Alex was the familys late arrivala much-cherished afterthought, doted on by parents eager to offer the best of everything. Despite all the warmth and fuss, lifes script took a tragic turn when his mum passed away while he was just twenty. Fate, never one for subtlety, promptly took away his father too. Stuck in the army at the time, Alex couldnt attend the funerals, and so he clung gently to their memories instead.
Once his days in uniform were finally over, Alex returned to his old home only to discover Aunt Judiths clan had promptly set up shopand if they made him feel at home, it was only in the most Britishly reserved sense, which is to say, not at all. Taking the hint, Alex left, never bothering to look back. He promptly tried living with a mate. That, however, quickly proved just as welcoming as a January swim in the North Sea.
With his pockets entirely devoid of pounds and his prospects equally threadbare, Alex thumped the motorways with his thumb out, hitching a lift to another city in hopes of finding work. By chanceor possibly by sheer British plucksomeone he barely knew got him a spot on a building site. The job came with the promise of decent pay, hearty meals, and a roof over his headnone of which, to the astonishment of absolutely nobody, actually materialised. After a while, the employers vanished, leaving Alex and the other workers thoroughly skint. While most managed to scarper thanks to generous friends, Alex, ever the picture of bad luck, found himself without even the dignity of a passport.
Homeless and hungry, he survived on remarkable culinary finds from wheelie bins and tried to sleep wherever he wouldnt be collected along with last nights curry containersthink train station benches and the entrances to bland office buildings. The mirror, had he possessed one, would not have been kind: dishevelled, unshaven, and unmistakably down on his luck, Alex was about as employable as a soggy sandwich at a village fête.
Then one day, fortunefinally remembering he existedintroduced him to Rebecca. She wasnt conventionally attractive (her nose, for one thing, had ambitions to be a mountain), but she radiated real warmth, which was more to the point. She brought him sandwiches and tea, and always had time for a gentle chat, her kindness making the world feel a fraction less grim.
But this being England, a bit of drizzly drama was unavoidable. Alex caught pneumonia and wound up in hospital. The staff there were saints: they gave him a haircut, pressed clean clothes into his arms, and fussed over him in properly British fashion. He looked forward to every one of Rebeccas visits. And when at last he was discharged, there she was waiting, clutching new shoes and a bag of clothes. She greeted him with what could only be described as the hug of someone whod decided hed become part of her story.
Alex, thoroughly overwhelmed, let her lead him back to her place. Rebeccas brother, ever the helpful sort, set about helping him get new identification sorted. Gradually, Alex found his feet, landed a job, andby degrees shy enough for any English novelhe and Rebecca drifted from friendship to something more than friendship. In time, they tied the knot, carving out happiness from adversity, proving that sometimes, lifes plot twists really are worth waiting for.
