Chapter 5 Special Relationships

Outside 10, Downing Street, there were large crowds for the visit of the American President. The car stopped and its doors opened in bright sunshine. The President got out.

The Prime Minister stepped outside and shook hands with him. He seemed quieter and less confident than the American.

`Mr President, welcome,' he said. `I'm sorry your wife couldn't come.’

`She is too,' smiled the President, `although it would be rather lonely for her.’

`Because I'm not married?' said the Prime Minister. `Yes, it's sad, isn't it? I've never been able to get a ring on a girl's finger. I'm not sure politics and women go together.’

`Really? That's not my experience.’

`Well,' the Prime Minister said as they walked into the building, `you're very handsome and I look more and more like my Aunt Mildred every day. That's the difference between us.' They walked up the stairs. `I'm very jealous of your plane,' the Prime Minister added.

The President laughed. `Thank you. We love it too.’

They passed Natalie.

'Ah, Natalie. Hi,' the Prime Minister said.

`Good morning,' the President said. `How's your day?’

Natalie smiled and continued down the stairs.

`That is a good-looking girl,' the President said.

`Yes, she's very good... at her job,' said the Prime Minister. American and British ministers and advisers joined the President and the Prime Minister for a meeting. After some hours, the advisers were still talking and there was no agreement.

`No, no, no,' an American said. `We cannot and will not discuss that with you.’

`Right,' said Carter, one of the ministers present. `But we thought you wanted our opinions. This is unexpected.’

`It shouldn't be,' said the President. `The last American government said the same thing. There are no new ideas here.'

`But if I may say so, sir, we hoped that your government's plans would be better,' Carter told him.

The Prime Minister nodded his agreement. As he had said, though, he didn't want to get into a fight and then lose it.

`Thank you, Alex,' he said to Carter. `We're not making any progress on this. Let's discuss something else, shall we?’

Later, the President and the Prime Minister sat alone in the Prime Minister's office.

`Well, that was an interesting day,' the Prime Minister said.

`I'm sorry we had to say no to you,' said the President. `We could say "maybe" now, but then we'd have to say no later. I have plans - and they will succeed!

'We certainly got that message!' The Prime Minister stood up. `There's one final thing that I think we should talk about, if you could just give me a second. It's something I feel strongly about!

'I'll give you anything you ask for,' the President told him, `unless it's something that I don't want to give’

The Prime Minister went outside, passing Natalie, who was carrying drinks. He smiled at her shyly.

`Hi,' he said. `You sad man,' he thought to himself. Then he went into another office, took some files and walked back.

When he opened the door, he found the President and Natalie standing very close together. The President's hand was around her waist. Natalie went red and moved quickly away, but the President calmly took his glass. For the Prime Minister, for a second, the world seemed to stop.

`Thanks for the drink,' the President said to Natalie.

`I'll go now,' she said, and she walked past the Prime Minister without looking at him.

`Natalie,' the President called out, `I hope to see much more of you as our two great countries work for a better future.'

`Thank you, sir,' said Natalie.

The Prime Minister looked at the President. He suddenly felt more confident.

The next day, the two leaders took questions from journalists before the President's departure.

`Mr President, has it been a good visit?' a journalist asked.

`Yes, excellent - we got what we came for. Our special relationship is still very special.' The President smiled.

`Prime Minister?' the journalist asked.

There was silence for a moment, and then the Prime Minister spoke. He looked very serious. `I love that word "relationship",’ he said. `It can mean anything, can't it? I'm afraid this has become a bad relationship. The President takes everything he wants - and doesn't allow the things that matter to Britain. We are a small country, but we're a great one too. A country of Shakespeare, Churchill, the Beatles, Sean Connery, Harry Potter, David Beckham's right foot - and David Beckham's left foot. If a friend bullies us, he stops being our friend. We must be strong, to stop the bullying' He paused as he saw Natalie in the crowd, at the back of room. `And from this moment I will be stronger, and the President should be ready for that.’

The journalists were taking photographs and writing fast, excited at having a real story. The other ministers were all smiling.

`Mr President? Mr President? What do you think, sir?' the journalists shouted.

The Prime Minister looked across at him. The President looked back angrily, but with new respect. Then the Prime Minister's eyes turned to Natalie, who looked down at the floor.

The President left, and the ministers were still congratulating the Prime Minister in his office when the telephone rang. `It's your sister,' the Prime Minister's secretary told him. He took the phone. `Yes, I'm very busy and important,' he said. `How can I help you?’

`Have you gone completely mad?' Karen said.

`You can't be sensible all the time,' the Prime Minister replied.

`You can if you're Prime Minister.!

'Oh, dear. The Minister for Sport is on the other line.!

'No, he isn't.’

`I'll call you back.’

`No, you won't.’

Karen put the phone down and then turned to her husband.

`I'm the Prime Minister's sister,' she said to Harry, `and so my life looks slightly boring. What did my brother do today? He stood up and fought for his country. And what did I do? I made a paper head for a lobster.

`What are we listening to?' Harry asked.

'Joni Mitchell.’

`I can't believe you still listen to Joni Mitchell.' `I love her, and true love lasts a lifetime. Joni Mitchell taught your cold wife how to feel.’

`Did she?' said Harry. `Oh well, that's good. I must write to her some time and thank her.’

*

A few hours later, in 10, Downing Street, the Prime Minister switched on the radio beside his bed.'... It makes you feel proud to be British,' a voice said. `So here's a song for our Prime Minister. I think he'll enjoy this.' Jump', by the Pointer Sisters, played loudly in the Prime Minister's bedroom. At first the Prime Minister just stood there. Then his arms and feet started to move and he began to dance. He danced out of the door and down the stairs. It had been a good day.

He was still dancing when he noticed his secretary. He stopped. `Er...'he said, trying to hide his embarrassment. `Can we move the meeting with the Foreign Secretary to four o'clock tomorrow?’

`Certainly, sir.’

`Good. Thanks very much.’

*

The next day, Jamie was eating breakfast in his farmhouse in France when Aurelia came in and took his empty coffee cup from a pile of papers. He offered her some cake.

`Would you like some... er...?’

She smiled. Then she spoke, in Portuguese. `Thank you very much,' she said, refusing the cake, `but no. If you saw my sister, you'd understand why.'

`That's all right,' Jamie said, in English. `I'll have it.’

'Just don't eat it all yourself,' Aurelia told him, still in Portuguese. `You're getting plumper every day.’

`I'm lucky,' said Jamie, who hadn't understood a word she said. `I can eat as much as I want and I never get fat.’

She looked at him and smiled. His phone rang and, laughing, they both looked for it. In the end they found it between the pages of the book he was writing.

After breakfast, Jamie decided to work in the garden. He took his typewriter outside. Every time he finished a page, he put it under his coffee cup.

Aurelia came out, took away the dirty cup and put down a fresh one.

`Thank you,' Jamie said. But as he spoke, the wind caught his papers. They blew up into the air and then towards the lake at the end of the large garden.

`Oh, no!' screamed Aurelia, in Portuguese. `Oh, no! I'm so sorry!’

`It's half the book!' Jamie said, worried.

Aurelia caught some of the pages, then ran after the others. She stopped by the edge of the lake.

Just leave them, please,' Jamie called. `They're not important' He stood up and followed her.

Aurelia took off her dress. Jamie thought how lovely she looked in her underwear.

`Stop!' he called to her. `Please, just leave them.’

Aurelia, of course, didn't understand him, and she dived into the lake.

Jamie ran towards her. `She'll think I'm not a real man,' he thought, `if I don't go in too.’

`It's cold!' Aurelia cried.

Jamie stopped for a minute, then took off his trousers and shirt and jumped in. `It's freezing!' he shouted.

He and Aurelia swam around after the papers.

`This stuff had better be good,' said Aurelia, in Portuguese. `It isn't Shakespeare,' Jamie told her, in English.

`I don't want to die saving rubbish that my old grandmother could write,' Aurelia said.

`Just stop!' Jamie shouted. `Stop!’

`What kind of fool doesn't make copies?’

`I really must make copies of my work,' Jamie said. `I hope there are no fish in here. I hate fish.’

`Try not to step on the fish!’

`Oh! What was that?' Jamie cried, as he stepped on a fish.

A short time later, Jamie entered the living room of the farmhouse with a cup of coffee. Aurelia was in a chair near his table with his jacket over her shoulders.

`Thank you,' Jamie said. `Thank you very much. I know! I'll name one of the characters after you.’

`Maybe you can put me in your story,' Aurelia said, in Portuguese. `Or give me 50% of the money you make from it.'

`Or,' Jamie said, thoughtfully, `I could give you 5% of the money I make from it.’

`What kind of book is it?' She pointed at the wet pages. She pretended to laugh, then cry, and then pointed to her heart.

`Ah,' said Jamie. He made a knife with his fingers.

'Ah, murder,' said Aurelia.

`Yes,' said Jamie. `Crime. Murder.’

`Frightening?' asked Aurelia. She acted frightened, to show him.

`Sometimes frightening and sometimes not,' he said. `But the writing is frighteningly bad.’

There was silence for a moment. Neither of them knew what to say next.

`I must get back to work,' said Aurelia. She acted cleaning. `And then maybe later you will take me home?' She acted driving. He nodded. They looked at each other.

`It's my favourite time of day, driving you,' Jamie told her.

`It's the saddest part of my day, leaving you,' Aurelia said. They both looked away.