It was the best of times. Of that, she had no doubt. Westmeath had finally reached an All-Ireland final. Only Kerry stood in the way. It wasn’t that Westmeath had experienced a famine, there was never food there in the first place. No glory, no swagger save a lone Leinster title. Now, Aoife would finally see that all change. She just knew it.
“Don’t get your hopes up too much girls, this is Westmeath after all.”
That was her father just over an hour ago, thinking he was being funny. Unfortunately, he was from Offaly and loved to get the digs in when he could.
Now, she could see the stadium in the distance. The drama, the passion. Adrenaline was pumping through her body. She was with her sister Yvonne. Not the biggest of GAA fans, but more of a recent convert, and Westmeath would need every bit of help it could get.
It was a warm day, not a cloud in the sky and they had just parked up on a field at Clonliffe College. They were now walking on the pathway out of the grounds.
“Come on Yvonne, not much further.”
“Relax Aoife, it doesn’t start for an hour.”
Then Aoife noticed that there was an elderly man pushing a guy in a wheelchair a few meters in front of them. But they are struggling on the gravel surface.
“Sorry, need a hand? Can I be of assistance?”
The old man looked at her forlornly. The guy looked somewhat embarrassed. They were both wearing Kerry colors.
“It’s just so hard to push.”
“Here, let me have a go,”
It was tough but she knew she could do it.
“My name is Aoife by the way.”
The older man spoke first.
“I’m James and this is my nephew Stephen.”
Stephen was somewhat more coy and he said with a wide grin –
“God, I didn’t think I’d be getting help from a Westmeath woman on today of all days!”
“You better pray that Westmeath win so,” Aoife replied.
Yvonne then interjected –
“You’d want to watch her or she’ll tip ya out of that chair. Say one bad thing about Westmeath.”
The small group burst out into laughter.
Soon, they had reached an exit point onto a standard footpath, but descended onto the road when they saw the large crowds all decked out in the maroon of Westmeath, and the green and gold of Kerry walking along it in the direction of Croke Park.
Aoife could hear that Yvonne and James had started chatting away behind them.
“What stand are you in Stephen?”
“The Hogan Stand. I think they have a special wheelchair area.”
“So, are we. We’re in the Lower Stand”
“Looking forward to it? I guess with Kerry winning everything, you’ve been here loadsa times!”
“This is actually my first time here. ‘Twas a long drive, wouldn’t do it often.”
He strained to look backwards. Aoife felt her heart flutter as she looked into his warm, blue eyes. She reckoned that he was in his mid thirties, just like herself.
“Yeah, I’d say it was. What part of Kerry are you from?”
“Tralee.”
“Oh, lovely. Heard so much about Kerry, have always wanted to visit it.”
They were now in the shadow of the stadium.
The place was jammed full of people all excitedly talking to one another.
“I can take it from here Aoife, thanks so much. I think we have to get a lift up to where we’re going,” James said with a wide smile.
Stephen interjected –
“We can’t wish you luck though.”
“We understand.”
With that, they parted ways.
The match was about to begin and with it, the hopes and dreams of every Westmeath man and woman. Here, in the majestic and forbidding Croke Park, which was festooned in maroon, green, and gold. Impatient gasps and shouting broke out. Then, with a blow of the referee’s whistle, there was a roar of eighty thousand souls.
“Calm down Aoife, there is seventy minutes to go,” Yvonne laughed.
It was answered with a nervous smile.
Kerry took an early lead and were four points up after the quarter hour mark.
There was a deathly silence from the Westmeath supporters.
Then Aoife began to chant.
Westmeath, Westmeath, Westmeath..
Others joined in and then it sounded like the entire stadium had.
Then Westmeath scored a brace of points and drew level.
The game then went back and forth with long stretches of hand passes.
Shouts of –
“Kick the feckin’ thing” went up.
Each team scored two further point before the whistle was blown for half time.
“I might pop up and see if James and Stephen are okay.”
“Yeah, right Aoife. I saw the way you looked at him.”
“What?”
“You fancy him. Go on, off you go.”
Aoife looked dismissively at her sister.
“I’ll be back in a few mins.”
Aoife walked up the steps of the stand. The crowd was more subdued now that play was stopped. She reached the top and looked to her right. She could see Stephen and his uncle in the distance. For a brief moment she paused, not quite sure of herself before pressing onwards.
“Hi Stephen, what did you think of that?”
“Oh, hello, good to see you again. Not too impressed. You must be happy though.”
Then James spoke.
“I thought yous were not going to show up at all there for a while.”
“Yeah, I was a bit worried there for a while. But, we got going. Fingers crossed, we’ll get there in the end.”
They all began to laugh in friendly banter.
“Our forwards are looking better, the more it went on. I don’t know though, Kerry are good. Look I better head back. But I’ll be up after the match to help ye get back to the car, alright?”
“Okay, we’ll see you then,” James replied with a smile.
“Yeah, see you after the Kerry victory speech,” Stephen said with a wide grin.
“Ya, git” Aoife replied gently prodding his shoulder.
With that, she turned and made her way back to take her seat for the second half. There was a loud roar as the players re-entered the pitch.
The match restarted just as Aoife sat down.
“Find them okay?” her sister asked speaking loudly into her ear.
She nodded in the affirmative.
Kerry scored a goal two minutes later. Her heart sank. Then they scored two more points and she started looking at the sky. Anywhere, but the pitch.
For many minutes nothing happened. Kerry began to kill the game, hand-passing the ball back and forth trying to coax the Westmeath players from their defensive positions. The game was drifting away.
Then Westmeath won possession in midfield and quickly attacked. It was Dolan who won possession, who hand passed to Sheerin. Then a long kick pass to Ahern who swiveled and rifled it into the net. Aoife jumped for joy.
It was all Westmeath now, dominating every aspect of Kerry play.
The crowd roared on each point. They drew level and then pulled ahead.
Then the final whistle blew. Westmeath were the new All-Ireland Football Champions.
Tears of joy rolled down Aoife face as she hugged all those around her. The crowd emptied onto the field forming a huge mass of people with chants of “Westmeath, Westmeath”.
The minutes flew by as the victory speech in the opposite stand began.
“Tá an-áthas orm an corn seo a ghlacadh..”
Then Aoife thought of Stephen. She looked around but couldn’t see her sister.
She found herself walking up the stand to go look for him.
Her heart sank when she saw that they had already left. For a brief moment she wondered what she should do. The crowd on the pitch showed no signs of dissipating. She reckoned that they wouldn’t have gone far ahead and her sister knew where the car was parked. So, she walked out the back of the stand and started walking down the long set of concrete ramps.
Every Westmeath supporter she passed shouted “Up Westmeath” at her. The Kerry supporters were much quieter.
Just as she made the final corner, she could see them in the distance. It didn’t take her long to catch up.
“Hey guys! Hope you are not too disappointed.”
Jimmy stopped and looked round but Stephen immediately replied, “Sure, we’ll be back next year.”
“Do you want me to push Jimmy?”
“Oh good to see you again. That would be great. I’m really struggling in this heat.”
With that, she took over.
“Your getting old, dear uncle.”
“Not at all, nephew. Your just getting heavier.”
They all laughed.
“Good, to see you again Aoife, Thought you had forgotten us.”
“Oh I wouldn’t forget you Stephen.”
With that he reached his right arm back and she shook his hand. It was softer than she had expected.
Aoife couldn’t remember the last time she felt so good. Between Westmeath winning and managing to find Stephen, she was on a real natural high. The sweat was pumping off her from the heat and pushing the wheelchair but that didn’t even bother her.
“You must be feeling on top of the world with the win and everything. I don’t begrudge you your bit of happiness.”
“Ah thanks Stephen. Sure, I’m sure Kerry will be back next year.”
“We have more than just the football in Kerry to keep us happy, you know. You should come down and pay us a visit. There is beautiful scenery, music and even a bit of hurling too. Isn’t that right Stephen?” said James, panting somewhat.
“Yes, you should. We’d look after you for a few days, no problem. Even if you are from Westmeath.”
“Ah thanks guy, I’d love that.”
She stopped and tilted his wheelchair backwards to get over a little bump and onto the footpath. Shortly, they were back to where she had originally met them.
“We’re just over there to the left of that building under the big tree,” said Stephen.
A few minutes later they were there and Stephen readied to transfer in the car. She sensed that he was nervous to do it in front of her.
“You must give me your number in case I decide to visit.”
She usually wasn’t so forward, but felt the need to seize the moment.
“Cool, hope you do.”
He then called out his number and she rang him so that she would have hers. They then thanked her and she left to go to her own car and see if she could locate her sister.
Time passed and Aoife found herself tapping the steering wheel once more. Looking left, then right. No sign of her sister. The radio was full of Westmeath people describing this as the best day of their lives. Aoife’s mind began thinking of home, the crowds in Mullingar town park, and the roars of joy on Mount Street..
Bang, bang.
It was Yvonne and Aoife quickly opened the car door so she could sit beside her.
“Well, you finally came!”
“I knew you’d want time with your lover boy.”
“What are you on about Yvonne?”
“You make it so obvious Aoife. Wheelchair or no wheelchair, you were undressing him with your eyes. It was embarrassing”
“I was not, I”
“It’s okay. He looks much better than the last guy, I’ll give ya dat. And I do want to see you happy, even if you’re my weirdo sister.”
“Will ya be quiet Yvonne. Come on it’s time to go do some celebrating.”
As she pulled off in the car, she hoped she’d come across okay to Stephen. A trip to Kerry would be something to look forward to.
Aoife rose groggily from the bed. Her head was pounding. It was an unfamiliar cluttered room. She looked at the partially clothed guy beside her trying to think of his name. Was it John or Gerald? Oops. The sex had been quite forgettable but in fairness he was probably just as intoxicated as she had been. Ah well, it had been a great night. It started off in the Druids Chair, then a few in the Greville before ending up in the Crossbar.
The pubs had all been packed. It took an age to get a pint not to mind trying to get into the ladies toilet. That was a total disaster. But everybody had a smile on their face. We were the All-Ireland Champions.
She quickly put on her clothes and checked what time it was on her mobile. Nearly 11am, damn. She opened the door silently trying to remember which way was the exit. If only she had a few less shots. She found herself in a narrow hallway with flowery wallpaper. She took a few steps to the right. It led into a kitchen and she could hear a man and woman chatting away. She turned and went back the other way.
Sure enough, after turning a corner it led to the front door and then she was out. She recognized the neighborhood. It was the other side of town. A long walk ahead lay ahead.
Oh why couldn’t she have a nice boyfriend like most of her friends rather than seeking intimacy in the arms of strangers? Not that there was anything wrong with that. She just wanted more, alot more.
Some time later, she made it home. She still lived at home and reckoned her mother would be furious that she hadn’t returned home. But upon opening the back door, she was met by her sister, who was looking all too happy and alert.
“Where were you? Some example you are.”
“Please, don’t start. I’m wrecked and tired. Is Mam annoyed?”
“I’m sure you are tired, after a night with whoever he was. Mam is fine. You were with Rosita, right.”
“Thanks sis.”
With that she headed to her bedroom to kip some more..
Her phone bleeped. It was Stephen –
Have a good night?
Her mood immediately lifted –
Yes it was but paying for it now lol How are things in Kerry?
Over the next few days, Aoife and Stephen texted back and forth. Most of the texts were trivial but endearing –
How are you today?
Is work going okay?
Thinking of you.
He seemed to intrinsically know how to lift her spirits.
Usually, she felt terrible after interacting with men. But then, she rarely spent time getting to know them first either.
Then late one night, while she was curled up in her bed, he wrote –
I think you are so beautiful.
A rush of excitement flew through her.
Really?
Yes, really.
I think you are cute too.
With that their relationship seemed to enter a new level. He was there, but not there. Always by her side and never by her side. It was brilliant and yet excruciating. Why did she have to find someone in the backend of Kerry of all places?
Then one day the replies suddenly stopped. Her heart sank.
“What’s wrong? her sister asked.
But she couldn’t tell her. It was embarrassing. She had only met him once but her feelings had grown so strong.
Then two three days later in the middle of her workday, a text message arrived.
Sorry Aoife. I’ve been in hospital.
Aoife was elated but also worried when she received it. At least she hadn’t been ghosted but he could be really unwell. That was the last thing that she would have wanted.
She started flicking her pen and looked at the computer screen. It was filled with seemingly random numbers that she needed to make some sort of sense out of.. A report was due that morning. She had two hours left. It wasn’t looking good.
She got up and went out outside. She knew what was important to her and picked up her phone.
“Hey Stephen, how are things?”
“Ah Aoife, thanks for ringing. I’m doing better now. Great to hear your voice. Yeah, I haven’t been well. Got a really bad flu or something but I’ve started to improve.”
“I was worried about you when you didn’t text. Can I come down and see you?”
“Not yet, but I should be better in two weeks or so. Maybe next month?
“Yes I’ll arrange to visit then. Have to go but I’m looking forward to seeing you.”
“Me too.”
Aoife couldn’t but go back to the office with a smile on her face.
Later that night the regular texting resumed.
- Can’t wait to see you Aoife xx
- Me too. You had me worried there for a while xx
Then the date of her trip grew close.
She shuffled back and forth in the bed, unable to sleep. Different thought rushing through her mind. Tomorrow, she would finally get to Stephen again. It had been too long time. Would he still find her attractive? Was she going to say something stupid and ruin everything?
It had been a long drive of nearly three and a half hours from Mullingar to Tralee. She didn’t mind, it gave her an opportunity to listen to her favorite pop songs for a few hours. She was staying in a B&B near the outskirts of the town. Stephen lived a few miles outside of town.
She hadn’t got to see much of the town on the drive in. The house she was staying in was quaint, a small white bungalow. There was lovely décor on the inside probably to impress any visiting Americans.
Her friends and sister thought her mad. You are going to do what? All the way to Kerry? How are you going to make it work with the distance and the wheelchair?
Only she could understand the bond that they had. She hadn’t felt this about a guy before and she wouldn’t just let him pass her by. She just hoped that tomorrow went well.
The Trip to Kerry
Aoife awoke to light shining through the curtain. The day she had been waiting for had arrived. She picked up her mobile on the drawer next to her bed. It was eight in the morning . She wasn’t due at his house till ten thirty but she wasn’t the type to wait around.
She knew that the breakfast was from eight thirty. A note about it and which room was hers had been left under the mat at the entrance. She looked in the long mirror thinking she must make herself look as attractive as possible, while staying perfectly presentable. There was the possibility that she would bump into his parents who lived with him after-all.
After spending a good forty minutes trying to perfect her appearance, she made her way out for breakfast. Her hostess, a round woman with short dark hair in her fifties was waiting for her.
“Oh, hello dear. I didn’t get to see you last night. We had to head out. I hope everything was okay. You are the first up.”
“Oh, that’s fine. Yes, everything was fine.”
“Good, why don’t you sit at sit at one of those tables. What would you like?”
“An Irish breakfast?”
“One Irish breakfast coming up.”
This was the other thing Aoife had been looking forward to. Some nicely cooked sausages, rashers and egg. It tasted every bit as good as she hoped.
There was time for a brisk walk down town before she had to leave. Tralee was exactly as she had expected, a nice quaint tourist town with narrow streets. She wondered if Stephen managed to make it into town often. He sent her a text to make sure she was still on her way.
Then the time arrived for her to get into her car and head to his place. He lived a few miles out of the town. It was full of left turns and right turns. Thank God for GPS and eircodes.
Then she arrived. Her palms were sweaty, the last thing that she would have wanted.
It was a large dwelling almost fully covered by large bushes and trees. There was nothing for it but to walk to the front door.
Aoife knocked on the large wooden door. After, a few seconds, she could hear some shuffling. Then the door opened. A stout elderly man with frizzy white hair opened the door.
“Ah, you must be Aoife. I’m John, Stephen’s father.”
“Yes, that’s me. Nice to meet you John.”
“Stephen is in the sitting room waiting for you.”
Aoife gave him a warm smile and followed the direction he pointed at.
Stephen was there waiting for her, looking devilishly handsome, all in black. She closed the door behind her. It was a large room with a wide tv at its centre with a sofa, chairs and a table. She guessed that they ate in the room on special occasions.
Instinctively, she went over and kissed his cheek.
“Good to finally see you again, you look great.”
“Thanks, my Mum was adamant that I make an effort, when I had a woman coming such a long way to see me,” he said with a grin and, ” You look good too.”
“Thanks, so what will we do?”
“Well, you’ve told me how much you like Liam Neeson. So, I thought we might watch his latest film – Marlowe. It’s only out in the cinema but I have a dodgy firestick “
“Deadly.”
She pulled a chair up alongside his wheelchair. It was a film about a private detective. Normally, this would be a great way to spend her afternoon but she wanted more. Stephen was quieter than usual.
“Thanks for making an effort to look so good. You smell really nice.” She leaned closer to him. Their eyes met. She leaned in closer kissing him, her long black draped over his shirt. It was gentle at first but then grew more vigorous. She wanted to rip off his clothes but knew it wasn’t the right time.
Knock, knock, knock.
Startled, she quickly got back in her seat.
“Hi Aoife, I’m Marion, Stephen’s Mum. I just thought you might want a cup of tea.”
“Oh yes Marion. Lovely to meet you. I’d love a cup.”
Aoife looked at Stephen with a wry smile.
“I love my cups of tea.”
Marion stayed for some time asking Aoife many questions about what she did and where she came from. At times, it felt like a strange sort of interview.
After what seemed like a good hour she exclaimed “Well, I guess I’ll leave you two love birds at it. You didn’t come all this way to see me. And Aoife, next time you come there’s no need to stay in a B&B. There is a spare room here.”
“Wow, thanks. That is so nice of you.”
With that, she left and they were alone once more.
“You have a lovely Mum, Stephen.”
“Ah yeah, she has a heart of gold. She wasn’t supposed to ask ya so many questions though! Think she was as excited to meet you as I was.”
“It’s alright, she just wants to make sure her son won’t be led stray.”
“Oh, you can lead me astray anytime.”
Aoife gigged and moved closer to him.
She moved her hand through his hair. Then moved closer again and began to kiss him passionately slowly raising one of his hands up to her breast.
“You are so beautiful Aoife.” He was looking right into her eyes.
Nobody had ever said that to her before and she knew it wasn’t just words.
She felt a warmth growing inside as she lost herself in those eyes.
For the next few hours they talked, kissed and watched tv. Neither wanted it to end.
Eventually, it came time for her to go.
“What will we do tomorrow?” she asked.
“How about visiting the Gap of Dunloe? My Mum said she would drive us and maybe drop us off somewhere afterwards?”
“Sounds cool!”
The next morning Aoife shuffled in the bed and slowly opened one of her eyes. It was brighter than she expected. She moved her arm from under the bed covers and reached for her mobile to check what time it was.
Damn it! It read 9.30am.
She needed to get up and get ready fast. She had to be at Stephen’s house in under an hour. Her alarms had failed to go off. Oh, would she ever learn?
Forcing herself to sit up, she took a moment to sit at the side of the bed. How she wished Stephen had been by her side the night before.
Realizing that the minutes were ticking by, she rushed in to the bathroom to shower. It was friggin freezing. But needs must.
This was normally her favorite part of the day but she was just so stressed. This day needed to be just perfect and it was off to a bad start.
.A quick blow dry of her hair and a touch of make-up and she was on her way.
Stephen and his Mum were already in the wheelchair modified van getting ready to go.
“Oh, so sorry I’m late.”
“Don’t worry love, we came out a bit early to get him all set up with all the straps and everything. You’d swear we were going to the moon or something..”
“Hey, Aoife I thought you were going to stand me up!”
“Nooo, I would never that!”
“She was just being fashionably late Stephen.”
Aoife sat in beside Stephen to the rear of the van. The seat was was small and cramped but she couldn’t have been happier.
It was only a short drive to where they were going. She had heard about the Gap of Dunloe during her school days. All she remembered though was that it had something to do with the last ice age and that it was a major tourist attraction.
The roads were perfect at first but gradually became rockier and narrower. Mountains appeared in the distance. After another few minutes, they came to a small white cottage and a sign sitting right in front of them stating that the road was closed.
His Mum roared back –
“Hope the two of yous are okay. We’re at the start of it now. Most people walk it but it would tough on the wheelchair.”
With that she squeezed by the sign and they were on their way.
Next thing, Aoife knew they were driving upwards and the roadway became much narrower. There was now only enough space for one vehicle. Still, they went upwards. She felt her hands becoming clammy.
A few minutes later and the vista was indeed magnificent. They were looking down at a green valley with the odd sprinkling of white houses and what looked like a tiny village centred around what looked like a pub.
The van was going at walking pace now and Aoife could see that they were driving close to the edge, far too close for comfort. A bad mistake and they were finished.
“Done worry Aoife, Mum won’t drive off the edge, hopefully anyway”
They both smiled.
“Would the two of you like to be dropped off in the pub down there for a while? I could go for a stroll through the place for an hour or so.”
“Yeah, that would be brilliant Mum. What do you say Aoife?”
“Yeah, I’d like that.”
Now they just had to go downwards to reach it.
Aoife had just about been able to take going upwards but going downwards was totally different. She closed her eyes and clasped her hands.
“It’s ok Aoife we’re on level ground once more,” Stephen whispered, “I think we both deserve a pint now!”
Fortunately, there was ample space to park up the van. Aoife looked intently as Stephen’s skilled Mum deftly de-clamped his wheelchair and gave him directions onto the lift.
“Right, I’ll be off for a walk for an hour or so. You’ll be ok till then getting into the pub and everything?”
“Yes, we’ll be fine Mum.”
Aoife smiled in the affirmative and then quickly followed Stephen who was already well on the way to the entrance. The name of the pub was called “Kate Kearneys Cottage.” They were surprised to find that there was already a good crowd inside sitting. The decor was all wooden giving it a pleasant barn feeling.
“What do you want Stephen? I think I’ll have a nice Guinness.”
“A Heineken for me, please”
Aoife went and ordered the drink before coming back.
“The barwoman said she’d bring them over. Are you enjoying the trip?”
“Of course I am. It’s great to spend some time with you. Hope you don’t mind Mum driving us.” Not exactly cool.”
“Not at all. She’s lovely. But I was watching everything and reckon we could go on our own next time.”
With that she leaned in for a kiss.
She loved the taste of his soft lips and gently caressing his hair. They only stopped with the sound of footsteps coming behind them.
“Here are your drinks lovies.”
She was a jovial red haired woman in her forties.
“Thanks.”
“Hope you are both enjoying your visit. Are you staying long?”
Stephen replied.
“Just a quick visit.”
“Maybe net time you’ll stay longer.”
“Hopefully.”
With that she was gone.
Aoife looked into his eyes.
“So you want a next time Stephen. I’m not just another girl, am I?”
“No, your not. You brighten my life. Maybe, I shouldn’t say it?”
“Say what?”
“That I’m in love with you.”
“I love you too.”
THE END
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