Klaus laughed “What is shaking Gabrielle?”
“Yeah, you know” she sat down next to him and folded her arms together on the little wooden table. “Sort of…Wie geht's? D’you know what I mean?”
“Oh Ja” Klaus nodded eagerly “Does euh… ‘what is shaking’ mean, ‘how are you’? Ja?”
She grinned. “Basically”
He smiled back at her “Well, I’m fine, Danke. And you?”
“Er.. I’m fine I guess”
Klaus gave her a knowing look “Not completely fine, Ja?”
“Oh… “ she trailed off and glanced over at the Beatles, he followed her gaze “It’s just that one of them” she waved her hand at them vaguely “Is being a total knob head…uh… I mean a dick head… you know, a er…” She didn’t know that word for that so she settled for “Dummkopf”
“Oh, Ja” Klaus laughed “The Beatles? They are idiots, Ja?”
Yes of course they were idiots, but that was what she had meant. More like one imparticular Beatles was getting up her nose lately. She told Klaus and he regarded her with surprise.
“Oh?” he said and raised his eyebrows high enough that they disappeared under the huge mop of mushroom hair he was sporting. “Is it the Beauti-”
She cut him off before he could get it out though “No… not George, not the er… beautiful baby” Giggle.
Klaus looked over t George. Currently, he was shaking his head furiously with Paul while they “Oh-ed” and “Ah-ed” the backing vocals. “He doesn’t like that name…”
“No” Gabrielle laughed “I think he would much prefer George”
“John, is it him?”
“No”
“Pete….”
“Er, no”
Klaus did the eyebrow thing again. They raised and disappeared questioningly “Paul…?”
She shrugged “He’s being a dommkopf. Well, I guess he always is. For some reason he seems to be in a fucking annoying mood all the time. It just drives me bleeding mad and I don’t even know why…. It’s like”
Her rant was interrupted by a loud shout of “Play slower songs!” from an extremely scouse Liverpudlian accent. Gabrielle turned around in her seat to see who was shouting. That was probably the first English voice she’d heard the entire time she’d been in Hamburg other the lad’s of course. Not that she was getting tired of them or anything.
Klaus tapped her on the shoulder. “Who was that?”
“The euh… you know…the…” he squeezed his eyes shut in frustration and clicked his tongue while trying to think of the correct word. He tapped his hands on the table “Like Pete, what do you call it?”
“An idiot?” she asked, blatantly confused
“No, no… euh… with the banging… the beat… you know. Like Pete”
“Banging?” She repeated “Oh! The Drummer!”
“Ja!” Klaus laughed, happy to get his point across “Ja, the drummer. He is the drummer for er… Rorer Storm”
“Rorer Storm…?” She looked over at the man again and suddenly his face matched and she remembered him “Oh, Rory Storm. Yes of course. That’s Ringo, I think I’ve met him… er… I don’t remember it though. A bit pissed at the time I think”
She watched Ringo for a bit. He was sitting on his own, beer in hand. Watching the Beatles play with something like satisfaction on his face.
Gabrielle decided to chat him up.
“Oi!” she patted Klaus on the head, “I’ll be right back. OK luv?”
Klaus nodded under her hand and waved her off.
Ringo looked over at her and raised eyebrows “Sorry luv, I’m not looking for any action tonight.” he said ass she approached him.
Gabrielle laughed “I’m not a hooker Darling.” She slid into the seat next to him
“Oh hey” said Ringo “You’re the bird from last night ain’t you”
“Yeah, I don’t remember. Sorry”
Ringo laughed “Yeah, you and the German bloke were a bit far gone. I was just happy to have someone to talk to. Someone who speaks English. D’you know what I mean?”
“Yes” she nodded “I’m Gabrielle Gallagher. Dunno if I told you or what”
“Yeah, Richard Starkey’s the name.” he grinned and said jokingly “Drummin’s the game”
She laughed lightly “So where’s yer band then?”
“Oh I dunno” he shrugged “Off pullin birds or something, I reckon. I’ve got a girl of me own back in Liverpool though”
Gabby raised her eyebrows “You’re being faithful?” she asked “Remaining celibate in a city like Hamburg? Why don’t’ I believe you”
“Hey, now” said Ringo “I didn’t say that, I’m just, you know, trying”
“Uh huh” she grinned “More then you can say for me mates” she jerked her head in the direction of the Beatles.
“You know I think I might have seen you before yesterday… er” he laughed and shook his head “Or this morning or last night or whatever”
“What?” she asked “Like in Liverpool”
“Yeah” he said “You ever hang round the Jacaranda?”
Gabrielle nodded vigorously “I’m there all the time, I’ve seen you guys play before. You’re quite good you know.”
“Oh, Ta very much, luv” he said “Lemme see if I can remember you”
“I doubt you will, I’m usually in a huge cluster of screaming giggling girls,, or…” she paused and laughed “Or a big group of teds”
“But you’re close mates with one of them, yeah?”
“Yeah, George”
“Oh yeah” Ringo looked over at the stage at George. Fiddling with the tuning on his guitar and not paying any attention to anyone else. “Great bloke, I’ve had words with him before. Seems to be in love with his guitar, you know what I mean?”
John stepped over to a microphone “’scuse me folks. We’re a gonna Mach schau in a bit for you. ‘Roll Over Beethoven, actually. And for the entertainment of you fine young ladies-”
An excited German girl yelled “Pete!”
There was chuckling as John said “No, actually, Just George you know.”
They counted it of and started the tune. Ringo was bobbing his head along to the drums with a small smile on his face. He winced a few times whenever Pete would botch it up. George looked incredibly happy to be the center of attention. He was thrilled whenever John cast off a song to him. You could almost see him imaging himself onstage with people cheering. Then again whenever George heard a song he liked for the first time, you could see him tying to work it out. Everything was very methodical and very planned.
Ringo had a swallow of beer and then yelled “Play slower songs!”
Gabrielle laughed as John shouted back “Fuck off!”