That Little Black Book

THAT LITTLE BLACK BOOK

By Kitty Boyes - Copyright © 2021 Kitty Boyes - All rights reserved.

"Hello there Gina," Carol called as she poked her head in the door. "Got the kettle on?"

"Not yet Carol", shouted Gina from her laundry at the back of the house, "but it will be in a jiffy. I've just got to get a load out of the washer and onto the line."

Perfect, thought Carol glancing at the fridge door, absolutely perfect.

Carol and Gina became friends over several years of being neighbours and Carol would often pop in, unannounced for a chat over a cuppa. However, today was different. Today Carol was on a mission; a mission that would change the course of her miserable life forever. Oh, it was all very well to sit and tell Gina of all her plights, troubles pains and hardships, and yes, Gina listened with sympathy and even offered her a lot of advice. But what good was advice anyway? What did Gina really know of her misery? None of her wretched life was her fault and there was just nothing she could do about it. She’d always been a battler, always short of money and that lazy good for nothing husband she used to be married to until he packed up and left her high and dry, hasn't so much as given her another cent since! He said he had enough of her and her greed, that he was sick of working all day every day and then come home to find she spent all his money on hair do's, manicures, clothes, shoes, and things for the house that they just didn't need. Bah! What did he know of a woman's needs anyway? Good riddance to him. Today though would change her life.

It began yesterday. Carol told Gina over coffee and the delicious cakes Gina made for them again that there were winning tickets in the lottery draw not yet claimed right here in their own town. She'd heard it over the local news on the radio and suggested that Gina should check hers after noticing that as usual, her regular weekly ticket was attached with a stupid blue fish magnet to the fridge door with the newest one always on the top. Of course, she was sure Gina never did check, which was why Carol kept a close eye on them. Mostly when Gina was out of the room. Yesterday, Gina went into her foyer to answer the phone. It was then that Carol had seen it. Good God! It was a winning ticket! She was sure of it, but instead of relying on her good memory, she pulled her trusty little black book from her handbag to re-check the weekly numbers she kept recorded within. If nothing else Carol at least possessed a remarkable memory for numbers, especially those numbers that had dollar signs in front of them. According to the five out of six numbers she needed, this ticket was worth ten thousand dollars! She was right! At last. Keeping tables on Gina’s lottery tickets in her trusty little black book had paid off.

Carol was so excited that she almost yelled out, however, she quickly stifled the pure delight at her friends win. A win that she herself would claim. Carol at last saw her way out of the dismal life she lived. And it was Gina, who, because of her naivety and trusting nature was to become her savior. Gina owed her anyway for having to put up with her cheerful self-righteous ways all these years. She'd stayed awake all of the last night filled with excitement as she outlined her plan. A plan that had been at the front of her mind for the past nine years. It will be so easy, Carol thought. All I have to do is swap the lottery tickets. Then the winning ticket that's on her fridge will be all mine. So simple. The only small glitch was that she'd need to buy another ticket to replace the winning one, which she had done first thing this morning. Gina will never notice the swap despite the date change.

She sauntered as casually as possible towards the fridge. Holding in her excitement as the prospect of becoming super rich, almost undid her. Her heart pounded, she felt like dancing, singing, and letting it all out at once. She could barely contain herself. I want this. I planned it all she thought. I deserve it more than Gina does. What complaints has she ever had with her life? She is always so cheerful and content with her lot. Always counting her blessings and she's forever saying to me that 'life's too short to be miserable' and that 'money won't buy happiness' or 'all good things come to those that wait'. Then there's the crap she spurts about Karma that I never listen to. Then there was her favorite whenever I tell her I needed more money for the things that are important to me, she always said greed always fails the greedy. What the hell did that mean anyway? But who cares, and while this money may not make Gina happy, it will, however, make me very happy! So, who am I to deny her? I'm helping her out after all.'

She called out to Gina in the most normal voice that she could muster. "Want a hand hanging out the wash?" Carol knew that her offer would be declined because Gina was so fussy in how it was hung. What was wrong with the way that she herself did it anyway? It still dried for heavens' sake! Gina told her that her way was better. Gina's way was always better. She said it cut down her ironing by hanging them straighter and gave them more sun exposure so that they all dried quicker. What a load of tripe! Well, it was Gina's loss, well and truly.

Carol waited for Gina's reply to be assured that she was now out of her way. "No thank you, Carol. But you're welcome to put the kettle on." "You're welcome to put the kettle on." Carol mimicked quietly with a sneer of contempt. “Is that all I'm good for Gina? Well, I'll show you." she muttered to herself, "Pretty soon I'll have somebody to put the kettle on for me!" Carol deftly removed the recently bought ticket from her purse and exchanged it for the winner. Once in possession of it, Carol couldn't hide her exhilaration and her unadulterated excitement. Her heart beat faster and threatened to explode with happiness. Her whole body began to tremble with the adrenaline that coursed through her body. She had to get away, and urgently! With a shaking hand, she opened the kitchen window and called out to Gina in the back yard. "I've just remembered something important Gina, can't stay after all. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Oh, what a shame," Called back Gina "and I was going to tell you a funny story today too. About that lottery tick…...."

But Carol didn't hear her. She was out of the front door and already near the front gate. She couldn't contain her joy and worried that Gina would question it, besides she had somewhere else to be today. Yes, she would be off to the City to make her claim today and then just catch a plane to the Bahamas or some such other exotic place. Maybe a cruise... or two... With this kind of money, the world was finally her oyster and her life would be enriched. She never even had to come back to be the good neighbor to Gina anymore, no more listening to her cheery attitude and the bloody blessings and stupid positive-thinking sayings she was always reciting to her. Oh gawd, it's going to be so good not to have to listen to Gina tell her how she can make her life better with a bloody shift in her thinking. There was nothing wrong with the way she thought, who did Gina think she was anyway?

Three days passed and Gina hadn't seen anything of Carol. She thought it unusual and knocked on her door a couple of times. She baked cakes and biscuits especially for her to share over a cuppa which didn't raise a response either. Gina hoped she was okay. She missed her in a way and tolerated her constant whining about how awful her life was. She wondered where she was. Normally Carol was always home, and she hadn't mentioned anything about going away.

Pity, because I have such good news for her too, she said to herself as she walked the short distance back to her own cosy home.

The next day there was a timid knock on the door of Gina's home. A softly spoken voice asked,

"It's me, Carol. May I come in please?"

That's odd, thought Gina; usually Carol just walks straight in telling me to put the kettle on. I wonder what the matter is.

"Well hello Carol, do come in and sit down, I've some very exciting news and I would love to share it with you. Where on earth have you been?"

A contrite Carol sat as instructed whilst her bustling friend put on the kettle and arranged a few home-made biscuits on a petite pink dish.

"So what's your good news, Gina?" Carol wasn't about to tell Gina she'd hidden herself away rethinking some things Gina used to tell her. While in isolation she had a good hard think about herself after finding out the lottery ticket wasn't any good. She thought that maybe Gina was right. That maybe she ought to change her attitude. She could learn a lot from her. But she'd betrayed her best friend, and in her newfound shame, didn't feel she was worthy of that friendship anymore. She was here to apologize and move away.

"Well haven't you heard? I've won the Lottery!"

Eyes wide with disbelief, Carol unfolded her arms and shot forward in her seat, staring incredulity at Gina. Gina continued.

"It was the craziest thing and I still don't understand it. But you may remember that over a week ago there was a winning lotto ticket that hadn't been cashed in yet? We discussed it. Remember? Well, I knew I didn't have it of course, and since then it has come to light that a young farmer won it. What I did notice is that the ticket I'd bought the week before actually had all those winning numbers. It made me wonder what it might be like to be so rich. It’s what I wanted to tell you about last time you visited. I thought it would be so nice to share some with you and my beautiful family. Anyway, as you probably already know I believe that it pays to be thorough, so I double-checked the date. Of course, it wasn’t the right ticket date, just the right numbers, and I decided that I wouldn't buy any more tickets, at least for a while, I'd had a bout of wishful thinking and decided I didn't like living in such vain hope. I really only used to buy them for you. I used to see you using your little black book and knew you didn’t buy your own tickets. A few days ago, I was clearing the clutter from my fridge and was about to throw out the old tickets when I decided to check them again first. You won't believe this but there, amongst those three tickets was one for last week. I hadn't bought one, I'm positive! I swear! And I have absolutely no idea where it came from. And even stranger, I can't locate the one that had those winning numbers on for the wrong week either. I thought I must be going mad or getting senile. I tried to tell you about it for three days now, but you haven’t been home. Anyway, I took this ticket to the local agent and it turned out to be a winner! A big winner! Twenty thousand dollars! "