Fast Fiction: The New Wife
Are most females too good for most males? Richard Mallinson tells a tale of burdens.
Two men and two women were walking along the river bank in single file. They'd been going for an hour and were tetchy.
At a bend they saw a man with a woman on his back. They stood aside to let him (them) pass.
They resumed their walk.
'That was Rod Duggan from the Red Dragon, wasn't it?" said Elspeth over her shoulder.
'Yes, but who was that on his back?' asked Wilfred.
'That must be his new wife,' said Tilda.
'It looked like his old one to me,' said Norbert.
*
When they'd been served at the Red Dragon and were seated at a table near the window Norbert went back to the barmaid.
'Is Rod's new wife around?' he asked.
'Yes, I'm his new wife,' she said.
'Then who was that woman on his back, on the river bank?'
'Hey, leave off, Norbert,' called Tilda from the table.
'Oh, just some floozy he's picked up,' said the girl, smiling.
*
On the way home, Wilfred said, 'That girl's too good for him.'
'Well, most females are too good for most men,' said Elspeth.
'Yeah!' cried Tilda, jumping on Norbert's back.
