Snippets of Downshire Life – St Patrick’s Day Parade

 

Twenty five year old Abbie Parkes worked at Hanratty’s Department Store in the Abbottsford Phoenix Shopping Centre, and was a very popular and  hardworking member of staff, unfortunately she was also a very willing worker and seldom said no when she was asked to work late.

Which was why she missed the coach to Sharpington for the St Patrick’s Day Parade, and she was desperately unhappy about it because, Mike Ranson, the love of her life was on the coach and she wasn’t.

Abbie had been after him for months even though they were oposites.

She was a skinny little waif and was only 4’ 11” and was a talkative little livewire with raven black hair, while he was a great bear of a man, who stood 6 feet 6 inches tall, had a barrell chest and hands like shovels, and an abundance of corn coloured hair.

Although she was a chatter box who never shut up she got all tongue tied with him when it came to trying to ask him out.

She thought he was probably looking for someone as quiet as him anyway, but that trip to the parade was make or break time for her.

But she wasn’t going to let a simple thing like missing her coach derail her so she went straight to Abbottsford station where she caught the first train she could.

 

When she reached her destination she wandered around Sharpington for about an hour looking for her group, or more specifically him, she found all the floats parked in the Football Stadium car park but no sign of the Hanratty’s coach party.

To make matters worse she lost her phone at Abbottsford station so she couldn’t even call them.

Eventually she gave up looking and went up to her Aunt’s Caravan up at Whitecliffe Hill. 

 

She had a restless night with images of her gentle giant Mike Ranson in her head so he got up early and made the walk down the hill.

It was the 12^th annual St Patricks’ day Parade in Sharpington and it was getting bigger every year and ran the length of the promenade, and it was very busy and very noisy and she didn’t think she had a hope in hell of attracting his attention, even if she spotted him.

 

Her first port of call was a café for a hearty breakfast and then she had to figure out the best place to wait for the Hanratty float to appear.

Her problem wasn’t so much seeing the float as the people on the float seeing her, and that was because it was very crowded and she stood less than 5 foot tall, and on top of that it was a cold day and she was wrapped up against the cold. 

 

As the the first of the floats came into view she began to panic because the crowds swelled and she couldn’t see a thing, but then when she caught the first glimpse of the Hanratty livery she had an idea.

So she shinned up one of the ornamental lampposts to get a better look and to be more visible as the float approached.

She easily spotted Mike Ranson’s giant figure and began shouting.

“Hey Mike, over here”

But she couldn’t make herself heard over the noisy crowd and all she managed to do was to attract the attention of the stewards.

Who made a beeline for her lamppost and one of them was loudly shouting

“Oi you, get down”

And one of them tried to grab her leg so she wriggled higher up to evade his grasp and then she heard the welcome sound of Mike’s booming voice.  

“Abbie! Abbie!”

She looked in the direction of his voice, and he was leaning out from behind the cab with one arm outstrected

“Take my hand” he shouted and she grabbed his great paw without hesitation and he plucked her off the lamppost as if she were a rag doll and pulled her onto the back of the float, and being an oportunist she took the chance to emrace him and so she jumped up and wrapped her skinny limbs around his neck and he enveloped her with his strong arms.

“I’m glad you made it, I was dissapointed when you missed the coach” he said, because in truth he was as mad about her as she was about him, but he always doubted that a beautiful little thing like Abbie could ever be interested in him, but now she was in his arms things might be different.

“Were you really?” she asked

“Yes, I tried ringing but it kept going to answerphone”

“I lost my phone at Abbottsford station, I looked for you when I got here last night but I couldn’t find you” she explained

“You looked for us?”

“No, I looked for you” she said and hugged him tighter

“For me?” he retorted, doubting his own hearing

“Yes, just you, you’re my gentle giant” she said

“I can’t tell you how often I’ve dreamt of hearing you say that to me” he said

“You mean you “do” want me?” she asked lifting her face from his shoulder for the first time to look at him

“Of course”

“Then why haven’t you asked me out?”  

“I was scared” he admitted

“Of me?”

“Yes”

“But you want to go out with me?” she asked

“More than anything”

“Not because I’m hugging you, I mean, you really do like me?” she asked but he hesitated before replying so she lifted her head from his shoulder again

“It’s worse than that I’m afraid” he said “I love you”

Abbie sighed on hearing his declaration and a second later she retorted

“I love you too”

And then they were kissing as the spectators cheered.

Snippets of Downshire Life – St Patrick’s Day

 

Shallowfield sat on the southern edge of the Finchbottom Vale and was bordered on the other side by the Dancingdean forest and the town’s fortunes had always relied largely upon forestry and agriculture for its survival and thirty-four-year-old Abigail Vann had made her living off both of them as she was the manager of the Farming, Agriculture and Forestry Supplies business in Shallowfield.

When she wasn’t working at managing FAFS she was managing her brother Neil, who was a handyman, and she had raised him since she was 17, when their parents were killed in a car accident.

And she had made it her mission in life to see him settled before she could put her own needs first.

Which was why they spent a lot of their spare time together and one of the things they liked to do was visit the Childean leisure center Swimming Pool, which was what they were doing when life changed for the two of them.

 

They got to the front entrance before paying at the kiosk and then proceeded to the changing rooms.

It was a very modern facility with modern unisex changing rooms, with two long rows of cubicles’ flanked by lockers, and as she always did she selected a cubicle at the far end of the row where she quickly got undressed and into her one piece swimsuit, then She put her street clothes into her bag and then put everything but her towel in the locker.

“Come on slowcoach” she called to her brother “why do you always take so long?”

“I’m nearly ready Abi, you go on and I’ll catch you up” Neil responded

“Ok I’ll see you in a minute” Abi said as she was moving away.

 

Abigail just reached the poolside when she realized she still had her watch on, so she turned, rolled her eyes, tutted and headed back towards the changing rooms and she just reached the lockers in time to see a pair of female hands grasp the towel draped around Neil’s neck and pull him forcefully in to a cubicle.

After which she heard the door close and the lock click, and she smiled broadly as she removed her watch and placed it in her locker, before heading back to the pool.

 

After about 20 minutes Neil emerged from the changing rooms which was when she discovered that the hands belonged to Michele Norman from Bizzie Lizzies Florists, and as she watched them together it was plain to see that it was no passing fancy.

 

In the week that followed she saw nothing to change her initial assessment of the situation, so with her brother finally being snapped up she decided it was time for her to get the love of her life firmly in her life.

 

Rachel Wright had been on her radar for two years, which was when she started working at FAFS, and she impressed Abi immediately as she was a quick learner, hardworking, eager and reliable, but she also thought she was gorgeous, but she hadn’t acted on that attraction, partly because of Neil being dependent on her, partly because she was an employee, but mainly because she was ten years her junior.

She was confident that her advances wouldn’t be rebuffed despite the age difference, it was her that had the reservations, but seeing Neil so happy with Michelle she felt a pang of jealously, so she decided to go for it.

 

Rachel was a very hard worker, and apart from working full time hours at FAFS she also worked weekends, cleaning at the Shallowfield Lodge and evenings behind the bar at The Plough which was where Abbie planned to meet up with her on St Patricks’ Day.

 

It was bitterly cold and was trying to snow as she walked the half a mile to the pub and the Plough was a welcome site.

As it was St Patrick’s Day, the pub was bedecked in Green bunting, and the Irish flag was draped everywhere,

It wasn’t a proper Irish pub despite the décor, the Guinness on tap and the Irish music.

It was very busy and although she’d tried her best to spot her target, there was no sign of Rachel, so she squeezed her way to the bar and ordered a Guinness and sat on the nearest empty seat she could find and smiled at the tableaux before her.

The music was good, the only problem was they were playing a mixture of Orangemen and Irish rebel songs, luckily there was no one in the pub Irish enough to be offended.

It was just a bunch of piss heads taking advantage of the two for one specials and using St Pats’ as an excuse to get pissed on cheap booze.

 

Abbie was halfway down her pint when she spotted the familiar face she had been searching for.

Rachel had long straight brown hair and a rather plain, heavily freckled face, but lovely blue eyes, a cute nose and a thin-lipped smile, but Abbie thought she was gorgeous.

She was short with a nice little figure, and she was decked out for the occasion.

The shabby tights that she normally wore had been replaced by a rather more superior quality product in green which encased her shapely legs beautifully.

She also had on a flared green dress and a green hat, in fact the only things she was wearing that weren’t green were her tiny black shoes.

Abbie watched her move from table to table collecting empties and putting them on the bar, and as she watched her nimbly negotiating her way around the drunks she was overwhelmed with love for her, so she called out.

“Rachel? Rachel Wright?”

“Yes” she answered as she turned towards her, and as recognition dawned on her face she went crimson red and smiled

“Abbie” she said and walked over towards her.

“Hello” Abbie said

“Hi Abbie” she responded still blushing then asked

“What brings you here?”

“Well it’s not the beer” she remarked

“I’ve never seen you in here before” she said in a coy mousy voice.

“I’ve never been here before” she retorted “but I had to come tonight”

“Why tonight?”

“I came to see someone” Abbie said

“Oh”

“Yes, I came to see you” Abbie said and watched intently for her reaction which was instant and unmistakable

“Really?”

In response to her question Abbie stood up and grabbed her hand and dragged her out to the vestibule, where the phone and cigarette machine lived, Abbie pushed her gently against the wall and as she towered over the diminutive figure of Rachel she kissed her.

It was a long sumptuous kiss, which would have lasted longer had the landlord not stood in the doorway coughing audibly

“I’ll be back later,” Abbie said

“I finish at ten” Rachel replied

“I’ll be here”

 

It was a few minutes before ten when Abbie got back to the Plough, she didn’t bother going in she just sheltered in the doorway out of the wind.

A few minutes later a small figure wrapped up against the cold came through the door from the noisy lounge bar and stopped dead when they caught sight of her.

“Hi Abbie” she said, her voice muffled by her scarf.

“Is that Rachel under all that?” she asked, but didn’t speak again she just nodded, then they hugged.

“Where should we go?” Abbie queried and got a shrug in response

“How about the Woodcutters? It’ll be quiet in there” Abbie suggested, and Rachel nodded again

 

Once they were in the pub Rachel emerged from the scarf and hood and Abbie immediately took the opportunity to kiss her, then they walked hand in hand to the bar, ordered drinks and settled down in a quiet corner on the nearest two-seater.

“I can’t stay long” Rachel said “I’ve got to get home”

“Oh” Abbie exclaimed unable to hide her disappointment “I was hoping we might go back to mine”

“I would like that” she said “but I can’t”

Rachel read Abbie’s expression as a question, so she added

“It’s my mum, she has dementia, and I’m her carer”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Abbie said “I could have adjusted your hours to fit better with your mum’s care”

“I didn’t want people to feel sorry for me, especially you”

“Well I know now, and we will rearrange your rota” Abbie said

“Thank you”

“It’s the least I can do” she said “for my girlfriend”

“Girlfriend?” Rachel asked, “For real?”

“For real” she replied and squeezed her hand

“It’s a shame I can’t come back to yours” she said “but you could come back to mine” but as soon as she finished the sentence she felt foolish and doubtful “only if you want to”

“Of course, I want to” Abbie said and leant over and kissed her

“Can we go now?” Rachel asked already on her feet by the time she said “now”

“Yes, we can, but I’m trying to be calm and aloof to disguise the fact that I have a roller-coaster doing loops in my tummy”

“I feel like that too” Rachel admitted and stood on tiptoes to kiss Abbie

“Good let’s go” Abbie said and they almost sprinted towards the door.