Sympathy -- Part 1 -- Comedy of Errors
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Introduction
Foreword
If you have not read any of my stories before, it would probably be useful to read Part 5 before you start, as this could ease you through my personal writing "quirks".
Preface
It started the summer that I graduated from university. I was twenty-three, my sister Rosemary was nineteen, and was just about to
start
at university.
I had nearly five weeks' holiday until I started my first job. During the second and third of those weeks, three ex school-mates and I had planned on walking some of the Pennine Way -- from North to South, with the idea that if we had time -- after getting to Edale -- we could take the final few days, to make our way to Buxton, and from there -- walk the Monsal Trail 'southwards' towards home, to catch a train from wherever was convenient at the end of our planned days away.
Rosemary had, more or less, the same two odd weeks at home, and then was off to Mallorca to party for a couple of weeks with some school friends.
During those first two weeks of my holiday, Rosemary and I would be living in our family home, while Mum and Dad were doing a month-long tour by coach and ferries for the sights and delights of Lakeland; the Scottish Borders; and the 'Highlands and Islands'.
Anyway, these five weeks were going to be the last of my 'free-and-easy life' for some time (that 'free and easy life' being, of course, outside the swotting/cramming I had done during my final few months at Uni.).
Having just graduated with an engineering degree, I was to start work as a designer/consultant for a company that designed large installations for mainly middle- and far-eastern countries: - electricity generation plants (including dams and reservoirs, where necessary); water purification plants; bridges; tunnels; that sort of thing. Most of the actual supply and construction activities came from in-country, where possible, but we designer/consultants/systems engineers were always required to guide and monitor the work. I was going to be trained for that type of rôle. The company had a new project that they were to employ me for, that actually was planned to start 'breaking ground' in a couple of years, so I had to get involved with basic company training -- as well as, a bit later, getting into the nitty-gritty of the designs.
So, what with basic training; then training for the project; and site visits, I didn't expect to spend much time at home for the next year to eighteen months.
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Getting Away
For the first couple or so days that we were at home, both Rosemary and I were tied up with things: -
Mum and Dad's preparations to escape from the 'brats', for their first 'alone' holiday in twenty-five years. (Dad was looking forward to it, Mum wasn't, really. After all -- how could she relax while 'her babies' were off doing their own thing?);
winding-down from school or university (as applicable), and getting over the last few day's excesses of drinking and partying;
and catching up with friends and relations (where we wanted to).
*
We had been home for nearly a week before I realised that I was getting ... um ... looks[?] ... from Rosemary. They weren't really obvious, but she had a way of standing when she did it, that I had never noticed her do before. But then again, we hadn't been around each other much in the last four years or so, so I thought it could have been just another aspect of her developing personality. The looks seemed to be mixtures of admiration; regret; speculation; and, of all things, fear.
Now I had never purposely done anything to hurt or scare Rosemary; however, my driving did make her uncomfortable at times (though not intentionally on my part) -- but, with respect to that: - I felt that she was over-hesitant in many things. Not that I thought that she was a bad driver, just that she seemed to take over long in weighing up 'what' to do, or more specifically 'when' to do it (pulling away onto a round-about, for example); so -- I couldn't fathom-out why she kept giving me that particular look.
Anyway, the looks started putting me a bit on edge, so when I realised that I was getting one, I would freeze, and peer at her. She would then tend to jump, as if being caught doing something inappropriate, and then carry-on with whatever she was doing, even if that was just reading the paper.
So, we got to the last day before we were off to our choice of holiday. We each spent most of that day doing final preparations and packing. It had taken me longer to do my packing, as I was effectively packing for two situations -- the hike, and the 'relocation'.
She seemed nervous, or at least unsure about something. I had 'internalised' my attention, so paid little heed to her mood(s), even when she wandered into my bedroom two or three times, and engaged me in short, halting conversations, or discussions; about not much of anything, it seemed to me. I should have asked her outright, what was going on with her, but -- as I say -- I was too caught up in my own plans and concerns.
Then -- the next day we were off. Her friends collected her at about 3am for their 6am flight.
A friend's father picked-up me and our other friends, and took us upcountry to a mainline rail station, for our rail journey to Scotland.
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We had pretty poor weather for our trek, which took longer because of sodden ground, so we weren't inclined to do anything other than get home once we reached Edale. This meant that, in the end, I was home two days earlier than anticipated. I was knackered; so, having eaten, and -- minimally -- unpacked, I hit the sack around 9pm.
Romancing the Porcelain
