Maeve Binchy - Evening Class

'They were in that bed for many a month before they were newly-weds,' Jimmy Sullivan said, brow darkening with disapproval. It always annoyed him that Suzi was so utterly uncontrite about her bad behaviour.

When she was alone at the airport Signora found a seat and took out the badges she had made. Each one had Vista del Monte - the Italian for Mountainview - on it, and the person's name. Surely nobody could get lost. Surely if there was a God he would be delighted that all these people were visiting the Holy City and he wouldn't let them get lost or killed or into fights. Forty-two people including herself and Aidan Dunne, just enough to fill the coach they had arranged to meet them. She wondered who would be the first to arrive. Maybe Lorenzo? Could be Aidan. He said he would help her distribute the badges.

But it was Constanza. 'My room mate,' Constanza said eagerly and pinned on her badge.

'You could easily have afforded the single room, Constanza,' Signora said, something that had not been mentioned before.

'Yes, but who would I have talked to… isn't that half the fun of a holiday?'

Before she could answer Signora saw the others arriving. A lot of them had come on the airport bus. They came to collect their badges and seemed pleased to see that they were from such an elegant-sounding place.

'No one will know in Italy what kind of a dump Mountainview really is,' Lou said.

'Hey, Luigi be fair, it's improved in leaps and bounds this year.' Aidan was referring to the rebuilding, the paint job, the new bicycle sheds. Tony O'Brien had delivered all he had promised.

'Sorry, Aidan, I didn't realise you were in earshot,' Lou grinned. Aidan had been good company at the wedding. He had sung La donna è mobile and knew all the words.

Brenda Brennan had come to the airport to wave them off. Signora was very touched. 'You're so good, everyone else has a normal family.'

'No, they don't.' Brenda Brennan jerked her head towards where Aidan was talking to Luigi. 'He doesn't for one thing. I asked his pill of a wife why she wasn't going to Rome with the rest of you, and she shrugged and said that she hadn't been asked, wouldn't push herself where she wasn't wanted and wouldn't have enjoyed it anyway. So how's that for normal?'

'Poor Aidan.' Signora was sympathetic.

Then the flight was called.

The sister of Guglielmo was waving like mad to everyone. For Olive just going to the airport was a treat. 'My brother is a bank manager, he's going to see the Pope,' she said to strangers.

'Well, if he lays his hands on some of that money they'll be pleased with him,' said a passer-by. Bill just smiled, and he and Lizzie waved to Olive while they could still see her.

'Forty-two people, we'll have to lose one of them,' Aidan said as they counted the flock into the departure lounge.

'Aren't you optimistic! I keep thinking we'll lose all of them,' Signora smiled.

'Still, the counting system should work.' Aidan tried to sound more convinced than he felt. He had divided them into four groups of ten and appointed a leader of each. When they arrived anywhere or left anywhere the leader had to report that all were present. It worked for children, but adults might resent it.

They didn't seem at all put out by it, in fact some of them positively welcomed it.

'Imagine, Lou is a leader,' Suzi said in admiration to Signora.

'Well, a responsible married man like Luigi, who better?' Signora asked. The truth was of course that she and Aidan had chosen him because of his fierce scowl. Nobody in his team would be late if they were reporting to Luigi.

He marched them on to the plane as if he were taking them into war. 'Can you raise your passports?' he asked them. Obediently they did 'Now, put them away very carefully. Zip them away, I won't want to see them unzipped until we get to Roma.'

The announcements were made in Italian on the plane as well as in English. Signora had prepared all this with them so it was familiar. When the air stewardess began to speak the evening class all nodded at each other, pleased to hear familiar words and phrases. The girl pointed out the emergency doors on the right and the left, the class repeated them all happily, destra, sinistra . Even though they had heard it all in English already.

When it was over and she said grazie all the evening class shouted prego and Aidan's eyes met Signora's. It was really happening. They were going to Rome.

Signora was seated beside Laddy. Everything was new and exciting to him, from the safety belt to the meal with its little portions of food.

'Will the Garaldis be at the airport?' he asked eagerly.

'No, Lorenzo. The first few days we get to know Roma… we do all the tours we talked about, remember?'

'Yes, but suppose they want me straight away?' His big face was worried.

'They know you're coming. I've written to them, they know we'll be in touch on Thursday.'

' Giovedì ,' he said. ,'

'Bene, Lorenzo, giovedì.'

'Aren't you going to eat your dessert, Signora?'

'No, Lorenzo. Please have it.'

'It's just that I'd hate to waste it.'

Signora said she would have a little sleep now. She closed her eyes. Please may it go well. May they all find magic there. May the Garaldis remember Lorenzo and be nice to him. She had put her heart into the letter and was distressed that there had been no reply.

The bus was there. ' Dov'è l'autobus ? Bill asked to show he remembered the phrase.

'It's here in front of us,' Lizzie said.

'I know, but I wanted to talk about it,' Bill explained.

'Don't the girls all have enormous bosoms and bums,' Fiona whispered admiringly to Barry as she looked around her.

'I think it's rather nice actually,' Barry said defensively. This was his Italy, he was the expert on the place since his visit for the World Cup, he didn't want any aspersions cast.

'No, I think it's great,' Fiona explained. 'It's just that I'd love Brigid Dunne to see them… the way she's always bellyaching about herself.'

'You could tell her father to tell her, I suppose.' Barry was doubtful of the suitability of this.

'Of course I couldn't, she'd know I was talking about her. She says the hotel isn't going to be any great shakes. She says we're not to be disappointed.'

'I won't be disappointed,' Barry said, putting his arm around Fiona.

'Neither will I. I was only in a hotel once before, in Majorca. And it was so noisy that none of us could sleep at all, so we all got up and went back to the beach.'

'I suppose they had to keep the prices down.' Barry was terrified that there would be any criticism.

'I know it's dead cheap, and Brigid was telling me that some half cracked one came in wanting to know where we were all staying, so the word must be out that we got good value.'

'Did she want to join the group?'

'Brigid said she couldn't join, that we had been booked at this rate for ages. But she just insisted on knowing the name of the hotel.'

'Well, now.' Barry was pleased as they stepped out into the sunshine and the head counting began. Uno, due, tre . The team leaders were very serious about their roles for Signora.

'Did you ever stay in a hotel, Fran?' Kathy asked as the bus sped through the traffic, which seemed to be full of very impatient drivers.

'Twice, ages ago.' Fran was vague.

But Kathy probed. 'You never told me.'

'It was in Cork, with Ken if you must know.'

'Oho, when you said you were staying with a schoolfriend?'

'Yes, I didn't want them thinking I was going to produce yet another child for them to look after.' Fran nudged her good-naturedly.

'You'd be far too old for that sort of thing surely?'

'Listen here to me, if I get together with Ken again for a bit in America, now that you've won me a ticket there… I may well produce a little sister or brother for you to take home with us.'