A Life Plan Without You. (99 page)

“Michelle do you think you can help with this next lot, these
are the Hornie Toad Class?” She looked at me. “They named
themselves and when they get in, you’ll know why, it’s just the two
pleasure for dance classes on a Sunday, the gents are the Toads,
and my ladies are the Ladybirds, these oldies have a sense of
humour it has to be said, they are coming early this week the coach
straight after the toads.” I waited with baited breathe, I didn’t
have long to wait they were on their way in with Grams.

“Maria, save the last dance for me cutie pie.” I laughed;
Grandma was lapping up the complements and the
attention.

“Please Fred, put Mrs Welles down. Right you lot in here and
meet your new teacher for the next couple of months.” I smiled they
were a bunch of twelve, male pensioners from the church owned
nursing home.

“Hello gentlemen, pleased to meet you, I’m Michelle and for
the next few months I will be teaching the toads some floor filling
dances. You will be lean mean dancing machines, when I leave you.
The ground rules are pinching my bum will get you a smack, but do
it more than once and well I will make sure you dance with a
Zimmer. If you want to accept the challenge, then step this way.”
They laughed and all moved towards me. “Right, I’m going to show
you a Foxtrot, a nice and simple starter dance. I don’t suppose any
of you have done this before being this is a new dancer’s class? If
you have please, step this way?” One nice looking gent stepped
forward, smiling. “We have a volunteer Hello and your name is?” He
smiled.

“I’m Joe, but whatever you call me, please be sure…” I
finished his sentence with him…

“…
You don’t call me late for tea! Nice Joe.” He gave
me a hug and laughed with me. “Please come show me your moves
then?” I laughed. “My Uncle Joe says that to me all the time, that
and first up, best dressed! I don’t know why he’s the size of a
bloody great big gorilla, his stuffs too big for me.” He laughed at
my attempt at humour. I put the music on and he held my arm and
placed his hands on my waist.

He danced it perfectly, I smiled as he moved around the floor,
and the other fellas were watching his moves. He had a grace as he
danced, which reminded me of Sam… See even here I think of
him.

“I think Joe, that’s perfect thank you.” I walked the other
fellas through the basic steps, they all wanted a dance with me and
then Lizzy came to help, just as her ladybirds arrived. “Lady’s
feel free to help Lizzy and I muster these men into
shape.”

All my men had partners now and watched as Joe and I dance the
basic steps, the ladies were learning a new dance too. Lizzy had
been teaching them separately, she doesn’t cope well with stress
and I can see why, these oldies are terrible, worse than the
nippers I teach, but oh so much fun.

“Joe you dance very well, and are very light on your feet, how
did you learn?” He smiled.

“My late wife Hattie, now she loved to tread the dance floor
and we have taken, classes for many, many years, I came tonight,
because I didn’t want to watch television. I must say you dance
very well too Michelle.” I thanked him.

“Right ladies and gent’s I would like to walk you through a
waltz. You all at some time will have danced this and most of you
won’t realise it. I call it the wedding shuffle because it’s the
one dance where you all get up to dance at a wedding, but you don’t
really know the steps, but you move your feet with the music in the
required squire formation, and normally folks get near to the
required steps, without realising it. So, this one should be easy,
I bet you have all danced it at someone’s wedding, if not your
own.”

I asked for Joe’s hand again, he took mine gladly. We did the
steps slowly and asked that they followed us, Lizzy, walked around
correcting the struggling ones and we put on music and danced it
through he was my dream partner, such grace and stature and his
smile was beautiful.

“Joe would you like to dance with someone else? I can’t
monopolise you, you will be very popular being able to dance with
such grace.” He laughed.

“Rather I stopped with you Michelle that lot are a bunch of
raving idiots in the home.” I smiled at the man staring at
me.

“Well if you’re sure it’s really nice dancing with you, thank
you. Our last dance for the evening is a Jive. Now most of you will
have done the fifties freestyle version, chucking each other, over
shoulders and under legs. This one is the ballroom toned down,
correct version, not the one invented by the rampant sexy Teddie
Boy's way back in the fifties, I apologies if you were a Teddie
Boy. I can guarantee with this version you won’t break your hip
replacement, if you follow me carefully and don’t add the fifties
version in, were not insured for the over the backs and under the
legs stuff, so follow Joe and I. Joe if you please. Can we also
have music please?”

He sang Adam Faith’s 'Someone Else’s Baby.' As we danced and
boy did I enjoy it, he did too and we forgot about the others and
danced. He danced the basic Jive, and we added a few advanced moves
in, but not enough to get them over excited.

The lady’s and gent’s lined up and danced their socks off.
Lizzy walked, correcting moves and enjoying herself. The music
stopped and they clapped each other, I gave Joe a hug and thanked
him for his help. I really had enjoyed tonight’s class; these
oldies had cheered me up no end, especially Joe.

“Michelle I have been teaching them for four weeks and they
row from coming in to leaving and the men are friskier than that
normally, oh what a nice lesson and such a change, thank you here’s
your wages.” I smiled, and gave it her back.

“I do this class for pleasure, put it back please Lizzy, and
teach me yoga instead of paying me?” She agreed and asked me my
secret. “I have the power and I’m not afraid to use it? No
seriously, I enjoyed the challenge and don’t let things stress me
when I dance, same time next Sunday?” She thanked me and said she
would see me next week. I walked Grams home she was very impressed
with my teaching the oldies their lessons. I laughed she was older
than most of them.

We stopped at Marfa’s farm shop for supplies, his son giving
me the eye. Wow, he was a hunk, his blond hair and shirtless body,
oh hell, why was I so fucking hornie? I needed my bed when I got in
because I was really tired. I had a glass of milk and a sandwich
taking it to bed with me.

“Night Grams see you tomorrow.” I gave her a kiss and went up.
I had a hot bath with bubbles, and had Miss Whiskey for company;
she sat on the edge of the bath, playing with the bubbles. My cat
likes a bath full of bubbles, but not the water under them. I
dressed in my fluffy pyjamas and ate my sandwich, drank my milk and
drifted off into sleep, the song playing until I slept.

I had a wonderful summer it had flown by, nothing done about
the hunky farmers boy, he was I was informed a serious user of
girls and wouldn't treat me right. Thanks Michelle but I sussed
that on the second visit to the farm shop, his hand was up my
skirt, as I leant over the table for potatoes. He may have broken
two fingers that day.

My thoughts were always, still of Sam and I still loved him,
nothing was making me love him less. I wrote to him a few times
whilst I was here, just five words. Please Sam, forgive me please.
I had done stopovers the whole of my stay here in Hambleton, on
both Friday and Saturday nights. I was apparently a natural silver
service waitress.

My running much improved, as was my Russian speaking, because,
they paid me to be an interpreter for a Russian woman for a week. I
had to accompany her to several meetings, she was a trade delegate
and I was her interpreter. She spoke no English at all and that was
very well paid. I got two hundred pounds, just for going to some
fabulous dinners, speaking for her to the other delegates. I was
also bought three fabulous suits, as I had to represent the hotel,
so they footed the bill.

I feel a change of career coming on as I helped with the hotel
translations too, when the French town twinning party came to stop,
and when we had foreign bookings. I had to help book them in
reception and speak to them and I loved it. The tan was great as we
had a lovely hot August. My evening runs when I got home relaxed me
before bedtime and my dreams of my angel and those two days of sex.
The only relief I had was when Michael was away night fishing, and
I needed it too.

I found a new love at the club too! Dan had another life away
from the kitchens at the Castle. He was part owner of a new club
with his partner, a gorgeous Italian hunky dude, who came complete
with dark tanned skin and jet-black hair. The very dreamy Tommy, or
to be correct, his full name was Tommaso, he said it was all right
in Italy, but here it sounded like people were asking for tomato
sauce.

This was his baby the wonderful 'The Gilded Cage.' A safe
haven for me, never hit on and I danced my heart out all night. I
got singing lessons too. Dan said I needed them, so yes I can hold
a tune, just! I sing along to Dan as he plays the piano and teaches
me to breath and relax, I no longer cut glass. I am not great, but
nor am I as bad as I was, the high notes are still a little high
for me, but well I can hold a tune, if I pick the correct song and
Dan gets a dance lesson thrown in, he and Tommy are my wonderful
fairy godmothers. The only hitting on here is from the ladies who
wanted me to dance the male leads for them, and teach them to
dance.

This place I loved, I had an alter ego here too, Angel Wings,
she is feisty and wild and nothing like me of late, Michelle is sad
and tired and overworked and lonely. I sang a couple of songs, in
an act put together by Miss Danielle Downright-Goody, Dan’s alter
ego, my songs are carefully matched to my voice, they have to be I
can still break glass with the wrong one!

I am working on a Gene Pitney song, the sexy dance song I
wowed Sam with, ‘A Town Without Pity,’ with its raunchy dance moves
for the Saturday night show, a burlesque routine, I have mastered
the sultry looking moves quite well already with Lee! Sam liked the
show he got the once, as it’s quite racy it is constantly on the
turntable at home, along with my ELO and my mushy Commodores LP.
Michael has threatened to smash them if I play them on repeat on
his days off.

I danced with the girls and thoroughly enjoyed my nights after
work here Dan loved the clothes I wore. His favourite was the grey
dress Sam had bought me and the swing dresses. I had to buy new
dance shoes and went for the same white heels I bought before. I
worked out in the gym with my new best friend Dan, every other day
in our dinner hour.

“I will be a lean mean fighting machine, for hockey camp when
I get back.” Dan laughed and asked could he join the
camp.

“I can’t wait to get back Dan I need to find some closure. I
thought I’d get that here, but all think of is Sam.”

“Seems perhaps there’s still something there, find him and ask
him, but don’t push him wait for him to talk Michelle.” I spilled
the whole tale to him and Tommy after my first night at the club,
the night he called me sky eyes, his cielo gli occhi, he said my
eyes were as blue as the sky and yes, that triggered a whole load
of tears, Sam’s very reason for calling me Mi cielo. My Italian was
super improved here, we would chat away as I pot washed and
scrubbed, in their club. I would spill my heart out to a room of
drag queens. That’s what got me my new name, Angel
Wings.

I collected yet more oldies running around in my life, these
though wore fabulous frocks and killer falsies. They gave fabulous
make up tips and offered loads of great advice. My chats with Dan
and Tommy would go on to the early mornings, in their beautiful
flat with my pink room. Yes, I did tell them I wasn’t froufrou but
they said nonsense I was their little girl and would have a pink
room.

I had nightmares about him and her together. Sam and Karen
were having sex and laughing at me all the time. Often woken by
Michael, Grams or Gramps and now Tommy and Dan too. They now had to
suffer the night terrors, they all just held me, until I went back
to sleep. I woke after those nights so sad.

“What if I go back and they are a couple and are all loved up?
Why would he do this to me Dan? I couldn’t live there if that’s
what’s happened.”

“I don’t think he will have someone else, I think from what I
know of you, you’re a hard girl to get over. I’m going to miss you
Michelle and you can always move here and live here with me and
Tommy, Gramps likes me and has said it’s alright. We’d love to have
you stop, go on we will take care of you?”

I cried into his arms, I really didn’t want to go, but Gramps
and Gramps have sold their house, they are just waiting on the
fella selling his, the chain is a long one apparently, Gramps
explained and I didn’t take much notice because my favourite place
had a sold sign outside, but they will be in their new house in a
few weeks, and I have a room there, because I still hate mum,
having not spoken to her since I nearly decked her and fat
Pat.

Gramps had his reasons for moving back but he wouldn’t tell
me. I knew he was ill and didn’t want to tell me was the real
reason, though he said he was fine, he loved it here. Yes, the
money was a really good price, I had to agree that it was and yes
Grams needed to be nearer to us and her brother, but something
bothered me when I asked to stop here? He was angry with me, so
leave it I did, as it upset him too much, he never gets angry with
me ever.