Too say money was tight would be a massive understatement. Rent, bus fares, food, the list was endless. I'd lived alone since I was 16, no one for support or help, just getting by the best I could. The rent fell behind, I couldn't always scrape the money together for the daily bus fares which resulted in skipping a few days from work a month. A viscous circle – if I didn't work I didn't get full pay. I seemed to be under a constant black cloud. I didn't think things could get worse, but I was to be proved wrong.
I'd managed to befriend a woman I had recently discovered worked for the same company as I did, and lived just down the road, so was able to beg a lift. I had just locked the door to go get my lift and walked straight into my landlord.
"Finally managed to catch up with you" he said "your rent is 3 months late, when were you thinking of paying lady? I stood there, looking at my feet, not wanting to make eye contact and mumbled that I had been meaning to come see him and ask if I would catch it up over the next few months. It was a total lie of course but I couldn't think of anything else to say. I had a month's rent upstairs but if I went back for it I would miss my lift, and with my job being on a bit of a sticky wicket with all the "sick days", I couldn't risk another day off. I told him if he came back when I got back home from work I could pay some of the rent then. He nodded and said he would be round at 6pm, turned and walked away.
The day dragged in, boring office stuff, but it was a job. Alice, my kind lift lady dropped me off at 5.30pm and I headed for home. I'd almost forgotten about my landlords impending visit when a sharp knock on the door reminded me, right on 6 pm.
Arthur Robertson, my landlord walked straight passed me when I opened the door and straight to the seat next to the fake fire place.
"So Kathy" he said "rent money. You owe 3 months' rent. How much do you propose to pay just now?" I went over to the shabby side board, opened the drawer and took out a small bundle of notes that I had managed to save. "One month's rent Mr Robertson" I said, "I haven't been well and been off work quite a bit but I'm fine now and I was hoping you would let me pay a little extra every month until I catch up. Would that be OK"?
He looked down at the tatty notes, counting them slowly. "How old are you Kathy?" he asked. "18, almost 19 Mr Robertson, so my wages will go up soon and that will help me pay you the money back quicker" I said with a nervous smile.
"18... still a child really" he said, still looking at the money. "Do you have a boyfriend?"
I had had a few boyfriends but nothing serious. "No, not right now" I answered. He put the money in his pocket and started tapping his pen on his little notebook which I knew he kept his rent records in. "I'm surprised to hear that" he said "your a pretty girl and far too young to be on your own". He looked up at me then and smiled. I'd never really paid attention to him before and how he looked but now I could see he was a smallish man, slicked back dark hair and teeth that looked too small to be in the mouth of a grown man. His slightly crooked smile gave him the appearance of a weasel. I began to feel uncomfortable under his gaze and hoped he would just agree to my request and leave, but still he sat.
"How would you like to not pay rent for a while, just till you get back on your feet?" he said.
"That would be nice but it's just all the more to pay back so if it's ok with you can I pay back a little extra every month till I catch up?" I asked.
He gave a little cough and smiled again "no, it's really not alright. You owe me 2 months' rent, if you can't give me it right now we'll have to come to some other arrangement". He said leaning down and putting his note book on the floor as he did. "Come over here" he said. I was frozen on the spot. I might have been, as he suggested, still only a child, but I knew where this was leading. "Come here" he said again with more force, or do you want me to throw you out in the street tonight? Come on girl, I don't have all night!"