‘He’ll be asleep again soon, with a bit of luck,’ she whispered to Stan, ‘I hope he’s going to be OK about the flat, and the shop, and everything.’
Stan sighed.He loved George already, but he knew that there would be a huge conflict of interests when George realised, as he soon must, that Stan intended to be a permanent fixture in their lives.George and his mother shared an unusually strong bond, and a newcomer, however much George enjoyed the skateboarding advice, the rivalry with computer games and the man-to-man chats, would probably be unwelcome.Stan wondered if Jess was aware of the strength of his feelings for her.He’d tried to play it down, making himself as indispensable as he could; helping with the strain of hospital visiting, talking to doctors, researching autism on his phone and generally aiming to become such a huge part of her life that she wouldn’t want to be without him.It was obvious that Jess was beginning to lean on Stan in all sorts of ways; he made her laugh when she was sad or stressed, let her pour out her troubles at any time of the day or night, cooked fabulous risottos and pasta bakes and he could even send her off to sleep playing Marcus’s old guitar and singing a selection of Beatles songs, absorbed over long years of listening to his dad’s old records.Jess’s favourite was ‘Here Comes the Sun’.She said it gave her a lovely warm feeling when Stan sang about ice melting and everything being all right.
George woke up again after another fitful doze, so at Stan’s suggestion, they stopped at the motorway services once they’d left the torment of the orbital road and fuelled their driver with a hideously expensive fry-up and about a gallon of coffee in a cup that was more like a bucket.Kev looked around hopefully to see if a muffin might be available, but George was getting fractious with tiredness and from the pain from his injured leg and arm, so Stan ushered his brood back to the van, and they set off for the last lap of their journey home.
‘When will we be home?I want my bed,’ moaned George, huddling into his blanket.‘This plaster cast on my leg’s making me itch.’
‘Soon, my love, we’ll be at the shop in about twenty minutes from now,’ said Jess soothingly.George sat up suddenly.
‘The shop?Why are we going there?I said I wanted my bed!’
‘Ah, well, that’s where your bed lives now, George,’ said Stan, seeing Jess’s discomfort.‘Mum’s going to be working in the shop, making her yummy stuff for the café, and we’re all going to live there from now on to make things easier.’
‘Easier for who?Not easier for me!’yelled George, furious now.He sat up, eyes glittering.‘What are you trying to tell me, Dickhead?’
Stan flinched, he thought George had forgotten about this old name.He had been so much nicer to his mother when he was in hospital.George was incandescent with rage now.
‘You’re not saying that my bed isn’t at my proper home any more, are you?Who took it to the stupid shop?’
‘Erm… I’m afraid that was me, mate,’ said Kev, rubbing his ear in embarrassment.‘I do lots of small removal jobs now, it’s part of my…’
‘Shut up!Move it back, right now.I’m not sleeping in that place.I’ll run away again.That was why I went away last time.I heardherand Grumpy Granny talking about us moving out and…I’m not going, OK?Grrrrrrrrrrrr.’
Stan took a deep breath, knowing that this was make-or-break time.It was never good news when George started his roaring.
‘I see your point, mate, but think of this from a business angle.You and Mum have been skint for ages, haven’t you, and this way she can make lots of money to buy your computer games and things without even leaving home.But the thing is… and I don’t know if anyone’s told you this, because Leo said it was a secret, actually…’ he paused, improvising wildly, and George leaned forward, still silent.‘…the thing is that Leo wants to buy a massive fish tank for the shop and fill it with the most fantastic collection of tropical fish that he can afford.He reckons it’ll be relaxing for the customers to look at.There’s only one problem though.Oh, hang on, maybe I shouldn’t be telling you this at all…’
George poked Stan roughly between the shoulder blades.
‘Go on, I won’t blab…’
‘Well… OK then, if you’re sure you can keep a secret,’ George nodded fiercely, ‘it’s just that Leo, nice bloke as he is… I don’t know why this should be, but he’s rubbish at anything to do with pets.He even says Mab can’t keep Maurice in the shop now, in case he eats the fish.’George looked outraged.
‘But I could take care of the fish, and keep an eye on Maurice… you can get covers for the tanks.Sorted.’
‘Hmmm, it’s not just that, mate.Leo hasn’t even got time to go and choose the fish and set up the tank, he’s so busy.And I’d do it, but I don’t know anything about it.’
‘But I do!I did a project on tropical creatures at school.DH wouldn’t let me have any though.’
‘Oh, George, it was just that they cost so much, and I…’ Stan silenced Jess with a look and she subsided into her seat, light dawning.George sat up, looking better than he’d been for a long time.
‘Stan, I can help you buy the fish, I know what to do, I’ve still got a book.’
‘Really?Would you, mate?’said Stan.‘Well, that’d make all the difference.But… no, it wouldn’t work…’ He tailed off, trying to look disappointed.
‘It would!It would work!Why shouldn’t it?’George shouted, bouncing up and down.Jess stretched out a restraining arm and raised her eyebrows at Stan.
Stan said, rather sadly, ‘It’s just that whoever’s in charge of the fish, and of protecting them from Maurice, of course, will need to be living on the premises, and you’ve just said you don’t want to do that, George.I don’t see how we can get round that one.Leo will never get it sorted on his own and no one else has got the expertise to take charge.It’s a shame, but we’ll just have to drop the idea.’
There was silence as George thought about this problem.After a moment, he sighed, and said, ‘I’ll do a deal with you, Dickhead.’
Jess smiled hopefully, but Stan, on a roll, said, ‘Look, George, your mum doesn’t like it when you call her that.It’s not respectful.If you’re prepared to do a deal, that’s excellent, but it’s got to be on a proper, grown-up level.So, no name-calling, OK, mate?’
Another pause lengthened until Stan was sure they’d lost him, but then George said, ‘OK then.I’ll do a deal with you… Mum…’ Jess’s eyes filled with tears but luckily George didn’t notice, and carried on, ‘If you let me sleep in that little room with the bars, and if I don’t have to go to school, I’ll take over Maurice and the fish.’
Stan hadn’t realised that he’d been holding his breath, but suddenly felt light-headed with relief.He ruffled George’s hair as Jess said, shakily, ‘Right, that sounds like a great deal to me.The school thing’s a bit up in the air anyway, and you’re not fit for that yet.We’ll have to talk about it again later, though.There are rules, Georgie, they’ll send me to prison if I refuse to educate you.’
George considered this.He felt the van slow down, and sat up straighter.
