Sleep, work, eat, repeat would pretty much sum up the year2024. I had to be brutally honest with myself and admit that this was no goodat all. I was drifting inexorably towards my forties just existing.
Sure, I’d had a laugh with Phoebe and Lily, lots of funnights out and occasional brief dalliances with the opposite sex, but nothingthat could be called progress. Perhaps with a year to live over again I couldrectify that.
One of my dalliances had been with Ben, a young doctor onthe ward who had been pretty keen on me. He was only thirty-one and Phoebe andLily had teased me, referring to him as my toy boy.
I think they were jealous and wouldn’t have minded a pieceof him themselves, but unusually, it was me he asked for a date. Flattered atbeing chosen over my younger, more nubile flatmates, I accepted.
On our first date he told me he had a thing about the Scouseaccent. For once, it had done me a favour. Most of the time when I was growingup, the well-spoken Oxfordshire kids had taken the piss out of it.
I was pretty keen on Ben, too, but had tried to play itcool, treating it as just a bit of fun, wary of getting serious with anyoneagain after what had happened with Rob. It was to prove my undoing as I playedhard to get rather too long and paid the price.
When he got offered a post in London, he felt there wasnothing to keep him in Oxford and he accepted, disappearing from my life beforeI’d had a chance to really get to know him.
It had all been my fault, too – turning him down for dates,refuting romantic gestures and pretending I wasn’t interested in anything otherthan the odd casual night in the sack – something at which Ben had been veryproficient, I ought to add – far better than Rob.
What had I been thinking of? It’s no wonder I had beensingle for four years. I would never have spurned an opportunity like this inthe past but what had happened with Rob had tainted my judgement. The bastardwas still messing up my head and my life even now, over three years since I hadhad any contact with him.
Ben and I had stayed in touch on Facebook, but judging bythe selfies he was posting of him and his new flame down in London, that shiphad well and truly sailed.
Perhaps now I had this second chance I could change allthat. If I had this year to live over again, could I not play my cardsdifferently and not let him slip through my fingers this time?
What else could I change? If only I had known I was comingback here, I could have written down the EuroMillions numbers and then lifecould have been one big party. I was never going to get rich working shifts atthe hospital and my lack of financial security wasn’t painting a very rosypicture for my old age.
I was already worried I was going to end up as one of thoseold grannies hunched over an ancient, three-bar fire, having to make the grimchoice between keeping warm or eating.
Technically, I wouldn’t even be a granny due to my lack ofkids. Who would be there for me in my old age? I was already an orphan, and mysister had been missing, presumed dead, since 2004. I was in danger of facing alonely old age and it was a depressing thought.
Could I make any money any other way out of my little trekback through time? I thought about investing or betting, but since I tooklittle interest in sport and none whatsoever in financial markets, I didn’tknow where to start. I struggled, trying to recall anything notable that had happenedover the year that might offer me a chance to make some money.
I knew the Olympics had been on in Paris and the Englandfootball team had been in some big tournament or other. They had done badlybecause Barry on security at work had been ranting and raving about it. Who wasit they had lost to? The Faroe Islands, wasn’t it?
I didn’t even know where the Faroe Islands were and wasequally clueless when it came to understanding how betting worked, but Iremember people saying it was the biggest shock ever in the history offootball. That meant I would get good odds on it, wouldn’t I?
I’d have plenty of time to figure it out because from what Iremembered, the football had been in the summer. For now, all of this deepthinking about my situation had tired me out, so I lay back down and fellasleep.
I was out for quite some time, it seems, because by the timeI woke up again it was dusk and I felt ravenously hungry. I ventured back outinto the flat to see what the others were doing.
There was no sign of Lily, but I could hear a telltalebuzzing coming from Phoebe’s room so I knew not to disturb her. I wandered intothe kitchen and opened the fridge to find it packed solid with food – meats,cheeses, pork pies and pretty much everything you would need to make atop-notch buffet. Phoebe had been true to her word.
She had also restocked the bread so I made myself a sandwichand sat down in front of the TV for a while, idly flicking through thechannels. After my extended sleep, I was feeling quite relaxed abouteverything. In fact, I was pretty excited.
I had been given the gift of a whole year to live againwhich opened up all sorts of possibilities. I was going to go out tonight andreally celebrate my birthday, much more than I had first time round. Then I hadonly really been going through the motions for Phoebe and Lily’s benefit, evenif I had begrudgingly started to enjoy it as the alcohol began to flow. But nowI really had something to look forward to.
That’s
