Chapter 27 – The Meeting
One day Mark was walking down George St in Sydney. Sydney was not his home town, but of late he came here with increasing frequency, now that money was no longer an object, as it was an expensive city to visit.
A scrawny looking girl came up to him and asked his for five dollars. At first he was inclined to refuse, as one dollar or perhaps two was the going rate. He went to brush her off and walk past. But she walked alongside him and, with a touch of desperation, offered to come with him to a room or other place of his choosing to give him the works for fifty dollars.
Mark looked at her more closely. It was not clear if she was a druggie, a call girl down on her luck, or just a street bum. He had first thought she was fourteen of fifteen, but now, as he looked more closely, he saw she was older, seventeen or eighteen was more likely. A malnourished look gave her an apparent frailty, making her look younger.
So he stopped. He was not that poor he could not help out someone else who was down on her luck. He had been in this place in his early life. So he asked her what she wanted the money for.
She said, “If you gave me five dollars I could get a cheeseburger from Macca’s. I was not really trying to get fifty in one go, but it was worth a try as that would give me food for a few days.
He said. “I am a bit hungry myself. How about I come with you to Macca’s and buy us both some lunch. That way you can order as much as you want. Or we could go somewhere with much nicer food if you prefer. What is your favourite food?
He could see he had taken her by surprise. She appeared unsure what to make of his offer. He decided he would not torment her further. If she just wanted money he would give her money. He opened his wallet and pulled out two fifty dollar notes, saying. “It’s fine, if you want to do your own thing and eat alone then you can have this.”
She shook her head emphatically. “No, that is too much. For that I would give you a full night. Maybe it would be nice if you were to buy me lunch. I really like Thai and Chinese food. But what I most like is Spanish food that they bring on little plates, lots of different things, they call it Tapas, I think.”
Mark gave her his best grin. “Tapas it is. I saw a place, a street back, just around the corner. Shall we go there?”
She gave him a genuine smile and it lit up her face, making her look almost pretty as it pushed away the street girl desperation. He could see that with nice clothes and grooming she could have been a looker, she had good features and a kind face hiding behind her scruffiness.
He said to her, “I suppose, if we are going to have dinner together, I should introduce myself. I am Mark. My surname is unpronounceable so everyone calls me Mark B. Is there a name I can call you?”
She replied, “I am Josie.” She did not proffer a second name and Mark did not ask. Everyone was entitled to their secrets.
He held out his hand and she somewhat reluctantly took it. “It is nice to meet you, Josie.”
She merely nodded in reply.
So they walked down George St, side by side, not really talking. When they came to the restaurant the doorman looked at Josie’s scruffy clothes and face, as if to refuse entry. Mark passed him a twenty dollar note and winked. The man nodded, minimal thanks, and let them pass.
They went inside and were shown to a table in the corner, placed in an unobtrusive position. The waiter asked what they would like to start with. Mark indicated a beer and raised an inquiring eyebrow to Josie. She mumbled, “Coke.”
The waiter returned with their drinks and two menus, handing one to each of them. Mark took his and looked at it for a minute. Then he looked across at her. She was gulping her drink, not looking at the menu. He caught her eye, inquiring, “Do you want to order something?”
She shook her head. “No, you can choose, I don’t know what half these things are. I can’t read too good. I only came to one of these places once with a man. He chose, but I liked it and him.”
So Mark chose a wide selection from the menu, he was hungry so he figured if he ordered what seemed enough for two that would be plenty.
Once the food came Josie started eating with a ravenous intensity, taking double what he ate. She had said nothing further. Soon all the food on the table was gone and they were waiting for more to come.
Mark looked up and asked her. “Did you enjoy that, Josie?”
She just nodded.
He asked her, “Would you like another drink?”
She nodded again.
He reached out and put his hand over hers.
She looked up, curious. For a second it seemed she would pull her hand away but stopped.
He said, “Josie, I am trying to be your friend. It would be easier and it would make our dinner more enjoyable if you talked to me as well. If you don’t want me here, why don’t I just pay the bill and leave you to finish the food? You can keep the change. He placed two hundred dollars on the table and started to push back his chair to stand.
Her face looked suddenly vulnerable, as if she did not know how to react to kindness.
She looked at him with something more than defensiveness. “OK Mister, I am not real good at talking, when I am not asking for something, but I will try. I don’t have much practice making polite conversation.”
Mark said, “How about I tell you something about myself and you, in turn, tell me something about yourself.”
She nodded so he continued. “My father was a drunk and a bully. He used to beat up my mother. She committed suicide when I was seven. Then I learned how to survive by stealing from shops until I was caught when I was twelve. They sent me to a remand home, which was like a prison, only worse, and where the warders did awful things to lots of the little boys. I ran away when I was thirteen.
“At that time I learned how to survive on my own by being strong and tough and never letting anyone put something over me.
“Now I have plenty of money and just a few good friends. Mostly I live far away from here in the outback, in a place called the Northern Territory. Have you ever heard of the Northern Territory?
She replied, “Everyone has heard of the Northern Territory, Duh!”
Mark continued, “I told you something about me, now it’s your turn.”
He looked at her face. There seemed to be a struggle going on inside. Then her face hardened again. She stood up, spilling drinks. “Thank you for the food, Mister. It was really nice. And I know you are trying to be kind. But I learned long ago to tell nuthink to nobody. So I will just leave now and say thank you.”
Josie tried to step to the side, feet tangling with the table legs and spilling more drink.
Mark reached out and took her wrist. “Josie, you can leave in just one more minute, but first you made me a promise to tell me something about you, anything you like; it’s up to you. Now you need to sit back down for that one minute and keep your promise. After that you can leave, or I will go if you prefer.”
Mark watched another struggle on her face which ended with her sitting down again.
“OK, fair is fair. My Mum is a drunk and druggie. I ran away from home when I was eleven. She used to make me do sex things with the men who came our home, so they would give money to her. Mostly it was things like sucking their dicks. But one day a man gave her a lot of money, said she could keep it if he could fuck me, proper. He said he liked it doing it better with a fresh young girl like me than with an old bag like her.
“She took the money and he told her to go away for an hour. He brought me into the bedroom, and told me I was not to cry out so other people could hear or he would hurt my mother. He made me lie on my back with my legs apart, while he pushed and pushed until he managed to get his dick inside me. It really hurt me; I was bleeding and crying when my mother came home. She told me to have a bath and get over it. She was high with drugs from the money.
After that she would let other rich men do it to me as well. It always used to hurt me. My body was not properly grown and I only h
ad tiny little breasts. My mother called them pimples, though they seemed to really turn the men on. So I hated it. One day I left and never came back.
“Since that day I have lived on the street making money any way I can, mostly doing that same thing with men. At least now I get to keep the money and, if they try to hurt me, I hurt them back worse. I don’t take drugs or get drunk like my mother did and I try and make the men wear protection, so I don’t catch any diseases. Sometimes they won’t or offer too much money to make them. However I think I am still clean that way. So maybe, when we finish eating, I can pay you back that way. I don’t like to take something for nothing; at least I don’t take more than the cost of a burger without paying it back.”
After that the conversation moved into more comfortable places. Mark told her funny stories of life in the outback and Josie told him funny stories of life on the streets.
As they talked Mark kept ordering food, amazed at Josie’s ability to consume. He had eaten his fill and she had eaten double again. He pushed back his plate, and ordered a coffee for him and some small pastries. On second thoughts he added a coffee for her, unasked.
He asked her. “You seemed really hungry. When did you last eat?”
She shrugged. “Even though I don’t stay with my Mum or much like her I still try to help her. Yesterday I had one hundred dollars from the night before, a single shiny note. I decided to give it to her. So I put it in an envelope and put it in the post, using the last dollar in my pocket to buy a stamp. I thought I could soon get some more money. But yesterday was a bum day. I only got one fifty cent piece, not enough to buy anything, everyone one else pretended I wasn’t there as they walked past.
“So this morning, as I was really hungry, instead of asking for a dollar or two, like I usually do, I decided to ask for five, it would give me enough to buy a cheeseburger in one go. I hate begging. I had asked maybe twenty people before you came along.”
Finally the meal was done and Mark paid and left a good tip. They walked out into the street. As they started to walk along she asked him if he wanted her to come to some place with him, so she could pay him back in her own way.
Mark shook his head, “No Josie, I did not buy you lunch to get that from you. I bought you lunch because I liked you, and then, as we ate and you told me funny stories, I liked being with you. It is good for a man and woman to be friends without there having to be sex.”
She said, “All the other men I know only want that one thing. And once they get it they are not really interested in me anymore, I can tell. I always make them pay first, that way later when they don’t want me anymore I don’t have to threaten them to get the money. But just now and then I meet someone I like and then it is a nice thing to do, it is not about the money. That is what I was offering you.”
He turned to Josie and said, “I understand that and part of me thinks it would be really nice. But then another part of me remembers how it was when I was poor and had to do almost anything to survive. What I most wanted then was people who were my friends, people who liked me without me having to do something for them. That is what I would rather do, be your friend. Perhaps I could help you get away from all this.
“Here let me give you some money so at least for one night you can stay somewhere nice and don’t have to beg.” He took five hundred dollars from his wallet and handed it to her.
She shook her head.
He insisted. “Josie, I told you my story. I have been down on my luck, poor and with nothing to eat. Think of this as an investment in your future. You must have some dreams of things you would like to do one day.”
He handed her a card with a phone number on it. “Why don’t you get yourself cleaned up and try and find a place to live. Maybe you could go to TAFE and get a qualification so you can earn some regular money.
“I would like to help you. So think of this money as the first step to helping you do that. Once you work out how much you need for a flat and some money to live off, not working in the game, ring me. I will arrange to send you the money. If you want to pay it back, it can be a loan which you can pay back one day with interest.”
He could see her face thinking about possibilities. Finally she took the money and the card and put both inside her bra for safe keeping. “Thank you Mister, I might just do that.”