The Shop Girl and the Priest

Old Karen would have just told me to shut up and get on with it, she would have told me to man up, not be such a snowflake, but this new Karen was starting to see the light.

"Jaime," she said, "I wasn't in a good place," she whispered back. "I wouldn't have come with you and wouldn't have 'got there' as you did." Karen looked in my face, "You did it though, Jai, you didn't leave me behind, you went off and did what you always said you would, despite the battles, you won the war..." She started to choke this time. "And you have come back for me." She held up the top to herself.

"Yeah," I said. "Forgive me?"

"Me, forgive you?" she said. "Did you ever swing a punch at me?"

I laughed,

"No." I slid over and nudged her shoulder with mine. "You're my little sister, I wanted to occasionally."

She pulled on the top I'd given her,

"You know I never meant any of that shit, don't you?" She straightened up the top and showed some untanned cleavage and it looked good on her.

"Yeah you did," I said with a grin, "but it wasn't 'you.' You weren't that kid when we were growing up, but you responded mate. It wasn't your fault, and no I don't forgive YOU, I forgive Dad, for how he was to US!" I turned and kissed her cheek and gave her a hug. "Nothing to forgive."

"Thanks, Jai,"

"Welcome, Babe." I reached into the suitcase and pulled out a short cotton skirt that settled half-way up her thighs. "Put that on, as well."

"Jai!"

"It's what I should have done years ago!" I said, "It's what I should have done for you, you're my little sister, I owe you." We laughed and hugged again. "Come on, get dressed and I'll do your make-up so you look hot... like me."

She did, then I did, and we made our way out into the garden again, arm in arm, I thought Mum was just going to burst.

Karen went on to make friends as well; after graduation she went to work in the Media department of a large city council. No one knew her or what a cow she could be; it was fresh start time and she went with it.

Shortly after she discovered 'friends,' she discovered 'boy' friends, one of which became a 'boyfriend' who she brought to my wedding. They've been an item for two years now, we get on now better than we ever did before.

*****

I think back on my life and the tough times I had between year five and puberty, then the misery I went through until my eighteenth birthday and I left home.

My lovely Mum had made me a lovely daughter, a nice person. Dad had been a dick and made Karen into one.

However I'd been treated, the constant nagging to do better, to try harder, being left to learn things and get tasks done on my own initiative—had that made me the hard-working, gold-medal-winning college student who probably would have passed her exams, then have gotten her A-levels but for a messed up endocrine system?

Was that the thing that got me into Oriel?

I'd gone out to work, initially under duress, but I'd enjoyed it; it helped me grow up and gave me the self-confidence my childhood and adolescence never had, it gave me the nuts to move out. It made me keep working to earn my own keep and not just go with the loans like some of my contemporaries.

It had seen me work strange hours over the Christmas holidays so my colleagues with children could have the time off. It had seen me taking the time to walk to a rough sleeper hostel with bags of food that would just go to waste otherwise, after a long day's work on a New Year's Eve when the rest of the world was in bed or partying; to do good, to be a better person; it led me to that kitchen door to meet that priest, my man, my husband, my Russ.

Yeah.

Thanks Dad.