these days. She pondered where he went when he wasn’t at work or home, but he appeared to have his own life outside of the family. She was uncertain when she first noticed this, but had only met one of his friends, assuming there were more than one.
Nick had gone through Law school with Tony, completed the course, and after a few years dropped out of Law, now running a successful business importing children’s toys. He had been born into an establishment family and to Karen he appeared to be a dull but sunny person, even when intoxicated, which she had observed on one occasion when he came for dinner to her family home about a year prior. She’d noticed that her father generally didn’t bring friends home.
Karen was puzzled why her father had allowed her to see the state of his office environment, as he had always been a proud man. She wondered if he had stopped caring, and possibly was numbed by seeing it daily, to the point where it ceased to exist for him.
Knowing that it would be a difficult task persuading her father to make major improvements to the office, she began with a complete review of the regular office cleaning and maintenance and only gradually rearranged the decor. She was pleased to see the immediate improvement in her father’s attitude and she felt confident that as long as she remained active in the practice, it would not sink further and might even grow.
Though fond of her father, Karen described that she was occasionally troubled by his behaviour. Soon after commencing work in her father’s Law firm, she noted on occasion one of the paralegals, Jodie, relating to Tony in a flirtatious manner.
Jodie was a buxom young woman of 30, who had divorced her husband two years ago and did not have any children. The clothing she wore to work appeared skimpy to Karen, and she was puzzled that her father allowed it. Jodie often wore a skirt well above the knees, and a tight, cut away blouse which left little to the imagination when she bent over Tony’s desk to deposit paperwork. She was about 5'2" in height and wore stiletto heels, and as she tottered on these, her movements were accentuated by a prominent wiggle of her ample bottom.
Karen felt ill at ease with her father’s reaction, as Tony appeared pleased to see Jodie in spite of what Karen considered to be the vulgarity of her presentation. Karen sensed her parent’s marriage was a loveless one, but to see her father acting like a gauche schoolboy, who blushed whenever Jodie familiarly placed her multi-ringed hand on his shoulder, with her ample bosom not far from his face, distressed Karen.
She didn’t believe her father was having an affair with Jodie, but it would not have surprised her to learn that he was having sex with someone other than his wife. She would not allow herself to ever condone such behaviour, but was aware that if she was honest with herself, she could understand how his barren marriage could lead him to stray. However, she strongly believed that the proper thing to do would be to leave a marriage before starting another relationship.
Karen had been in her father’s practice for almost eighteen months when she represented a young man charged with assault. It was a serious matter, heard in the local magistrates’ court; the offender was only twenty-three and had knocked another man unconscious in a local pub. Dr Andrew Wright testified for the defendant who had been his patient for a number of years.
When the court adjourned for lunch, Karen and Andrew Wright went together to the nearby Manny’s Wine Bar for a quick meal and a chat. When they entered, there were no members of staff to be seen, but they could hear the noise of clattering plates in an area beyond a pair of swinging doors through which a gaunt young man soon emerged. He had a shaven head with two rings in each ear, and Karen wondered why so many waiters looked like this young guy nowadays – as she confided to Andrew, she had always associated food with plumpness.
With neither greeting nor eye contact, the waiter recited a litany of specials for the day before thrusting two menus in their general direction. Karen smiled when Andrew quoted a Marx Brothers’ oneliner: ‘If they’re so special, why weren’t they printed on the menu?’ – a comment the waiter ignored. They both ordered spaghetti marinara and a cappuccino, explaining to the nearly mute waiter their need to be out of there in 30 minutes. The waiter disappeared wordlessly and they were pleasantly surprised to have the food arrive promptly. As a bonus, the meal was tasty and they finished it within the half-hour; they each paid their share and Andrew left what Karen considered an excessive tip. When Karen commented, he agreed with her that too often people lacked the courage to tip according to the quality of the service. In fact, he remarked, it was really self-imposed blackmail along the lines of. ‘If I pay you all this money, then maybe you'll agree to do your job and make my outing pleasant.’
She wondered if he was trying to impress her.
Karen was attracted to this young psychiatrist who so readily displayed warmth and humour towards her. She and her girlfriends had often discussed what they were looking for in a man and she still wasn't sure, but knew that humour was an important part of the total picture, and this man had an open face which featured laughter lines. She also felt that Andrew seemed interested in her as a person even though they had only just met. In addition, he appeared highly competent in his work, as far as she could tell.
He was no hunk, she thought, but then reminded herself that she wasn’t looking for one. Rather, he had pleasant features and though showing early loss of hair, he was not attempting to disguise it with the barcode look of brushing the existing hair over the bald areas.
During their short lunch, Karen had relaxed to the point where she confided that she was basically shy and had joined Toastmasters and consulted a psychologist for a few sessions, to learn how to be more assertive. With an embarrassed laugh, she told Andrew that the psychologist had asked her what animal she felt symbolised her personality and without further thought she had promptly replied, ‘A hedgehog … because they are a vulnerable, shy animal with prickles on the outside.’ When she turned the question to Andrew, he deflected the query, saying they needed to return to court; but as they strolled back, Karen was delighted to hear him reopening the discussion.
‘A squirrel,’ he said, with a slight change of shade in his cheeks. To her quizzical look, he explained that he saw himself as someone who made quick decisions, sometimes impulsive, and he believed he appeared non-threatening and could be playful, but added that he probably was more a mix of two animals – a squirrel and an owl, the latter appearing thoughtful and self-contained. Almost as an afterthought, he reflected to Karen that the two animals were widely disparate and their characteristics contradicted each other.
‘So, what would you call such an animal and what would it look like?’ Karen giggled with a deadpan face, Andrew answered her question. ‘A Squowl, that’s what you’d call it. There aren’t many around these days, but they’re a foot high, with bushy tails and big, round luminous yellow eyes. They’re mute and have four legs, two big and two little. Can’t say I’ve seen one as yet – they are very rare.’
The day ended with Karen’s client being cleared of the assault charge due to the evidence presented by Dr Wright describing the taunting and provocation his patient had endured before the attack. The court referred him to the care of his psychiatrist, with the magistrate's advice that he avoid going to pubs in the future.
Karen knew that she would like to see more of this young psychiatrist, but wasn't sure how to go about it. She had friends who were seeking the perfect man to marry, which she felt could only be a fruitless exercise; she didn't believe there was only one partner for each person, but rather there were probably many potentially suitable partners, provided each of them brought goodwill and a willingness to compromise into the partnership, and she felt Andrew was definitely suitable. She quickly converted this thought into a fervent hope that he would prove suitable.
As they left the court, she quietly asked Andrew if she could see him again. His mind raced as he answered, ‘Yes’, not yet able to fully interpret the rush of emotions
