Only You

The Paget Bunch

A few days later, while Reg was at home recovering from his treatment, Jean was on her way to meet someone special. She hadn't told him she was going, but she knew the matter had to be taken care of and Reg was much too stubborn to do it himself. So Jean had done some digging behind his back, nothing she was proud of but it had to be done. And Jean had been successful, that was all that mattered, right?

In a crowded café near Trafalgar Square, Jean sat down at a table by the window and waited, completely ignoring the hustle and bustle around her. At exactly 3:30 pm, a tall, slender woman with glosy brunette hair walked towards the café. She looked around and then quickly went inside, Jean gave her a wave, she had expexted her. The woman smiled and walked up to the table. She seemed a little nervous, but nevertheless delighted to be meeting with her.
"Ms. Horton, what an honour to meet you. I must say I thought my agent was pulling a prank on me when he told me who called and wanted to meet with me..." Now that she was close, Jean could see how young she was, more a girl than a woman, her movements were definitely those of a dancer. She resembled Reg, they had the same eyes but she was more dainty and had a beautifully defined face. To be honest, she was almost a little too skinny for Jean's taste, but as a dancer for the Royal Ballet, this was no surprise. Jean knew far too well what an unhealthy attitude to food and nutrition they had. Poor thing. A dancer's body came at a high price.

"Please, call me Jean. And sit down, I have taken the liberty of ordering some tea for us." Jean pointed at the cups and an array of little sandwiches and cakes on the table.
"Thank you." She said, seeming rather insecure but sitting down. "What can I do for you?"
"Kristina. I hope it's okay if I call you by your first name and I hope you don't mind me just contacting you out of the blue but... Oh gosh, I don't know how to say this..." Jean couldn't possibly break that poor girl's heart. She was still half a child and she felt the urge to protect her, but at the same time she was all the family Reg had left and vice versa, she had a right to know. Kristina seemed to be just as bright as her brother. Her face clouded.
"Is it about my brother?" She asked quietly. "I haven't seen articles about him in a while and started to worry." Jean sighed. The cat was out of the bag.
"Yes, I'm afraid so. Your brother... Reggie is currently undergoing treatment for liver cancer. He... He is doing reasonably well but there's still a long way to go. He doesn't know I'm here, I just thought you should know before it's too late..." She took Kristina's hand which was ice cold. Her face had turned an ashen hue.
"Oh...oh no. You must be mistaken, my brother can't be sick. I... I mean of course you aren't... I..." She stuttered and Jean felt the girl's pain. "Thank you for telling me. You're a good colleague."

"Kristina, dear, Reggie and I are far more than colleagues and have been for a while." Jean blushed. "We're engaged actually. I'm... " Jean looked around for photographers before she continued speaking, even though the café was so busy they blended in with the crowd. "I'm even having his baby. I know I have quite the reputation but I do love your brother more than I love myself, so please don't worry, I am serious about him." Now Kristina was completely flabbergasted. How confusing all of this had to be for her and she clasped Jean's hand.

"I really don't know what to say. This is all so much."
"I am very sorry you had to hear about it all this way, I wish things were different. I am not very good with dealing with other people's emotions to be honest so I guess... Have some tea and... Well it's usually not my style but I could give you a hug if you like?"
"I suppose." So Jean hugged her tightly, Kristina stiffened but let it happen. She did not know what to feel, she'd always wanted for her brother to be back in her life but not like this.
"I'm taking good care of your brother, I promise." Which made Kristina sob.
"Ms... Jean, you don't know... Anything, oh god, I have to tell you but... It's all my fault that we're not talking and now he is sick."
"Shhh... We have time." Jean lied, even though she wasn't entirely sure if they really had a lot of time left. But it seemed to soothe Kristina, so she kept taking. "First you should have some tea." Jean made sure that Kristina finished her tea and also the little sandwiches that were on the table. She didn't know much about their childhood, but she knew that Reg had practically raised her and she knew that for some reason they had stopped speaking but did it matter why? Reg had been so protective of his little sister and that didn't just stop, right?