She was about a block ahead and walking in the same direction as me. There were two teenage girls with her. They all stopped outside Glamour World. I'd been following Gabrielle for a while, but it was only when she turned towards the shop that I knew for sure it was her. It was the way she walked. I thought: funny how people getolder but their walks stay the same. When she was twelve, her body was tall and pale and upright, like a skeleton wrapped in frayed tissue paper. She sort of drifted, rather than walked. These days she'd be a supermodel but back then she was just skinny. So there she was, thirty years on, with that same walk. The two girls went into the shop and she followed. I got that funny little thing when your stomach lurches halfway up your throat and the skin across the back of your head goes tight. It felt like I'd seen an ex-boyfriend. I got the curiosity. You know how it goes. You need to see whether he still wears an earring. You need to check out his wife and kids. That's how it was.
What do You think about Etiquette For A Dinner Party?
