“So,” Jacky handed Kath her pint of lager, “how’s the new carer working out for your mum?”

They were in the Soldier’s Arms, their favourite haunt. Jacky was Kath’s closest friend; the one person she didn’t have a problem confiding in. Strange, as Jacky wasn’t the touchy-feely type at all. She was often thought of as all surface and no depth. But Kath knew differently. Jacky’s stocky, butch exterior, almost a mirror of Kath’s own, contained a warm heart and a lot of love for the people closest to her.

They’d not seen each other since Jacky and Tania got married back in April. Yet another reason why she’d re-evaluated her life, worked out her money and her priorities, and got in touch with a private home-care agency.

Leaning back against the bar, Kath took a big gulp of her beer and smacked her lips in pleasure as the cool liquid slipped down her throat. “Great, actually,” she said. “They’re not cheap, but something had to give. So it’s worth it.”

“How many nights are they in?” Jacky’s gravelly voice rumbled across the space between them.

“I’ve got them four evenings a week, Tuesday to Friday, seven until eleven. Just couldn’t afford the weekend option, as everyone wants that. But this way, I at least get some time out. I can go to the cinema or hit the bars or clubs if I want to.”

Jacky nodded. “It’s good that you’ve done it. We missed you for sure, and Tania was getting so worried about what it was doing to you, cooped up at home all day and night.”

“Well, it did get a little claustrophobic, I must admit.”

“See, so it worked out okay in the end. I know Julie leaving was shit, but she kind of did you a favour; didn’t she?” Jacky wasn’t one to mince words.

Kath nodded ruefully. “Yeah, she did. Bit of a hard lesson to learn, but hey, I’m there now, and things can only get better, right?”

“Definitely. So, any hot chicks on your radar?”

Kath snorted. “Well, that’s the fucking irony of it. Ever since I’ve had all this extra time to play, I haven’t found anyone who interests me enough. Mind you, I’m still getting used to all this…freedom…so I’m not even sure I want anything serious anyway.”

“You should get yourself down to the Ace, find a little one-night-stand action.” Jacky grinned.

Kath thumped Jacky in the arm, laughed, and mimicked a vomiting action with her finger near her mouth. The Ace was a cheap club tucked into the bowels of Stretford, somewhere she and Jacky had frequented years ago, before they knew any better.