Follow My Lead Episode 09
Follow My Lead
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In the bathroom she found shampoo and soap, and a stack of clean towels.
The water was hot and she took her time, enjoying the novelty of not rushing.
She was standing in the middle of the kitchen, looking for a coffee machine, when she glanced out the window.
She saw Danielle jogging up the path in colourful leggings and top.
“Good morning!” The girl greeted her with a bright smile as she threw open the door.
“How did you sleep?”
“Like a baby, until some lunatic with a car horn woke me up.”
Danielle giggled.
“That would be John and the fish van. He comes about this time every Saturday morning.
“I stock up the freezer from him every couple of weeks.”
“Well, I guess I can forgive him for waking me, then.
“Oh, and thank you so much for these,” Lydia said, indicating her clothes.
“Do you have a coffee machine, by the way?”
Danielle shook her head as she kicked off her trainers.
“I use instant.”
Lydia suppressed her shudder, thinking longingly of the fresh-ground espresso that usually kick-started her day.
“Instant’s fine,” she said weakly.
She opened the fridge door and peered inside.
“How about I make us breakfast? Do you have orange juice?”
There was a heavy silence, and she glanced back in time to see Danielle looking guilty.
“I’m sorry, but I just have time for a quick shower and a bowl of muesli, then I have to go to work.
“Help yourself to anything you fancy, though,” she finished before dashing off.
The kettle had barely boiled before she was back.
“Goodness, that was a quick shower!” Lydia exclaimed.
Danielle didn’t quite meet her eyes and suddenly the penny dropped.
“I used all the hot water, didn’t I? Oh, I’m so sorry!
“I’m so used to my electric shower, I just didn’t think.”
“Don’t worry about it. I’ll just adjust the hot water timer. Problem solved.”
“What about the van?” Lydia remembered. “That broken lock will be a nuisance, won’t it?”
Danielle had poured out a bowl of muesli and she rolled her eyes as she tipped milk on top.
“Would you believe it? I tried the door when I went out for my run and it opened just like that! I’ll fetch your bags.”
“Finish your breakfast. I’ll go. I’ve already been enough bother for one day.”
As soon as Danielle left for work, Lydia set about unpacking.
It had been hard to know what to bring when she didn’t know how long it was for, but she had tried to keep it light.
Even so, the room was soon full to bursting.
She’d forgotten just how tiny the house was, but she was determined not to encroach on Danielle’s space any more than she had to.
Job finally done, she returned to the kitchen.
She would do the dishes, but then the day stretched emptily ahead of her.
If it had been a holiday from work, she would have been relishing it. This enforced inactivity, though, felt different.
As she gazed out the window at the garden, a movement caught her eye.
The man next door had walked on to his lawn.
He unrolled a yoga mat and began a gentle warm-up of stretching.
She didn’t give herself time to think twice.
“Hello!” she called as she neared the hedge dividing the gardens. He looked up.
“Morning,” he replied.
“I’m sorry to interrupt,” she went on. “I’m Lydia, Danielle’s godmother. I’m staying for a while.”
“Hello, Lydia. And welcome. I’m Cyrus.”
“Pleased to meet you, Cyrus. I wonder if you would mind if I joined you in your yoga practice?”
His eyebrows flickered in surprise, then he smiled.
“Not at all. Please do.”
“Wonderful. Just give me two ticks to get my mat.”
Inside, she changed into her yoga gear, grabbed her mat from under the bed, and ran back outside.