7. The Evening Meal

Nathan looked around as he entered the Wolf and Dog, the new public house on the outskirts of Wildbridge. It was the first time he had been in this establishment, and he was curious to see what it was actually like. Several of the customers at the garage had commented on how good it was, so his colleagues – well, Dean and Mick, mainly – had decided to check it out, and he had tagged along. Tony had joined them as well; only Barry had passed, saying that he had a hot date that night. Not that any of them believed him.

Mick, the eldest and the unofficial leader of the group, stopped and looked around. He was a short, muscular Yorkshireman in his early fifties, with pale skin, pale blue eyes, and greying blond hair. “Right, gentlemen,” he began, rubbing his hands together. “Where shall we sit?”

The others looked around. Surprisingly, given the rave reviews this establishment had been getting, it didn't seem to be that full.

“Looks a bit empty,” Nathan noted.

Mick nodded. “Probably a bit early for the regulars,” he suggested.

Dean, a tall, dark-haired man in his late forties, with brown eyes and a Mediterranean complexion, pointed towards an empty table nearby. “How about there?” he asked. “It's not too far from the bar, and should be close enough to the bogs for Tony.” They all laughed in agreement. Tony's lack of bladder control was legendary. Nathan followed the others over to the table. Dean and Mick immediately claimed the two seats facing the bar, so he sat down opposite them.

Tony, a dark-skinned, stocky man of Nigerian descent, with dark brown eyes and a head that was almost devoid of hair, save for a few black strands around his ears, sat down next to Nathan, then immediately got up again.

“You know what,” he said, “I think I'd better pay a visit before we start.” The others laughed as he turned and headed towards the bathrooms.

Mick turned to Dean. “Looks like it's your round first, as Barry isn't here,” he said.

Dean sighed, and stood up. “Right, the usual all round?” he asked. Nathan and Mick both nodded, and Dean headed over to the bar to order the first round of drinks.

He returned with the drinks just as Tony got back from the bathroom. “Must have been a long one,” Dean remarked.

Tony laughed in response. “Oh, man, you should see the facilities,” he told them, his voice full of awe. “It's all motion-sensitive, you don't have to touch anything. It's all just...” Tony moved his hands back over the table, mimicking the action of washing them under the taps. “Whoosh, and then Brrrr,” he added, now moving his hands up and down to simulate drying them.

“Yeah, just like everywhere else, Tone,” Mick laughed. “Now sit down and decide what you're going to have to eat,” he added, tossing a menu in Tony's direction.

Nathan picked up a menu and looked through the dishes on offer. The food seemed fairly standard for this type of establishment, and the prices were reasonable enough. It was a tough choice, but eventually he plumped for the chicken pie with chips and peas. Mick placed the order, once everybody had made their choice, and they chatted together while they waited for the food to be brought to their table.

After a few minutes, Tony looked around. “Did you give them the right table number, Mick?” he asked.

Mick rolled his eyes. “Patience, Tone,” he chided. “Give them chance to cook the food.”

“I'm just hungry,” replied Tony.

Dean drained the last of his pint, and looked meaningfully at Nathan's glass. Nathan took the hint and did the same, before they both slid his glass across the table towards Mick.

“What's this?” Mick asked, looking down at the glasses that were collecting in his corner of the table.

Realising he was a little behind the others, Tony guzzled the remainder of his pint, and slid the glass across to join the others. “Must be your round, Mick,” he suggested.

Mick sighed, and stood up. “Okay, same again?” he asked. The others nodded. Mick picked up the empty glasses and headed over to the bar to get the second round in.

Tony stood up again. “I think I might take the opportunity...” he began.

Dean laughed. “Actually, I think I might do likewise,” he said, nodding at Nathan. “Hold the fort for us for a minute, youngster,” he added.

Nathan nodded and sighed. He didn't like it when the others referred to him as youngster or lad, even though this was clearly true. Tony was the youngest of the others, and even he was eight or nine years older than Nathan. They got on well enough, but sometimes Nathan wished there was somebody in the group who was a little closer to his own age.

He looked around. A few more patrons had arrived and taken their seats. Most of them appeared to be closer in age to Mick or Dean than to him. There didn't appear to be any children, either. He frowned. Perhaps it was too late? he wondered. He remembered some mention of children not being allowed in taverns after seven. But surely it wasn't that late yet?

He looked around for a clock. He hadn't bothered wearing a watch for several years. There was really no need. There were clocks everywhere. Everywhere except here, he sighed to himself, having failed to locate a single timepiece in the entire establishment.

Nathan slouched back in his chair and stared vacantly at the couples and groups sitting at the nearby tables. Suddenly, Mick was standing before him, clicking his fingers.

Mick returned with the second round of drinks, and clicked his fingers at Nathan.

“Snap out of it, lad,” Mick chided him. “You looked like you were off on another planet there.”

“Just waiting for the food to arrive,” Nathan replied with a smile, as Mick slid a fresh pint towards him.

Mick nodded and sat down. “What time is it?” Nathan asked him.

Mick looked puzzled. “Why? You got a hot date later?” he asked, more than a hint of amusement in his voice.

Nathan shook his head. “No, just wondering why there are no kids around,” he replied.

Mick looked around. “Don't think couples with young children come here,” he mused. “Probably put off by the previous place's reputation.”

Nathan nodded. He had heard stories about the previous tavern. “What was it called? The Bear?” he asked.

“Something like that,” Mick replied. “The cops shut it down after somebody got glassed.”

“Yeah, poor bugger almost died.” Dean's voice heralded his return from the bathroom. Nathan looked up at him in surprise.

“Anybody we know?” Mick asked.

Dean shook his head as he sat down. “No. Other side of town, from what I heard,” he replied.

“Long way to come for a pint and a bite,” Mick noted.

“Talking of which,” Dean commented, nodding in the direction of the kitchen door.

Mick looked up towards where Dean was indicating. His eyes lit up. “Aye up!” he exclaimed in surprise.

Nathan turned his head to see what the other two were looking at. A young blonde woman, around Nathan's age, had emerged from the kitchen carrying two plates of food. Nathan noted that she had pale, slightly tanned skin, long blonde hair, and blue eyes. He smiled with quiet amusement. He knew the other guys well enough to be certain that they would not have noticed her facial features; their eyes would have almost certainly been focused elsewhere.

Indeed, his own eyes were drawn, almost unconsciously, down to her impressively large chest, which was putting her blouse under considerable strain. As she approached the table, Nathan was able to read her name badge, which was attached to her blouse above her left breast. It told him that her name was Monica.

“Two steak and chips.” she announced, either oblivious to the attention she was getting or simply used to it.

“Here and here,” Mick replied, gesturing to himself and towards Tony's vacant chair.

Monica set one of the plates down on the table in front of Mick, then reached across the table to place the other in front of Tony's chair. She then turned and headed back to the kitchen to collect Dean and Nathan's orders, nearly bumping into Tony as he returned from his second extended bathroom visit of the night.

Tony's eyes widened as he stood and watched Monica walk towards the kitchen door. When she disappeared from view, he turned and looked at the other three, a look of happy surprise on his face. “Better class of waitress here,” he declared as he sat down.

Mick sighed and shook his head. “If I were twenty years younger,” he remarked.

Dean laughed. “You'd still be ten years older than her,” he told Mick.

Mick scowled at Dean, then busied himself with sorting out everybody's cutlery.

Monica soon returned with two more plates of food, these for Dean and Nathan.

“Gammon steak?” she asked. Dean raised his hand, and she placed the plate on the table in front of him.

Monica then looked directly at Nathan. “And a chicken pie,” she added with a smile.

Nathan nodded. Rather than walk around the table to place Nathan's plate in front of him, Monica leaned enticingly across it, giving him a close-up view of both her bra and her impressive décolletage. Nathan blushed, and looked away.

As Monica departed, heading back to the kitchen to collect another table's orders, Mick looked enviously at Nathan. “I think she likes you, lad,” he remarked.

Nathan blushed again, and looked down at his food. The others sniggered, and Tony held his hands up, simulating squeezing a pair of breasts. “Honk honk,” he laughed.

“Don't be coarse, Tone,” Dean chided, picking up his knife and fork. He gestured towards Tony's plate with the latter. “Food time.”

Tony sighed, and picked up his own knife and fork. Soon, all four of them were busy devouring their meals.