Snow for Christmas
It was Christmas Eve, babe, in the drunk tank
An old man said to me, won’t see another one
And then he sang a song, the Rare Auld Mountain Dew
I turned my face away, and dreamed about you…
Christmas in the Rovers with snow outside, Mary sang this but her voice trailed off after the second line. The look on Hayley’s face brought her back to the reality that Hayley indeed would not see another one. Mary thought of the Pogues’ song when she asked Liz about Tina’s whereabouts. Was she in the drunk tank?
A fight had started in the Rovers and moved out to the Christmas card beautiful street. Everyone watched it, including the coppers who were there to see Sally about her snatched purse. They arrived just in time to pull Kylie and Tina apart.
Kylie was hauled off to the drunk tank, her sparring partner Tina was not. Tracey was there too, and quite willing to punch someone’s lights out – anyone’s – but didn’t get the chance.
Snowball fight
Later by the bus stop, Hayley threw a handful of snow at Roy as he looked at the schedule, confirming the times of the Wayfarer. He was distracting her with small talk, in an OCD kind of way. While coming home from the Rovers, she had needed to stop due to an attack of pain.
Neighbours returning from or going wherever saw her lobbing snowballs at Roy and joined in and a full-scale snowball fight developed. A laughing Hayley watched from her seat on the bench.
When she was recovered, Roy extricated himself from the snowball pelting (feeling relieved for himself and Hayley) and they walked home. Hayley said it was the best Christmas ever. The others went on playing.
There was enough snow to build snowmen. Sinead ran to the pub and asked for clothes, and Rita donated Norris’ old coat. Ches said he could find the other coat they needed.
Tucked up on the couch at home, Hayley watched her new dvd about Amsterdam. Roy made tea and prowled the flat. He looked out the window, and grinned. He beckoned Hayley over to look.
Across the road beside the bus stop, were two snow people. One wore a red jacket and wooly scarf. The other wore a beige jacket and had a carrying case slung over its shoulder. Hayley and Roy Cropper immortalized in snow.
