Emil Miller
02-04-2011, 02:11 PM
Gert Ricksjdorp pulled into the delivery bay of the supermarket and braked sharply as a large ginger cat ran in front of his lorry.
“Bloody cats,” he said in his heavy Flemish accent. He wasn’t in the best of moods, because the pull up where he usually stopped in Ostend for a meal had been closed and he’d decided to carry on to his destination with the intention of eating on his return journey.
He parked and got down from the vehicle to be greeted by the supermarket manager Steve West who was on the loading bay talking to one of his assistants.
“Hi Gert!” exclaimed Steve, “ How was the trip?”
“ Not bad, not bad, I’ve got the extra cases you ordered.”
“ OK, come into the office and I’ll sign for delivery,” said Steve.
Ever since the supermarket had opened three years ago, Gert Ricksjdorp had driven from the brewery in Belgium once a month to the Big Save supermarket in Ashford, catching the early morning ferry at Ostend and delivering his cargo of beer by mid-morning.
“ Here’s your copy,” said Steve, handing the signed delivery note to the driver. “ I guess you’ll be heading straight back won’t you?”
“Yes I will, I didn’t have anything to eat in Ostend but I’ll certainly make up for it when I get off the ferry.”
“Well I guess the beer’s unloaded by now so I hope you have a good return journey.”
“Thanks. See you next month. Bye.”
Steve West was also discontented that morning; in fact he’d been like it for weeks, and all because of Susan Peters. She had started working at the supermarket a few months previously and from the first time he’d seen her he was smitten. She was seventeen and lived in a flat, which she rented from her aunt, at the other end of the road in which the store was situated. She wasn’t a glamorous kind of girl who turns heads, but she had that natural beauty that turns hearts and the young manager had fallen desperately in love with her.
It was Susan’s first job and she worked on one of the checkout desks. As is often the case, there was a certain turnover of staff among the checkout assistants and Steve was constantly worried that Susan might decide move on.
When he had first spoken to her in a work capacity, she had given every indication that she liked him and he was on the point of asking her out when he’d heard the conversation that had plunged him into gloom.
He’d been in the staff canteen when Susan had come in and waved to a girl sitting at the next table before joining her for lunch. “ Did you have a nice holiday?” Susan asked the girl.
“Yes it was great, we had sunshine every day. We’re thinking of going again next year.”
They spoke in a desultory way for a while when the girl suddenly said. “How’s Gerry?”
“Oh still as wonderful as ever. I love him to bits, he just makes my day every time I see him.”
“Well I don’t blame you he is gorgeous, I wish he was mine.”
Susan looked wistfully into the middle distance and said,” Well you can’t have him, he belongs to me and I know he’d never leave me.”
Steve got up and walked from the canteen as though in a trance. His heart felt like a lead weight inside him and he said to his under manager that he felt unwell and was leaving early.
On the journey home, he told himself that he was a fool to think that she wouldn’t have a boyfriend. She could have had any man she wanted.
The following day, when she was taking her break in the canteen, Susan saw the manager come into the room and smiled at him as he passed her table, but he appeared not to have noticed her and seated himself on the other side of the room.
Now, three weeks later, he was still utterly dejected that the most wonderful person in the world was but a matter of yards from his office but might as well be a million miles away.
If Steve West’s mood was gloomy, Susan Peters’ sunny disposition had given way to one of anxiety, which deepened over the course of the next few days.
Steve didn’t know about it until a customer complained that Susan had given her the wrong change and he had called her into his office, “Now why did you short change that customer Susan? It’s not like you,” every word sounded like a dagger in his heart but he had to do his duty as manager.
“ I don’t know Mr West, I…” she broke into violent sobs and casting aside his manager’s hat, he took her in his arms.
“There, there, it’s alright. Don’t cry. Are you in some sort of trouble?”
Then she related the whole story. Gerry had left her. He’d just walked out of her life three days ago. In any kind of relationship there are usually downs as well as ups and sometimes Gerry had done things that annoyed her, but there had been no altercation to explain his sudden departure.
Her tears rolled down her cheeks onto his shirtfront and he whispered softly in her ear that he loved her and had done since the very first day she had begun working at the store.
“Don’t worry Susan everything’s going to be fine,” he told her.
Gerry climbed down from the vehicle and gazed about him, he was completely disoriented. This wasn’t what he’d been expecting. He had spent the last three hours asleep and awoke to find himself completely at odds with his surroundings. Perhaps if he had a scout round the district he would find what he was looking for, but he was unable to locate anything that would give him a lead as to which direction he should take. There wasn’t a solitary landmark that he recognised, so he carried on walking and hoping to come across a road that would take him where he wanted to go.
After walking for what seemed like days, he came out onto a seafront with a large fish market selling an amazing variety of seafood. Two women were cutting up fish on one of the stalls and Gerry walked over to them.
One of the women saw him and exclaimed, “Kijk naar die mooie gember kat! Is hij niet prachtig?"
Which roughly translated, means, “Look at that beautiful ginger cat! Isn't he gorgeous?”
“Bloody cats,” he said in his heavy Flemish accent. He wasn’t in the best of moods, because the pull up where he usually stopped in Ostend for a meal had been closed and he’d decided to carry on to his destination with the intention of eating on his return journey.
He parked and got down from the vehicle to be greeted by the supermarket manager Steve West who was on the loading bay talking to one of his assistants.
“Hi Gert!” exclaimed Steve, “ How was the trip?”
“ Not bad, not bad, I’ve got the extra cases you ordered.”
“ OK, come into the office and I’ll sign for delivery,” said Steve.
Ever since the supermarket had opened three years ago, Gert Ricksjdorp had driven from the brewery in Belgium once a month to the Big Save supermarket in Ashford, catching the early morning ferry at Ostend and delivering his cargo of beer by mid-morning.
“ Here’s your copy,” said Steve, handing the signed delivery note to the driver. “ I guess you’ll be heading straight back won’t you?”
“Yes I will, I didn’t have anything to eat in Ostend but I’ll certainly make up for it when I get off the ferry.”
“Well I guess the beer’s unloaded by now so I hope you have a good return journey.”
“Thanks. See you next month. Bye.”
Steve West was also discontented that morning; in fact he’d been like it for weeks, and all because of Susan Peters. She had started working at the supermarket a few months previously and from the first time he’d seen her he was smitten. She was seventeen and lived in a flat, which she rented from her aunt, at the other end of the road in which the store was situated. She wasn’t a glamorous kind of girl who turns heads, but she had that natural beauty that turns hearts and the young manager had fallen desperately in love with her.
It was Susan’s first job and she worked on one of the checkout desks. As is often the case, there was a certain turnover of staff among the checkout assistants and Steve was constantly worried that Susan might decide move on.
When he had first spoken to her in a work capacity, she had given every indication that she liked him and he was on the point of asking her out when he’d heard the conversation that had plunged him into gloom.
He’d been in the staff canteen when Susan had come in and waved to a girl sitting at the next table before joining her for lunch. “ Did you have a nice holiday?” Susan asked the girl.
“Yes it was great, we had sunshine every day. We’re thinking of going again next year.”
They spoke in a desultory way for a while when the girl suddenly said. “How’s Gerry?”
“Oh still as wonderful as ever. I love him to bits, he just makes my day every time I see him.”
“Well I don’t blame you he is gorgeous, I wish he was mine.”
Susan looked wistfully into the middle distance and said,” Well you can’t have him, he belongs to me and I know he’d never leave me.”
Steve got up and walked from the canteen as though in a trance. His heart felt like a lead weight inside him and he said to his under manager that he felt unwell and was leaving early.
On the journey home, he told himself that he was a fool to think that she wouldn’t have a boyfriend. She could have had any man she wanted.
The following day, when she was taking her break in the canteen, Susan saw the manager come into the room and smiled at him as he passed her table, but he appeared not to have noticed her and seated himself on the other side of the room.
Now, three weeks later, he was still utterly dejected that the most wonderful person in the world was but a matter of yards from his office but might as well be a million miles away.
If Steve West’s mood was gloomy, Susan Peters’ sunny disposition had given way to one of anxiety, which deepened over the course of the next few days.
Steve didn’t know about it until a customer complained that Susan had given her the wrong change and he had called her into his office, “Now why did you short change that customer Susan? It’s not like you,” every word sounded like a dagger in his heart but he had to do his duty as manager.
“ I don’t know Mr West, I…” she broke into violent sobs and casting aside his manager’s hat, he took her in his arms.
“There, there, it’s alright. Don’t cry. Are you in some sort of trouble?”
Then she related the whole story. Gerry had left her. He’d just walked out of her life three days ago. In any kind of relationship there are usually downs as well as ups and sometimes Gerry had done things that annoyed her, but there had been no altercation to explain his sudden departure.
Her tears rolled down her cheeks onto his shirtfront and he whispered softly in her ear that he loved her and had done since the very first day she had begun working at the store.
“Don’t worry Susan everything’s going to be fine,” he told her.
Gerry climbed down from the vehicle and gazed about him, he was completely disoriented. This wasn’t what he’d been expecting. He had spent the last three hours asleep and awoke to find himself completely at odds with his surroundings. Perhaps if he had a scout round the district he would find what he was looking for, but he was unable to locate anything that would give him a lead as to which direction he should take. There wasn’t a solitary landmark that he recognised, so he carried on walking and hoping to come across a road that would take him where he wanted to go.
After walking for what seemed like days, he came out onto a seafront with a large fish market selling an amazing variety of seafood. Two women were cutting up fish on one of the stalls and Gerry walked over to them.
One of the women saw him and exclaimed, “Kijk naar die mooie gember kat! Is hij niet prachtig?"
Which roughly translated, means, “Look at that beautiful ginger cat! Isn't he gorgeous?”