It was the 25th of March when I got the phone call from April, we hadn't caught up for ages. She is a FWB, my go to girl when all around me is going to pieces. This time I was her go to girl.
"Hello," I answered after four rings of my phone. She had a new phone, again, so I didn't recognise the number. "Bobbi, it's April, how are you?" she said in one breath. I recognised the voice immediately but played dumb. "April, April who?" I asked. "Have you got the right number, I mean the only April I know is a close friend, who wouldn't wait 3 months to call her best friend." Silence then a deep sigh greeted my response. "Very good," She replied, "Very funny indeed. Are you finished now?"
"Well you have another new phone number April, I can't keep up with you." I told her. "Other than that and missing you, I am really good." I responded. "Where are you living these days?" I asked.
"Still in the same old place, but 'single again', Heather wanted more than I could give." She told me.
"Sorry to hear that, I really am, I liked Heather and you two seemed so good together." I explained her. "Want to come over for a visit?" I asked her. Knowing that is exactly why she called.
She started to cry, "Could I?" Without hesitating my reply was straight forward. "When can you get here babe?"
Through the tears and sobbing, she said this weekend. This weekend was tomorrow. We talked for another hour telling me how and where it all went wrong for her and Heather. How she felt guilty, then angry, then just plain empty. I listened, because that is what was needed, no prying, no judgement, nothing like that, I just listened. April is very high maintenance. But she is still my best friend.
While we were talking she was booking a flight, landing in Sydney Saturday 10am. and told me so. I smiled to myself, remembering when I had done the exact same thing to her when I broke up with my Russian nightmare of a girlfriend. Except I got a 'I told you so'. She and Ingrid never saw eye to eye.
"How we going to do this?" She asked me.
"Well, first of all I would meet you at the airport, no bells and whistles. Just you and me." I stated in a reference to when she actually arranged for a brass band to greet me after a trip to Europe some 10 years ago, and I returned with Ingrid.
Then me playing the bleeding obvious card, continued. "We tentatively say hello, kiss each others cheeks, hold hands as we wait for your suitcase. You hug my arm, like you always do."
"You are a real hoot, you know." She told me, "Am I staying with you or at a hotel?"
"Hotel." I replied. "I know just the one for you." I told her. "It isn't far from my place, I'll have a room booked, in that hotel in Surry Hills, the one you told me about, it's
either rainbow friendly or lesbian friendly. I can't remember now."
"You do have a great memory, it's the lesbian one, and I thought you had forgiven me, or at least forgotten?" She said.
"Oh no, I have forgiven you I just haven't forgotten about it." I told her with a giggle in my voice. Again in reference to her booking me in there without telling me it was a lesbian hotel, before I had even known I was gay. We've been playing practical jokes on each other ever since primary school.
The following morning I parked the car on the top deck of the car park, and walked across the bridge into the arrivals area. I checked the arrivals board and found that the plane had already landed and was about to unload it's precious cargo of passengers and luggage. Hopefully the luggage will match the passengers on board.
I got to the gate at the same time the first passengers were disembarking. As I suspected April was one of the first through the doors, of course she would of insisted on one of the first 3 seats. That's my April, she doesn't fly economy. She saw me and waved as I waved back. We were all smiles, and genuinely happy to see each other. She walked up to me smiling, put her hand bag over her shoulder, took my face in her hands and kissed me very passionately, not caring who was about. So as not to be out done, I grabbed her backside in both of my hands. There was a lot of whistling and cat calls, plus a couple of 'get a room' type of comments as well. In truth, we didn't really care.
"That's for not ringing you for three months." She told me. She then took my arm as we headed off to the luggage carousel. Again her one small plain white suitcase was first off the plane, I keep thinking to myself, 'how does she do it'?