It was around 9pm and I was getting ready to go out to see some friends when the phone rang. It was number withheld and I was wondering who it was.
"Hello this is Miranda de Freitas" the voice said, "I'm Ellie's mother and I wanted to ask you some questions if that's ok?"
"Not really", I said. I was about to go out and see my friends. For the last week Ellie had been spreading rumours to my friends, but now things seemed to be dying down.
Mrs de Freitas politely insisted that we have a conversation, I reluctantly agreed and then she started asking me all sorts of questions about my date with Ellie. I can't remember the most of the conversation but we were on the phone for 20 minutes. Some of it sticks in my mind though.
She said that Ellie had run out of fuel on Christmas eve and was found in hysterics and that she was worried and asked me what had happened. This of course was after I told Ellie I did not want to see her again. I told her that we went on a date and then I had had words with Ellie and said I did not want to see her anymore.
She asked me if I was using protection with Elie, did we use condoms? I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Seriously? The mother of the girl I dated was asking me these most intimate questions, can you imagine? I politely said that it was between me and Ellie and not her business.
Then she asked me about Harrods and asked if I had bought her lots of presents. I told her no, Ellie was buying things in Harrods, not me. She didn't believe me. She asked who had bought the Hermes scarves. I told her it was Ellie. She asked how she was paying and I said cash, although I didn't say wads of cash.
Then I thought you know what, I'm going to tell her. I'm going to tell Mrs de Freitas that her that her daughter is leading a double life as a prostitute because I am sick and tired of being questioned as if I've done something wrong. I'm going to tell her the names of the websites and she can see it for herself. Eleanor is the liar not me. She's the one who's the master of deception and lies about how she earns a living every time she leaves the house.
Just as I'm about to let the cat out of the bag I hear the mother say "Ellie sit down with your father now, sit down!". I think, my god, the whole family are there together. At that moment I couldn't drop the bomb. I couldn't tell her that her daughter was a prostitute. I just didn't have the heart to do it. I stayed silent.
The next question the mother asked was "Did you give Elie a pill?"
I start to think, did she take a pill I ask myself? Perhaps for headache. "No" I reply. This is making me feel very uncomfortable, why is she asking me if I gave her a pill?
"Ellie says you gave her a pill", say the mother more insistently.
I was wracking my brain thinking. Our date was a week ago and I'm trying to remember, then I realise she did take a vitamin c tablet. "She took a vitamin c tablet", I told her. "She was coughing and she asked for vitamin c".
"Are you sure it was vitamin c?" The mother asked.
The blood started to drain away from my body into my feet. I couldn't believe what I was hearing. I could see exactly where this line of questioning was going. I felt sick. For the rest of the evening I developed the most horrible headache, thinking what has this girl been saying? I thought she had calmed down since my rejection, but clearly not.
