I shouldn’t have left them there with her. She’s not a mother, not worthy of the title. She’s barely fit to look after herself, let alone the two young’uns. Still I couldn’t miss this for the world. The siren sounded and the game was on. The crowd erupted around me in a deafening roar, everyone standing up, streamers, scarves, club colours.
‘This is it mate,’ Mike shouted to me. ‘The big one!’
‘This tip of yours better pay off,’ I replied. ‘I’ve got everything riding on this.’
‘Relax, there’s no way Essendon won’t win the Grand Final. Have I ever been wrong?’
‘Actually…’ I was cut off by another roar as the Hawks made their first goal. I sat back down, starring blankly ahead. I opened my wallet and counted the notes then went through the coins. $68.70. A princely sum that was. I sighed.
Mike elbowed me in the ribs. ‘Hey, check that lot out.’ He cocked his head in the direction of two good looking blondes. ‘Wouldn’t mind a go’ of that, eh. Eh?’ He laughed. ‘Not that you’ve got much of a look-in. No job, no prospects…’
‘Quit it mate, I’ll find a job. It’s hasn’t even been a month.’
‘Try telling that to the missus, if you can get a sober moment together that is. Still you’re on the right side of 30, barely.’
‘Oh, you’re just a stream of good news today Mike. I’ll know who to look up when I’m feeling blue.’
‘Don’t go all Carlton on me now mate, we’ve got a game to win here. Kids don’t come cheap, and neither do those two chicks by the looks of them. We win this, we’re on easy street.’
‘I’d settle for hard street and a decent job, to tell the truth,’ I looked at my betting slip and said a silent prayer.
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