10. Truth and Consequences

TRUTH AND CONSEQUENCES

R osie clutched her mug of tea, the porcelain warm against her palms, a stark contrast to the chill that had settled in her stomach. Around the table, the other members of the Sensational Sixties Squad sat in uncharacteristic silence, the weight of their impending task hanging heavy in the air.

Maria sat at the head of the table. Dark circles under her eyes hinted at a sleepless night, and her hands trembled slightly as she raised her cup to her lips.

Rosie caught Emma's eye across the table, seeing her own uncertainty reflected back at her. How does one go about shattering someone's world?

Trisha cleared her throat, breaking the tense silence. "Maria, love," she began gently, "how are you feeling this morning?"

Maria attempted a smile that didn't quite reach her eyes. "Oh, I'm fine," she said, her voice overly bright. "Just a bit of a headache. I'm sure it's nothing."

The others exchanged glances. They all knew it wasn't "nothing," but Maria's determined fa?ade made the task ahead seem even more daunting.

Lisa leaned forward, her posture radiating calm authority. "Maria," she said softly, "I think we need to talk about what happened yesterday in the park."

Maria's smile faltered for a moment before she hitched it back into place. "Oh, that? It was silly of me to get so upset. I'm sure there's a perfectly reasonable explanation for?—"

"No, Maria," Emma interrupted, her usual bluntness softened by genuine concern. "There isn't. What we saw... it wasn't innocent."

The colour drained from Maria's face, her carefully constructed mask crumbling. "You don't know that" she whispered, but there was a note of desperation in her voice.

Rosie felt her heart breaking for her friend. She reached out, covering Maria's trembling hand with her own. "Maria, we saw David with a young woman. They were... intimate."

A choked sob escaped Maria's lips, quickly stifled by her hand. "No," she shook her head vehemently. "No, you must be mistaken. David wouldn't... he couldn't... He was having a work meeting."

"I'm so sorry, Maria," Julie said, her artistic sensitivity making her particularly attuned to the raw emotion in the room. "But he wasn't. We all saw it. David was... he was behaving like a man in a relationship with this woman."

Maria's composure finally shattered. Tears streamed down her face as she curled in on herself, her body wracked with sobs. The other women moved instantly, surrounding her with comforting touches and soothing murmurs.

As Rosie held Maria, offering what comfort she could, her mind drifted to her own situation. Derek's voice echoed in her memory, his words about reconciliation now tainted by the scene before her. Could she trust him again? Did she even want to?

The next few hours passed in a blur of tears, anger, and disbelief. Maria cycled through emotions like a kaleidoscope – one moment insisting there must be a mistake, the next raging against David's betrayal, then collapsing into grief again.

Through it all, the Sensational Sixties Squad rallied around her. Emma's righteous anger on Maria's behalf was tempered by Lisa's calm rationality. Catherine, drawing on her own experiences with her controlling ex, offered quiet words of understanding. Trisha, with her no-nonsense attitude, kept everyone supplied with tea, tissues, and the occasional nip of brandy "for medicinal purposes."

And Rosie? She found herself in the role of silent support, her own turmoil pushed aside as she focused on being there for her friend.

The afternoon wore on, and Maria's tears subsided, leaving her looking drained but lighter, as if the weight of suspicion had been lifted, replaced by the grimmer but clearer reality of truth.

"What do I do now?" Maria asked, her voice hoarse from crying.

"You don't have to decide anything right this moment," Lisa assured her. "Take some time to process."

"But," Emma added, unable to contain herself, "when you're ready, we'll help you kick that cheating bastard to the curb."

"Emma!" Catherine admonished, but Maria let out a watery chuckle.

"It's alright," she said, managing a weak smile. "I appreciate the sentiment, even if I'm not quite there yet."

As the others continued to offer advice and support, Rosie felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. Slipping it out, she saw a text from Derek: "Have you thought about what I said? Can we meet?"

Rosie stared at the screen, her emotions a tangled mess. Part of her wanted to ignore the message, to focus solely on Maria's crisis. But another part, a part she wasn't entirely comfortable acknowledging, felt a pull towards the familiar comfort Derek represented.

"Everything okay?" Trisha's voice startled Rosie out of her thoughts.

"Oh, yes," Rosie said quickly, pocketing her phone. "Just a text."

Trisha raised an eyebrow but didn't push. "You know," she said quietly, "it's okay to think about your own situation too. We're here for Maria, but we're here for you as well."

Rosie nodded, grateful for the understanding. As the group began to disperse, Maria insisting she needed some time alone, Rosie found herself lingering in the kitchen.

"Penny for your thoughts?" Lisa asked, joining her at the sink as they washed up the tea things.

Rosie sighed, her hands moving mechanically over the dishes. "Derek wants to meet," she admitted. "To talk about... reconciliation."

Lisa's hands stilled. "Ah," she said. "And how do you feel about that?"

"I don't know," Rosie confessed. "After everything with Maria and David, it feels... complicated."

"Life usually is," Lisa said wryly. "But Rosie, you can't let Maria's situation dictate your choices. Every relationship is different."

"I know," Rosie nodded. "It's just... I was starting to feel like I knew who I was again, you know? Like I was Rosie, not just Derek's wife or Mary's mother. And now..."

"Now you're afraid of losing that if you go back," Lisa finished for her.

"Exactly."

Lisa was quiet for a moment, contemplating. "You know," she said finally, "meeting with Derek doesn't have to mean going back. It could just be... getting closure. Or redefining your relationship on new terms."

Rosie considered this. "You're right," she said slowly. "I suppose I owe it to myself – and to Derek – to at least hear him out."

"That's the spirit," Lisa smiled. "And remember, whatever you decide, we've got your back."

As they finished the washing up, Rosie felt a sense of resolution settling over her. She pulled out her phone and, before she could second-guess herself, typed out a reply to Derek: "Okay. Let's meet for lunch tomorrow. The cafe on High Street at 1 pm."

The response came almost immediately: "I'll be there. Thank you, Rosie."

Rosie let out a breath she hadn't realised she'd been holding. For better or worse, she was facing this head-on.

Now, another quick call to make – to Mike. She didn't want to lie to him or shield anything from him. She wanted to tell him that she was meeting up with her ex-husband.