CHAPTER 86
The wall was almost as warm against my back as the sun was in my face, but the ground remained unforgiving. I felt my rump aching slightly, and when I stood up it was with some definite awkwardness, as the required muscles had all gone to sleep. It was the first time in ages I actually heard a Charlie sniff, but this one came with a twinkle.

“Numb bum, Di? Should’ve brought a rubber ring! Some of us know these things!”

Not now, DC Sutton; leave it at a grin and offer a hand up. Well, wobble some life into your legs first.

“Who’s come over, Tiff?”

“Um… Deb and Frank, Gem and her fella. And, er, our two. Oh, and Paul and Paula. Kim’s watching the house”

I understood the reality behind that one, because there was no way Deb was ever going to abandon her charges unless she could leave them in safe hands. There were limits to her ability to relax, but I still hoped she could expand them enough to enjoy the weekend. I cast my eyes over the nearby field, which was steadily filling with tents and vehicles, before checking my watch. Teatime for little people; I went seeking husband and offspring, as well as parents, and found them clustered around Steph, who seemed to be deep in some odd anecdote about hillwalking for once, rather than more vertical silliness. Dad was in full flow.

“Yes, and so they said it was an easy path on the map, and flat, so I showed them it wasn’t a path but a boundary, and it was only sort of flat if you turned it ninety degrees”

The redhead looked a little puzzled, then her eyebrows lifted.

“Where was this?”

“Only the gully line on Gallt yr Ogof! Di, you should remember that one. It was raining when we met them. Dutch couple”

I couldn’t hold my laughter back for long.

“Dad, saying ‘it was raining’ about North Wales doesn’t really help that much!”

“Fair point… Food? I fancy a curry, if there’s one about”

Steph pointed along the main road.

“Head along there till you see the Six Bells sign. That road continues the other side of the main road, and if you walk along it a few hundred yards there’s a parade of shops. Indian and a Thai, plus takeaways, if you prefer”

Dad was fiddling with his phone, as his obsession with guide books had clearly transferred seamlessly to on-line reviews.

“What’s the Indian like?”

“Cheap. Scruffy. Not bad food. Nice people. No licence, so take any drink you want, if it’s alcoholic”

I reached out to stop Dad from beginning his internet browse.

“Not this time, Dad. This time we just see what it’s like, yeah? Come on: I want poppadums and stuff”

“Mam!”

“Yes, Rhod?”

“Will they have mango jam?”

“I think they will, love. Now: hands wash and ready!”

It was about half a mile in the end, and it was indeed a parade of everything the post-pub trade could ever desire, from Chinese takeaway to kebab shop, all backing onto a pub/carvery with yet another ‘Number 100’ bus stop. See how full we get.

Our group initially added up to nine, with the Powells, because separating the three kids was always difficult, and the party was enlarged further by the addition of Elaine’s parents Twm and Sioned. I had spotted the ‘Carvery’ sign on the pub, and it offered an alternative if they couldn’t handle our little army, but in the end, there was no problem. A tiny Romanian girl working the counter simply smiled and started pushing tables together before answering Blake’s question with the words “Lidl, that way, two hundred metres”

Small, scruffy, cramped and rather tasty. We arranged napkins as bibs, which helped, and there were soft drinks for messy small people as well as beer and wine for older ones, and life continued to be good. Three men ended up talking about Rugby, which was enlivened when the waitress joined in. I hadn’t realised how big the sport was in the Balkans, but she really seemed more like a host at a private home than a waitress doing a job. We ambled back as a happy and replete party, just in time to catch some other arrivals before the evening followed its expected course into silliness of a musical nature. Gentle silliness, with a curfew, but enough for smiles. I slept well, until dear Rhodri returned from the child-nest in the Edifice to begin sleeping-bag-bouncing.

“Mam! Mam! Aunty Jan says up and atom and be neat and tidy for church!”

What was that word of Annie’s? Arsebollocks; that was it. I sent him back out to alert Mam and Dad, before beginning the process of removing the taste of curry and other stuff from my teeth... Dress… Where was that sun hat? The hall was offering breakfasts at a reasonable price, so sod cooking, and then finish off the tidiness necessary to slither past my mother’s appraisal, while trying to ensure one small person stayed as unsullied as possible. There was a queue at the door to the church proper, and we were each handed a little carnation to pin to our tops, which struck me as a little unusual, but given where we were, and in whose company, that word was rather like Dad’s comment about Snowdonia and rain. We found ourselves some seats, Dad began the process of marking the hymns listed by the pulpit, and Rhod, Sassie and Little Tone began hitting each other with pew cushions.

That all stopped at the appearance of the vicar himself, Simon, who was grinning away happily in a way I was coming to recognise as his signature. The old hymn tile said it: Joy to the World. The Choir was full of singers, including Arwel and his son, along with a mix of others that included a young woman that was clearly Down Syndrome from he features. I had expected to see the usual suspects back in place before the altar, instruments in hand, but there was only an older woman on the organ to deliver any musical titillation. I was tired, I was in a church, and I had a bloody hat on, and it was a little while before I realised Elaine was missing, just as Alun appeared at my side.

“Need you outside now, girl”

I followed him out of a side door near the front of the church, beginning to worry about a whole string of possible issues, including Lynne’s health, before I realised what was going on.

Sat at the front of the pews had been a grinning Paul and a rather nervous Frank, Deb nowhere in sight. You devious bitch, Wells! Alun led me round to the more usual door, where that woman was waiting, circlet of flowers on her head and bouquet in hand, three grinning younger women in attendance. Deb waved at them, her own nerves clearly there.

“Girl needs a chance to be a bridesmaid, Di. Can’t imagine three finer”

“I am honoured, Deb, but you could have given me some warning. Anyway, not exactly a maid, am I?”

Her face clouded, before clearing.

“What? Oh! No, not you. Three’s enough. And the Matron’s just arrived. Hiya, Rosie! Cut it fine, why don’t you?”

I had completely missed her arrival, but she was there, and while it was in a dress rather than leathers, she still had a presence to her.

“Copper”

“Wildcat”

Her face broke into a grin, and she stepped forward to hug me.

“Just the once, aye, and no photos! You ready, Deb?”

“Think so”

“No. Are you fucking ready for this? Do it or say fuck it, but choose now”

I took a glance up towards the lych gate, and they were there, as I had expected, patches as visible as the enamel badge on Wildcat’s blouse. I didn’t expect her to hang around after the completion of what was clearly planned. Almost on cue, the organ started up with the traditional Mendelssohn, and Deb grinned at her old friend.

“Then it is ‘Fuck it, let’s do it’, then. Come on, Girls”

They started to follow her in, and as I stepped forward, Wildcat turned on the spot.

“No. Not you. Not yet”

Eh? Another voice spoke just behind me: Jon.

“Give them thirty seconds, Di. Then it’s us. Here, take this”

It was a small box, and I goldfished for a few seconds before he took my arm.

“Off we jolly, aye? I think you know how it works; you’ve had practice already”

Into the church, the organ still playing, where Paul stood beside Frank, Wildcat beside Deb, and Rhys was just entering from a side door on Elaine’s arm.

I felt utterly stupid, but Simon the vicar was beaming, the organ had stopped as the choir drowned it out, and Jon was right: I had a bit of practice at that sort of event. Simon waved the singers to an end.

“Dearly beloved, and I never tire of hearing and saying those words. I am fortunate indeed to have found a place in this world that allows me such joy in my work, and today it is another moment of such delight. I am aware that this may be a surprise to many of you, but this morning I ask you if you will stay to witness the joyful union of Deborah and Francis, and that of Jonathon and Rhys. If you feel that such is not for you, then our kitchen remains open, and there are refreshments available at reasonable prices before we begin the day’s customary festivities”

He paused for a minute or so, and there were a few departures, but not many. Fuck ‘em if they can’t take a wedding.

“I have been fortunate indeed to preside over the marriages of many of you, but each remains a wonder to me, a true sacrament of the highest. That two people should find each other, should enjoy love and companionship through life, is precisely what our Lord intended when he created us, but it is made even brighter by its sharing. That is what today is all about: sharing, declaring one’s love to others, spreading joy throughout. Now, I have spoken for too long, and there are four people before me with important and wondrous things to experience…”

It went as such things should, and I didn’t drop the ring, and the choir was amazing, and the sun was shining, and I didn’t realise how hard a happy woman could cry, because we were all doing it. I looked around the pews as soon as I could see clearly, and it still appeared full despite the little flurry of exits. Jon just looked stunned, but we managed to make it to our own exit, where there were photographs and bad jokes.

Sneaky, sneaky bastards. I found Simon at my shoulder, after a few moments of soppiness, and he was grinning.

“You looked rather surprised, Diane”

“Rather surprised? Bloody astonished! When was all this sorted? How? Why here?”

“Ah, it was after Christmas. Elaine was rather busy on this one. Which should explain the link, I suppose, as so many of her people have been here before. I will admit, though, that it was our cousin Annie who did most of the legwork, which should cover any other confusion about ‘why here’. I believe you know her rather well?”

“Um, yes. We worked together for a while”

“Then you will understand. My darling wife spoke to me of Annie’s love of her family, of how they worked together to bring them round so that they could be there for her own wedding, and I suspect she feels similarly about her old colleagues. Annie is a woman strong in her roots, Diane. This is part of it”

I watched the couples as they celebrated, Wildcat off to one side talking to…

Oh shit. She finally gave Steve Barraclough a hug and a peck on the cheek, before heading off towards the lych gate and her sisters. On instinct, my eyes swept the church yard until I found Sammy, who held my gaze for a second before a very emphatic little shake of the head, which he followed up with his bladed hands making a capital ‘T’ shape. Into the church hall, mugs in hand, back outside and straight into it.

“Rosie’s away home, Diane. I think we leave it there, mate. I believe the subject of our possible further enquiries may no longer be with us, OK? Nice hat, by the way”

“Nice change of subject, you sod. Did either of you bastards give any clue they were planning this?”

“Nope. Well, apart from the honeymoon leave bookings and the name change applications for new warrant cards”

I started laughing, as my two men came up, so I had to choose my language more carefully than I had been about to.

“Mam! Mam! Going to be dancing soon Aunty Annie says can we dance Mam and can we have chips and a burger?”

Sammy made a subtle finger-to-lips gesture of ‘silence’ before heading off to find his wife, and I settled back into a more normally festive day. So many friends, including the ones I had never met. Several of those friends gathered outside to play for dancing, which we did indeed do, my father surprising me yet again with abilities I had never suspected he had, Mam screaming with delight as he swung her with facility and extreme velocity.

Rhod did indeed dance, in a set of children overseen by several of the Woodruffs, their squeals almost drowning out the music. By ‘their squeals’, I don’t just mean those of the children, for Steph’s in-laws were rather manic about their guidance of young people.

It was sunshine and music, dancing or lying on soft grass, soft drinks and smiles. I decided not to go looking for people to say hello to, as I was surrounded by my own family, and there was more than enough love for the day, although we did have a sort of Brownian motion around us as many folk did come up and say ‘Hi!’ before melting back into the crowd.

Smiles. Hand-holding, or arms around waists. Lovers, mates, laughter. In the end, though, it had to come to an end, and Simon was at the microphone once again.

“Thank you all, as always. That is the end of another music day at St Nick’s, and I am delighted to say we have raised a significant sum from our raffle and our catering, as well as the simple matter of dropping spare change into a collecting tin. So, we shall go to the raffle winners…”

Of course we had tickets, naturally Rhod had the job of checking if we had any winners, with Dad’s assistance, and we ended up with a rolled and boneless leg of pork to take home with us, courtesy of a local butcher, which left my boy in such a state of excitement I resolved to start checking his sugar intake.

“Naturally, you will all be wondering where we will be sending this year’s donations. Well, we have a number of recipients listed, but one is awaiting completion, and will be announced tomorrow. We will be donating other sums to our own Young T charity, many of whose workers have been slaving away on the catering front today. Which reminds me: Summers!”

A short man with a beard shouted back.

“What do you want now, Your Vicarness?”

“Break is over! Back in the kitchen, serf!”

“I hear and obey!”

So much laughter, so much of it from those new friends. Simon hadn’t finished, though.

“We have another cheque for the Mermaids charity for trans children and their families, plus donations for musical instruments to three local schools. I cannot reveal the sums yet, for we are still adding up our takings, and the final allocation will depend on tomorrow’s announcement. For those of you who have pre-booked, there will be a further event this evening in the hall, but for now, our wonderful house… Field? Our wonderful field band will play a few polkas for those who still have more energy than sense. Band? Hit it!”

Sod that, was my thought, and as a family we drifted back to our tents, where the children did kid things in safety, while elders smiled and some of us simply enjoyed the warmth of the Summer.

I lay there with my eyes closed, working through the day’s dynamics, my attention to detail not letting up as I replayed so many little moments, including one where Annie had found herself in a dance that started with Barry and ended up with her being passed from him to Alun, then to Bryn, then Sammy, before finally ending up with her husband Eric. Simon’s comment rang so true. Rootless in England: how had she coped?

How on Earth had she survived?

In the end, tired children met sleeping bags with watchful ‘aunties’, and the rest of us gathered in the church hall again. All I will say on that evening is that it involved alcohol and extreme insanity, as well as love and laughter, and there were two weddings still being celebrated, and none of us cared how utterly non-traditional the whole thing was. I watched Deb’s glowing face as she kissed her husband between one joke and another, and just for a microsecond I wanted Charlie Cooper there to witness it.

Love, you piece of shit? This is love. THIS is someone who knows how to love, knows what it means in truth.

I found my mind wandering, thinking at one and the same time that if it hadn’t been for Charlie Cooper, Deb could have had her life so many years earlier, then understanding it would not have included Frank, and I realised I was getting rather drunk, so I grabbed my husband to drag him away from watching Annie J and Steph W as they did something improbable on the little stage, because I had plans for Blake S that involved Diane S and nobody else.

Sunlight through the tent, and the hint of a hangover. Mam handing in two cups of tea. Breakfast in the hall once more (when did they ever take time off?) the whole of our team present, and then Simon’s announcement.

“Morning, all! Final figures sorted for the donations, if you’re interested. Darren? Do the honours?”

The young man in question grinned and rose to leave the hall, as Simon chuckled.

“Alun? Lynne Can you make yourselves known, please?”

Alun held up an arm.

“We get breakfast in the hotel, Vicar. Why drag us out here?”

“Because your team-mates asked me to. DARREN?”

That lad came back into the hall, this time on wheels, electric ones. Simon’s grin was spreading into a proper smile by then.

“A present from us as well as your family, in all senses of that word. We can offer no miracles, Lynne, but many here have found love, and that is always a miracle. Arwel has offered to deliver it for you”

A rumble from the other side of the room.

“Aye. On my way home, it is, aye? Leave me the details before you head off home”

Lynne was in tears. So was Alun, but he did his best to hide them as a line of colleagues shook his hand, admitting what I had been working at for so many months. We had a canteen culture of a better sort, one that didn’t need disinfecting.

Sometimes it is possible to choose one’s family. I am reasonably certain the night before was when our own family gained another girl, and Rhod a sister, nine months later.

Lives, lived well.