This Charming Man

Twelve

I tried to avoid Brent's inquisitive eye that evening and prayed he wouldn't mention anything to Ryan. I had most of the next day off, apart from a laundry shift in the late evening, and, as we usually did, we went fishing off the back of the bath house on the ledge below the employees smoking balcony early that next morning. The sun was still coming up when we arrived and we sat in a comfortable silence for a long time.

I desperately wanted to tell Ryan everything that had happened yesterday but at the same time I didn't. I never wanted him to find out about me and Mr Weekes and I couldn't for the life of me figure out why. I didn't say anything about Mr Weekes and told Ryan about Mr Wentz instead.

"Asked after me? Why?" Ryan asked, fumbling with the bait on his hook.

I shrugged. "Dunno. Probably because you're always grumpy. He said to tell you that you need to cheer up because you're putting off customers."

I practically heard Ryan roll his eyes. "Oh he can shut the fuck up. How does he expect me act all happy and shit with all the customers he throws at me. I've got five at the moment, Bren. Five. Doesn't he know how fucking stressful that is?"

"Obviously not. Maybe you should talk to him? Ask him to give some customers to other people?" I suggested, adjusting my line.

Ryan sighed. "I don't really want to do that, Bren. I'm milking enough tips from these two CEOs to last me a life time. And they aren't here for much longer. There's no way we'll be able to get train tickets if I give them up now."

I looked up at him, my eyebrows furrowed. "Y'know new clothes might be a little important than train tickets, Ryan," I said, casting an eye over his worn shirt and threadbare pants.

Ryan gave me a scornful look and glanced down at his own clothes. "What's wrong with these?"

"We haven't been clothes shopping for months, Ryan. All my socks have holes in them and my pants have split here," I said, lifting my knee to show Ryan the split on the crotch of my pants. He leaned forward to peer and pulled a face at me.

"Oh. I think you're right." He sighed and flung his line over his shoulder and out to sea. Feeling like I'd ruined the mood, I tried something different.

"What time do you have to go back, Ryan?"

Ryan frowned and thought for a moment and checked his watch. "Uh... 9 o'clock I think. We've got plenty of time. It's a shame we can't get days off at the same time anymore."

Ryan and I used to have one Thursday a week off together where we'd spend the morning cleaning our room or wandering round the market and the afternoons in the fields outside the town where we'd talk and watch clouds and pick flowers and had occasionally shared a little sheepish kiss. There wasn't much else to do around here but we were used to that. It was the lack of entertainment which got us so hyped up about Valnesse. Neither of us had ever been there and after Ryan bought a guidebook at a stall in the market one afternoon, we were more determined to get there than ever with all this new information we'd learned about it.

That determination stuck with us a year later where, whenever we got a spare moment to daydream, we would talk about everything we wanted to do. We were pretty sure we'd memorised every landmark and it's purpose in Valnesse at this point so these conversations often ran their course and we'd often talk about everything else under the sun.

We spent most of the early morning chitchatting about nothing in particular while the pile of fish gradually rose behind me in the ice box we'd borrowed from the store room in the kitchen. We packed up before 9 o'clock just to ensure Ryan wouldn't be late for his duties.

"I'll take the rods back," Ryan said, holding his hand out to take mine.

"Take the bait as well," I said, giving the rod to him and glanced round for the bait tin.

"How much do you think we'll get for all that?" Ryan asked, reaching over me to pick up the tin, nodding towards the ice box.

"Uh," I peered over and did a vague count, "Quite a bit. We'll spend the money on clothes, yeah? And if there's some left over, it could be saved for tickets," I said, smiling at Ryan hopefully.

This seemed to make him perk up a little and Ryan nodded and smiled back cheerfully. "Yeah! Right, I'd better go get changed," he said, getting to his feet. I watched him walk over to the stairs and call back, "I'm in the kitchens all day! Remember to turn up later, Bren!"

"I will! Bye!" I called back. I stayed on the ledge for a while after Ryan left. I let my legs swing over the edge and tried to count all the colours the sky had been during the sunrise. Watching the sun come up with Ryan had fast become my favourite thing to do when I first arrived here and it had remained that way even until now.

I heard the train whistle in the distance but I was too far over to see it and I could tell by the train it was nearly 10 o'clock. The usual foul smell of cigarette smoke rolled its way down to my ledge and I knew it was definitely time to get going. I folded up the carpet we used to sit on since the ledge wasn't exactly clean and placed it on top of the ice box. I carried them both down the winding external pathway around the bath house and stepped out onto the bridge. I left the carpet by the entrance and hoped I would remember to put it back in the utility closet but knowing me, I probably wouldn't. The bridge was flooded with people and I was suddenly relieved it was my day off. I felt glad that Ryan was hidden away in the kitchens today instead of dealing with all these people.

I made my way down to the market to set up my stall. I'd been selling fish here for so long, everyone expected me once a week in the same spot around the same time. I dealt with the customers, made small talk with the other stall owners, joked around with the regulars and by 4 o'clock the display case was empty and so was my stomach. The other stall owners I was friendly with would often try and give me food for free but I didn't like accepting it without paying, which I would do so despite their complaints. I bought off the charming young lady I'd made friends with but could never remember her name, who owned the stall opposite mine after I packed up my stuff. I sat back against my chair in the late afternoon sun just in front of the stall and planned on wiling away the afternoon daydreaming as I usually did.