Chapter 24
TWENTY-FOUR
All the food prepped, I walk outside with Kian as we continue chatting. The truck reverses carefully and in no time at all the giant castle has been erected in the large rear yard of the community centre garden that has been fake turfed.
‘That’s pretty impressive,’ I say, eyeing the giant purple structure adorned with stars and musical notes.
‘It is, isn’t it? It’s called the party dome. Music plays out from some speakers, flashing lights, the lot. Watch this.’
He presses a button and music blasts out. He invites me to look inside and with the press of another button, the interior of the dome is lit up with stars and looking like a night sky. It’s so beautiful I’m reluctant to move for a minute, just taking it all in.
‘Fancy a go before the kids arrive?’ he asks, and I’m not sure if he is being serious or not.
‘Tempting as that is, I think I’ll pass,’ I say.
‘Maybe later then. It might do you good to let your hair down.’
I’m not sure what to make of that. Is he suggesting I need to loosen up a bit?
‘I hope Bella likes it,’ he says then, before I have a chance to overthink his remark. ‘They were all out of princess castles, as I left the booking a little late,’ he admits. ‘Luckily my daughter is mad about space. She’s loving a project she’s doing in school, so I think I am off the hook,’ he tells me. ‘Plus, the princess castle didn’t have an inbuilt disco.’
‘Then this is definitely the winner. The kids will absolutely love it, I’m sure. And, of course, inside the hall looks very girlie with the Little Mermaid and the pink balloons.’
‘That’s what I was hoping.’ He nods.
‘A kids’ party is nothing without a bouncy castle, although Gemma tried to give me a heart attack when she said the pensioners might like to have a go.’ I shake my head.
‘They might do.’ He gives a wicked grin. ‘Just joking. I imagine you don’t want any broken hips.’
‘Definitely not. Not on my watch.’
‘Gemma,’ says Kian. ‘Was she at the gingerbread evening with you?’ he asks.
‘That’s right. We work together at Bentham’s.’
‘Of course.’ He smiles. ‘It’s hard not to notice that beautiful red hair,’ he says and I agree with him.
His comment makes me wonder whether it was Gemma he was looking over at during the gingerbread evening, and not me as she thought? And would it really matter if it was?
I don’t have time to dwell on that with so many things to do, and soon enough the potatoes are roasting in the oven and it’s time for me, Sue and a couple of other volunteers who have just arrived, to go and collect the pensioners who are unable to make their own way here.
My stomach is churning, praying everything will be alright this afternoon when a catering van arrives, no doubt filled with the goodies for Bella’s party. All I can do is pray that today turns out to be a good day for everyone.
The giant snowman has been erected in the entrance hall of the centre, and has the pensioners laughing as they come in, with its rather slow rendition of ‘Frosty the Snowman’.
‘Well, would you look at that.’ Eileen claps her hands together and gazes at the swathe of pink and mauve at the window inside as the light is shining through the pretty stained-glass window. ‘It’s just magical.’
‘Ooh, it is,’ say a few of the others as they file into the room.
‘What’s happening here then?’ asks Wilf. ‘It looks like a kiddies’ party to me.’
‘We’re actually sharing the room,’ I explain once more.
The children’s table is laden with cakes, sandwiches, sausage rolls and all the usual party treats. The cake takes pride of place in the centre of the table, setting off the scene beautifully.
‘Is it a buffet this year then?’ someone says with a frown. ‘I thought we were having a traditional Christmas lunch.’
‘No, our table is this way.’ I guide the group to the other side of the room.
‘Hmm,’ sniffs Elsie. ‘I should hope it isn’t a buffet.’
We’d told the older people about the double booking in the car and thankfully, most of them were fine about it. Wilf, it seems, hadn’t heard what was said, but seems okay about sharing the room. One or two were even excited at the thought of seeing the children, so maybe the day won’t be as bad as I have been envisaging. Perhaps Kian is right. Sometimes, you just have to work with what you have got and make the best of it.
‘Oh gosh, I’m a bag of nerves,’ I say to Sue as Barry is placing large slices of meat onto plates.
‘Why? Everything is just tickety-boo,’ she says, opening the oven door and the rich aroma of roasting potatoes fills my nostrils.
‘These veggies are almost done now,’ says Audrey, poking at veg in pans with a knife.
‘Looks like it’s time for your gravy,’ I tell Mum, who is happy to oblige.
Everyone is quickly served and during the main course, the children start to arrive clutching presents for Bella. My heart melts at the sight of the girls in their pretty party dresses, and smartly dressed boys, with their hair fashionably styled.
‘Well, that was wonderful,’ Eileen says, placing her knife and fork down. ‘You all work so hard.’
‘It’s worth it. It’s such a joy seeing everyone meet up,’ I tell her.
‘Feet up?’ says Wilf. ‘Surely you can’t put your feet up just yet, we haven’t had our pudding yet.’
‘Lauren was saying it’s nice to MEET UP,’ says Eileen, almost shouting down his ear and rolling her eyes.
‘Oh aye, it is, yes.’ He chuckles. ‘I can’t argue with that. It’s my favourite day of the year.’
His comment brings a lump to my throat and reminds me why I am involved in this every year. Wilf has carers call around since his wife died, and a daughter who calls on him regularly but is away for Christmas this year, so today is a special day for him.
The meal is going down a treat and Sue has played some vinyls much to the delight of the guests.
‘I’ll get you up for a dance in a minute.’ Gerald winks at Eileen. Gerald is dressed smartly in a suit and blue tie that matches his twinkling eyes.
‘Oh, I’m up for that,’ says Eileen, looking delighted.
We’re having a little break before dessert, everyone chatting away. At the other end of the room, Bella is opening her gifts wide-eyed with excitement.
‘Little people,’ says Flora, an eighty-five-year-old, looking up from her plate. ‘What are they doing here?’
‘I told you children would be joining us,’ says Sue gently.
‘Did you? Oh right, yes,’ she says and Sue and I exchange a glance. Flora’s daughter has been concerned that she is forgetting things and repeating herself a lot, so is keeping her eye on things.
An excited Bella is still receiving her gifts from the children, mainly girls, who are taking in the decorations with wows, oohs and aahs.
‘Would you like to say hello to our other people who are having a party here today?’ I ask the children before they sit down at their table and they nod.
‘It looks like a Christmas dinner, not a party,’ says a boy with black hair as we escort them across the hall towards the old people.
‘Well, when you get older parties are more about sitting and eating I suppose,’ I tell the boy.
‘And drinking. At least the dinner parties I go to,’ Kian whispers to me.
‘I don’t want to get old then,’ the boy says and Kian laughs.
‘I don’t suppose anyone does really. But it doesn’t mean you stop enjoying yourself,’ I tell him, but he looks unconvinced.
The children say hello to the old people and they all wish Bella a happy birthday when I tell them she is the birthday girl.
‘How old are you?’ asks Wilf.
‘Seven,’ says Bella proudly.
‘Are you? You don’t look eleven.’
‘SEVEN,’ Elsie shouts at Wilf.
‘Oh seven.’ He laughs. ‘Very nice.’
‘I remember being seven,’ says Elsie. ‘We went to the seaside and I had my first ride on a donkey,’ she reminisces, her harsh expression turning into a smile. ‘Blackpool, it was.’
The pensioners look delighted to see the children, apart from Flora, who is busy asking when the dessert will be served.
‘Oh, she looks just like my granddaughter when she was little,’ says a grey-haired woman, her eyes misting over. ‘I do miss that age, they grow so quickly, and then they rarely visit when they become adults,’ she laments.
‘I miss the children at my old school,’ says another lady, a retired headmistress from the village. ‘My one regret in life is not having children of my own,’ she says, almost bringing a tear to my eye. ‘This is a real tonic seeing all of these children.’ She beams. ‘Thank you.’
‘It’s a pleasure and I am sure we will all have a chance to mingle later, so let’s enjoy our respective meals,’ I say, leading the kids towards their party table. So far so good.
‘So it seems the old folk don’t think the children are the spawn of the devil?’ says Kian, with a grin.
‘It would appear so. And I’m sorry if I was a bit over the top, I just didn’t want any accidents or for anyone to get upset, that’s all.’
‘Not a problem, I can understand that.’ He smiles warmly and I feel a definite glow inside.
The kids are seated and about to tuck into some food, when Kian makes an announcement.
‘Right, kids, get yourself some food and then you can all go on the bouncy castle outside,’ he says and there is a squeal of excitement from the children.
‘Actually, Kian,’ I say. ‘Do you think the children ought to have a bit of a play outside before the food? It will be like a washing machine in their tummies jumping up and down on the castle after they have eaten.’
‘I never thought of that. But Bella’s been telling me she’s starved.’ He scratches his chin, thinking.
‘Okay, change of plan,’ Kian tells the children. ‘Maybe just have one sandwich and then we’ll go outside to the bouncy castle and?—’
He barely has time to get the words out of his mouth when there is a chorus of ‘yay’, before the children jump up from their chairs and stampede towards the outside area, almost pushing me and Kian up against each other as they run past.
‘That was good advice,’ he says, standing so close to me I can take in his scent and my heart rate soars. Both of us just stand there for a moment, before I break away and follow the children.
‘I kind of forget what children are like sometimes,’ he says as we reach the outside area.
The children’s excitement reaches fever pitch as they take in the scene in front of them, as disco music begins to fill the space outside. I can’t resist slipping my shoes off and climbing inside. I listen to the squeals of joy from the children at the sight of the colour-changing sky inside the castle, dotted with swirling stars.
As I step back outside, Kian realises that none of the children are wearing coats and makes a vain attempt at getting them back inside.
‘I guess it’s an undercover castle,’ I reassure him. ‘And all that bouncing around will have them overheating if they are wearing coats, and we don’t want that, do we?’
‘Yes, you’re right.’ Kian smiles. ‘What would I do without you?’ His green eyes meet mine and I feel a warm glow inside again.
‘I dread to think,’ I tease. ‘Maybe you would have to deal with a load of kids stuffing their faces, then vomiting in the bouncy castle,’ I say and he pulls a face.
‘That would be awful.’ He pauses for a moment. ‘I would never get my deposit back if that happened.’ He grins.
‘Do you want me to stay out here for a bit?’ I ask him, not wanting to move and enjoying standing next to him far too much, before giving myself a shake. I am here for the pensioners’ party. I also remind myself that maybe Kian was staring over at Gemma on the gingerbread evening. I am simply the woman who has double booked the hall for a party, so I guess he has to be polite. It’s just a shame he is so good-looking.
‘I think I’ll be grand, they seem to be having a right old time. Although maybe, if I need to, can I give you a shout?’ he adds.
‘Of course,’ I tell him, and when he places his hand on my arm and thanks me, annoyingly there go those zingy feelings again and I wonder if he feels it too?
I think about the men I have come across over the last few months, in the pub, at Bentham’s, or just generally out and about and it occurs to me that no one has really caught my eye recently. It’s not that I am particularly picky, but men haven’t even been on my radar as I was so bruised by my last relationship, I decided I would be better off on my own. And where do you meet men these days? I know lots of couples meet online, but it’s not something I have really thought about. Perhaps that’s after listening to a woman at work who has experienced one online dating disaster after another. Usually because some people like to use profile pictures that are not exactly representative of how they look. When she met up with Guy from Kendal, he told her he had forgotten to update his profile picture, which she said must have been at least ten years out of date if not more, as he had hair in his profile picture.
I’m preparing the desserts in the kitchen and, half an hour later, I hear the sound of children so it seems Kian has managed just fine on his own. A bunch of rosy-cheeked children have returned to the table and are ravenously tucking into food as if they have never been fed.
‘Are those children having a party?’ asks Flora as I am about to ask everyone what they would like for pudding.
I really must talk to her daughter, much as I don’t want to. But Flora’s memory is a cause for concern, so I think it only right to mention what has happened today.
‘They are. See the little girl in the blue dress.’ I point out Bella. ‘It’s her birthday.’
‘Oh, it’s nice having a birthday.’ Flora smiles before telling me she would love some Christmas pudding. Bella catches my eye then and waves over and Flora waves too.
‘I think it’s my birthday in June. The sun usually shines then,’ Flora tells me. ‘Although June seems rather a long way off.’
‘Well, that lunch was simply wonderful,’ says Eileen, pushing her dessert away from her having enjoyed a nice slice of red velvet cake. She then taps a spoon against her glass.
‘If I could just have your attention for a bit,’ she asks the assembled pensioners. ‘I am sure you would all like to join me in thanking Lauren and all of the volunteers for making today possible,’ she says. ‘Every year we are lucky to come together with friends old and new, and celebrate Christmas time. So thank you all.’ Everyone duly raises their glass in a toast, before bursting into thunderous applause.
‘Oh, I agree, it was the best meal I’ve had in a long time,’ says Gerald. ‘You can’t beat a good roast. I used to love a decent curry too but I can’t do that without a side order of Gaviscon these days,’ he says and everyone laughs and empathises.
After coffee and mince pies the group are sat around chatting at the table. Sue is playing a variety of golden oldies on vinyl and Gerald, as promised, is whizzing Eileen around the dance floor. She looks beautiful in her grey dress, the sequins on the neckline sparkling as they catch the light. Her husband has been gone for two years and I guess she must feel lonely, so it’s nice to see her looking so happy. She throws her head back and laughs at something Gerald has said and I feel proud that she has this opportunity to dress up and have a dance with a handsome man. I can’t help wondering when I might have the chance to do the same.
Having pulled Christmas crackers earlier, the rest of the pensioners are wearing party hats and some are now also dancing to the music. Others are happy to sit and chat, especially those who are not so great on their feet.
‘Oh, isn’t this wonderful,’ I say to Kian.
‘It’s great to see,’ he agrees. ‘I hope I have someone like you to look after me in my old age,’ he says, as Sue and Barry are impressing everyone with a vigorous jive.
‘Actually, sorry, that came out wrong. I was just thinking how anyone would be lucky to have you watching out for them, is what I meant.’ He looks slightly embarrassed.
‘Don’t worry, I know what you mean. I guess we all want to feel safe and needed as we get older.’
‘Can the old people play musical chairs with us later?’ asks Bella, who is tucking into a sausage roll and I feel slightly faint at the thought of an elderly person racing to find an empty chair. On a wooden floor. Maybe not racing exactly but I think musical chairs is a dangerous game given the age demographic.
‘I’m not sure,’ says Kian. ‘What do you think?’ He turns to me.
‘Don’t put this on me. Oh nooo,’ I say, thinking I don’t want to be the one responsible for the broken bones of the older partygoers. ‘Maybe pass the parcel is a safer bet. You do have some prizes, I take it?’
Kian slaps his forehead with his hand. ‘The parcels! I’ve left them at home on the kitchen table where I was wrapping them last night.’ He glances at his watch. ‘I can be there and back in ten minutes if you can hold the fort?’
‘You want me to look after the kids on my own?’ I say, although at that very moment Audrey is striding towards me.