OCTOBER 5, 1959
MY stomach dropped with disappointment as I hung up the phone. I ran to the couch and jumped face down onto a pillow, screaming into it.
"I'm thinking that that wasn't good news," Diana spoke up from the chair, flipping through her book. I sat up and hugged the pillow against my chest.
"They said my article was 'too progressive' and 'too controversial'. The bastards said I would've won, but they didn't want backlash from the posh," I explained with annoyance lacing every word. Diana gave me a sympathetic look.
"I'm sorry. If they didn't want a controversial article why would they ask you to write about a controversial topic?" She asked, her voice matching my annoyance.
"That's what I said! But the bloody wanker on the pho-" my rant was cut off by a knock on the door. I furrowed my eyebrows at Diana and she just shrugged and stood up to get it.
"Oh. Uh, hi George," I heard Diana's voice from the other room.
"'Ello Geo!" I yelled from my spot on the sofa, reluctant to get up and greet him. I had a feeling this was a matter between them.
"'Ello Stell!" He yelled back.
I tried to focus on listening to their conversation, but I could only make out mumbles and the words 'tea', 'night', 'lovely', 'out', and finally 'I'm sorry'.
The door shut and Diana walked back in with tinted cheeks and a distraught face. I raise an eyebrow and watched her slump into the chair.
"Ya didn't invite him in?" I asked carefully. She looked at me and sighed, eyes locked onto mine.
"He likes me. The kid worked up the balls to come to our house and ask me out. And I shot him down. I'm a horrible person." Her lip started to quiver and I sighed. My legs walked over to the chair she was in and I perched myself on the arm of it. I wrapped my bony arm around her shoulder and brought her into a side hug.
"You're not horrible. You aren't bloody entitled to say yes just because you feel bad for 'im," I sympathized with an annoyed tone. She nodded and furrowed her eyebrows in thought. Silence filled the room for a couple minutes before she spoke up again.
"I feel horrible because I think I do like him." She kept a blank expression on her face that told me she was still miles deep in her own thoughts.
"I don't get it. Why the bloody hell would you not tell the poor bloke when he confessed his love for ya'?" I furrowed my eyebrows. My expressive tone deeply contrasting her emotionless one.
"I keep thinking to how my dad left my mom. I guess I just don't want a guy to get bored of me and just up and leave," she explained, finally looking up at me with her navy eyes.
"You know what happens to people who keep it all inside? They get old and they get sad and they get weird."
"I'm already sad and weird and I'm getting older every second." Her pessimistic face gave me a look. I groaned and rolled my eyes.
"Look, I get that you're fucked up. But we all are, so get up and try to un-fuck up yourself, ya daft cow. I'm not letting you sit here and bloody mope around." Her eyes were still locked on my expressive ones. I think she could read every emotion I was feeling through my eyes, I bet anyone could. Her lip started quivering before she started crying into my shoulder. Fucking shite. "Fuck Di, I didn't mean to get ya all riled up."
"No. No, it's not that. All I've ever wanted was for someone to tell me to suck it up and move on. No one ever noticed that they needed to before." I sighed and let her cry, patting her back occasionally.
I felt overwhelming guilt and annoyance that my problem was put on the back burner. I was annoyed that I couldn't talk about my feelings, but I felt guilty because I was annoyed when my best mate was having a breakdown.
"Okay, tomorrow you need to tell him. Just explain-"
"No way in hell I'm telling him my whole life story as to why I rejected him." I rolled my eyes at her response again.
"Tell him you were caught off guard. It's not a lie," I suggested. She nodded her head and we were silent for a minute.
"Jeez, I'm sorry," Diana started. I perked up the tiniest bit ready to discuss my inner turmoils. "I forgot to tell you John brought some beer over to hide it from Mimi. I thought we could sample a couple." She smiled at me and I flashed a fake grin. Luckily I was a natural at hiding my real emotions when I wanted to. I almost laughed at how much of a hypocrite I was.
Three beers in and I was past tipsy already. Did I eat lunch today? It was any day off so I couldn't steal food from the diner kitchen.
"Ya know you're lucky. Every guy in Liverpool wants to get in your pants, but only one has the guts to go for a 'Yank'," Diana explained, only tipsy. I groaned and took a long swig of my beer, finishing off the fourth.
"I don't want someone who just wants what's under my knicks. I want a bloke that prop-properbly fancies the old Stella," I slurred giggling at my failed attempts to pronounce words. Diana gave me a weary look.
"Jesus Stel, do I have to cut you off already?" She asked. I gasped and shook my head, sheilding the beer in my hand from her sight. "Plus, I think there's a few guys that fancy you already." She rolled her eyes and went back to the topic of conversation.
"Bleh, I'm no mormom. I don't want a few I only want one." My laughs echoed in the living room and Diana rolled her eyes again.
"That's not what I-," she cut herself off, letting my comment go. "I mean that Paul and Stu seem to be competing for your attention."
I laughed, choking on my beer in the process. "No, Paul just wanted a quick suckie. When I didn't give it to him he went to Lillian. And I don't like Stu." I leaned close to her face. "Stu's too calm, it's weird," I stage whispered in her face. She gave me a look I couldn't, or didn't care enough to, comprehend in my drunken mind.
"Mmm. And has he talked to Lillian since?" She asked. I shook my head. "Has he talked to you lately?" I nodded my head and giggled.
"We broke into Strawberry Fields again yesterday," I answered, laughing at the memory of Paul slipping and falling straight into a bush from the top of the gate.
"I'm only saying this cause there's a chance you might forget and not yell at me tomorrow," Diana started, "Paul doesn't spend time with people he doesn't want to. If he just wanted your knickers, he would've gave up by now so he could get someone else's faster. He's like a lovesick schoolboy around you." She took a swig of her beer while I processed what she said.
"Who's Paul again? Would you happen to be talking about Babyface?" I went to grab another beer before Diana snatched it from me and I gasped theatrically
"You're cut off, you hopeless drunk," she said lightheartedly. I pouted and she rolled her eyes.
"Oh! That reminds me." I reached for the phone on the side table, giggling and motioned for Diana to get close to the mouth piece.
"Lennon?" She asked me. I nodded and she laughed shaking her head. The phone rang after I dialed the number I knew by heart.
"Hello?" A sleepy Mimi answered the phone. I bit my lip to keep from laughing before answering her.
"This is Sadie from Jim's Whore House, you got the dough we got the hoe. A man called John ordered a phone call," I drawled in a fake smooth, raspy voice. Mimi sighed, seemingly unaffected, while me and Diana we laughing silently.
"John, your prostitutes on the phone." We heard Mimi's yells muffled. A few seconds later John was on the phone.
"Hello?" His irritated tone almost made me break character.
"Hello, it's Jim's Whore House Sexy Sadie phone-sex. Is this John?" I bit my lip to keep from laughing out loud.
"What the fuck is this?" He yelled into the phone.
"It's Jim's Whore-"
"Yeah, I fuckin' got that part. Wrong number Sexy Sadie," John drawled sleepy and annoyed.
"Oh, I love it when you say my name." Diana jumped in, trying to mimic my accent. I burst out into laughter, followed by Diana. John grumbled into the phone.
"Stel, ya cheeky shite. Mimi's gonna be on my case for weeks now, goin' on about the phone whore," he growled, making us laugh harder. We didn't respond, caught up in our own drunken joy. "Right, I'm hanging up," he sighed before we heard the click on the phone.
We sat there laughing about the not so funny situation, ignoring how the hell we'd be able to wake up for work in the morning.
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Oof this was late again and I apologize.
Don't worry I'm getting to the good Macca scenes soon, I know this was kinda boring.
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