The Unravelling of Thomas Malone

Chapter 5

Chapter 5By the time Angela got home she was exhausted. She found a space at the side of the house to park her car, although it was more abandoned than parked. She didn't have the energy to negotiate the garage and she knew that Bobby would take care of it later for her. As soon as she entered the hall he was there to greet her.

“How was your day, Darling?” he asked. Before she could answer Bobby noticed her drawn look. “I'll run you a hot bath, you look beat,” he said. “There's a bottle of wine in the kitchen, it's open, pour yourself a glass.”

Bobby briefly embraced her, kissed her forehead then disappeared upstairs. After getting herself some wine, Angela went into the lounge and flopped into the recliner. The chair was an extravagant purchase they'd made to celebrate her new job and, as she sank into the luxurious, plush leather, she felt it had been worth every penny. Angela gulped at the wine swallowing but hardly tasting it and, by the time Bobby returned to usher her upstairs, the glass was empty and she was practically asleep.

When Angela returned after her bath she felt revived, Bobby had dinner ready and she was now able to discuss her day. She quickly ran through the events leaving out the more gory details, not just to spare Bobby, but also to avoid having to remember them herself.

“Your Boss sounds like a bit of a prick,” Bobby said. “Will you manage to work with him?”

“He's actually okay, just a bit rough round the edges. He's let me have an assistant which I'm pleased about. I'll have to use my own car though, all the work vehicles have been signed out, but I'll get a mileage allowance. I prefer my car anyway, it'll be fine, and I'm not likely to be doing any high speed chases,” she replied, smiling.

“John Kerr phoned me today,” Bobby said changing the subject. “Do you remember him?”

“Yes, he was a physics teacher, wasn't he? Nice guy but a bit of a geek. You haven't heard from him for ages, didn't he move to the Borders?”

“Yes, that's right he went to teach at a private school. Anyway, he's done rather well for himself. The school's great, there are only about twenty pupils in each class and the kids are keen to learn. He said the head of Maths is about to retire and he immediately thought of me for the job.”

“Nice of him to think of you,” Angela replied, “But surely he knows our life is here in Glasgow. You can't just drop everything and move to the Borders.”

“I know, I know, but I can dream, can't I?”

Angela looked at Bobby's face. He seemed sad and rather defeated. She was so caught up in her own job recently she hadn't noticed this before. “I didn't know you were unhappy. I thought you loved your job,” she said.

“I do love my job, Darling, I love teaching, but the school I'm in is a s**t hole. The classes are huge, thirty kids at least. Half of them don't want to be there, they're disruptive and bored and the other half struggle to concentrate because of the constant disturbances.”

“But didn't one of your pupils win the National Maths Challenge last year?”

“Yes, Keiran Bedi, she was my star pupil. She got five 'Highers', each one a high band 'A'. I was all set for her sixth year, she was practically guaranteed a place at a top university, but she didn't come back after the holidays.”

“Why ever not?”

“She was married off. Her husband owns a fruit shop and he's nearly twice her age. Instead of becoming a doctor or a lawyer she's the wife of a shopkeeper who's old enough to be her father. All her hopes and aspirations have been swept aside. In ten years time she'll have five kids, her husband will be middle-aged and she'll still be in her twenties.”

“But maybe that's the sort of life she wants, maybe she wants to be a wife and mother,” Angela argued.

“Not a chance. After her 'Highers' last year she was planning which universities to apply for. She was excited about learning. Her life's been thrown away. She's the oldest of three daughters. Her parents have fulfilled their duty then wiped their hands of her.”

“Is that why you're looking at other jobs? Why don't you apply for a post in a private school nearer home?”

“I plan to,” Bobby replied. “It's just that they don't come up very often.”

“I'm so sorry you're unhappy, I had no idea,” Angela said. “I interviewed a woman called Mrs Ali, today. Her daughter Nusrat is doing very well at school and she told me her husband wants the girl to go to university, so not every Asian parent chooses marriage as a first option for their daughters.”

“Ignore me Darling, school holidays give me too much time to think. I'll get over it tomorrow when I'm back at work. We've got a great life, I'm sorry I moaned, and my job's a pushover compared to what you've been through today.”

Angela was unsettled by the conversation and although they began to watch a film on television, she couldn't get into the plot. She relied on Bobby to be her rock and hadn't considered his needs. What if he became more and more disillusioned? She'd heard about teachers who'd had complete breakdowns because of the pressures of the job. Angela realised she'd have to pay more attention to Bobby. He'd been supporting her and she'd let him, without thanks or even acknowledgement. She'd acted like a selfish child. Her earlier conversations with Frank Martin came flooding back to her and she realised how prim and foolish she must have sounded. 'Time to grow up', she thought.