by Nem Rowan
"He's gonna be all right, sweetheart," I whispered to Christine as I hugged her in the back seat.
"I know." She sniffled into my shoulder. "I'll look after him."
We waited until the family had returned to the warmth of their home and the door had slammed shut. Mecky warmed the engine and pulled out of the parking space, heading in the direction of the tower blocks only five minutes down the road as 70s blues played softly on the radio. There was a placid calm filling the car, maybe from exhaustion. We walked Christine to the entrance of the block of flats and I was the first to give her a hug goodbye. She jumped onto me, her arms round my neck and I was unable to stop the tears even though I knew we would see each other again. Mecky couldn't wait until I was done, and she enveloped both of us in her embrace, the three of us giggling and promising we'd do karaoke soon.
Christine slipped from our arms and turned towards Ceri, who stood there shyly with his coat done up to his chin as he chewed on a mouthful of tobacco. Tentatively, he offered his hand to shake and she took it before pulling him abruptly into an adventurous hug, which he accepted with a surprised look on his face, but that soon melted into a sheepish smile as he hugged her back.
"Thanks guys. I'm glad I met you," Chrissy beamed at us with her rosy cheeks and large, twinkling eyes. "It's been a lot of fun."
"Remember. Karaoke!" Mecky poked her in the shoulder and she laughed, swiping at her hand to try and grab it before she retracted it.
"Yes! I can't wait! I guess this goodbye, for now." She nodded as she turned towards the glass door behind us.
"Just for now. Any time you need our help, you know where to find us." I blew her a kiss.
"Goodbye, Auntie Leona. Bye Mecky, and Ceri." She waved to us as she opened the door up with a creak.
We watched as she stepped into the foyer and shut the door on us, waving one last time before she vanished round the corner.
Ceri sighed. "You know what we need now."
"I am very starving!" Mecky agreed, taking hold of my arm as we turned and began walking along the path together.
As it turned out, we ended up in a certain red and yellow themed, popular fast food restaurant whose name I shall not mention.
We sat around a table with three trays piled with food, all of us stuffing our faces and grinning at each other over the top of it in between mouthfuls of burger and cola. I was gagging for a cigarette but since we couldn't smoke indoors, I tried a little bit of Ceri's chewing tobacco but accidentally swallowed it, causing both of them to fall about laughing. Having Ceri and Mecky there with me, listening to their hysterical laughter and enthusiastic conversation made me realise that even though I had lost my family, I now had a new one. Family, the thing Wallace Reed had sought so hard for himself, was something that didn't really come around by choice.
Sure, blood sometimes had something to do with it, but I had learned that family, your real family, were the people you found yourself facing danger with, the people who listened to you cry late in the night and the people who made you laugh the most. The people who were there for you in the hardest circumstances, holding you up when you feel you've got no strength left in you, covering your back to make sure you're safe. In the beginning, Mecky had said that Ceri and I were her family, and at the time I had been inclined to disagree. But now, it had all changed. They were my family now.
I was no longer a stray. No longer a rough sleeper.
Epilogue
The summer sun created a flashing white circle in my vision, not unlike the full moon I had once been so fearful of. Gulls careened on the winds, gentle breezes that cut stripes through the wispy clouds above in the rich azure sky. I bunched the skirt of my summer dress up around my knees, sighing with both alarm and pleasure at the coolness of the surf as the tide washed up around my ankles, the froth hissing as it touched the heat of the pale sand. Children played in the shallows a dozen yards away, splashing and leaping onto their inflatable rings as a dog barked, jumping into the rolling waves to fetch a tennis ball.
The air smelled delicious, the salt of drying seaweed and the brackish tang of the ocean mixing with the freshness of the long grass that grew around the edges of the dunes and upon the summit of the cliffs. My sunblock-slathered skin felt as though I was getting a burn, but I was enjoying myself too much to retreat to the shade of the umbrella Ceri had stabbed into the sand. He was laying on a towel beneath it in a vest and shorts, sunglasses hiding his eyes and his legs stretched out so that his bare feet could warm in the sun. It was the first time we had come down to the beach and what a beautiful place it was. I could imagine settling down here and raising children with him in the big house he owned on the cliff nearby, but there were a few things I wanted first and that was for the house to be refurbished and for us to be married. I had already worked on the second part.
A few months had passed since the curse had gone. We had continued to live with Mecky for awhile, helping her to run the shop and spending time together, just for fun. Eventually, she told us she had planned a trip to Poland and invited us to come with her, but Ceri was anxious to return to Wales and so we declined. She didn't mind, though; her husband and son were accompanying her on the journey and she intended to sprinkle their ashes in the forest where she and Piotr had celebrated their wedding. Along with that, she had arranged to meet up with a few old friends and to visit her family again. We said goodbye to her at the airport and wished her luck.
In the meantime, Darnel had returned to studying at college and Christine had gone back to school in order to prepare for her exams. Both of them were doing well as a couple.
We learned from reading the newspaper that Kelly was writing a book about her ordeal despite numerous people believing that she had lost her marbles after she claimed to have been initiated into a pack of werewolves. Edith had moved to Dubai with her husband, who having finally retired, now had time to spend sewing with her.
And so here we were, Ceri and I, back in his hometown.
I had yet to venture back to the club, which as far as I was aware was still covered in crime scene tape. I needed a break from the past and besides, I wanted to know more about Ceri, the real Ceri. He had some apologising to do, so it seemed the most logical option to come to Wales with him.
I held my sunhat to my head as the wind nearly blew it off, the long strands of my silver hair whipping around my face in the breeze. I could see two people approaching, walking alongside each other in our direction and I had the vague idea that I knew who they were. We had agreed to meet down here today. I shielded my eyes from the sun so that I could get a better look at the two men, spotting that they were holding hands as they walked together. The taller of the two had long black hair and dark brown skin, his tall, muscular body clad in khaki shorts and a black vest, while his shorter companion was fair-skinned and freckled with short, bright ginger hair. He wore a striped t-shirt and denim shorts, his feet also bare on the damp sand. As they grew closer, I waved to them and the tall man waved back.
"Hello!" I called to them, turning and walking a few paces so that I could meet them quicker.
"Hi there!" the dark-skinned man replied cheerily. Now that I was closer, I could see his luminous green eyes. He was of Middle-Eastern persuasion and had a very jolly Welsh accent, much like Ceri actually.
"You must be Maredudd? And you're Owen, right?" I assumed as we stopped together, meeting on the sloping dune where the surf rushed up around our feet.
"Hi," the red-haired man answered shyly as he raked his fingertips through his beard.
"Nice to meet you both." I beamed at them. I could sense they were nervous, perhaps even a little afraid of meeting with Ceri again. I was prepared to make it go as smoothly as possible, so I turned on my charm.
"My name's Leona. I'm Geraint's fiancée."
FIN
About the Author
Nem Rowan lives in Wales with his wife of 13 years and his two German Shepherds. He enjoys studying mythology, the occult and British
folklore, and is an avid bird-watcher. He is also fascinated by psychology and the dynamics of diverse romantic relationships. Nem’s characters are facets of his own personality and he uses writing as a means of exploring his own psyche, sexuality and persona. However, he believes that a story with a sad ending isn’t worth writing! Nem especially enjoys having in-depth conversation with folks from other lands about culture and society, and generally finds small-talk dull. Despite appearances, he is an introvert and retreats to the secrecy of his private lair to write and listen to 80s pop music.
https://nemrowan.wordpress.com/
https://twitter.com/MrNemRowan
https://www.goodreads.com/nemrowan
[email protected]
