That Wee English Fella

Robert Barry

                                       

                                        ୨୧

"I'm fairly sick of beauty standers" I said fixing my hair and makeup,  as we all got ready in Erin's bedroom for the Party, while James sat on the bed asleep.  "Aye, same" Erin said, before going on a whole rant about it while I tuned out.

"Are Paul and Oisin going, Cara?" Michelle asked as she winked at her reflection. "How am i meant to know. I've been with ye all day"

"I cant believe the Robert Barry invited us to his party. Aren't we so lucky" Erin said dreaming probably of her wedding with the wee lad. "Aye, I'm honored" I replied sarcastically with a roll of my eyes and sat down on the edge of the bed, by James feet, to wait for the rest to be ready. James was still asleep so I decided I wanted to talk to him, and well he needs to wake up if he wants to be awake at the party. "Oi, James" I moved his legs slightly, so now they were hanging off the side edge of Erin's double bed.

"What?" He groaned, sitting up properly to fix his hair and look around. "Nice sleep?" I asked with a smirk on my face, loving his bed-state right now. "It was....Where are we even going?"

"The party, dickhead. Come on, then" Michelle said gesturing to the open door that all my friends must've also gone through. I didn't even notice them leave because I was staring at a fecking English fella. What has come of me?
"Bye mammy" Erin called out as we all passed the Kitchen and went out the door together.

"Cara, can you come in for a second?" Erin's dad called me from the front porch of Erin's gaff. All my friends looked at me curiously and I just shrugged, not knowing what Jerry could possibly want to talk to me for . "Anything you say to her, you say to us." Erin tried to stand up to her da as we walked back into the house in our party clothes.

"I don't think she'll want ye all to here, love" Jerry replied, stepping into their sitting room while the girls and James hesitantly went upstairs, looking back at me. "I'm not in trouble, am I, Jerry?" I asked nervously, as I sat down on the soft sofa and looked at Jerry who mirrored my nervousness.  "Oh, no. Not at all" Jerry shock his head at me, sitting down as well now. "Cara...there's no easy way to say this. The B-Special's threw Conor into prison without trial. He's accused of being involved in the provincial IRA." Jerry said, reaching over and taking my hand, as my whole body shook. "He isn't. What made them think that?" I asked, looking at Jerry though teary eyes, even though I knew that Jerry didn't know the answer.

The girls and James must've been listening because I heard them all crashing down the stairs as I starred at the carpeted floor. "I'm so sorry, Cara. They're right bastards." Michelle said, with teary eyes for the first time I've ever seen and running over to hug me. "It's anti-semitism, Cara. It's no one's fault. Unless he is in the IRA..." Erin trailed off, as I looked up from Michelle's shoulder and glared at her. Conor wouldn't, he just wouldn't do that to us. "I'm sorry, Cara" James said, as he stood awkwardly next to Erin. I hugged Michelle tighter and she hugged me back, this is one of the seldom moments where Michelle shows her human side.

"Do you want a lift home?" Jerry asked, getting up out of his seat and grabbing his keys, as I pulled away from Michelle nodding with tears ruining my makeup.

The entire car ride was filled with awkward silence, jerry tried to make conversation about the weather and what not but I only replied dryly. Which, I did feel bad for but I really just didn't want to talk to anyone right then. "Bye, Jerry. Thanks so much for the lift home" I waved as I walked though the Black door of my home. "Da?" I asked entering. In the kitchen, my living family, aside from Conor sat at the oak dinner table.

7 seats that were once all used, now only 5.

"It's so unfair." I huffed, breaking the eerie silence at the table to be replied with bye 'aye, tis' by everybody. "What if he actually was part of the Prov?" Paul asked, my da instantly turning at him with a scowl. "I raised that boy, and I know him like the back of my hand. He would never kill someone. Do you understand? I don't want anybody or anything playing with the truth in your wee heads" my da said as he glared daggers though all of us. "Aye da, but you didn't really raise us," Kate mumbled sassily, she gets really pissed instead of sad. Like, she gets proper mad at the world and everyone. "What you say?" My dad asked angrily from his seat at the head of the table.

"I mean, when mammy died you spent all your time working. Which I get, da. But you didn't raise us. What were Paul and Cara, like 7, when you started asking random customers from the bar to help them with their homework and school problems. God, I bet you don't even know how Oisin got offered to play rugby for underage Ulster when he was only 14-"

"Shut up!" My da said, raising from his seat and screaming like Denis from Dennis's wee shop making us all jump from the scare. "Up to your beds, the lot of ye." With that, I rushed upstairs before everyone else and threw myself on my bed, crying my eyes out.

Ringggg ringgg. Ringggg ringgg

The green dial phone on my bedside table went off, shaking the little slab of wood. I rolled over dramatically and reached to pick it up. "Hello?" My tired voice, from crying out my everything, called into the phone.

"Hey, Cara. Look, I know it's really hard right now and you hate everything. But you're one of the best people I know, and I hate being soppy but it's true. You know, my brother shot a man and got put into jail, and, I know your brother is innocent but I just thought you might want to talk to somebody who has a rough idea whats it's like" Michelle spoke into her line of the phone. I never knew about her brother. It all makes sense though now. Why she comes off as cold and mean, it's a front.

"Oh, hey Michelle. I didn't know about that, that's tuff. And I don't really think I'm in the mood to talk about it now, I won't be able to without bursting into tears. I'll talk to you about it when I'm capable, I promise" I whispered into the speaker of my dial phone, in hopes of my da not hearing me and making me hang up.

"Oh, how was the party?" I asked, secretly a bit jealous I didn't go. "Oh, James and I didn't go."

"Hardly, why?" I asked, thankful though that no girl could get a chance to kiss or do anything more to James. Michelle told me one time about a Ukrainian girl how was obsessed with James and even wanted to take his virginity. She didn't though, thank god. "Ach, looked like a shite hole"
I laughed at her joke, even though she probably only said it to make me feel better.

"Right, I'm going to head off to try sleep now. I'll seen you in a few days, you know, going to use this as a excuse to not go yo school. Nighty, Michelle"

"See ya" Michelle said as I hung up the phone and lay flat down on my bed with the same question going over and over in my head.

What made them think he was in the IRA?