The Short Story Collection

unlikely friendship

A politician and a pauper. Not much in common and even if the stars aligned they should never have crossed. Yet here a king sits in a paupers kitchen nursing a cup of tea.
' I really should be going now, thank you for the tea' the man nodded at the male who was balding slightly. The man frowned and shook his head.
' nonsense , don't be stupid sit down and finish your tea first. Besides its raining cats and dogs out there'. Already the gentlemen was lowering back into his seat , cheeks flushing as he smiled politely at the man. He just wanted to get out of here. glancing around he grimaced as paint chipped off the wall as the balding man brushed up and leant against it arms crossed. When he came out tonight he never would have though of these turn of events. Grimacing he peered down into his tea again the man had used a mug, did he even own a tea cup? He should at least make polite conversation till someone came to rescue him, the kind man had let him charge his phone and as they waited for his driver to come and pick him up.
' I'm sorry I didnt catch your name' he told the man who arms were dark and damaged from too many days working in the sun.
' John, John mcdoughlas' John told him arms still folded, he hadn't even offered his hand to shake.
' nice to meet you , im'
' I know exactly who you are Edmund brown' John frowned down at him and for the first time in his life Edmund shrunk in his seat at the heat in the mans eyes. Edmund thought about just standing up and walking out the door into the storm and risk being taken down by an uprooted tree before he remembered his shoes were vegan leather and his mother had payed thousands for them, he'd endure then man's peeling house and dirt tasting tea for a couple of hours . he will speak to his colleque Rupert about the housing here possibly knock it down if it were in as bad conditions as John's home.
' I wouldn't want to inconvenience you , perhaps I could wait in the drawing room for the storm to pass' Edmund suggested. John eyebrows shot up into his forehead before he tipped his head back and roared with laughter, his belly bouncing slightly. Edmund felt his ears warm and he knew they would be red although he wasn't sure why he should be embarrassed.
' mate I don't even have a dining room, drawing room my arse. Cor youre a proper posh one you are, drawing room' John chuckled to himself. Edmund frowned
' what do you mean no dining room, where do you eat your meals?' He asked .
' at the table where youre sitting' John gestured at him. Edmund frowned, this was a small side table one might place lamp or a arrangement of flowers. Not wanting John to think him out of touch with his constituents Edmund nodded and nervously laughed ' oh of course I was joking'.
' no you wasn't' John scoffed in disqust at him. ' your so stuck up your own arse and living in cokoo land you wouldn't know normal if it slapped you in the face' . Hot anger boiled in edmunda blood as he shot out of his seat
' how dare you speak to me like that I've been helping you thankless lot for years' . John laughed humorously before coming over to the table and sitting down.
'Have you ever played twenty questions?' He asked suddenly. Edmund frowned.
' yes' although it came out more if a question. John rolled his eyes before explaining
' might as well do something to pass the time, besides might have more in common then you know' . Edmund scoffed he highly doubted that.
' fine' .
' favourite colour?' John asked lounging back in the wooden chair making it creak. Edmund eyebrows rose at the simple question, he expected more ' why did you say no to wage increases'.
'Yellow' Edmund replied wary that this was still somehow a trick.
'What about you?'
' green, and that's not how the game works' John stated. Edmund sighed and rolled his eyes at John,  the man was depressing.
' it's late already , i dont see anyone else here, do you have family?'.
' my son is at university and my wife isn't here' John gruffly answered again.
'Where is she?'
' in hospital, she has breast cancer'. Edmund cringed internally.
' I'm sorry , I shouldn't have asked'.
' it's twenty questions ain't it' the fridge humming was the only thing filling the silence.
What made you want to be a politician?'
Edmund smiled slightly ' everyone in my family is a politician'
' thats not what I asked' . Edmund frowned was it not the same thing?
' following in my family footsteps should be a good enough reason'
' but what made you want to do that, obligation or actual want?' John pressed him. For some reason Edmund felt attacked
' so what if it is obligation,  you can learn to want it , enjoy it even. ' John frowned at him before sighing.
' that explains a lot' he simply said before rising and flicking the kettle on again. Edmund watched him arrange the tea ' what do you mean by that'
' you don't enjoy your job though do you unless of course your some sort of sadist' John arched a brow at him. Now Edmund was thoroughly confused, he was happy, his work was completed on time he did what he needed to do then went home to his wife and his daughters .
' I'm happy, what I do is important , I give people what they need'
' which people is that because its certainly not mine all you do is cause us pain. Like a said , a sadist' John snapped. Now Edmund smiled tightly , his teeth grinding in his jaw. Here we go.
' I've given your people as you put it a lot'
' oh yeah like what' John said pouring the water into their mugs.
' wage increases'
' neutralised and nulled by tax rises and inflation, sarah at number 28 had her wages go up twenty five pence an hour, works all the hours god sends and had to sell her tv last week' . Edmund ground his teeth and his jaw click.
' nhs funding, we poured millions of pound to reduce waiting times' Edmund smiles triumphantly. John placed their steaming cups of tea on the table in front of them at sat back down.
' either your stupid or are purposely trying to piss me off, all that so called funding you poured in was useless when your sold off department's to private companies, they don't put your funding into their hospitals it goes in their pockets'. Edmund sighed, he thought John was reasonable but it didn't look like that anymore.
' I've seen first hand new equipment, and improved waiting times from more staff' .
' so they buy five new blood pressure machines and a new ct scanner and call it a day , in one hospital, when they have ten others with machienry older than me, meanwhile they've filled their quota new and improved services on paper and pocket millions in profit. Edmund frowned , he hadn't actually thought of it that way and it did sound unfair.
' I don't agree with it but it isn't up to me what they do with their money once they have the funding' he said regretfully.
' your party is more than capable of passing a bill that states terms and conditions of what a minimum should be done with the funding. All equipment  passed a certain age replaced to ensure no faults, staff hired in the busiest hospitals, adequate support for staff for things like ptsd, you won't need new staff if the ones you have stay and are supported. Or better yet tell them that  the money needs to be in either the hospital or care services for the public and that it is immoral to profit off of sick people'. Edmund hummed, it didn't sound unreasonable.
' I'll spreak to our health department and see if there is anything thay can be revised this late in the year'. John looked over Edmund and smiled before giving a curt nod.
" anything else?"
" plenty" John laughed. ' what about your family?'
" wife and two daughters, my youngest is also at university' he smiled at the thought of his rosie with her friends and learning to be independent.
' which one?'
' University of arts, she wants to be a restoration artist, preserving history she calls it, her fiancee is apparently takes pictures' he chuckled to himself.
' my son goes their too actually he studies  photography. Capturing history he calls it' he chuckled and drinking his tea. A thought occurred to Edmund.
' perhaps our children know eachother , they certainly sound like they have a things in common. Whats his name?' Edmund asked.
' William , your daughter?'
' rosamund'
' but everyone calls her rosie' John chorused with Edmund. Then men looked at each other with shock. John burst out in laughter before he dug into his pocket and pulled out his phone quickly tapping before he showed Edmund a picture of a chestnut haired young man smiling proudly with his arm resting on a young ladies waist. His daughters waist' .
John, that is my daughter' Edmund said Dumbly.
" small world indeed, still they have a lot in common they've been loved up for over two years now" John stated. Edmund found himself dumbly nodding along " now I know why she never bought him home"
" Council Estate boy to rough for your princess" John snarled.
" he will get eaten alive in our circle" Edmund admitted.
" no worries, she already met all of us and she is a lot more open minded and less judgmental than you" Edmund sighed at the back handed compliment although he couldn't deny it.
" do you think people like us will ever get along" he asked suddenly needing to know, is that why his daughter hadn't let anyone meet her partner.
" who's to say we're not right now?" John asked him.
" yes I suppose , a friendship based on mutual understanding of our differences" Edmund mused.
" and a mutual desire for our children's happiness" John raised one eyebrow. Edmund nodded frantically. " yes of course , of course"
" I wanted to help people" Edmund stated suddenly to John. When John said nothing, he felt urged to explain.
" when I was six my father took me to a resteraunt and outside the door was a man in clothes duller than the pavement. When I pointed him out to my father he got the manager to call the police and have him moved on. I asked my father why we didn't help him and he told me he was probably a drunk and they were worse than animals. I hated my father for that and I swore to myself I would help people like him one day. I realised now I may not be my father but I'm just as bad uselessly flinging money around without knowing if it going to the right people inadvertently making people suffer just like that man. I guess I thought as long as I signed off on it it was no longer my problem".
John nodded
" I don't think your like your father, you openly admitted there is room for improvement, the question is what will you do with that realisation"
" try to convince everyone else in my party to follow similar thinking of more support and funding with strings attached for the big companies" Edmund sighed
" just tell them is saves them money in the long run" John chuckled pulling a cigarette out and lighting it, he offered one to Edmund who readily accepted. Edmund nodded , money makes the world go round in his world and if it saved them money they would probably go along with it. Still there was hope, John and he were proof of that.