Calling All Dentists (Calling All... Book 2), page 3
Emma had to make sure her dress fitted perfectly for the party and Ruby only ate healthy foods really, but her dress would fit perfectly even if she ate doughnuts for the next two weeks. She possessed a metabolic rate that infuriated Emma – she could probably eat anything and everything and not gain an ounce. Ruby had 3 big meals a day and sometimes nibbled healthy snack bars in-between, yet her slight frame just had to conceal a mammoth metabolism as Emma knew that if she ate as much as Ruby, she would end up looking like a Sumo wrestler.
“Right, Emma you still need to pay for your meal love,” said Colin, grabbing a check list from his table. “I’m paying the final installment for the work do on Wednesday.”
“Oh sorry, I completely forgot. I’ll go to the cash point tonight and then pay you tomorrow.”
“While we’re on the subject of money, you still owe twelve pounds for the coffee club Em,” said Jeff, overhearing Colin.
“Yes, I’ll get that too.” Emma smiled sarcastically.
Jeff picked up the ringing phone on his desk, “Good afternoon, Webb’s DIY,” he said, politely and then raised his eyebrows and rolled his eyes to the ceiling.
As the company’s Customer Service Manager, his patient, calm personality was perfect for the job, particularly when Mr Kibble was on the phone. Everyone knew when Mr Kibble was on the phone by Jeff’s contorted and anguished facial expressions. Jeff had had many years of experience in dealing with tricky customers – who were always right. He usually liked to keep himself to himself, get on with his work and then rush home to his lovely family at the end of the day but when Mr Kibble was on the phone, Jeff was prepared to bare all and share the experience with everybody. Mr Kibble had of late truly tested Jeff’s patience and it seemed that poor old Mr Kibble was actually going completely insane.
“Ok, well there are only three more people to pay up, apart from you,” said Colin, smiling at Emma as he left the office to find the other non-paying culprits.
The Christmas do this year was an unprecedented occasion. Normally the staff of Webb’s DIY Store went out for meals in little ‘clicks’. The office crew went to the local pub/restaurant, usually at lunch time on the last day. The checkout girls would go nightclubbing and grab a take away on the way home. The rest of the staff on the shop floor usually went for a meal at a restaurant of their choice, one evening in the last week before the Christmas break. And poor old Bill, who lovingly swept the floors all day long, in between helping to make up pots of specifically prescribed colours of paint, always declined any offers of a night out and much rather preferred to go home to his dear wife.
This year was different and Darren had been the one to suggest to Colin that the company should ‘gel’ a bit more, by having a Christmas do which involved the whole team. When Colin approached Emma about subsidizing part of the costs for the staff, she thought it was a brilliant idea and quite affordable within the store’s budget.
“That’ll get the team-building spirit going.” Colin had said, realising that Darren’s idea was just what the company and all of the staff needed.
“It shouldn’t be a problem at all,” Emma had said, “Looking at the latest figures – the forecast is good.”
The staff had been given the option to pay in installments and with two months notice, the lower paid members of Webb’s could easily afford it.
The venue was underneath a multi nightclub complex, by the southern coast. A total of thirty four companies would be attending the dinner/dance/disco, in a giant sized conference hall. Some twenty nine staff from Webb’s had signed up for the Christmas party, excluding Bill, which reconfirmed the popularity of Darren’s idea.
Emma was always the last to pay up for anything, not through lack of cash but lack of a memory. In contrast, Ruby was the very first to pay her dues, always efficient, responsible and highly predictable.
Raising his eyebrows and rolling his eyes towards Emma, Jeff listened to the person on the other end of the phone. “No, sorry we don’t Mr Kibble.” As soon as he’d said the name, everyone (except Ruby) stopped what they were doing and looked at Jeff. “I’m not sure that would stop them anyway sir.” Looking around the room, shaking his head from side to side slowly, Jeff rolled his eyes again and grinned as he continued to listen to the voice on the phone. “Would it be better to shut the door at night sir?” he said despondently. “Well if you came down to the store I’m really not sure that we would have anything that would meet your needs Mr Kibble.” Resting back in his chair, Jeff rubbed his balding head while staring up at the ceiling. “You might try a pet store sir?”
Dave tried to suppress a giggle and Pete’s ears pricked up when Jeff mentioned a pet store. Ruby continued to systematically file away some of Emma’s paperwork, oblivious of Jeff’s phone call and his patiently waiting audience.
“Yes… ok… sorry we can’t help you today Mr Kibble… Goodbye.” Placing the phone back onto its base with a thump, he sighed and then laughed out loud.
“Well, what did he want this time?” asked Dave, impatiently.
“A Christmas tree protector!” laughed Jeff.
“A what?” enquired Emma, passing some more papers to Ruby, who was busy behind her.
“His kittens are attacking the Christmas tree,” sighed Jeff, trying to be serious for a moment, “They’ve pulled it down twice.” The phone rang again, “Good afternoon, Webb’s DIY.” Again Jeff rolled his eyes and shook his head in despair. “No, sorry Mr Kibble, we don’t sell self-supporting fence panels. Wouldn’t they just climb a fence anyway?” Jeff paused, “Yes but…” Rubbing his fingers across his brow, Jeff scrunched up his eyes as if in pain. “Err… no and how would you see your Christmas tree anyway if it were fenced off sir?”
Dave jumped up from his chair and shot out of the office just in time, before he screamed a high pitched squeal of hilarity, and then bumped straight into Colin who was returning from his debt collection expedition.
“What’s going on?” asked Colin, stepping casually over the now crumpled heap of Dave’s contorted body at the top of the stairs, before he could stroll into the room.
“Mr Kibble,” whispered Pete, pursing his lips to contain the laughter.
“Say no more,” Colin replied and walked over to his desk. “Just you now Emma,” he said, waving the check list and some cash under her nose.
“I know, I know… tomorrow Colin,” replied Emma, straining to hear Jeff’s one-sided conversation with the ever-intriguing and totally peculiar, Mr Roderick Kibble - Webb’s very own raving lunatic and number one customer extraordinaire.
Chapter 3
Thankfully for Emma, the rest of the working week flew by as she battled with the throb of yet another, loose tooth and the ever present abscess. She scraped through every challenge with a regular dose of Paracetamol.
Ruby kept quiet, understanding exactly what Emma was going through and knowing that a persistent nag would only cause friction between them. Now and again, Ruby would give her a gentle look as if to say, ‘Well you really should go and see a dentist, it’s not going to get any better’.
The large secret Santa box was placed just outside the office, on the landing, where no one could see each present being put in.
Darren stayed down on the shop floor for the rest of the week and sadly, Emma only ever caught very brief glimpses of him as he darted about from one department to the next. When she entered or left the building, she always made a detour through the shop for one reason or another (but Ruby was fully aware of the real reason). Between toothaches and paperwork, Emma desperately tried to think of valid reasons why she might also need to go down to the shop during the day, but couldn’t come up with anything that didn’t sound totally ridiculous. So the wink from Monday became a faded memory. Emma only hoped that Ruby wasn’t right and that he didn’t have something in his eye.
“Shall we go shopping again tomorrow? For more Christmas presents and stuff,” asked Emma as Ruby came out of the bathroom dressed in her teddy bear onesie and a towel turban. Friday evening was bath night for both of them (the rest of the week they took quick showers) – hair washed, bathed and dressed in comfy and cosy nightwear, they would usually curl up on the two sofas (they both had their favourite one) and watch a film together.
“Yes that would be nice I still need to buy a few presents.”
“Don’t tell me, you want to get some more books.”
Ruby grinned at her and then went into her room to blow dry her hair. Most of her family received a book of some description for Christmas, whether they liked it or not. Ruby thought that you couldn’t go wrong with a book as a gift, as everyone had some kind of interest and there would always be a book to cover it.
“And we should have a look for some accessories to go with your dress. I could do with some new earrings too.”
Nodding happily, Ruby turned the hair dryer on and began to dry her hair flat to her head, as usual.
“It’s only a week away. We’ll have to do a practice run on your hair and make-up before next Saturday night,” shouted Emma, over the loud hum of the dryer.
Ruby screwed up her face. She had shown her displeasure of having a make-over several times, but Emma wasn’t having any of it and insisted that the Christmas do was going to be the beginning of a new and exciting life for Ruby – whether she wanted it or not. Switching off the dryer, Ruby looked up, “As long as you keep your promise to go to the dentist in the New Year, then I’ll wear some make-up,” she said quite adamantly.
“Deal,” replied Emma, surprised by her friend’s new vigour and strength of character.
***
Another Monday morning came around far too soon but Emma’s spirits and enthusiasm had lifted from the previous week as she returned to her office desk. Her do-it-yourself-surgery at the weekend had eased the painful lump in her mouth but yet another poor tooth had gone numb. Assuming that her teeth were slowly dying, one by one, Emma had become accustomed to the pattern of events after each lump appeared. The effected tooth would loosen once it had been attacked by the swelling and then just seemed to die along with any pain. Emma’s fear of the dentist was far greater than any fears of the detrimental implications to her own well-being and the health of her gums.
“When are we doing secret Santa?” asked Dave, returning to the office breathless, after running errands for Colin. “The box is full already,” he squealed pathetically.
Emma thought he sounded like a Dame Edna Everage impersonator having his testicles crushed in a nut cracker. Everyone looked up (apart from Ruby) and shrugged nonchalantly.
“We’ll do it Friday lunch time,” said Colin, handing over yet more paperwork for Dave to distribute. “And stop tearing about like a demented deer, you’ll do yourself an injury,” he laughed.
The stairway up to the office had two tiers and most of the men ran up the steps, two at a time. The sound of their heavy footsteps, pounding on the rickety, wooden steps was like a herd of elephants storming into the office.
“Are we all going to the pub Friday lunch time?” asked Colin, peering around the room questioningly.
“Yep – I’m up for that,” called Dave from the top of the stairs, before thudding back down them, two or maybe even three at a time.
Pete and Jeff looked up and nodded simultaneously. Emma glanced across the room to Ruby.
“Rue, are we going for a pub lunch on Friday with this bunch of misfits?” Lifting her head in surprise, Ruby had totally missed the conversation going on around her, whilst she busily read her emails.
“Sorry?”
Friday, lunch at the pub… are we going?”
“Oh, yes, that would be nice,” she replied, vacantly.
“Less of the ‘misfits’, Miss Frey,” said Colin, eyeing Emma with a cheeky grin. Colin had a lot of respect for Emma and although he wasn’t that many years older than her, he tended to play the father-figure. He was a kind and thoughtful man but he was also stringent and meticulous in his work.
“I just hope you are all going to behave yourselves, we don’t want a repeat of last year do we?” giggled Emma.
“Err, let’s not talk about that,” said Pete, “It wasn’t my fault that I got stuck under the toilet door.”
“Well actually Pete, it was. Who else would be so bloody stupid,” announced Jeff, looking to Colin for backup.
“You did cause a scene in there mate. It was bloody hilarious though,” Colin snorted. “But at least you got a free meal out of it.”
From her little world over in the corner, Ruby looked across to Pete and expressed a gentle, sympathetic smile towards him.
“Oh dear, you have to admit, looking back at it now Pete, it was a classic,” said Emma, shaking her head at the thought of him lying on the floor, in the men’s toilets, trapped under the cubicle door.
The previous year’s Christmas pub lunch had been an embarrassing disaster for Pete, while the others had spent the afternoon rolling around the office in tears of laughter at his ill fate and getting absolutely no work done at all. Trapped in the toilet cubicle, Pete had waited for what seemed like an age for someone to come and rescue him, but no one came. In his wisdom, he had decided to crawl under the door to escape so he could inform the staff of the faulty lock. Unfortunately, Pete’s watch strap had become snagged on the broken bottom door hinge and he couldn’t free it. Laying half way under the door, he couldn’t get his other hand back under and across his chest to reach the watch and he couldn’t go back either, hence the situation began to bring on one of his panic attacks. As his chest swelled and he started to breathe rapidly, he became completely wedged under the melamine door. It was several more minutes before anyone found him and by the time everyone had been made aware of ‘The trapped man in the toilets’, Pete had become very flushed and faint.
There was pandemonium in the restaurant until the owner and two of his staff entered the men’s toilets and gradually eased Pete back inside the cubicle, by holding his head tight to the ground, repeating to him, ‘Don’t panic’ and ‘Calm down’ Once back inside the cubicle, Pete was able to unhook his watch from the metal hinge. When he’d calmed down and returned to the disposition of a normal functioning human being, the owner passed him a screwdriver under the door and thankfully Pete was able to dismantle the lock eventually, after a few tears and another panic attack.
Emma and the others had been almost unable to walk back to Webb’s that afternoon, for fear of wetting themselves or falling down on the pavements in tears of laughter.
“Make sure you don’t wear your watch this year,” roared Colin and they all fell about laughing again… except for Pete… and except for Ruby (as usual).
“This week is flying by, isn’t it?” said Emma. “We haven’t even done your practice make-up run yet.”
Slumped on the sofa, Ruby shook her head and then looked up from her book. “It’ll be alright, I’m sure we could just do it on Saturday night.”
“Afternoon, you mean,” Emma laughed, “I’m not saying you’re a mess or that you’ll need a big make-over, but we need to start getting ready in the afternoon.”
“Why?” asked Ruby, puzzled and inexperienced in such matters.
“Well, we’ve got to do our hair. Then our nails need painting and we have to let them dry. Then put make-up on, which can take a while, and then we need to put the finishing touches on our hair styles – oh and get dressed (obviously) and all sorts of other stuff too.”
“Oh,” said Ruby, “I didn’t realise it would take that long.”
“Well I’ve got to do it twice over haven’t I?” Emma paced the living room excitedly, trying to picture what Darren would look like dressed up in a smart shirt and trousers, “So it’ll take me twice as long, won’t it?”
“Um,” replied Ruby, before returning to the safety of her Mills & Boon book.
***
Scraping the icy windscreen of her car, Emma felt a rush of excitement surge through her as she thought about the dinner/dance tomorrow night.
It was the last day before the Christmas break and Friday’s were usually good at work anyway. Today was even better than a normal Friday though, as they would be finishing two hours earlier and there would be no work done this afternoon, whatsoever. By the time they returned from the pub lunch and then had a laugh opening their secret Santa presents, it would be time to go home.
The white frosty morning and clear blue sky only added to Emma’s already euphoric state as she jumped inside the car and turned the key in the ignition. The engine chugged and began to warm up her faithful old car.
“Are you ready yet?” called Emma, from the front door a few minutes later.
Their ground floor flat had the added bonus of having its own exterior front door, rather than a communal entrance, while the flat above was accessed from a staircase running up the side of the building. The girls hardly ever saw the couple who lived above as they commuted to London each week and seemed to go out a lot at the weekends. So Emma and Ruby’s home was a peaceful place, perfectly priced and pretty – even in the middle of winter.
Hurrying back through to the kitchen, Emma stopped and stared, “Why are you making a packed lunch Rue – I’ve been outside waiting for you?”
“Oh gosh, I’ve forgotten about the pub haven’t I?” she giggled, chopping up the last pieces of apple and placing them into her clip container.
“Yes you have, you plonker. Come on, stick it in the fridge for your tea – I’ve left the car running.”
Collecting her rucksack, Ruby removed the tub of prawn salad and popped that in to the fridge too. “I’m sorry Em, I’m ready now. I don’t know what I was thinking of…”
“Pete?” laughed Emma.
