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Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaleditions.com/i/121360
:short story CANDLES Marjory orders a Turkish sandwich and a pot of green tea from the girl behind the counter who has a grumpy, set face - obviously here for the money, not for the pleasure of it nor for that of the patrons. She turns and takes time to choose a table from the flotilla of empty ones. A man and a woman, the only others in the cafe, look directly at her, they get up and walk away and the woman says to her companion, "It's too soon, too soon". Marjory decides on a corner table but there's a cutting draught around her legs so moves to the sofa the couple occupied and absorbs the warmth of their vacated backsides. The café is dark and dull, the artwork dated, the floor could do with a good clean, and there's no bonus of today's newspaper - without that to read Marjory starts to feel awkward and obvious sitting there on her own, a wallflower at the edge of the mysteriously empty dance floor wondering if her hair or her lipstick has let her down again. Should she check herself with her tiny hand mirror smothered at the bottom of her bag, or hope for the best? For heaven's sake, how long does it take to toast a sandwich? The waiting girl thuds across the cafe and plonks it down in front of her. In the boring Free Weekly Coffee News there's notice of a Cat Show on the 10th of May, beside it there's an advertisement for a Cat Motel - which figures. The Cat Motel also advertises aroma candles for sale. Aroma candles for sale at a cat motel? Strange. Not, she hopes, to disguise a catty smell. "Burns up to 50% longer!" the advertisement exclaims. Longer than what? Longer than they used to? Longer than you expect, longer than it takes to toast a sandwich? Marjory ponders 'longer than' possibilities - indeed, they are endless - she remains seated for 118 | www. h e rmagaz i n e . c o. n z longer than it takes to eat her sandwich, drink her cup of green tea, read every word of the Coffee News - altogether much longer than she'd planned. Longer than she'd arranged… and consequently she is late for her date. Walter has that sniffy look - he sweeps his gold-watched wrist out before him and looks at it. His greeting is a papery kiss, dull, perfunctory. She sort-of prays - God, can I do this for much longer? 'Longer' had surely become the theme of the day - it's eerie how this sometimes happens. Longer, longer, longer. And he says "I've thought long and hard about what you said last week". There it is again… but what had she said? "Oh?" she fishes. "About the ten days in July." It had worked. "Oh, that." Well, she had known him a long time. "I can only do the second week, but if you're still keen we could go then." "Just a week, Walter? I thought we planned longer." "Just a week, I think. Other commitments." "But couldn't you make other arrangements? I'd really like a few days longer." "But I can't any longer rely on my backups. Can't rely on them at all." "I don't think a week is long enough, by the time we've done the travelling, the getting there and back." "Don't you want to go now?" "I shall have to think about it." "Once you would've jumped at the chance for a week with me." "Yes, once I would have. Not any longer."