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Damn. I hesitate, then write, 'What about credit card? I'll pay you back, honest. And what are you listening to?'
I pass the page to her and suddenly the lights go up. The presentation has ended and I didn't hear a word of it. People shift around on their seats and a PR girl starts handing out glossy brochures. Elly finishes her call and grins at me.
'Love life prediction,' she says, tapping in another number. 'It's really accurate stuff.'
'Load of old bullshit, more like.' I shake my head disapprovingly. 'I can't believe you go for all that rubbish. Call yourself a financial journalist?'
'No,' says Elly. 'Do you?' And we both start to giggle, until some old bag from one of the nationals turns round and gives us an angry glare.
'Ladies and gentlemen.' A piercing voice interrupts us and I look up. It's Alicia, standing up at the front of the room. She's got very good legs, I note resentfully.
'As you can see, the Foreland Exotic Opportunities Savings Plan represents an entirely new approach to investment.' She looks around the room, meets my eye and smiles coldly.
(I always turn to the charges first. Just like I look at the price tag first.)
Elly rolls her eyes sympathetically, still listening the phone.
'Foreland Investments are all about adding value,' Alicia is saying in her snooty voice. 'Foreland Invest' merits offer you more.'
'They charge more, you lose more,' I say aloud without thinking, and there's a laugh around the room.
God, how embarrassing. And now Luke Brandon's staring at me, too. Quickly I look down and pretend to be writing notes.
Although to be honest, I don't know why I even pretend to write notes. It's not as if we ever put anything in the magazine except the puff that comes on the press release. Foreland Investments takes out a whopping double-page spread advertisement every month, and they took Philip on some fantastic research (haha) trip to Thailand last year – so we're never allowed to say anything except how wonderful they are.
As Alicia carries on speaking, I lean towards Elly.
'So, listen,' 'I whisper 'Can I borrow your credit card?'
'All used up,' hisses Elly apologetically. 'I'm up to my limit. Why do you think I'm living off LVs?'
'But I need money!' I whisper. 'I'm desperate! I need twenty quid!'
I've spoken more loudly than I intended and Alicia stops speaking.
'Perhaps you should have invested with Foreland Investments, Rebecca,' says Alicia, and another titter goes round the room. A few faces turn round to gawp at me, and I stare back at them lividly. They're fellow journalists, for God's sake. They should be on my side. NUJ solidarity and all that.
Not that I've ever actually got round to joining the NUJ. But still.
'What do you need twenty quid for?' says Luke Brandon, from the front of the room.
'I… my aunt,' I say defiantly. 'She's in hospital and I wanted to get her a present.'
The room is silent. Then, to my disbelief, Luke Brandon reaches into his pocket, takes out a ?20 note, and gives it to a guy in the front row of journalists. He hesitates, then passes it back to the row behind. And so it goes on, a twenty-quid note being passed from hand to hand, making its way to me like a fan at a gig being passed over the crowd. As I take hold of it, a round of applause goes round the room and I blush.
'Thanks,' I say awkwardly. 'I'll pay you back, of course.'
'My best wishes to your aunt,' says Luke Brandon.
'Thanks,' I say again. Then I glance at Alicia, and feel a little dart of triumph. She looks utterly deflated.
Towards the end of the question-and-answer session, people begin slipping out to get back to their offices. This is usually the point at which I go and buy a cappuccino and browse in a few shops. But today I don't. Today I decide I will stick it out until the last dismal question about tax structures. Then I'll go up to the front and thank Luke Brandon in person for his kind, if embarrassing, gesture. And then I'll go and get my scarf. Yippee!
But to my surprise, after only a few questions, Luke Brandon gets up, whispers something to Alicia, and heads for the door.
'Thanks,' I mutter as he passes my chair, but I'm not sure he even hears me.
Still, who cares? I've got the twenty quid and that's all that matters.
On the way back from Westminster, the tube stops in a tu
Part of my brain knows that I've got plenty of time to get to De
As the train finally gets going again I sink into my seat with a dramatic sigh and look at the pale, silent man on my left.
'Thank God!' I say. 'I was getting desperate there.'
'It's frustrating,' he agrees quietly.
'They just don't think, do they?' I say. 'I mean, some of us have got crucial things we need to be doing. I'm in a terrible hurry!'
'I'm in a bit of a hurry myself,' says the man.
'If that train hadn't started moving, I don't know what I would have done.' I shake my head. 'You feel so… impotent!'
'I know exactly what you mean,' says the man intensely 'They' don't realize that some of us…' He gestures towards me. 'We aren't just idly travelling. It matters whether we arrive or not.'
'Absolutely!' I say. 'Where are you off to?'
'My wife's in labour,' he says. 'Our fourth.'
'Oh,' I say, taken aback 'Well Gosh. Congratulations. I hope you-'
'She took an hour and a half last time,' says the man, rubbing his damp forehead. 'And I've been on this tube for forty minutes already. Still. At least we're moving now.'
He gives a little shrug, then smiles at me. 'How about you? What's your urgent business?'
Oh God.
'I… ohm… I'm going to…'
I stop feebly and clear my throat, feeling myself blushing red. I can't tell this man that my urgent business consists of picking up a scarf from De
'It's not that important,' I hear myself mumbling.
'I don't believe that,' he says nicely.
Oh, now I feel awful. I glance up – and thank goodness, it's my stop.
'Good luck,' I say, hastily getting up. 'I really hope you get there in time.'
As I walk along the pavement I'm feeling a bit shamefaced. Maybe I should have got out my hundred and twenty quid and given it to that man for his baby, instead of buying a pointless scarf. I mean, when you think about it, what's more important? Clothes – or the miracle of new life?
As I ponder this issue, I feel quite deep and philosophical. In fact I'm so engrossed, I almost walk past my turning. But I look up just in time and turn the corner – and feel a jolt. There's a girl coming towards me and she's carrying a De
Oh my God.
What if she's got my scarf?
What if she asked for it specially and that assistant sold it to her, thinking I wasn't going to come back?
My heart starts to beat in panic and I begin to stride along the street towards the shop. As I arrive at the door and push it open, I can barely breathe for fear.
What if it's gone? What will I do?
But the blond girl smiles as I enter. 'Hi!' she says. 'It's waiting for you.'
'Oh thanks,' I say in relief and subside weakly against the counter.