Bull

expect that’s what she’ll think.

It’s tough isn’t it, life.

Is it a lot more difficult than you imagined it would be?

I mean I’m sure you thought it was difficult but that through sheer hard work, and practice and training and long hours and inspiration and in your case perspiration you would come through and in the end, succeed, because you thought that despite everything, it was, in this country at least, a meritocracy and that fair play and honest, transparent behaviour at work would be rewarded in the end. That bad people like me would fall at the wayside and good people like you would triumph.

That’s what you thought isn’t it?

Oops.

when she hears that you’re out of work her low estimation of you will drop even further it will I promise she won’t be surprised that’s the really tragic thing for you, she won’t be like oh my God you lost your job! Oh my God! She’ll be like, yeah of course he lost his job fucking retard good thing I got out while I could, better not let him see Harry too much don’t want Harry to grow up in the distorted disabled image of his fucking drip drip of a father.

them what’s happened and they’ll be a bit sympathetic but again they won’t be surprised and really they’ll feel annoyed that now this is on their plate as well, our idiot son who can’t keep his job, my best mate, who I made friends with at school –

Woah woah, that was lashing out. Hey you nearly hit me physically physical violence against a woman, lucky I do my self-defence classes, you could’ve hurt me if I wasn’t lithe and brilliant.

plicably drawn to you all the time poking and poking and poking and poking and poking and poking and poking and being fucking awful to you and you’re right we are both of us Tony and me we’re really horrible to you, you’re not imagining it, it was real, but that’s why, because I think it’s instinct, and I think it goes on all the time I think it’s actually everywhere I think it’s actually how things are supposed to be.

I also don’t think you’ll see much of your son as he grows up because you’re right what you said to Carter you won’t get another job easily I expect this one was a stretch really when you got it so you know the next one won’t come easy and you’re not the kind of guy to have lots of friends are you? So you’ll probably go home tonight in a minute on your own, call your parents or your best friend and tell

Oops.

THOMAS
Don’t you feel any guilt?
ISOBEL
Guilt? No. Sorrow? Yes. Guilt…?
THOMAS
About doing this to me about what you’ve done you could’ve just left it in his hands you didn’t need to bring me down like that, you’ve been horrible to me all these months don’t you feel –
ISOBEL
No.
THOMAS
You don’t feel –
ISOBEL
No.

I don’t feel anything like that because I think I know at my heart that if it wasn’t me there would be someone else doing this to you, I think I know in the deepest bit of my heart that actually you bring all of this on yourself I don’t behave like this to most people I just let most people get on with their lives or I share a joke or whatever but for some reason with you I feel the need to bring you down I think it might be an evolved thing in a society in a culture, that if we see someone who’s going to bring down the whole tribe or whatever someone who’s really going to fuck up the rest of us because they’re stupid or slow or weak or thin or short or or ugly or has dandruff or something you have the desire somewhere deep within you to take them down first to get rid of them and strengthen the tribe that’s all I’m doing with this that’s why I’m inex

expect that’s what she’ll think.

It’s tough isn’t it, life.

Is it a lot more difficult than you imagined it would be?

I mean I’m sure you thought it was difficult but that through sheer hard work, and practice and training and long hours and inspiration and in your case perspiration you would come through and in the end, succeed, because you thought that despite everything, it was, in this country at least, a meritocracy and that fair play and honest, transparent behaviour at work would be rewarded in the end. That bad people like me would fall at the wayside and good people like you would triumph.

That’s what you thought isn’t

dash and I’d catch you tomorrow instead, but that conversation with her gave me quite a lot of crucial information.

Which I’ve always known when you’ve tried to hide things or lie or whatever, I’ve always known about your life things that you don’t know I know. I know you have to pay Marion that certain amount every month and when she hears that you’re out of work her low estimation of you will drop even further it will I promise she won’t be surprised that’s the really tragic thing for you, she won’t be like oh my God you lost your job! Oh my God! She’ll be like, yeah of course he lost his job fucking retard good thing I got out while I could, better not let him see Harry too much don’t want Harry to grow up in the distorted disabled image of his fucking drip drip of a father.

It’s because once when we left work, I was walking behind you and you walked all the way down the road, and I could see you in front of me, and I saw you meet this woman in a coffee shop it wasn’t a nice coffee shop I was surprised you went into it, it was a Costa or something not even a good one a shit Costa, and I watched you meet this woman and she had a little toddling little thing, and I waited and I saw you go to the loo, and then I ran in and said oh I was hoping to catch you and I pretended I was in a hurry, and I had a little chat with Marion, is that her name your ex and she told me about Harry, and I said I was a colleague and you were taking ages in the toilet actually we talked about it we didn’t know what you were up to in there, but it meant we had a good talk about you, and in the end when you still didn’t come out I said I needed to

Yeah. Tough. What’s its name?

Is it Harry?

It is Harry.

I know it is.

You know how I know this?

HOMAS
We look ready dont we? Stupid fucking question.
TONY
Is he going to wear that suit?
THOMAS
For fucks
ISOBEL
Yes he is.