Fight to the Top

by S. L. Gape

  Mrs. Carson looked defeated, so she stood up sadly and took her husband’s hand that he was holding out. She stopped once more and turned to Georgia. “I have never, nor will I ever think you are a disappointment. I just desperately don’t want you to wake one day and life has passed you by because of your work. I want you to experience the wonders of love and motherhood. But equally, I apologise if that’s not what you want from life. You are all correct, it’s not my choice to make,” she said, sadly walking to the door.

  Great, now she felt even shittier than she did before. “Mum,” Georgia walked over to her mother. “I know you don’t. I know you worry, but let me just get through this, and then we can go for a spa day together or go have a round of golf and discuss at length what I want and why. Then you can have your say. Like two adults; like a normal mother and daughter,” she said, hugging her mother. Georgia pulled back and her mother held her face with tears in her eyes. “I love you all equally. And I know you are stubborn, but if the worst happens, you don’t have to worry about money. But...,” she held her hand to stop Georgia from speaking. “But, regardless of that, I can assure you whatever happens, will have happened for a reason. And maybe you should accept change every so often? And actually, listen fully to what this CEO has to say. He will have done this for the right reason. He will see in you what we all see in you. Don’t run from anything without listening to everything,” she said and kissed her daughter’s forehead before walking out.

  ***

  “You okay?” Alexandra said to Georgia, pulling her in for a hug.

  “Amazing!” she said sarcastically.

  “Right you two, mum and dad have gone. I’ll go and get some fizz from the kitchen, I’m sure prissy pants has got some here. I’m going to ring Jill and say I won’t be home tonight. Have you eaten today? Where’s your laptop?” Josh said.

  “Josh, seriously. I’m okay, I don’t need you to do this. I’m a big girl now,” she sighed.

  “Yeah, and when was the last time us three did this? Life happened, we all drifted and got lives, so shut up and let Alex and I look after our little sister for a change and stop being so bloody stubborn. Now food? And laptop?” he demanded, causing Georgia to dejectedly laugh.

  “No I haven’t eaten, I don’t think there’s much food in there. The computer is in the study, or you can use my work laptop, it’s beside my bed,” she said sadly.

  Alex walked over with a bottle of champagne and an ice cooler. “Okay, no more feeling sorry for yourself either. Joshie, get the laptop. We’ll use that, it’s comfier in here,” she said, taking her shoes off and pulling her legs underneath her. “Ohhh, let’s get an Indian?” she added.

  “Fine, but seriously, please stop calling me Joshie, I’m not fourteen anymore,” he huffed, walking in with the laptop.

  “Okay, where shall we get food from, Gigi?” he smirked.

  Georgia was scowling at him. “Do not even start with that?” she said, trying to continue with the sombre mood, despite the ribbing from her big brother. He was right they hadn’t done this in years. “Come on then sexy, Lexi, what do you want from the Indian?” Georgia and Joshua were laughing now. He was right. This probably was the best thing for her this evening.

  “Seriously, we are not doing this, I am not dealing with the ‘middle child bullying’ tonight. It’s Alexandra thank you,” she smirked and held up her drink to her siblings. “Josh was right, we have all become distant. And George don’t think I’m doing a mum now, but she has a point. We’re all there at Christmas with our families, and granted it may not be what you want. But maybe you shouldn’t watch us all so intently and look so sad when you’ve had a few drinks? Maybe then you wouldn’t need to defend yourself all the time. We all love you, and unlike us, mum will say what she feels. Equally, the kids love you and aside from birthdays and Christmas, we never see you. Mum and dad won’t be around forever, George. And they don’t want to feel you won’t have anyone that you can fall upon, that’s all. Anyways, that isn’t what tonight’s about. Let’s order food, then we can concentrate on this situation in hand. Go get me a pad, pen, a menu and your phone,” she said, taking more of her drink as she was getting comfortable.

  Chapter Twenty

  “Okay, so first we do the negatives?” Josh said. “We go through everything that you feel is a negative. Then we start a new sheet on the positives,” he continued, getting on the spare couch.

  “There aren’t any positives!” Georgia said flatly.

  “There are. And those are what we need to establish. Listen, you don’t like change, I get that. But do you remember when I went and did camp America? Seriously, if I could have met a girl I would have proposed to her; just to stay there. It’s an amazing place, and country. And I will tell you, a year goes damn bloody quick. So, stop being a brat, and let’s get cracking. So as you’re so set on being negative, let’s start with those then?” He looked serious to his little sister.

  “Well, it’s not my job. It’s not the job I have been workin…”

  “Hey, George. This isn’t going to work if all you do is keep going over what’s happened. It has happened, we can’t change it, okay? It’s done, and we need to move on from that. So yeah, it’s not your job. I’ll put that on there, but we can’t keep going over old ground,” Alex said.

  Georgia sighed heavily. “It’s not the job I wanted or know,” she said sardonically. “It’s the other side of the world, it...”

  “Geor…,” Joshua started.

  “No. Josh, let her talk. We will each have our chance to talk,” Alex said to her brother.

  “Can you tell who the psychiatrist is?” Joshua smirked, as he got up to put music on.

  “Go on, love,” Alex said, scowling at Josh.

  “I have no friends there. I have nobody there in fact. I don’t know how they work,” she pleaded. “I know nothing about the office or people. Aside from the Florida holiday when I was thirteen, I have never been anywhere in the states. And it’s Texas. They hate gays, and I’m gay. It’s the gun capital of the world.”

  “It’s the gun capital of the world?” Alex said concerned.

  “Sod off. It’s a massive bloody city. It’s about five times the size of sodding England, but it is not the gun capital of the world,” Josh said.

  “Georgia, where did you hear that from? Do you know that for sure?”

  “Well, I read it somewhere I think. It’s the south where they all have guns and hate gays.”

  “George, you are being absurd. Texas isn’t even one of the top 5 states for owning guns, or gun related crimes. Where the hell have you got this? Have you just watched an episode of Dallas and made your mind up?” he said accusingly.

  “Okay, were digressing again. George, I have to agree with Joshua, you are clearly making your mind up without any substance to it. Remember how happy you were when you got your first job in London? You worked your backside off for months to get what you wanted, kept going on and on to us all how you were going to ‘own it’ in London. You had everything sorted in your head, and no matter what anyone said you knew best. London was great, London was amazing. It was big and high powered; and you would have the best life ever there. And seemingly never move back home,” Alex was looking at her. “Well, remember?”

  “Yeeeessss,” she sighed. “Point made.”

  “Well the point should be made. You assumed you knew it all and did all this research and you hated every minute of it. You hated the place, the pace, the people. You couldn’t bear it and almost lost everything you had worked so hard for. You were proven wrong, Gigi. Texas is meant to be spectacular. Yes, you are right it’s not going to be easy, because ultimately, you are taking over someone’s job who has worked for it. Just like you have yours. But, your boss is right. This is a phenomenal opportunity. Both in terms of life and career. God, you always whine about the weather and the cold, it’s hot all year there,” she said.

  “Yeah and that causes all s
orts of ‘acts of God’ twisters, hurricanes, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes,” she said.

  “I think we are fighting a losing battle here. There’s no point when she’s in this mood,” Josh said, standing up to go and get the food which had been buzzed up.

  Alex set the dining table and served up the food. They sat quietly, infuriating Georgia even more. She just wanted to be left alone, and they knew this would make her give in. She tried her hardest to deal with the silence, but there was only one thing worse than the silence, and that was her own thoughts. “Oh, for fuck sakes, get the list again,” she slammed her cutlery down.

  Alex and Josh smiled and chinked their glasses. Alex picked up the pad and pen and held her hand out to Josh, as he handed her a twenty-pound note. “Easy money,” she smirked.

  “You bet on me? You have actually bet on my misfortune?” Georgia said.

  “Give it a rest, Gigi. Come on, let’s get this going again,” Josh said, helping himself to more food.

  Houston, USA

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Taylor poured another whiskey into a large glass, and handed it to Erika. She was still crying. She pretty much had been since she had walked through the door almost two hours earlier, and Taylor was relieved that Dulcie wasn’t home.

  Taylor looked at her broken friend, unsure of what to do. “Sweetie, you have to eat something,” she said. “Listen, you want me to speak with Dan?” she asked sincerely. She was seriously pissed off with Dan. Erika had called and left a message outlining the day’s events and there was still nothing. Selfish dick, she thought.

  Still not able to complete a full sentence, Erika sniffed loudly. “No, I’m fine. Thanks. Look, you should go. You need to study and live your life, not babysit me. Geez, you spend most of your life babysitting either Dulcie or I,” she said, lifting herself up. Erika literally walked in and didn’t expect to find Taylor there when she stepped into her home, sobbing that afternoon. Dulcie was at a sleepover at her grandparents for the weekend, and truth be known, she couldn’t have been happier when Taylor appeared. Taking her in her arms and allowing Erika to continue the sobbing.

  The first 20 minutes were nothing other than her being a confused, blubbering mess, until Taylor finally took control and made her stop to tell her what had happened.

  After Erika had lengthily explained the situation, throughout the sniffs and sobs, Taylor knew the only option was to pull out the hard liquor. “So, how was it left then?” Taylor asked, ignoring Erika’s pleas for her to go home. “Did they tell you when you have to let them know? Or when this new woman is starting?” she asked.

  “I have no idea, Tay. I literally walked out. I don’t know what to do. I just feel like everything is falling down around me. I mean fuck, Tay. Why am I crying on your shoulder? Where the fuck is Dan? Again? Fucking some other dumb bitch,” she scorned.

  Taylor was surprised. Erika rarely swore. She turned to her friend. “You think Dan’s cheating?” she stopped herself, shaking her head. “Look, let’s deal with one thing at a time. What are you feeling about this job? I know you have worked your butt off for this, but ultimately, it’s a minor setback. You are still keeping your job, you just have a new boss for a very short period. Alternatively, what do you do? You wanna quit your job? Really? Honestly, I don’t want to make this seem unimportant, because it totally is, and I get that. But, it will feel so much worse at the moment. You do have to make a decision though, either way. Look, why don’t we go away for a week? Come on. We can go down to Florida. Or Bahamas or Mexico, call your boss and say you need a couple days to think it through,” she said.

  Erika thought about what Taylor was saying. She was right, she needed to make a decision, but surely Mike didn’t expect her to have a decision made over night. How the hell could she? “Thanks for the wonderful offer, but I don’t think that’s wise. You need to study. You are totally gonna flunk outta school if you don’t stop picking up my shit,” she said sincerely.

  “Hey, you have been so helpful and supportive, it’s the least I can do,” she responded.

  “I think you may be onto something. I may get a week off and take Dulcie to my mom’s, we haven’t seen her in forever. And geez, with work I never go back home, it’s always her that comes here. I think you’re right. I need some time out to go through things in my head, ya know? Plus, I think it gives us a good opportunity to give you some time off to concentrate on finals,” she said, wiping her eyes again.

  “Erika, seriously, you don’t need to do that, the three of us could go. I really don’t want to leave you like this.”

  “Sweetie, you are, and have been my best friend, and I thank you from the bottom of my heart. But I didn’t pay for you to go back to school so you could flunk out. You need to have some time, too. And I will make you a deal. When I’ve sorted my life out and you are done with school, I’ll take us all on vacation. We can do as you - say hop on a flight over to the Bahamas or Mexico, and relax. However, I genuinely think at the moment we need to each get things back on track,” she said.

  “Okay, okay I’ll back down. You know what? I will hold you to the vacation,” she said, pouring them both another drink.

  Manchester, UK

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Georgia had spent all day moping around in her apartment. Whilst her siblings were probably partially right, they did give her more to think about. Inclusive of the fact it wasn’t the gun capital of the world, not even the states. They also weren’t ‘gay’ haters, and actually had a big scene and an annual gay pride festival there, too. They were right that she had scrutinised it to the death without having any substance to base it on. But, regardless of anything else, she was still right in the sense she didn’t know anyone there, and she didn’t know how things worked over there. Yes, it was the same company, but she’d been to the London and Bristol offices and they did things differently to how she did things. She leaned her head back on the chair, closing her eyes and feeling the tears drop down once more.

  ‘Knock knock.’

  Georgia looked at the time, it was six forty on a Saturday night. It must be her parents coming to check on her. Jesus why couldn’t they just call like normal parents did? she thought as she walked to the door. She scolded herself as she recollected her sister’s words last night that they wouldn’t be around forever. She opened the door and was confronted with Julia.

  “Hey. I hope you don’t mind me just showing up. I just heard, we were doing an exhibition in London and I was supposed to be staying down there for the weekend. When I heard, I jumped on the first train back. I have stopped off to get some necessities,” she said, holding up a couple of Tesco bags.

  “Jules, what did you do that for? Why? I don’t need babysitting. I keep telling everybody this,” she sighed.

  “I didn’t say you did, and I’m not here to argue. Or discuss if you don’t want to, or anything else. I am here as your friend and your colleague and to help you anyway I can. Whether that be merely cooking you dinner, massaging your feet or back or sitting in silence watching a movie together.” She smiled. “But either way, it’s not up for discussion,” she said, pushing past Georgia.

  Georgia rested her head against the side of her still open door and sighed heavily…“Why can’t you all just leave me alone?” she said, shutting the door.

  “Because, lady. Very occasionally, situations require a friend close by,” she said sincerely. “Now, stop pulling faces, go to your bathroom and run a bath. I didn’t know if you had any, so pour as much as you can of this in there,” she said, handing her some bubble bath.

  “Bu...”

  “Seriously, Georgia, I am not discussing. I’ve already said it, now just go,” she said, pointing to the woman’s bathroom. Georgia looked as though she was about to argue, but thought better of it when she saw Julia’s facial expression.

  ***

  Julia made the food she’d bought from the store. She set the dining table with candle
s, and an ice bucket filled at each end of the table. One with a big bottle of diet coke and the other with a bottle of pinot. She got out the throw from the spare room and threw it on the couch with a couple of the bed pillows. Julia noticed Georgia go to her room and shut the door behind her, so she walked into the bathroom and lit the candles surrounding the mass space. Opening her iPhone to the relaxing sounds app, she put on the sound of the ocean and left it in the corner loud enough to hear. Julia pulled the door over and went and knocked on Georgia’s door. Opening it slightly, she saw Georgia lay on her bed with her head in her hands. Julia went over and sat beside her, pulling her hands away softly, and brushed the tears from her cheek. “Come on, Hun. If anyone can do this, you can,” she said. “If you really don’t want to do it then you need to tell Derek.”

  “Oh yeah?” she scoffed. “He made it clear I would be unemployed.”

  “Well, if that’s really what they do, then fuck em. You will easily get a job elsewhere, and he will be fucked because he’ll end up with no team when you go, as we’ll all be banging down the door to come with you.” She smiled.