Yoshiwara

The Social Network

Laurie held her mobile phone up, twisting it this way and that in a desperate attempt to capture a signal. But, no matter what she did, the status br on the screen of her phone stubbornly displayed the legend 'NO SERVICE'. She cursed loudly.

"Young lady like you shouldn't be using language like that."

The voice was gentle but admonishing. Laurie looked around in surprise. She had been sure she was on her own, but not now! A wind-burnt man dressed in worn work clothes was standing just the other side of a nearby drystone wall. It was as if he had sprouted fully-grown from the green fields around them.

Laurie fought back the impulse to tell the stranger to mind his own business. He was the only person she had seen in the last five miles, and who knew when she would come across another? Laurie forced a smile. "Sorry," she said. "I didn't know there was anyone about.

"Tha's a'right," the man said. "I've heard worse. Having problems?" He pointed at Laurie's phone.

"i can't get any signal," Laurie said, holding up the phone so the man could see it.

"Ha. Ain't going to get one round here."

"Not at all? Not even voice service?"

The man shook his head. "Whole valley's what they call a dead spot. No signal 't all."

"Is there a phone box anywhere? A landline?" Laurie tried not to let her frustration show.

"Nearest phone's in Dunswick - three miles tha' way." The man pointed down the road.

Laurie hesitated. She remembered the advice her parents had given her before she set out - be careful, don't go with strangers - but she was tired and the pain in her calves was only going to get worse. She wanted a bed for the night, and a bath. A lift would be more than welcome.

"Thank you."

The man had an old pickup: battered but serviceable. The engine rattled horribly as it carried the pair of them across the empty miles.

"How do you cope?" Laurie asked the man.

"Cope?"

Laurie tapped her useless phone. "Cope with being cut off. No phone. No connections."

The man laughed. "We ain't cut off. There's plenty to do round here. Neighbours are always glad to say hello, and if we want company there's always the Culloden. Everybody goes there."

"The Culloden?"

"Over there." The man pointed in the direction they were going. About a half-mile ahead was a hamlet, a collection of maybe two-dozen buildings split by narrow country lanes. The buildings were squat and angular, their dark stone out of place against the rolling hills.

"So, you just get drunk?"

The man shook his head. "No. We have socials. We meet, we talk, we sing, we dance." He parked his pickup in the centre of the hamlet, in front of a building distinguished from the others by a sign that read 'Culloden Inn' in green and gold. "Phone's in there."

"Thank you."

Laurie grabbed her backpack and hurried into the Culloden. An old lady was sitting behind the bar, her eyes on her knitting. She barely glanced up at Laurie. "Can I help you, lassie?"

"Please," Laurie said. "I need a room for the night. Or a phone."

The landlady of the Culloden shrugged. "No rooms here, sorry. But we do have a phone." She pointed with her needles towards an old, wall-mounted public phone. It had a rotary dial and two coin slots: one large, one small. Laurie sifted through her change and found some coins that would probably fit in the larger of the slots. "Do you know of any taxi firms?"

The lady shook her head. "None that will come here. But, if you care to wait until tonight, my Shaun can give you a lift."

"Fine." Laurie sighed and slumped onto stool. "I'll wait."

"There's some soup on, if you want. It'll be ready in an hour. And there's some fresh bread to go with."

Laurie checked the clock on her phone. It had been hours since she last ate, and it would be hours until she would be out of there. "Please."

At first time passed slowly, punctuated only by the clicking of the landlady's knitting needles and the halting conversation. But, as the afternoon wore on, people began to drift into the bar. The noise of chatter grew to fill the room. Laurie, being a stranger, was the centre of attention. Afternoon turned to evening, and the saloon was full of warmth and laughter. Conversations whirled around Laurie, rich with morsels of gossip, and she did not notice how late it was until the landlady interrupted her.

"This is Shaun," the old lady said. "My lad. He'll take you on." She pushed forward a young man wearing crumpled suit.

Shaun smiled and nodded at Laurie. "I hear you need a lift? Come on."

Laurie followed him from the warmth of the inn, out into the cold night. Shaun led her to a sleek coupé that looked out of place amongst the farm vehicles. They both got in. "Hope you weren't too bored in there," Shaun said as he turned on the engine. "They can be a bit old-fashioned around here. I've asked my mother to come and live with me, but she says she likes it there."

"No," Laurie replied. "It was alright. It wasn't exciting, but it was alright."

Shaun chuckled. "I don't know how you could take it. I'd be crawling up the walls if I didn't have my phone."

"Phone?" A wave of panic washed over Laurie. She fumbled through her bag, hunting for her phone. When she found it, she held it tight, reassured by its weight. As the car climbed out of the valley, her phone began to beep and vibrate, telling her of the messages she had missed and demanding her attention. But, for once, Laurie ignored it.