In Everything Changes But You, Ally and her friends meet up
for a weekly karaoke night, so I thought it would be fun to write an extra
scene during one of these nights. It’s set before the book begins, so don’t
worry – there aren’t any spoilers!
* * * * *
Ally pushed her way into The Farthing. The familiar chatter of its
patrons and the jubilant blast from the fruit machine as it chugged out the ten
pound jackpot greeted her as she scanned the pub for her friends. She was late as
usual and the others were already seated at a table towards the back of the
pub, a good distance away from the sweaty karaoke host. They were already working their
way through a bottle of wine but a fourth empty glass awaited Ally’s arrival.
‘You finally made it then.’
Ally plonked herself onto a stool, looking from her sister to her watch
and back again. The karaoke host was still setting up his gear so she wasn’t that late.
Not by Ally’s standards anyway.
‘What’s up with you?’
‘Nothing.’ Freya, her face twisted into a grimace that was never usually in
place for a night out, grabbed the bottle of wine, glugging a good measure into
Ally’s glass before topping up the other three. ‘It’s just that we’ve been sat
here waiting for you.’
‘But you do that every week.’ Ally glanced at the others. Francine and
Dee didn’t appear to have taken offence at her lateness in the slightest.
‘Exactly!’ Freya dumped the now empty bottle on the table and rose to
her feet. ‘We need more wine.’
Ally watched as her sister marched away from the table. ‘I’m sorry,
guys. I didn’t mean to be late.’
‘Don’t worry, chick.’ Francine stretched across the table to give
Ally’s hand a squeeze. ‘It isn’t you she’s upset with.’
‘She broke up with Steve.’ Dee wrinkled her nose. ‘Again.’
‘Oh no.’ Ally looked back towards Freya, who was now at the bar
chatting while she waited to be served. ‘She must be devastated. She was sure
it was going to work out this time.’
‘She says that every time.’ Dee shrank under the glare of Ally and
Francine. ‘What? She does. They’ve been on-off for three years now.’
‘So she must really like him to keep giving it another go,’ Francine
pointed out.
‘Poor Freya. Why didn’t she tell me?’
‘It only happened this afternoon. We only found out twenty minutes
ago.’ Dee’s eyes darted towards the bar. ‘But shh, she’s coming back.’
Ally, Dee and Francine adopted an air of nonchalance as Freya
approached the table, striking up an impromptu conversation about the weather.
‘It has been unusually warm today, hasn’t it?’
‘You’d think it was summer.’ Ha ha ha.
‘I’ve been sweating like a pig all day. Oh, hey Freya. We didn’t see
you there.’
‘Yes you did.’ Freya placed the new bottle of wine on the table and
took her seat. ‘You’ve also told Ally about Steve.’ Freya placed a hand on
Ally’s arm. ‘Sorry I was a bit of a cow with you.’
Ally gave a shrug. ‘It’s ok. I’m sorry about Steve.’
Freya gave a wave of her hand. ‘Don’t worry about it. I’ve decided to
stop moping and move on.’
‘Good for you, chick,’ Francine said. ‘That’s the spirit. You’ll find
someone else in no time.’
‘I already have.’ Freya grinned at her friends. ‘I’ve just met the
funniest guy. Seriously, I just nearly wet myself.’
‘You’ve met somebody else?’ Ally was gobsmacked. She knew her sister
had had more than her fair share of boyfriends – the girl was a walking
relationship disaster – but that was seriously fast work, even by Freya’s
standards.
‘Yep. Just now at the bar.’ Freya scanned the pub, wriggling her
fingers in a wave towards a table full of men. ‘His name’s Rob and he is gorgeous.’
‘Ooh, does he have a friend who’s single?’ Dee strained her neck,
trying to get a good look at the table across the pub.
‘Who knows? Probably. I’ll ask him when we go on our date.’
‘You have a date lined up already?’ Ally didn’t know whether she should
be impressed or horrified.
‘We’re meeting up on Friday night.’ Freya gave her hair a
self-satisfied flick. ‘Anyway, looks like Keith’s set up. What are we singing?’
Ally picked up her glass and raised an eyebrow at her sister. ‘The Lady
Is A Tramp?’
Freya picked up her own glass and clinked it against Ally’s. ‘She sure
is. But what are we singing?’
Be careful what you wish for...
Ally Richmond is dreading turning thirty and bidding farewell to her youth. And when her husband says he wants to start a family, she begins to panic.
Is this all that life has to offer from now on? Popping out babies and growing old gracefully? She wants a life crammed with glamour and spontaneous adventure, not one full of dirty nappies and night feeds.
When Ally makes a silly birthday wish for a new, exciting life, her wish is granted.
But when Ally is presented with the freedom and opportunities she craves, she soon realises this new life isn’t all it’s cracked up to be and that there really is no place like home. But can she find her way back - or is she stuck in this new reality forever?
