(David is rushing off to work when Helen calls at the new house.)

DAVID ASHTON
(opening the door)
Hello, Helen.

HELEN HUGHES
Good morning, David.

DAVID
Uh...well, come in.

HELEN
Oh.

(She enters.)

HELEN
Off to shear the sheep?

DAVID
(puzzled)
Shear the sheep?
(laughing)
Oh, you mean fleece the customers.

HELEN
Well, something like that.

DAVID
Well, it's the same thing, I suppose.
(to Sheila)
Well, 'bye.

SHEILA ASHTON
'Bye, love.

HELEN
'Bye.

(David leaves for another dreary day of working for Trevor Howells.)

SHEILA
Come on through.

(Sheila leads Helen into the kitchen.)

HELEN
Does he like it? Uh...the job, I mean.

SHEILA
Well, yes...uh. He doesn't like the door-to-door bit very much.

HELEN
Oh, dear. Said the wrong thing, then.

SHEILA
Oh, no. It won't last forever. I keep on telling him that.

HELEN
No, no. It's just a step up the ladder.

SHEILA
Yes.
(chuckling)
He was talking about promotion on his first morning.

(Helen laughs.)

SHEILA
He's always been much too keen to run before he can walk.

HELEN
Well, it's understandable. He's been flying for the last five years.

SHEILA
Yes. I caught him looking at his uniform the other day.

HELEN
Well, he won't be the only one who thinks they were the best years of his life.

SHEILA
Well, I think perhaps they were.

HELEN
Oh, rubbish! But they will be, if we don't forget about them and get down to it.

SHEILA
I'm sure that's what he's trying to do.

HELEN
Well, let's hope he succeeds, then.

(The women sit down at the table for tea.)

HELEN
Oh! By the way, there's a van on its way here.

SHEILA
A van?

HELEN
A furniture van. I went around the house with Sefton when I got back last night. I've always said there's so much stuff in there, you can hardly move. So we picked a few pieces out, and, uh...the van from the shop's bringing them around.

SHEILA
Oh, for us?

HELEN
Oh, well, anything you don't like, you can always put in the fire. Keep you warm in the winter.

(Sheila laughs at the comment but seems very grateful.)

 

(from "Under New Management" by John Finch)