Cheer up, Stan! No point mopingat least you rang in the New Year in style!
Hed finally made it back to his hometown. Stanley Clarke stepped down from the platform at Kings Cross, crossed the bustling station square and ambled toward the bus shelter. He hadnt bothered to tell his wife Emily that hed be turning up today.
Stans mood was a shade of grey because of a rather unpleasant chat with Emily earlier. Shed been on a roll, berating him, bemoaning his indifferent selfishness.
Indifferent? he thought. I tried to wish her a Happy New Year, but she had her phone switched off. Felt a bit snubbed!
Hed spent three days trying to get her on the line; she never lifted. So, in a fit of wounded pride, he gave up.
And, to add salt to the wound, she hadnt even bothered to call his parents or his sister, let alone him. Hed soon be standing on the doorstep, ready to drop a bomb.
Its not just her fault, he muttered. Shes got her own quirks, so she might as well answer back. As they say, the best defence is a good offence.
Spurred on, Stan marched back to his flat, feeling as if he were about to go into battle.
The flat greeted him with an eerie silence.
Hello? Anyone alive in here? Emily, Im home! he shouted, but the silence persisted.
He poked his head into the kitchenno sign of Emily. He checked the living roomnothing. One bedroomstill empty. Then his eyes fell on the changes: the baby crib by the wall was gone, the changing table and the stroller their parents had given them vanished.
He flung open the wardrobe; the half that usually housed Emilys clothes was bare.
Has she lost her mind? Dumped me? he wondered.
He rang his motherinlaw, Margaret, but the line was dead. Then he dialed Kate, Emilys best friendsilence again. Finally he got through to Mike Harrison, Kates husband.
Mike, mate! Can you get Kate on the line? I cant seem to reach her, Stan begged.
Kates out in the village with her kid, celebrating New Year. Rural reception can be a joke, Mike replied.
I arrived yesterday because Ive got a shift today. Theyre still on holiday, Stan said. Why do you think I need Kate?
Because your wife was about to become a mum. Youve left her at home while shes due, havent you? Mike chuckled.
Thats rightshe refused to travel. The doctor set the due date for the 10th11th of January. She couldve made it, you know.
Mike laughed, Congrats, Shaggy, youre a bachelor now!
Stan blinked. What?
Looks like youre on your own, pal. Call the hospitalshes probably there, Mike advised.
Ten days earlier, his mum had been on the phone, sounding exasperated.
Stan, why on earth are you spending the holidays at work? Emilys due in two weeksshell need you. The whole clans coming: Aunt Vera and Uncle Sergey, Natasha and Victor, Olga and Pavle, plus your dad and Vicky with Glen.
Vicky booked us a cottage in the woods for four nights30December to 2January. Therell be a banquet with live entertainers on the 31st; Ive already paid for you, youll reimburse later. Stay with us until Christmas, then head back on the 8th. Youll still make the due date.
Emily had protested.
Stan, I could go any day, but what if I go into labour at the party? And that cottage is out of townwill an ambulance even get there in time?
No, Im not going anywhere.
Mum says women count a sick day as a triumph, but delivering a baby is a heros feat. She brought the three of us into the world and barely took a maternity break, yet she managed everything.
Stan knew Emily wasnt entirely unreasonable, but he imagined a dreadfully dull New Years Eve: just the two of them at a modest table, Emily refusing to cook anything special. The thought made him sigh.
Meanwhile, the rest of the family would be singing, dancing, and guzzling mulled wine at a restaurant. So, he booked a solo trip.
The countryside cottage was indeed a riot. Around half past twelve on New Years Eve, Stan slipped out of the banquet hall into the lobby to call Emily, but the line rang straight to voicemail.
Fine, Ill sulk. Besides, shes the one to blame for not being here, he muttered.
The next morning, his mum vented again, this time about the daughterinlaw.
Emily didnt even ring us with a New Years greeting. Shes offended! Youve let her run off, son.
She went on about what a real family is, implying that Emily was the odd one out.
Emily, that very New Years night, was anything but festive. She wasnt thinking about cousins or partiesshe was thinking about Stan. When the labour kicked in, her parents whisked her to the hospital, and her brother, who worked night shifts in London, was offduty, so the parents were left to face it alone.
At half past one on 1January, Emily gave birth to a baby boy, Charlie.
Stan, recalling Mikes suggestion, dialed the hospitals helpline.
Clarke, you were discharged yesterday? the operator said.
No, what? Already a baby? Stan stammered.
Yes, a little lad born at 12:30a.m. on the 1st.
Who collected the baby? Stan asked.
A young manour records dont note the name, the clerk replied.
It clicked: only Emilys parents could have taken the newborn.
Stan bought a bouquet of roses and trekked to the Clarke family home. The door swung open to reveal his fatherinlaw, David.
Good afternoon, Stan began.
Hello, Im here for Emily, he said.
What for? David asked.
Im her husband, actually.
Emily, David shouted, theres a bloke at the door claiming to be your husband. Want to have a word with him?
No thanks, let him in, Emily called from inside, her voice muffled.
David shrugged, Fine, have it your way. He shut the door.
Stan lingered a few minutes, then dialed again. This time Margaret answeredtall, sturdy, with a voice that could rattle windows.
Whats all this? she demanded.
Im just trying to get in, Stan said, trying to sound brave. I have a right
Before he could finish, she snatched the roses from his hands and flung them at his chest.
What right? The solicitor will sort you out soon enough! And stop callingmy grandson is asleep. She slammed the door.
Staggering back to his car, Stan rubbed his eyes. The roses were beautiful, but now they seemed thorny.
Back home, he called his own mum.
Can you believe they wouldnt let me see my son? he complained.
Dont worry, Stan. Emily will come back with the baby. Shell be fine. Dont send money, just stay put and get some rest. Youve got work tomorrow.
He followed her advice, ate a packet of readymade dumplings from the corner shop, and fell asleep.
He didnt know that night would be his last in that flat. The next morning, after a shift, he found all his belongings packed into cardboard boxes and black rubbish bags, stacked on the stairwell.
He rang the doorbell; Margaret opened it.
Well, dear soninlaw, you remember the address of the student hall, or do I need to remind you? Pack up your junk; the cleaner will clear out whatevers left tomorrow.
And so Stan moved into a cramped university dorm.
The court had already split them up. Hed grown tired of the dorm life, so he tried to rent a proper flat. When his payday came, the payroll deducted child support and another £5,000 for the upkeep of his exwife. Not much was left for rent.
Be more thrifty, Stan! Youll need to save for a place of your own, Mike advised. Cheer up, mateat least you rang in the New Year with a bang!
Emily spent three years living with her parents, who helped look after little Charlie. They let out the flat they owned to make ends meet. When Emily finally returned to work, she and Charlie moved back into their own place. After a renovation, the flat bore no trace of Stan or his chaotic family.
What do you think of Stans choices? Drop your thoughts in the comments and give us a like.
