Day Eighty-four - London

So, London, at least my first go around. See, after their mother's passing, and since it had happened while she was crossing the crosswalk, the driver's insurance actually litigated against paying any indemnity. The girls got a fine lawyer, and she won the case against the insurance company, meaning that there was a not inconsiderable payout coming their way in one lump sum. And one of the very first things they did was treat themselves to a trip to the UK. Because I wasn't any part of these conversations, when I was told that they'd be going on holiday to London, I thought that they didn't want me to come along, or maybe they just wanted some sister time, whatever. But to my surprise, they'd bought a ticket for me as well - I was finally going to London!

Now, I'd always wanted to go there. London seemed like that perfect hub of everything I enjoyed - the comics, the humour, the music - and it was also closer - and cheaper - than, say, New York or Tokyo. When we and Dora first began dating we'd entertained the idea of going to a trip abroad together, and we had either London or Paris in mind, but we never did end up going anywhere. And because I actually knew someone who lived there, I called her up and asked her if we could stay with them for a few days. I'm talking about Carla, who became a great friend to the family when my mother went back to the university to study law. She'd moved there a few years prior, and though in the beginning things got really tough for her, she perserved, and eventually met this guy who she'd end up marrying. We arranjed to stay with them for as long as we stayed there, which maybe wasn't that long - three or four days, if I do recall it correctly. We arrived in London, and then got on the tube off to meet Carla somewhere. By this time we all had mobile phones, so there was a chance to circumvent any unforessen situation that might have arisen, but thankfully it all went according to plan. After hooking up with Carla, she took us to their place, in Seven Sister road, North London. Carla told me that the neighbourhood wasn't actually that great, but it was cheap, it was what they could afford. And look, who was I to complain when we were being given a place to stay for free? Soon after we arrived at their place, we ended up metting her husband - someone who I'll call Jay, and that's me being far too kind - he deserves to be called far worse names, as you'll learn in the future. But you know how sometimes first impressions can be deceiving? This was one such case. He did seem like such a nice, stand-up guy. But it's not until you get to know someone skin-deep, when you have to deal with them on a daily basis, that you really get to know them.