Chapter 7 How scary can a few numbers be in the first part? -7

Suzy I walked in the apartment door and Suzie looked up at me - the first thing she said was: "Denny and George! Becky, are you kidding me?" "No," I said, with a big smile on my face, "I bought myself a silk scarf." "Show me!" Suzie said, straightening up from the couch. "Show me, show me, show me!" She came over and began to tug on the rope on the packaging bag. "I want to see your new silk scarf! Show me!" That's why I love sharing an apartment with Suzie.Julia, my former roommate, would just frown and say, "What brand?" or "Pay that much for a silk scarf?" But Suzie totally, utterly understood.If there is any difference between the two of us, she is worse than me.

However, she can afford it.Even though she's also 25, the same age as me, her parents are still giving her pocket money, euphemistically called "subsidy", which obviously comes from some kind of family trust - but as far as I know, it's pocket money .Her parents also bought her a flat in Fulham as a 21st birthday present.She has lived here ever since, working half the time and sleeping half the time. She was a public relations lady for a short (very short) time, and that's when I met her, on a trip to Guernsey, an island in the south of Great Britain, one of the Channel Islands in the English Channel off the northwestern coast of France. one. ——On the interview trip of the translation annotation.In fact, she was working for Brandon Communications at the time.No sense of the world - by her own admission - she is the worst publicist I have ever met.She completely forgot which bank she was promoting, and instead began enthusiastically praising one of their competitors.The man from the bank was getting more and more ugly, and all the reporters couldn't help laughing.Suzie was out of luck.In fact, it was then that she realized that public relations was not for her. (On the other hand, Luke Brandon fired her as soon as they got back to London. That's another reason I don't like him.)

But we both had a good time, drank all night, and we've kept in touch ever since.Then, when Julia suddenly ran off with the professor who was supervising her doctoral dissertation (she was a dark horse), Suzie suggested that I move in with her.I was quite aware that her rent was very low, and I never insisted on paying her market rent because I simply couldn't afford it.At market rents, my salary would only allow me to live near Elevente or Castle, not Fulham.How does the average person afford to live in such an outrageously expensive location as Fulham? I've never been able to understand.

"Becky, open it!" Suzie begged, "Let me see!" She was eager to reach into the bag with her long fingers and fumble around, and I hurried it away before she could rip it open. up.This bag will hang behind the door with my other bags of value, available in a nonchalant way when I need to impress. (Thank God they don't print special bags with "SALE" on them. I hate stores that do. What's the point of owning a trendy bag if it has "SALE" printed all over it? That means You're also stamped "Scrooge" all over.) Very slowly, I took the dark green box out of the bag, lifted the lid, and unwrapped it.Then I, almost in awe, lifted the scarf.It's so pretty! Even prettier than in the store! I wrap the scarf around my neck and grin at Suzie.

"Oh, Becky," she murmured, "it's so pretty!" We both fell silent for a while.We are communicating intimately with a greater being - the "Shopper". Then Suzie completely ruined this good feeling. "You'll be able to wear it on your date with James this weekend," she said. "I won't," I untied the silk scarf and said almost angrily, "I won't see him anymore." "What happened?" "I'm never going to see him again!" I tried to shrug my shoulders nonchalantly. "Really?" Suzy's eyes widened. "Why didn't you plan to meet him? Why didn't you mention it to me!"

"I know." I avoided her eager eyes. "It's kind of... a little embarrassing." "You dumped him? You haven't even slept with him yet!" Suzie's voice rose with excitement.She desperately wants to know the truth.But was I desperate to tell her? For a moment I considered being more discreet.But then I was like, oh, what the hell! "I know," I said, "that's the problem." "What do you mean?" Suzy leaned forward. "Becky, what are you talking about?" I took a deep breath and turned to look at her. "He did not want."

"do not like you?" "No. He..." I closed my eyes, and I couldn't believe it was true. "He was unwilling to have sex before marriage." "Are you kidding me!" I opened my eyes to find Suzie looking at me in horror - as if she had just heard the most blasphemous words ever spoken. "Are you kidding me, Rebecca?" she was practically begging me. "I'm not kidding." I forced a smile. "It was kind of embarrassing, I could say... pounced on him and he had to struggle to get away from me." Horrible memories that I've managed to suppress with all my might come back to my mind.James and I had met at a dance a few weeks earlier, and this was our fateful third date.We went out to a nice dinner, which James insisted he pay for, and then we went back to his place and ended up kissing on the couch.

Well, what should I think? He was there, and I was there—yes, while his mind was saying no, his body was definitely saying yes, yes, yes.So, being a modern woman, I reached for the zipper on his trousers and started to pull it down.When he took my hand away and pushed me aside, I thought he was messing with me and continued with more enthusiasm. Looking back now, maybe I was too slow to react. I should have realized that he was not playing with me.In fact, he had to punch me hard in the face to get rid of me - though he was terribly sorry about it afterwards. Susie stared at me suspiciously.Then she burst out laughing.

"He had to use force to get rid of you? Becky, you tigress!" "Don't say that!" I protested. "He really liked this. He asked me if I was going to wait for him." "You replied, never!" "Almost!" I looked away. In fact, I had lost my self-control at the time, and I seem to remember challenging him, "Now you can say no to me, James," and I remembered staring at him with a self-righteous, clear, sexy look, hoarsely Say, "But, within a week you'll be knocking on my door." Oh, now, a week has gone by for many days, and nothing has happened.Thinking of this, I feel extremely depressed.

"But it's appalling!" Suzie said. "What if the sex isn't working?" "I don't know." I shrugged. "I think he's willing to take the risk." Suzy suddenly chuckled. "Did you see his..." "No! He won't let me near it at all!" "But, don't you feel it? Is it small?" Suzie's eyes had a malicious gleam. "I bet it's very small. He's trying to coax some poor girl into marrying him, and then Put up with that very little thing of his all his life. How dangerous you are, Rebecca!" She reached for a pack of Silk Cut cigarettes and lit one.

"Stay away!" I said anxiously, "I don't want my silk scarf to smell of smoke!" "So how are you going to spend this weekend?" She asked, taking a puff of cigarette, "Are you okay? Do you want to go to the country together?" Susie always referred to her home in Hampshire as "the country," as if her parents owned some little independent country that no one knew about. "No, I'm fine." I picked up a copy of "Guide" and replied depressedly, "I'm going to see my parents." "Oh," Suzie said, "give my regards to your mother." "I will," I said, "then you say hello to Pepper for me." Pepper is Suzie's horse.She rides it about three times a year, but once her parents suggest selling it, Suzy gets hysterical.Obviously, it would cost £15,000 a year to feed such a horse. £15,000! And what does the horse do for that money? It just stands in the stable and eats apples.I really don't mind being a horse myself. "By the way, I remembered something," said Susie. "Here comes the family tax bill. We're £300 each." "£300?" I looked at her in horror. "What, right now?" "Yes. Actually, it's late. Just give me a check or something." "Okay," I said with mock ease, "300 is here." I reached for my handbag and immediately wrote the check.Suzy was generous with my rent, so I always paid my tax bill on time, and sometimes a little more.Still, when I handed over the check, I felt chills. The £300 just disappeared.And I have to figure out what to do with the damn VISA bill.What an unlucky month! "Oh, and there's someone calling for you," added Suzie, with a quick glance at a piece of paper, "someone named Erica Parsnip. Is there someone?" "Erica Parsnip?" I sometimes think Suzie's head is really too imaginative. "It's Parnell, Erica Parnell of Endwich Bank. She asked if you could call her back?" I stared at Suzie, frozen in horror. "She's calling here? Is this the number she's calling?" "Yes. This afternoon." "Oh shit." My heart started pounding. "What did you say? Did you tell her I had infectious mononucleosis?" "What?" Now it was Suzy's turn to stare. "Of course I didn't say you had infectious mononucleosis!" "Did she ask about my legs? Or anything about my health?" "No! She just asked where you were. I said you were working..."