by Kate Dowling
“I’m paying!”
“No, I’ll pay.”
“But it’s my turn!”
“No,” I said, hoping it would be the last word. “I’m paying. And it is my turn. Don’t you remember? You paid last month.”
“That’s right!” said Delilah. “Cocktails for Sinatra’s birthday. Everyone should celebrate that.” She beamed, but a sudden thought made the smile disappear. “Don’t I still owe you for something?”
To be honest I didn’t want to get into it. She did owe me, but too much time had passed to raise it. It would be way too awkward.
We’d shared a cab after dinner when she’d been promoted at work in June and we’d gone out of our way to get her home first. It was only as the car pulled up to her front door that she’d realized her purse was still in the restaurant. She still owed me her half of the enormous fare.
Delilah raised her trunk to attract the waiter. “I’m such a bad friend. I’ve not given you anything for that terrible cab journey after my promotion night out.”
“It’s ok!” Suddenly I felt guilty for thinking she’d glossed over paying.
“It is not ok,” she said. “Don’t you remember? An elephant never has debt.”
Kate Dowling is based in Sheffield in the UK, has written all her life in some way, shape or form, and has always loved elephants. Kate is currently working on a wider audience being able to access her work. Follow her on Twitter @WaveAtTheTrain.