Friends

It was fantastic!

I was late, as usual, and when I walked into the restaurant, they all cheered ! It was so lovely to see them all. There was lots of hugging and kissing and we set the noise level there and then but fortunately there weren't many other customers around. I was laughing within seconds - so hard at one stage, at something Ed said, that I could hardly breathe.

We started on the wine straight away and given that I hadn't had any breakfast it didn't take me long to feel the effects and the others weren't far behind. It's so hard to put into words why it was so good, why it's always so good with us, but I can't really describe it in a way that anyone who doesn't know us would understand. We talked of what was going on with each of us and gossiped about people we knew and remembered funny things from years gone by. How do you describe deep friendships? Especially as my relationship with each of them is different. All I know is that I love them to bits and they'll never know how much it meant that they made the effort to spend the day with me. Although, I did try to tell them ....when we were on the fifth bottle I think! I wasn't particularly eloquent and was finally interrupted by Rex
"Oh what are you talking about, you old tart - shut up! Dave told us you needed us and so here we are.......mind you, I wouldn't have come if Ed had said no!!"

By late afternoon, we were all being incredibly loud but the staff were very patient with us. Our waiter was lovely (very good-looking too) and I think he was quite enjoying himself with our group as all of us girls were flirting with him ....as was Rex! He came over at one point to see what he could get us and was taking orders for coffee and more wine when Kim, who is so funny when she is drunk, suddenly said to him
"Don't you think Selina's hair is lovely."
We all started screeching with laughter and he said (in his lovely Italian accent)
"Yes. In fact, she is very lovely"
"No, I know" said Kim "but don't you think her hair looks cute?"
"It is beautiful" he said " very soft and shiny. If I was her man I would want to stroke it all the time."
We were all falling about then and Kim persisted
"Go on then touch it - it's really gorgeous."

He looked at me and asked if he could and of course, I said yes and so he did. He said it was very sexy, like me, and we all screamed with laughter some more - he must have thought were such a bunch of fools. Then Rex started shouting "come and stroke mine" and we all screamed some more and then suddenly my phone bleeped with a text. It took me a second or two to focus on the message but it was from Matt
How come you are letting that sleazy waiter touch your hair

I was so shocked and my head whipped round to see where he was in the restaurant but he wasn't there. And then I looked out of the window and there he was, over the road, leaning against a lampost and smiling. As I stared at him in disbelief another text came through:
Told you I would be checking up on you. Sorry, I couldn't resist! I'm jealous that you're having such a good time. Fancy leaving them and coming home with me?

There may have been a time, I don't know, when I would have been thrilled to see him there but actually I was really angry. I took my phone into the ladies and messaged him that I would not be leaving and that I was freaked out that he was there and that when I returned to the table I expected him to be gone.

He was and of course, that made me feel a bit guilty that I had been so sharp. Why did he have to put a dampener on things?

Later Nancy, who is apart from her husband at the moment, told me about a situation she's in with some bloke and I almost...almost told her about Matt. Fortunately, though I didn't.

They all love Ewan - I can't tell any of them any of this