Unearthing a Diamond

I’m feeling rather melancholy; life is going at the same speed as an express train, and I have nothing to show for it. I’m forty seven now, but my appearance is deceiving, as it suggests that I am twenty years older, wrinkles are ubiquitous across my body, my hair has become a dark grey, I’m thinner than a stick insect. I’ve stopped caring about life, I still require a saviour, and somebody who is prepared to give this washed up personality a chance to redefine herself.

   Loneliness is like an illness, you wonder how it is possible to continue existence in this vain. I constantly search for answers I know I’ll never find, such as, how and why did it all go wrong?

    I need new furniture, table and chairs, and stools; without hardly any money this is proving to be an improbable task. Fortunately, I noticed an advert in the window, of my local newsagents promoting a ‘junk’ shop of sorts, called ‘Flog it’ maybe they will have what I am searching for?

  ‘Flog it,’ which is situated opposite McDonalds in Wolverhampton City centre, has some rather peculiar items. The store represents a ‘flea market’ as it sells just about anything and everything. I picked up some additional items, including a Chinese blue and white porcelain vase (£3) a Colin Dexter novel (75p) and an old film to watch (£2,) I searched for the furniture items that I required but to no avail.

  And then it hit me like a tornado, the cashier was none other than Stuart Bramwell. Stuart and I attended the same high school, although we rarely spoke, and when we did it was because we had been paired to undertake a Geography assignment. I was incredibly attracted to him back then, but with much prettier girls like Lisa Goodwood, lingering around him like a bad smell, I never had the opportunity to date him.

   I was actually quite surprised that he instantaneously recognised me. ‘Linda Edwards, is that you?’ His voice was soft but authoritative at the same time. I smiled and nodded. ‘Well isn’t this a blast from the past,’ he expressed. ‘What have you been up to?’ I was quite nervous talking to him, the same feeling as I had back in high school, the adrenaline rushing through my body, and a concern that my words would not be cohesive. ‘Er... I’m a receptionist at the Bilbrook Medical Centre, and apart from that it’s all rather quiet for me, what about you? I responded.

  Throughout our brief encounter, my eyes rapidly scanned his appearance. His outfit was smart but casual. He clearly understood colour co-ordination, his dark blue Atlantic Bay jumper, was accompanied with a light pink t-shirt and dark jeans, as well as light brown shoes.

    Stuart enthusiastically replied ‘my daughter, Rachel, recently opened this place, I’m just helping out at a weekend, I’m a paramedic, and a drum lecturer in my spare time; so it’s all rather hectic, I’m recently divorced as well, her choice not mine… are you married Linda?

  Stuart Bramwell, divorced? I’ve never heard anything more preposterous in my life, how can any woman wish to divorce Stuart Bramwell. Unless behind this friendly persona, is actually a rather sinister side, although I seriously doubt that. With new confidence, after this surprising revelation, I said ‘no I’ve never been married, and have been single for the last ten years.’  

  ‘Wow’ ten years had it really been that long? I’ll never forget that summer’s day in June 2003, my then boyfriend Mark Davidson dumped me by email. I actually remember the email word for word, we had only been an item for eighteen months but I was still devastated.

   What Stuart said next, changed my life forever. ‘Well it’s been nice catching up with you, we should maybe go for a coffee sometime’? He then printed a blank receipt, and scribbled his number down on it, before saying ‘give me a call some time and let me know when you’re free.’

  I, perhaps too enthusiastically took the receipt, smiled and headed for the exit. I was ecstatic, I’ve just been asked out by Stuart Bramwell, and then the pessimistic part of me wondered if this was actually his number, for all I knew he could have given me the number for his local Chinese restaurant!  I called him a few days later, so not to appear too desperate, believe me, I nearly called him, immediately after I left the shop, but decided to wait just to appear relaxed; although I was anything but.

  We agreed to meet at the Costa Coffee store, the one close to Wolverhampton bus station, and what a delightful couple of hours we spent together. The conversation was dynamic and interesting, we shared lots of laughs, and for the first time in a while, I genuinely had the feeling that things were looking up for me.

   As Linda scanned this diary entry, a wide smile beamed across her face, the 23^rd of June 2013, twenty years ago, was by far the best day of her life. Stuart and Linda had now been married for fifteen years, and have shared many extravagant holidays to places such as Morocco, Canada, America, Russia, France and Germany; both of them couldn’t be happier. Stuart was Linda’s junk shop find.