George and Paul found this too funny for words but Siobhan nodded enthusiastically and pulled John By the hand towards the alleyway.
“Christ oh mighty” Paul shook his head “I would hate to be a whore”
George busted up laughing and fell against his face on the table. They were red-faced from all the ale and even if the two remaining Beatles had not yet succumbed to the delightful pleasures that the lovely young girls in the ill fitted dresses who would do just about anything to you for a fiver- Paul and George were pretty far gone by normal standards. Normal standards, are not Beatle standards mind you. As George had so many times pointed out and Paul readily agreed with: Being off your head is the greatest.
“I must tell you Georgie” Paul giggled “That one dark haired girl over there has been eyeing you up quite a bit” He gestured to a brunette in the corner, she was leaning against one of Fredrick’s groomsmen but staring intently at George.
“Shalli go give her a pull then” George asked as if the idea were so absurd
“Yeah!” Paul laughed “Go on see if she’ll have you”
George considered it for a minute and then stumbled over to where the dark haired girl and the groomsmen were standing near the keg.
* * * * *
Gabrielle thought she might just die with boredom. As much as she loved Janie and Auntie Anne and Louise, she was obviously not like the other girls. The lads all left leaving Gabrielle with about forty children, four Aunts and ten girls of various ages between eighteen and thirty who were single and felt that staying in and knitting was a good use of their time.
She was most defiantly not like these little catholic girls she was sitting next to. The children were all asleep so that was a relief. But now Aunties Anna, Maggie, and Belinda were sitting around her trying to make idle conversation about her social life while Louise, Janie and one of the other brides maid’s Kate giggled in a corner.
Maybe she’d been spending to much time with blokes.
Flora, a tall blonde girl of about twenty-five who was up visiting from Bournmouth for the wedding sat down next to Gabrielle and offered a tight smile.
“Hi” Gabby said uncomfortably while Maggie and Belinda fought over whether she should lighten her hair up to blonde and that would maybe attract more men. Or maybe she should take culinary lessons.
Flora gave her a wry look “You don’t remember me do you?”
“No…” Gabrielle said carefully “Should I? Sorry… it’s just..”
Flora waved her off “No, no. I wouldn’t expect you to. I used to baby sit you and our kid George”
“Did you?” Gabrielle asked, sounding more interested then she could ever possibly feel for something so trivial. “How old were we”
“Well” Flora grinned “I was fourteen so you must have been six or seven…” she giggled “I supposed you’ve heard all the stories about the two of you”
“Yeah” Gabrielle nodded, feeling sheepish. *ALL* The stories. From attempting to rob the sweet shop with water pistols to trying to run away to candy land in the back of the ice cream truck. Then of course there were the slightly more destructive things she and George had done. With out going into depth there were several incidents when the fire department or a good painter needed to be called.
“You were little nightmares” Flora giggled “And I think once I was staying the weekend with You because yer mum and dad were up in Blackpool or sommat and George insisted on staying over all weekend. It was adorable. You did everything together. You slept together, you ate the same food, you were finishing each others sentences and you…” she laughed “It was so weird! Honestly everyone thought you were twins”
Gabriele had heard the story a thousand times. People thought they were twins because they were every where together and looked alike with their thick dark hair, high cheek bones, and beautiful sparkling child eyes.
She looked down at her hands “He’s good to have around”
“I’ll bet” sighed Flora “But is it weird? You know, you guys went through puberty and all that shite. Teenage years are hard. I guess it’s nice to have something constant all the time”
“you have no idea” Gabrielle muttered
“So” Flora encouraged her. Nudging her shoulder lightly and tucking hr feet under her. She looked like Cyn, Mo, or Shaz when they wanted to gossip. Gabrielle didn’t gossip. She didn’t see the point in talking about daft things that had nothing to do with her. Besides, it wasn’t very nice.
“What?” she blinked, aware Flora was waiting for her to say something
“Was it weird?” Flora asked, giggling childishly, even though she was a good seven years older then Gabrielle.
“What?” she asked again
“George. You know. I want to know I think you two are adorable. You’ve always been but I remember you being the cute little eight year old and he was the under-nourished little boy with sticky legs and eyes that were to big for his face. Then you. Well. Gabby you’re all grown up, I must say”
“I am” she mumbled, not really comprehending
Flora sighed “I bet yer own of them dolly-birds that don’t even have to try to keep their figures. You just have it, hey? Yer so lucky. Me, I have to diet like crazy to stay under ten stone. How much do you weigh?”
Gabrielle gave her a bizarre look “Why does everyone seem to obsessed with how I look. Really. *everyone* cares. Its’ no big deal. I don’t care and it’s no big deal to me. Fucking hell is that all people can see? Is that all they care about? I mean I’m not just a pretty face”
Oh god. I’m not just a pretty face. How many times have those words been spoken. Euuhhhgh. She was becoming the stereotypical Helen of Troy. Be grieved by her beauty. Only, Gabrielle DIDN”T CARE! Paul couldn’t get over it. Her family couldn’t get over it. Her father couldn’t get over it. Her cousins couldn’t. Her friends couldn’t. Her teachers couldn’t. It was so fucking stupid! Hadn’t they all seen pretty girls before. Why did they insist on always bringing it up? The only person who didn’t care was George.
Gabrielle told Flora this in a long winded rant.
“George?” Flora asked “But he’s a guy. Can’t he…”
“He doesn’t *care*. It’s because he’s *Sane* unlike the rest of you, obviously”
Flora grinned “He can see past the gorgeous face and see the personality shining beneath it”
“Oh shut up” Gabrielle groaned “My personality begs for me not to ignored. I’m *not* book smart but I’m completely capable of making someone laugh an carrying on a conversation about something. I’m not worried about people not seeing me. I don’t honestly care. There are loads of people who can. You all can. The problem is you care so much that I’m like… special or something and I’m not….”
Flora blinked and tried to think of something to say “Well…” she started to say “Does George” Gabrielle groaned internally this was getting so old “Does he think you’re pretty. You had to Grow at some time you know”
She sighed. Thinking about the second year back from The fucking boarding school. She went into it a pre-teen who giggled at the word ‘sex’ and thought alcohol was something only the boys in the leather jackets around the pub liked. And her best friend was a guy and she had no other real friends besides Shaz, whom she went to primary school with, and Arthur, who was George’s good friend and played guitar with him.
And then a year at school. She got her period. She got breasts. She had health education. She talked about Sex with her first real girl friends who were not completely mad (IE: Shaz)
And then she came back. And the look on George face was one she would never ever ever in her whole life forget. And she would never forget the feeling she got when she saw him either.
Oh. Shit.
All tall now, she’d been taller, now he was. He really shot up in a year. And god. What the fuck happened to your voice George? All deep, it was still her George it only sounded a little off now.
She felt like things would never be the same. They couldn’t be care free youngsters. They were teenagers full of angst. And yet. He was her best friend and the same person.
She would never forget the look on his face though. For one minute he was *not* George. He was some other boy she didn’t know.
She’d climbed out of the car, pulling at her school uniform. A knee length plaid skirt. The white button down top. She left the blazer off for it was getting for to hot out in June to be wearing such a heavy thing. Mum had mentioned something about George standing up on the porch waiting.
Gabby and poked her around the side of the car and saw the tall gangly thirteen year old George waiting for her impatiently so he could she her what new records he had gathered and what new songs he could play and the new guitar strap he’d picked up from Arthur’s older brother.
“George!” She laughed “You silly git, ‘ow long you been waiting there mate?”
He looked over at her as she ran to meet him for a hug and some normal shoving and horse playing as if the nine months without each others company hadn’t. He saw her, and the grin on his lips that dropped off.
His features had flooded with surprise and then shock, an then blatant curiosity. He didn’t say anything as she approached him.
“helloooo” she sang “Earth to George.”
He didn’t say anything. She was mildly surprised when he very quickly raked his gaze over her. To top if all off a look of horror then settled upon his face as if she had been deformed rather then curving out a bit.
She trotted up the steps and whacked him on the arm, seemingly bringing him back to reality.
“George you fucking idiot. What’s wrong. Are you alive?” she’d waved her hand in front of his face.
“Hey hey” he said, wow. Low voice. It took her a back. “Um… auh… I mean” he stuttered over his words but held his arms out awkwardly for a hug. She stepped into his embrace, a little apprehensively but hugged him hard. He seemed to get it. He missed her too. More then they ever let on. He hugged her back and she sighed. It didn’t feel like George. It felt like George’s older brother Harold when he hugged her once. And George? She realized she had changed a lot. Oh god.
Things were going to be different. The both realized it and hopped the other hadn’t. They pushed that thought away as if their minds were in sync and decided that none of this mattered.
“Georgie you bloody giant” she teased
“Oh fuck off, you’re getting shorter you know” he said back,
That had been it. That hug and that look and that little switch was turned off.
Flora watched Gabrielle’s expression change. “So what. He doesn’t care either”
“Well” Gabrielle said carefully “I don’t care… and we’re the same person almost so he doesn’t care either”
