Tony Parsons - Man And Wife

’And it didn’t work out?’

Obviously it didn’t work out, Harry, you bloody idiot. Otherwise she wouldn’t be here with her husband crying in her front garden and other strange men knocking on her door and lying through their teeth.

But she had told me enough for one day.

’Married,’ she said, and I didn’t immediately realise that she was talking about me now.

She was looking at the thick gold ring wrapped around the third finger of my left hand. ’Married again. Married now. To some other lady. Not Gina-san.’

I looked at my wedding ring, as if noticing it for the first time, as if it had been planted there. I hadn’t contemplated removing it before I came to see Kazumi. It hadn’t even occurred to me.

Because I couldn’t get it off these days. Something had happened to that ring. It got stuck.

’Didn’t work out,’ Kazumi said to herself, as if this was a new phrase that she would quite like to take for a test drive. ’It just didn’t work out.’

Gina sent me a photograph.

And I saw that my son had a new smile.

It was gappy and gummy and pulled at my heart. Two teeth were gone. On the top, right in the middle. The missing teeth gave him a ludicrously jaunty air – he looked like a drunken sailor returning from shore leave, or a raffish prize fighter out on the town.

In the picture he was all dressed up, kitted out for the camera, head to toe in official New York Yankees merchandise. Baseball cap, sweats, and what my mum would call an anorak. All dark blue, all carrying that white Yankees logo. Under that anorak, he was wearing a stripy blue-and-white Yankees shirt that was a few sizes too big.

He looked like a little American. I phoned him immediately, not reading the letter from Gina, not caring what else was in the envelope.

Gina picked up but went to get him immediately.

’What happened to your teeth?’ I asked him.

’They failed out.’

He sounded surprisingly calm.

’Did it hurt?’

’No.’

’You’ll get new ones, Pat. You’ll get grown-up teeth to replace the ones you’ve lost.’

’Meat teeth for my milk teeth. I know. Mummy told me.’

Those two front teeth had been wobbling for ages. For some reason, I had assumed that I would be around when they fell out Now they were gone, and they reminded me of all I was missing.

I realised there was a matchbox in the envelope. It said: II Fornaio – 132a Mulberry Street – between Hester and Grand.

’You having a good time in America?’

’New York is very big. Bigger than London, even. And the taxis, right? They’re yellow, and not black at all. But where we live, they got fields. It’s not the city, where we live.’

’You go to this restaurant with Mummy and Richard? You like II Fornaio, darling?’

’They got pizza. Did you look inside?’

Inside the matchbox were two jagged pearls. My son’s missing front teeth.

’Are these for me? Can I keep them?’

’You can sell ’em to the Tooth Fairy.’

’Maybe I’ll just keep them for myself. Maybe I’ll just keep them. How does that sound?’

’That sounds okay.’

’You okay, darling?’

’I’m very busy.’

’I bet you are.’

’Still unpacking.’

’Is there much left to unpack?’

’I don’t know. I’m only seven.’

’That’s right. I forgot. Well, no more of our Sundays for a while.’

’I know. Connecky – connacky -’

’Connecticut.’

’Yes. Connecticut is too far for you to come. On a Sunday.’

’But we can talk all the time on the phone. And I’ll come out to see you. And you can come back here and stay with me during the holidays. Soon. Very soon.’

’But where will I stay?’

Til find you somewhere good. In my house.’

’What about my stuff? Where will all my stuff go?’

’We’ll make sure there’s room for your stuff. Plenty of room.’

’That’s all right then.’

’America’s going to be great. You’ll love it. Where you’re living, there’s lots of space.’

’I can have a dog. Mummy said. We’re going to get a dog as soon as the unpacking is done and we’re not quite so busy.’

’A dog? That’s great. What are you going to call him?’

’I don’t know yet. Because he might be a girl dog. So it’s different.’

’And Pat?’

’What?’

’Don’t forget me, okay? Don’t forget your old dad who loves you so much.’

’I don’t never forget you.’

Then Gina was on the line, wanting to talk. I didn’t want to ask her how it was going. As long as Pat was all right, I didn’t want to know. I didn’t care. But she wanted to tell me all about it.

’We’re staying with Richard’s family in Connecticut. He’s been catching the train into Manhattan every day, looking for a job in the city.’

’Wait a minute. I thought he had a job to go to. I thought it was all arranged.’

’He did, but he quit.’

’He quit already? You’ve only just got there. How could he have quit already?’

’It wasn’t what he expected. He thought he could walk into something better, but the economy’s rough all over. Not many jobs around for someone like Richard. And accommodation is a nightmare. Do you want to commute for three hours every day? Or walk to work and live in a shoebox? That’s the choice.’

’So it’s not what you expected?’

’Overqualified. That’s what they’re calling Richard. How can somebody be overqualified? How can you be too smart for a job?’

’Beats me. I guess that’s the price of genius. But Pat’s okay?’

’I think he loves it, Harry. Richard’s family make a big fuss of him. Treat him – I don’t know. Like one of their own.’

Decent of them, I thought. But I said nothing.

’Richard’s sister has got a little boy a year younger than Pat. They hit it off. Spent a lot of time together. They’re out in Connecticut too. All of his family.’

’But it’s not what you expected?’

’There’s no Promised Land, is there? I am starting to realise that now.’

’So when are you coming home?’

She sighed. ’This is home now, Harry. Richard’s been offered another job, at Bridle-Worthington.’

’What’s that? I don’t know what you’re talking about.’

’They’re brokers, Harry. Bridle-Worthington are brokers on Wall Street.’

’I thought he was overqualified.’

’It’s not exactly what he was looking for. A lot less money. But they’ve offered Richard a job. As I say, not the salary he would have liked, but for now -’

’I thought you either commuted for hours or lived in a shoebox. I thought that’s what you said.’

’Nowhere’s perfect. But Connecticut is beautiful. An hour on the train to New York, maybe a little more. We’re looking at schools in Hartford and New Haven. They are a million times better than what he would be in if we were still in London. London is finished.’

’Not for me, Gina. London’s not finished for me. Look, why are you telling me all this?’

’Because I want you to know it’s not about taking Pat away from you, Harry. It’s about getting a better life. For our family.’

’What about me?’

’You’ve got your own family.’

’Not since you stole my son.’

She was silent for a moment. I could hear her seething, across all those thousands of miles.

’What a relief to be away from you, Harry. How great it will be to have you out of my life. That’s what I’m looking forward to most of all. Making you a stranger.’

Then she was gone.

And in one hand I had the dead phone, and in the other, those two priceless little pearls.