Lonely eyes stared at the fierce grey sky echoing the same darkness that pervaded her heart. Turning she looked at the long white gown sprawled on the wooden floor, anger once more stabbed at her soul.

The virginal dress a reminder of what would never be she stumbled over to it. Grabbing at it she piled it into her arms. Scrunching the expensive silk, hearing the rustling of its satin petticoats and flowing train.

She marched back to the balcony, stopping at the black rail. Raising her arms above her head breathing in the stale exhaust fume filled air. She threw the wedding gown, screaming at the gown as it fell to the ground twelve stories below.

It puffed out on its way down, a blinding white parachute with twinkling diamante brocaded into the long train. It reached the tarmac sprawling out like some great white whale, the muddy puddle started to seep into it. Turning it a shade darker.

Pointing down at it, she raised her head to the sky. " Why? Why did you have to let this happen?"

The first spattering of rain on her forehead was the only forthcoming answer. Grabbing the black balcony she sunk to her knees. Her tears mixing with the raindrops, trickling down her cheeks.

Pulling her hands from the cold metal rail, she wrapped them around her body. Allowing the howling cries, pent up for so long, the freedom they desired. Her body shook with a force only pure grief could produce.

A long brown coat was wrapped around her shoulders; a gentle hand swept away the long auburn hair. She looked into aged blue eyes. A warm arm gripped her shoulder, hauling her from the ground. Forcing her to walk tall, she clung to the body that held her up.

Stopping before the doorway, she turned to the blue eyes again. A gust blew her hair into her face, wiping it away along with her tears. The rain trickled down her fringe, dripping onto her nose and lips.

"Daddy, why? Why did this have to happen to me?" She already knew he had no answer for her. Grasping the coat around her neck more tightly she allowed herself to be led in to the warm apartment.

***

She ambled into the house, her arms clutching haphazardly to the large wooden logs. She dropped them next to the fire, unzipping her beige jacket and pulling the woollen gloves from her hands.

She clawed at his arm, breathing out his name ecstacy."Andre."

***

Blue eyes snapped open, looking at the white ceiling. She propped herself up on her elbows, feeling the claminess on her body making the duvet meld to her body. "Shit, what a time to get the flu."

Sitting up she pressed her palm to her forehead feeling it cool rapidly. A banging made her jump, "Beff, Beffany wake up you lazy sod."

The familiar east end tones made her grin, "good old Mel." Crawling from her bed like a small child, she didn't bother with her dressing gown as she walked to her front door.

To beady hazel eyes glared at her through the letterbox. Replaced by a tongue poking through waggling about. "Mel! You can be so disgusting." She chastised the woman while still rubbing the sleep from her eyes.

The eyes returned, "Well open the bloody door then." Bethany undid the dead bolt, pulling the door ajar. She looked at the bleached blonde, with a stud through her nose and eyebrow. Strong perfume wafted through the door.

"God almighty Mel, what are you wearing?" The woman looked down at her attire of black boots, black jeans and white chunky jumper. Her mystified look settled back on her. "No I mean that smell."

"What smell, that's Eau de toilette, fiver down at Covent garden. Supposed to make men go all gooey-eyed for you."
"And, have they."
"Oh yeah, I'm having to beat'em off me with me old dears walking stick."

Beth laughed at her; Mel was a diamond in the rough. Born and raised in the East end of London, she looked like a real hard case woman. The kind that would swear at you just for looking in her direction.

Yet in reality she was a truly wonderful honest person. Willing to do any thing for a friend. "Are you going to stand there bleedin' gawping at me all day or what?" Beth refocused her eyes, "open the bloody door you dipstick."

Beth laughed uncomfortably, pulling the door open wide for her friend. Mel stepped in, looking at Beth's pyjamas. "Well they look comfortable, do you wear rollers to bed as well?" Beth slapped her on the arm, letting her friend shut the door.

She walked into the lounge hotfooting it over the wooden floor. As much as she loved real wooden floors, they weren't the warmest floors to step on with bare feet. She made it into the kitchen and grabbed the kettle filling it up.

"Mel, what are you doing here? I thought you worked on Thursdays?"
"Nah, I swapped shifts with Rita. I thought we'd do a bit of shopping."

Beth looked up at her clock, seeing it was only eight-forty five in the morning. "Why?" The clip-clop of her friends spiked heels going over her perfectly polished floor, "shoes!"

"Oh for Christ sake." She giggled at her friends moan, hearing the woman unzip her boots. The T.V went on next, coupled with the sound of Mel throwing herself down on the couch. Beth stirred the black coffee's, bringing them into the lounge.

She nudged one of Mel's long legs, forcing her to change her sprawled position on the cream sofa. Sitting down carefully she handed one of the steaming mugs to her friend, her eyes looking at the T.V.

"So why are we going shopping?" Mel winked at her, before nearly spilling her coffee from her contagious laughter that echoed around the bare apartment. "Come on, spill it?" Mel started to angle the coffee cup, "not the coffee you moron."

"Ok, ok. You really want to know why we're going shopping?" Beth nodded, seeing the look of absolute mischief in her friend's eyes. "You sure you want to know?"

"Yes! Just tell me for God's sake."

Mel snuggled up closer to her, "well I was in town the other day and I just happened to pass this cheap clothes shop. Imelda's Boutique, well posh name, but all the stuff is the sort that fell off the back of a lorry in the seventies."

Beth chuckled at her friend's description of the shop, "but you'll never guess who works in it full time?" Beth knew it had to be someone both she and Mel shared a common dislike of, she went back trough her school life, then college. She skipped university as Mel had dropped out of college in the first year, so she knew none of the people that Beth had mingled with.

She shook her head, taking another swallow of the steaming liquid. Mel gripped her arm tightly for dramatic tension. "Lisa!"

Beth sat stony still, one name she hated more than anything else. "As in Lisa, Lisa." Mel nodded vigorously. "As in Lisa and Eric. That Lisa?"

"The one and only, well I was finkin' my, my how the mighty have fallen on their fat arses." Mel lapsed back into her cockney tones, "then it hit me. Why not go clothes shopping, and piss her off, big time."

"No." Beth stood up, "I don't even want to see her ugly face after what she did to me." She marched into the kitchen, slamming the white cup down on the side. Mel paced in after her, setting her cup down more gently.

"Sorry, I thought you were over it." Beth stared out the window, the sky dull once more. She didn't answer her friend, not wanting to let the truth be known. She had resigned herself a long time ago that she would never get over it. She would carry this heartache to every new relationship.

A splat appeared on her window, grey streaked with white. Mel burst into giggles, as Beth peered closer to the bird dropping that was sliding down her kitchen window.

"Now that's what I call a bleedin' good shot." Beth turned to her, her own laughter bubbled up. "That's a sign, you know." Mel pointed to it, "God's way of saying you stay here and do nuffing and you'll just get shit on again from a very great height."