Light at the end of the tunnel

Jan was having a bad time. For months it seemed that nothing had gone right. Bad luck was supposed to come in threes, right? Wrong. Not in Jan’s case. The only positivity in Jan’s life was Sam. Every time something went wrong, Sam seemed to appear to make things better. They lived on the same street and for the longest time only ever passed the time of day occasionally.

Jan’s bad luck started when the manager at work re-jigged the work schedules, reducing Jan’s hours quite significantly. Walking home after work that day all Jan could think about was how to pay the bills. In a daze Jan stood at the crossing not even no- ticing the lights changing from green to amber to red and back again. Sam’s gentle voice interrupted Jan’s thoughts.

“Penny for them?”

“What? Oh, hello Sam. How are you?”

“Rather better than you I think. Come on the green man’s flashing us. Are you head- ing home?”

Jan nodded. By the time they arrived at Jan’s house the work problem seemed to be not quite so bad thanks to Sam’s great listening skills.

The next item on Jan’s bad luck list came hot on the heels of the work reduction problem. A knock at the front door revealed a bulky, intimidating man flinging an official looking identification badge at Jan.

“A bailiff? Why?” Jan was confused.

“Council tax. Can you pay the outstanding amount today or do I have to arrange collection of your belongings?”

With a sinking heart Jan remembered the council tax reminder letter that was on the desk underneath a pile of other bills.

“How much do I owe?” Jan winced in anticipation.

“£1300 plus our fees of £360. There’ll also be removal of belongings fees too.”

Jan felt faint. “No, I mean, no of course I can’t pay it today.”

The bailiff sighed as though he didn’t want to do what he was about to do but couldn’t quite contain his excitement. “So I’ll come in and we’ll decide what goods I’ll take.....”

Jan felt like crying, a feeling of helplessness threatening to overwhelm any rationality. Just then a confident voice said, “I think you will not be going into that house unless invited to do so. Have you been invited in? No? So stay right where you are. Jan, have you been offered a payment plan? No? I’m not surprised. Right then...”

And with that Sam took over the situation. When the bailiff left Jan burst into tears. Sam said the most comforting things but when Jan suggested a cup of tea Sam declined saying that ‘the dentist waits for no-one’. Off went Sam while Jan focussed on the teapot.

Two weeks later found Jan looking flustered in the plumbing aisle of the big DIY store in town.

“Oh for the love of God. I have no idea what I need. This is ridiculous.” Once again a gentle voice spoke close to Jan’s ear.

“What are you looking for?”

Jan jumped in surprise but was quickly grinning widely at the sight of Sam standing next to him.

“That’s the problem Sam. I have no idea what I’m looking for. My washing machine won’t empty but since I don’t know why....”

“Have you checked the filter?”

“Umm, no. Where exactly is that and what would I do to check it?”

Sam proceeded to guide Jan through the simple procedure thus avoiding the need to buy any plumbing equipment. Jan thanked Sam profusely, went home, successfully checked the washing machine filter and lo, and behold, once a mangled pen lid had been removed, it worked! Jan stood in the kitchen staring at the now working machine thinking that Sam always seemed to be there whenever Jan needed help.

Over the next few months Jan’s bad luck continued and as usual Sam seemed to arrive in the nick of time to save the day. The more Jan thought about Sam the more those feelings of ‘friendly neighbourhood saviour’ morphed into something much deeper. Jan wondered how that could be since they knew very little about each other. Eventually, of course, Jan’s run of bad luck did come to an end but at the cost of a broken ankle.

There was an underpass in town which was highly convenient for crossing to the industrial estate but it was spooky and frequented by some undesirable youths. That fateful day Jan had a job interview across town and under normal circumstances would take the longer route avoiding the underpass but of course, Jan was running late and the underpass beckoned. Jan went down the steps to the mouth of the entrance which was decorated with brightly coloured graffiti. Echoing voices bounced off the walls as Jan walked briskly into the gloomy tunnel. About half way along Jan came face to face with three young men. Jan tried to ignore them but they stood in the way, taunting and teasing. The question of whether the smell of old pee was coming from the floor or from the youths flashed through Jan’s mind.

“Excuse me, please.” Jan thought the polite approach was a good idea in the first instance.

“Ooh, excuse me, please!” One of the youths mimicked Jan’s received pronunciation. Jan sighed, frustrated because a set-to would not willingly be on the agenda for a lover not a fighter like Jan.

“Look, you’re very funny but I need to go. I have a job interview to get to.”

“A job? In this poxy town? Nah, I don’t believe you. You’re well too posh to need a job anyway. I bet your wallet’s bulging.”

‘Oh great. A mugging.’ Jan subconsciously was resigned to getting hurt. Moving as one unit, the three youths crowded Jan pushing, shoving and poking until a strange thing happened. Jan naturally reacted by lashing out, kicking, punching and swearing. The unwanted but expected fight did ensue and it was obvious to Jan that the youths had numbers and size on their side. Quite quickly it looked as though they were about to dish out a nasty mugging, Jan already suspected that they’d dished out a black eye and a split lip. Jan’s ankle was either badly bruised or broken from falling awkwardly. Just then a figure appeared at the exit of the tunnel. All four turned to look to see who was blocking the light when a commanding voice said, “If you know what’s good for you you’ll leave right now. Otherwise I can’t promise to be responsible for my actions.”

The bravado of the three youths kept them right where they were but they had subtly moved away from Jan. The shadowed figure stepped down one step.

“Move.”

The youths were still frozen to the spot until the mysterious figure jumped down the remaining steps screaming, “Get out of here!”

Shoppers milling about at the entrance of the tunnel were very surprised to see three youths popping out of the tunnel like a champagne cork, running for their lives.

Back in the tunnel Jan was sitting on the floor.

“Is that you Sam?”

“It is.”

“Why are you always appearing just when I need you?” Sam laughed. “There’s a reason for that.”

“And what would that be? I know nothing about you, not even your last name. Actually, what is your last name?”

By now Sam was sitting on the floor opposite Jan gently removing a shoe and then a sock, wincing as a fat purple ankle swelled up.

“Light.” Sam said.

“What?”

“Light. My last name. And the reason why I’m always around when you need me.” Jan frowned.

“Think about it,” Sam coaxed, head tilting towards the exit steps.

A wave of realisation washed over Jan’s face.

“Ah, I see. You are the Light at the end of my tunnel.”