Carol Singers [Scrooge x Marley]

Stave IV - Late Nights...

So, dear reader, we return once again to the worn pages of this little book. I believe, where we had left off, our two young men had just acquired their very own shop. Of course, neither has admitted that there could be anything more than business between them, but then again, what did you expect?

A note for those more sensitive to such topics; this part of my recounting of this tale will briefly mention abuse and violence towards children, as well as alcohol problems, though nothing at all graphic. Proceed with caution, if needs be.

The next few days were a blur of activity - Ebenezer and Jacob finalised the contract of their tenancy in the shop, furniture was ordered, the back room to the shop was fitted with desks and supplies were bought. It was barely three days after Boxing Day when the moment came to open the shop. While looking around for decorations, Ebenezer had found a small sign to hang in the door, with "Open" written on one side, and "Closed" on the other. Finally, after all was done, at least as well as it could be, the moment finally came to open the shop. Jacob had brought some celebratory pastries, and Ebenezer stood nervously. With a flourish, Jacob flipped around the sign, and turned to Ebenezer with a smile. While no one else was present but the two of them, the moment felt just as important to Ebenezer as if there had been crowds waiting outside. Jacob passed Ebenezer a pastry, and the two of them sat down on the counter to eat.

The front room of the shop had been laid out sparsely - much of the furniture had not yet arrived, but Jacob was amazed with how homely Ebenezer had made it feel. A small fireplace was glowing warmly, staving off the biting cold outside, and a couple of paintings and other frames hung on the walls. A small row of chairs, comfortably spaced, lined the wall behind a soon-to-be table - currently, a large stool sat in its place, awaiting the furniture's arrival. A space was left for the sofa and there was a small chest of drawers standing in the corner. The top of the counter was clear, and behind it lounged two chairs, with a ledger on the shelves under the counter top.

Behind this was an open door leading into the back of the shop - Jacob's domain. He had set out two desks, facing each other, with lanterns on both. There wasn't as much daylight in this room - no shop front display windows to light up the room, but he had made up for this with candles and lanterns, that, when fully lit, made the room glow with the warm yellow light of the flickering flames. Shelves lined the wall - a mismatch of furniture that Jacob had already owned, and the cheaper finds in the local shops - and on these, supplies of ledgers and paper, inks and quills, had been stacked.

It was later that day that they had their first customer. The two of them had been sitting behind the counter, talking, when the bell on the door tingled and a gust of cold air swept into the room. An older woman entered the room, shepherding before her two small children. All were wrapped in a mismatch of clothing and blankets, and slowly shuffled towards the counter. Jacob sprang to his feet, and Ebenezer got up quickly, turning to face the customers.

"Welcome, welcome! How may I help you?" exclaimed Jacob warmly.

"Well, good sir, you see..."

✻✻✻

It was about three weeks later, and the sun had set hours ago already, and the night was windy and cold. The snow had given way to incessant rain weeks ago, with dark clouds crowding the sky and mingling with the smoke from the factories to create a dismal greyness. This was only matched by the dismal mood as people had returned to work after the holidays. All the shop fronts were dark, all but one; in the shop one along from the corner, a faint, warm light still showed. Ebenezer and Jacob sat in the back room of their shop, working late, writing up the day's records in full and organising the company's expenses. The lamps glowed dimly, and many of the candles had gone out from the chilling draft that swept through the room regularly. With a thud, Jacob closed the large record book he had been writing in, and slid it onto the nearest shelf. Ebenezer gathered the papers he had been writing on, and sorted them into the drawers to his left, neatly organised alphabetically by the surnames of the customers.