Excerpt: What About Jimmy?

Jimmy Curry, at that moment, was looking at the sky. When the clouds had all wandered off to some other place and the sun was beating down on him, he liked to lie down in the middle of the wheat fields and stare up into the sky, and lose himself in the blue emptiness of it all. If you looked at it long enough, it seemed like the blue tailed off into forever. Which, Jimmy mused, it probably did, being outer space up there, if you go far enough into it.

Jimmy had full intentions of helping everyone else out with the preparations for his big sister’s wedding. Honest, he did. He’d wandered out of the house early morning for a quick walk, considered jogging into town to say hi to his friends (not that he had many), but found himself feeling a bit tired. So he went into the nearest field (one of theirs, naturally), lay down by a hay bail and decided to rest. After all, no good going to help out with wedding planning if you’re all tired from a morning run now, is there? He hadn’t expected to be lying there for four hours, however. But he didn’t mind. The sun was so warm on his skin, like sitting in front of a cosy fire. It was very possible he’d fallen asleep at some point, he couldn’t tell. He knew it sure felt good though and had no intentions of getting up and going anywhere any time soon.

Jimmy probably would have stayed precisely where he was the whole day through, until the sun set and he found himself getting cold rather than blissfully warm, except he heard the sound of a wagon trundling down the road towards town. This wasn’t unusual – as one of the main routes into and out of Three Point, there had been cars and wagons and horses all morning going up and down, none of them noticing Jimmy since he was hidden behind the long grass. What was unusual was the voice he could hear floating on the light breeze.

“Oh, this is so ignominious! So ignominious! I’ve never been so humiliated – riding on an open wagon like so much milk. Thank goodness I’m not at home, who knows who would see me! Oh dear, oh dear...”

The voice was fairly high, with a slight tendency to whine, and whoever it was didn’t speak like normal people. He had an accent, he sounded like he was from England or somewhere foreign like that. Certainly not a local to Three Point, and definitely not accustomed to riding on the back of a milk wagon. Despite being so wonderfully comfortable, Jimmy found himself sitting up to get a better look at the guy who had interrupted his sleepy contemplations.

“I say,” the stranger was saying, “could you possibly avoid the pot holes in the road rather than aiming for them? It is rather affecting my posture here, somewhat.”

“Look, buddy,” said the driver, who was Old Max the Milker Jimmy noticed, “You don’t like my driving, then you can clear off right now, got it?”

“Well, I say!” exclaimed the stranger, as if he had never been told to get over himself before. “How very rude of you. I was only trying to make conversation, that’s all, if you can’t –“

“Right, that’s it!” Max the Milker said and stopped the wagon on the spot. “I can’t stand you any longer any more – get off.”

“Oh really, don’t be so ridiculous –“

“Get out!”

The stranger raised his eyebrows in surprise and stood up. He climbed down from the wagon in the most clumsy, awkward way possible (and to someone like Jimmy, who was as awkward as they come, this was notable), carrying a small bag of luggage, an umbrella and an overcoat over his arm, since it was too warm a day to be wearing it. After quite a performance of getting off the wagon, the stranger stood by the side of the road, glaring at Max with as much anger he could muster. Max couldn’t care less, and without looking back kicked the horses into gear and shot off down the road, leaving the stranger to cough theatrically in the dust he left behind.
The dust cleared fairly quickly, and Jimmy watched as the stranger looked around him, his face a serious look of seriousness like Jimmy had rarely seen. The serious determination soon gave way to confusion and worry, as he started to tentatively walk in one direction, then take a couple of tentative steps into another. It took Jimmy a bit longer than most to realise that the strange man was completely lost.

Jimmy, now having given up getting back to his morning relaxing, decided he may as well see if the poor guy needed any help. Couldn’t hurt to be friendly – you never knew who you might be talking to. Jimmy, with a bit of effort since he’d been sitting in the same position for the best part of the morning, cracked his shoulders and got to his feet, and wandered across the field to the road, where the stranger was staring out across the plains in the opposite direction to him, his back to Jimmy.

Jimmy put on a big smile and tapped the stranger on the shoulder. “Hey there!”

“Arrrgghhhhh!” screamed the stranger, leaping a clear two feet in the air and backwards, his eyes wide with terror. He dropped his luggage and his coat on the road and fell backwards to the ground, staring up at Jimmy in shock.

“Don’t do that!” he shouted, once he found he had some voice back.

Jimmy gulped. “Sorry about that. Didn’t know I was sneaking up on ya.” He held out his hand to the stranger to help him up. The stranger looked at his hand curiously, as if wondering where it had been. However, seeing no other alternative, he clasped Jimmy’s hand and allowed himself to be helped to his feet.

“Thank you, young man” he said, dusting himself off. “Yes, thank you indeed.”

Jimmy grinned. “Not a problem. You ain’t from around here, are you?”

The stranger whinced. “No, I aren’t from around here, no. Excuse me, I’m looking for the town of Three Points. Is that near here?”

“Sure” Jimmy pointed to his left. “It’s about an hour’s walk that way.”

The stranger took a look down the road, then back at Jimmy. “Are you serious”

Jimmy nodded. “Sometimes. But it’s definitely an hour’s walk. I did it every morning back when I went to school.”

“I see.” The stranger sighed. “Well, no use dilly-dallying I suppose. I’d best get going. Thank you very much for your assistance young man”.

“Oh, call me Jimmy. Jimmy Curry.”

“Oh, how do you do. I’m Brian Runnicles.”

Jimmy held out his hand. “Nice to meet you, Mr Runnicles”

“Charmed I’m sure. Now, I really must get moving. An hour’s walk and all that. Thank you again for your help.”

Mr Runnicles smiled a thin smile and started to stroll as well as he could down the road. Jimmy let him get a few feet ahead of him before he called after the strange man and said,

“You know, I could always give you a lift on my roan!”

Mr Runnicles turned, “I’m sorry?”

“My roan! I could give you a lift, would only take you about quarter of an hour to get there”

Mr Runnicles quickly ran back to where Jimmy was standing. “Indeed, a most kind offer indeed, I thank you most deeply.”

“Oh, think nothing of it. I’m glad to help”

"Indeed, indeed. Now,” Mr Runnicles took a moment to catch his breath, “A roan, is this a vehicle of some kind?”