The Reunion
It took Keeley ages to get ready. She nearly changed her mind. Who wanted to go to a school reunion anyway? The best years of your life!. You've got to be joking. She had hated it. She couldn't wait to get out of there. Why would she want to bother going somewhere she couldn't handle in the first place? For one reason she had promised Chloe. Chloe had phoned a few week's back, saying she had organized this reunion. She had contacted others from the same year, and had also placed an ad in the local paper, receiving a good response.
'Yes, I'll be there,' were Keeley's words, before putting the receiver down. She really felt like saying, 'Go and take a running jump. I ain't attending no reunion.'
Keeley was almost ready. She just had to apply the finishing touches to her make up, then she was going to pick up her bag and head to the door. But when she did get to the door, she head the phone ringing. To hell with it, she thought.
Once in the car she turned the key in the ignition. The car wouldn't start. She was beginning to think she had the perfect excuse not to go, then on her last attempt the car spluttered into life.
She then drove off towards the duel carriage way. It wasn't the best of nights. It was pouring with rain. And it was cold. It took the heater a long time to warm the car up. But it was winter. What could she expect? This was typical of Chloe. Why couldn't she have picked the summer? At least it would have been warmer. And a lot lighter.
Keeley turned off the duel carriage way. She didn't have far to go. Carrying on she kept thinking about Chloe. Best friends they may have been, but the day she had left school back in 1993, they weren't exactly on speaking terms. As far as Keeley could remember, it was over a boy. Chloe fancied him. But it wasn't Chloe he had his eye on. One afternoon he saw Keeley and Chloe making their way home from school and caught up with them. He asked Keeley out, right in front of Chloe. She wasn't happy. She never talked to Keeley again. Keeley left school at the Easter, while Chloe stayed on to take her GCSEs. She was the clever one. Poor Keeley wasn't as bright, but maybe that was untrue. She just had other interests and studying wasn't one of them.
After she had left school, Keeley went on holiday for the Easter. When she came back she started looking for a job. But could she find one? She ended up stacking shelves in a supermarket, while Chloe went on to study law at university. Their worlds couldn't have been different. Keeley wasn't that bothered. She'd had quite an interesting time over the years, even though, twenty years on, she was still at the supermarket. Chloe may have made the dizzy heights of a barrister, but did Keeley care?
Keeley turned into the road where the school was. The memories started to come back. Was it really twenty years since she had been anywhere near? When she went to park her car in the school grounds she noticed how empty the place was. If there was to be a reunion here, it certainly fooled her.
Keeley got out of her car, feeling the bitter cold, she walked towards the school entrance, but why was everywhere in darkness? She found out why when a man walked up to her.
'Looking for the reunion, love?'
'Yes, I am. Where's it being held?'
'It isn't, love. It's been cancelled.'
Surprisingly, Keeley was glad, but why didn't Chloe phone to tell her. It would have saved her a journey on a cold night.. Then she remembered the phone ringing as she was about to leave the house.
'Were you going to the reunion as well?' Keeley asked the man before walking back to her car.
'No,' he replied. 'I'm the school caretaker and I'm about to lock up.'
'Keeley got into her car and started on her journey home. When she got inside she listened to the message on the answerphone.
'Hi, Keeley, this is Chloe. I'm sorry to tell you but the reunion has been cancelled. I'll explain tomorrow when I'll phone again.'
'Don't bother,' Keeley said to the answerphone, before going to the kitchen to get a hot drink and to fill her hot water bottle. Then she was going to bed. She was frozen and tired. All she wanted to do was get herself warm.
