A Noble Cause

XV - Christmas Pt. I

Fifteen: Christmas Pt. I

DECEMBER 23rd

On the 23rd of December, right after dinner, Egbert, at Samuel's request, drove Olivia and Isaac to Tetbury, the closest train station, from which they would take the train to Gloucester, where they would take different paths: Olivia would take the train to Liverpool (a hard one to catch, especially that late), where she would stay the night, then take the first boat to Dublin the next morning, so she could finally take the train from Dublin to Derry, just in time for Christmas. If it sounds like a handful of work, that's because it is — she acknowledged that herself, but it would all be worth it when she saw her parents and brother. Since she moved to London, five years ago, she had not yet seen them and, had it not been for Samuel, she wouldn't have for another year.

To Isaac, things were much easier. From Gloucester, he would take the train to London, then to Norwich; he would probably be able to make it before sunrise, as long as he manages to catch the last train in London, which should not be hard. He could, alternatively, take a train to Birmingham to visit his cousin and spend the night there, then in the next morning he could take a train to London and continue his trip, but he felt that spending time with his closer family would be the best course of action: his cousin was only twenty-one whereas his grandmother was four times older than that and he feared it might be her last Christmas: though that was a fear his entire family shared every year for the past ten years or so.

So, when he got to Gloucester, after a tiring trip alongside Olivia, he wished her Happy Christmas and followed the original plan, hopping on the train to London, that passed earlier than Olivia's. He claimed his seat and slept all the way to London, where he repeated the procedure: hopped on the train he had to, claimed a seat, slept and woke up at the final station. There, he looked at the clock: 3 in the morning. Since it was very late and his mother had trouble sleeping, he decided to spend the night at a friend's house before going home the next morning.

Said friend lived in a small house close to the station, but far from Isaac's home. Isaac did not know much about the area near the station, other than his friend's house and the station itself, to which he had been quite a few times, but he did not feel much like playing the tourist, either — especially not in the after hours. He caught a glimpse of some trees in a nearby park and saw the outlines of houses and two-to-three-story buildings here and there under the rather dim lights from the lamp posts that lit the streets.

When he reached the house, he found that all the lights were off, which was expected at 3 in the morning. He knocked on the door multiple times, but, after five minutes of standing there waiting for him, he decided to take a different path. He walked to the window, that was ajar, and, pushing it open a little wider, called his friend, who, after some time, finally woke up and answered the door.

"Isaac? What are you doing here? And this late?" He asked.

"I am so glad to see you, too, Thomas. I have just come, actually. Is it alright if I sleep here tonight? I came to visit the family but it is quite late and I would not like to wake mum up. You know how she is about sleeping."

"But you had no trouble waking me up, huh?" He shook his head, "Come in: the couch is yours for the night."

"Thank you," Isaac entered the house. "It is so good to be back in Norwich, I cannot wait to take a walk by the city tomorrow."

"Are you staying here for long?"

"Only for Christmas, I'm afraid. I am going back on the 27th."

"Well, in that case, I think you should get some sleep: the more time you have tomorrow, the more you can enjoy. I will go get you a blanket and we can talk tomorrow. Oh, Isaac."