Shelter In Your Love (Beatles Fan Fiction)

64. Be Here Now

'Yeah, I don't mean that,' Minnie continues. 'I mean how's George and... you know. Things.'

'George is... alright,' I answer, closing my eyes as she dabs powder haphazardly all over my face.

'What about with the band?'

'Oh. Okay, I think. He's not said an awful lot about it, but he's been going everyday.'

On Monday, when I went to the clinic with Minnie, George returned to the Beatles. The first day in the new studio at the Apple offices in Savile Row. After a very long meeting at Ringo's house, lasting all day, George had agreed to return to the band. He wouldn't back down on playing live, but he did agree to continue with the film so long as they moved to the Apple Studios. They went in on Monday to test the new equipment that Magic Alex, the head of Apple Electronics as he's been crowned, built for them. Except it wasn't quite magic as it didn't work. Any of it.

'And what about... John?'

'John?'

'Yeah, John and the others.'

'They're fine. From what I've seen anyway. Ringo is Ringo, as ever. Paul was okay but annoyed with John at the time so he didn't say much to me.'

'Someone's always annoyed with John.' Minnie laughs. 'How... How is he? John?' she asks again.

'He's... Well, I don't know really. He was behaving a bit odd during the meeting, but he was more like himself when I spoke to him on his own. He was talking to me about the baby. I thought you weren't friends with him now. Has that changed?'

Minnie's stopped applying the makeup. I open my eyes and she's staring into the middle distance, shoulders slumped, hands together in her lap, as if she's contemplating something. She snaps out of it, blinking a couple of times and leans in with her blusher brush again. I close my eyes, flinching slightly.

'No press following you around yet?' she asks.

'No. Not yet,' I reply, cagily.

Then on Tuesday, with the commencement of filming, a statement was released to say George and Pattie have separated. It's actually been rather low key, not an awful lot of fuss made. Reasons for their split haven't been mentioned. I haven't been mentioned. That will come later. George wants to finish the film and then we'll make the announcement about the baby. He wants to keep out of the public eye for a while following it and he can't do that while they're recording.

Everytime I think about it, it brings my heart to my mouth. We've been doing things in secret for so long, it will be strange to be acknowledged so publicly. It's nice, though nerve wracking with the anticipation, and bittersweet that it's all too late. We're not together anymore.

'You're quite pretty now,' Minnie says, thoughtfully, leaning back from me to inspect her work.

'What was I before?' I ask her, drolly.

'You know what I mean. Close eyes.' She leans forward to apply burnt orange eyeshadow. I close my eyes again. 'So, what about George?'

'What about him?'

'Oh, Hannah, just tell me,' she says, exasperated. 'You know what I'm asking. Are you back together with him?'

I don't reply. Minnie finishes the eyeshadow and I open my eyes again. She raises a questioning eyebrow. I give a small shake of my head. Minnie sighs.

'Oh, I've brought something for you!' she says, suddenly brightening and jumps up.

She crosses to her bags, left on the floor by the wall and pulls out what can only be described as a dark teal circus tent.