Page 46 of Exquisite Things

“Ten. Nine. Eight. Seven. Six. Five. Four. Three. Two. HAPPY NEW YEAR.”

We all hug. Lily holds me close. Says she loves me. Maud pulls me and Oliver into a group hug. Archie, Azalea, Poppy, and

Blossom gather us into a circle. The first song we dance to this year is Johnny Osbourne. “Truths and Rights.” The whole shebeen

sings along. Loudly.

“ Children, run, come, the truths and rights. That’s what I’m about. You know the truths and rights. Teach it to the children. ”

There’s something so beautiful about this moment. So wholesome. No one is drunk. Pearl stopped serving alcohol since the police

raids started getting worse. Thatcher and her moral values . Mary Whitehouse and her moral values . Lily’s first show might have led to threats and protests. Thankfully it also led to another show. A new career in theater.

Archie and Lily prefer Pearl’s without alcohol. No pushy people asking why they aren’t drinking. No need to explain their

sobriety to drunks.

We sing out: “ When you think it’s peace and safety, Lord. It could be, could be sudden destruction .”

The song ends. More reggae plays. We order sodas at the makeshift bar that once served Red Stripe and Tennent’s.

We share our favorite memories of 1980.

I say: “Oliver coming to London.”

Oliver says: “Changeling moving into the house.”

Lily says: “This moment. Right now.”

Maud says: “But it’s already 1981!”

Lily says: “Well then, perhaps I like 1981 even more than 1980. A new year. A new start.”

We dance in the cramped and smoky space until Pearl kicks us out. We walk home singing Johnny Osbourne as a police siren interrupts

us from a nearby street. They all ignore it. I try to as well. But I’m suddenly filled with another wave of superstitious

panic. The siren feels like a bad omen, a warning that sudden destruction could puncture our peace and safety at any moment.