A clash of personalities at the charity shop

A clash of personalities at the charity shop

"Let's start by setting the scene, which is what proper writers do. You know, creating the atmosphere, painting a vivid picture for you, the reader. Waffle, basically.

Anyway, it's the charity shop on a drizzly Tuesday afternoon. My mischievous colleague Grace and I are standing behind the counter in the regulation manner when she leans across to me and whispers confidentially.

'Do you know what?' she says. 'I don't think the boys like each other very much.'

'Do you know what?' I reply, also keeping my voice down, 'I've a feeling you might be right.'

Let me explain. For the past couple of weeks, Mr Dear has been helping out in the shop. He does this from time to time when there is nothing doing at the rugby or the cricket club, and he's fed up with sitting at home and failing to complete The Daily Telegraph crossword.

In years past, he was often the only man in the shop. Now we have a chap called David, who is known to us as Captain Birdseye, although obviously not to his face.

We first suspected that there might be a little tension between them when some boxes of books were delivered one morning. I went to pick one up, to carry it into the storeroom.