I think you'll find that's a rumour started by scruffy anti-nuclear campaigners that live in flea -infested camper vans, anyway, we'd better be getting back hadn't we? We haven't got time for a drink if we're meeting them at 10:30." By way of silent contradiction, Carrick reached slowly into his pocket and brought out a shining set of keys attached to a familiar old leather fob. He then proceeded to dangle them in front of Paige's face as it lit up with childish excitement.

"Oh no way!" she shrieked with delight. "You've got it fixed?"

Carrick grinned excessively, baring his teeth like a fool possessed as he danced a silly dance towards the Union building and the warm inviting lights of the Mandela Bar. Sadly, the moment didn't last. Paige soon stopped behaving like an excited little girl and began to think like the shrewd young woman she was. She quickly started to interrogate Carrick.