Just Like a Woman Read Free Page A

sitting in the chair in her office. Stephanie’s impatience oozed out of her, spoiling into the pretty room, tripping into Sarah’s mind and body, making her even more nervous. But if she told Stephanie everything, her mother would hear it all as well.
    Her mother waited for her, even now, to arrive home. She would be standing by the window, her thin hands holding back the curtain, her sharp nose not quite pressed against the glass. Sarah shuddered. The piercing eyes, screeching voice ready to tear her apart if she didn’t tell her every last detail of what had happened, what was said. Word for word.
    Putting the keys in the ignition she wondered if those people who walked around with silver foil on their heads really did stop the aliens invading their minds. She wondered if silver foil would help her; but her problem wasn’t the aliens, she would almost welcome them. No, her problem was her mother. She had yet to find a way to stop her mother getting into her head. And other people; they were all so wrapped up in themselves they couldn’t see her, didn’t see her. Even Stephanie was more interested in her own problems than anything Sarah had to tell her. Her therapist had no idea of what she went through. One day, she decided, one day she would tell her, tell her everything she wanted to know, and then she’d regret being her therapist. She had expected too much, thinking Stephanie would hear beyond the mundane she expelled to her every week. She had assumed someone of Stephanie’s reputation and experience would hear what she was not telling her, after all Dr. Short had recommended her. It was becoming too difficult for a cosy chat each week; her mother was making it too painful and it was not worth the expense.
    Taking one more look at Stephanie’s front door, she pulled away in the four wheel drive, mounting the curb and down back on to the road again without noticing. She was grateful everyday to Dr. Short and what he had done for her. He persuaded her mother to buy the car for her; listing all the advantages she would get from it. At first, when her mother had finally agreed to a car she wanted to buy an old banger. But Dr. Short again explained the advantages of having a decent car, something which would keep Sarah safe. After all, he reasoned, who would look after her if something happened to Sarah? He’d used the same argument to allow her to see Stephanie.
    Driving with one hand on the steering wheel she reached into her handbag and felt around until she located her mobile. Turning it on it beeped almost immediately, letting her know, as she knew it would, she had a voice mail. Although she also knew what the voice mail would say she put it to her ear to listen to it.
    “Where are you? You should be on your way home by now. Why isn’t your phone on?”
    As her eyes roved from road to phone, Sarah keyed in her home number, to let her mother know she was nearly home.
    Driving into Sycamore Road Sarah saw the house, and the shadow of her mother behind the net curtain; watching; waiting. She had stood there since Sarah had been five years old, and as far as Sarah was concerned she never moved. If school had not been compulsory she would never have been allowed to go. The moment she walked in the door her mother would start.
    ‘So, what happened? What did you do? What did you say? What did she say?’
    Sarah recalled her first day at school, being able to play and talk to the other children. And then going home later, skipping down the road with her new friend and her friend’s mother. The freedom was exhilarating, almost over powering until her friend’s mother pointed out they had reached her house and it was time to say goodbye. She stood and stared at them, wanting to beg them to let her go with them to their house. Maybe she could come to tea with them, she asked.
    ‘We’ll see you in the morning,’ her friend’s mother had replied. She knew she had smiled then. Yes, the next day she would be going