Read A Hundred Pieces of Me for Free Online

lot to say to each other. Has Jason seen him since . . . since he moved out?’
    ‘No. He wasn’t at football this week. Jay won’t tell me anything anyway. You know what blokes are like. What happens in the changing room stays in the changing room.’ Naomi’s lip curled eloquently. ‘But he sends his love. He thinks Stuart’s lost his mind. Says if there’s anything we can do . . .’
    ‘Thanks.’ Gina pulled the horn off a croissant. ‘But I’m hoping it’s going to be straightforward. I mean, we’ve no kids to argue about, the house has been sold, he’s got the cats. It’s just a case of giving all the details to the solicitors and letting them get on with it. Rory – thanks for the recommendation, by the way, he’s brilliant – says he can probably get things sorted out in about three months. Four months if people are away.’
    ‘Good. I’m glad the practical stuff’s in hand. But what about you ? You’re being so calm.’ Naomi poured boiling water onto the tea bags and poked them impatiently. ‘I’d be going after that cheating bastard with a pair of nail scissors. Seriously, you just have to say the word.’ She pushed the mug over the counter with a fake-menacing smile that was only half joking. ‘It doesn’t have to be nail scissors. It could be Veet. Or laxatives.’
    Gina cupped her scalding mug in her hands, and tried to work out how she did feel, right now. ‘Most of the time I’m fine. Sometimes I’m . . . not. But it’s mainly a relief. Things weren’t right with me and Stuart. Maybe I should have been braver and ended it myself, instead of letting it fail.’
    ‘You didn’t fail . You two had a lot to deal with,’ said Naomi at once. ‘ Way more than most couples have to face in a lifetime.’
    ‘But that’s what’s so awful.’ She winced. ‘Isn’t going through bad times together supposed to make you stronger? I know that’s what everyone’s thinking – they got through that, how come they split up now?’
    ‘No one’s thinking that. If they’re thinking anything, it’s that Stuart’s having an early on-set midlife crisis and you’ve kicked him out. How long were you together? Nine years? Ten?’
    ‘Nearly nine. And married for five and a bit.’ Gina winced. What was that feeling? Shame? Despair? Nostalgia? Marriages weren’t meant to collapse so soon. Not round here. ‘Do you need a steamer, by the way? For some reason, we got three for wedding presents. I’m going to put a notice up on the board at work. I’m having a purge. ’
    ‘Gina, you don’t have to throw everything away.’
    ‘I do. I want to.’ She gestured at the boxes. ‘Where would I put it anyway? This flat is a fresh start. All white and clean and mine . Whatever I choose to put in it has to say something about who I am now.’
    ‘ Riiight. ’ Naomi picked at her croissant and tried to look encouraging.
    Gina carried on. It was the first time she’d explained her plan in words, and saying it aloud made it feel more definite. ‘There’s no room here for anything I don’t really love or need, so I’m going to keep a hundred things that I can’t live without. The rest has to go. And then I’ll be able to appreciate the hundred things properly, instead of having drawers of stuff I never look at.’
    ‘Whoa there!’ Naomi put her croissant down. ‘You’re a hoarder, you’ve always been a hoarder. Is this the interior-designer version of cutting all your hair off and having a dolphin tattooed on your bum?’
    ‘I’m just being practical. I can’t unpack my old house here. There’s no room, and that house is gone. That person’s gone. And I’ve been carting all this stuff around with me for years, so it’s about time I had a sort-out.’
    ‘But why a hundred? You know that’s not a lot, right? You probably had a hundred candlesticks in your old house.’
    ‘It’s a nice round number. And it’s not going to include essentials, like, you know, underwear. But I need