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She’d been looking forward to the comforting familiarity of The Ruby Room, its soft lighting warming her like a blanket. She turned to go back, deciding she might be better off with an early night, but she needed to be away from Marvin.Should I stay or go?
Cass came up the escalator, surprisingly happy and less-irritated than she usually looked. ‘Oh, looks like we’re in there tonight.’ She pointed across the hall. ‘After you.’ She pushed open the door of The Lotus Room and motioned for Gina to enter.
Looks like I’m staying.
‘Hi ladies, there’s an electrical issue in The Ruby Room that can’t get fixed till the morning. Come on in,’ Liz said. She wore a lime green sweater, over the front of which hung a necklace of alternating green and aqua glass beads. She looked nice, but the colours stung Gina’s eyes.
The Lotus Room was smaller than its ruby counterpart, and didn’t have an entry foyer. It was just one room with asmall kitchenette attached to a side wall. In keeping with Liz’s colour choice for the evening, the room was painted in colours of fresh green and white, with accents of the lightest pink. The back wall comprised a large window overlooking the Courtyard Café below, and in the far corner sat a lotus-shaped water fountain, water trickling softly into the reservoir surrounding it. Gina squinted at the brighter, crisper lighting as she took residence in one of the chairs. She adjusted her position a few times. They weren’t as comfortable as the ruby chairs.
‘Before we start, I believe Cass has an announcement to make?’ Liz eyed Cass, who stood in front of the group, lights from the street lamps outside giving her figure an eerie outline.
‘Thanks, Liz.’ She cleared her throat in an,I’m getting ready to speak in publickind of way. ‘Tonight will be my last Life Makeover Club meeting. I’ve accepted a new job in a research lab in Melbourne, and I’m leaving in two weeks.’ She smiled. In fact, that was the first time Gina had noticed her smile. She normally had a permanent expression of irritation on her face, and barely spoke without berating her ex-husband.
‘Congratulations. Why Melbourne, may I ask?’ Miranda said, fiddling with her silver necklace that glinted sharply under the lights. Gina clenched her eyes shut for a moment.
‘I didn’t plan to move interstate, but a friend of mine who works for the company who hired me, mentioned one of her colleagues was leaving and that there would be a position available. I needed a change, so I asked her to put in a good word for me. I attended an interview via Zoom, and they offered me the job two days later!’ Cass beamed. ‘And now I can say goodbye to my marriage for good. My hus –ex-husband and I work in the same building, so bumping into him in the elevators every day wasn’t making things any easier. I needed a clean break, and this sounded like the perfect opportunity to start over.’
And then there were eight.
If people kept leaving, the club would start to resemble a reality TV show or a less violent version ofThe Hunger Games. Who would be crowned Miss Life Makeover of the Year?
‘Well, we’ll miss seeing you at the club meetings, but we’re very happy for you, Cass, aren’t we ladies?’ Liz said.
Everyone nodded and gave their congratulations, and Cass apologised for being such a grump at times. When she was about to return to her seat, the strumming of an acoustic guitar floated into the room from outside. Intrigue cleared Gina’s head for a moment and she went to the window. Everyone gathered around, admiring the performance of the scruffy-looking musician who sat on a stool at the café below. The Courtyard Café was part of City Health and Fitness, and was open at night for dinner and snacks, most of its patrons coming for a feed after the gym.
As a man sitting by himself at one of the tables turned to look at the musician, his fork fell off the table onto the paved courtyard. He bent to retrieve it, and lingered for a moment under the table. Cass gazed intently towards the man, as did Gina, as he picked up not only his fork, but a small piece of paper or a business card. The man’s brows drew together as though curious, then rose and his jaw dropped a little. A smile eased its way onto his face, and he pulled out his phone and snapped a photo of the paper.
‘Oh my God,’ Cass whispered.
‘What?’ Gina asked.
‘The words of wisdom card. That man just found the card I stuck under the table!’
Liz inched between Cass and Gina to peer out the window. ‘Really?’
Cass nodded, and they watched the man as he spoke on the phone, glancing at the card again, and shaking his head with a smile. After slipping his phone in his pocket, he turned to watch the musician, and stood clapping with unbridled enthusiasm at the end of the song. The performance was nice, although Gina didn’t think it standing ovation-worthy, but for some reason this man did. He walked to the register to pay for his meal, and on his way out of the courtyard, handed the performer some cash. It couldn’t be seen how much, but the musician tried to give it back to him. The man pushed it back to the musician, they shook hands, and the man strode away with an air of renewed energy usually only seen after a mid-morning coffee hit.
Cass looked wide-eyed at everyone else, as Zoe snapped photos with her camera. ‘For my story,’ Zoe explained. ‘My boss said he’ll consider my story idea for the club and Grandma Joy, but wants to see a draft of it first. The fact that I’ve witnessed someone finding one of the cards is gold!’
‘That’s great, Zoe!’ Liz exclaimed. ‘Cass, do you remember what that particular card said?’
‘Uh-uh,’ she replied. ‘Sorry. But I’d love to know which one it was and why it seemed to resonate with him so much.’
‘Me too,’ said Zoe. She looked towards the man whose figure gradually disappeared into the night. ‘If only I could jump out the window and catch up to him!’
‘You certainly are committed to the job,’ remarked Wendy.
‘And so she should be,’ Rebecca said. ‘There’s no point doing a job if you can’t do your best.’
Or if you don’t want to do your best. Gina still craved a career change, and somehow, waiting till the end of the year felt too far away.
As the women peeled themselves away from the window, Liz stayed put, gaze on the table below. She then turned to the group. ‘Do you believe in serendipity? That things happen for a reason, and in the universe’s own perfect timing?’ She stepped forward. ‘I do. And tonight has resulted in a little gift for all of us, especially you, Cass. Had we not been forced to use this room tonight, we wouldn’t have witnessed that.’
‘You’re right.’ Cass nodded. ‘And if I take away anything from the club, it’s that Icanmake a difference in the world, however small. One little act of kindness can go a long way, and I don’t feel so ...insignificantnow. My husband always made me feel small and unimportant. I don’t know why I put up with it for so long. His affair was a godsend really, gave me the impetus to leave.’
‘Oh, I didn’t realise that’s what happened,’ Liz said. ‘I’m sorry, Cass. That must have been difficult.’
‘It was, but the woman can have him as far as I’m concerned.’ She pressed her lips into a smile.
