If I Fell

~59~ Bump In The Night

24th December 1964

Sleigh Bells, tinsel, Christmas tree and me.

Cosy and warm sipping hot cocoa by the fire, recalling the past year.. finding a brother, a lover, a host of new friends plus a new Dad, Jim. I was embraced, loved and felt adored.

Da was so much better. Since August Ange and Ruthie had been a constant in the house and now, they readied for their first Christmas together.

John was going to visit his Aunt Mimi and Paul and I would drive up to Dad's soon, hopefully on the 27th, as the band were playing right over the Christmas period from the 24th of December to New Year's Eve all at one spot, the Hammersmith Odeon in London.

Yep even Christmas Day.

The boys weren't too far away but still far enough for the bulk of the evenings to be lonely and the afternoons to be quiet.

Ten mile between overwhelming noise and stone cold silence, well maybe some Bing Crosby and his merry band of crooners on the radio.

A snowstorm had hit earlier in the week and the power went out twice, tonight another storm was looming according to the radio which I had tuned to the BBC.

I stoked the fire with another log and replenished the stack beside the hearth, the pile near the shed was now wet and low, if we had another storm there would be no fire or accompanying warmth that she gave.

The power cut first then I heard a a loud creak like a branch was bent to its limits .... Most probably the branch overhanging the patio.

It had been low with the heavy weight of snow when I checked the woodpile on twilight. Perhaps, by morning, it would have bowed to the snow and snapped altogether.

Gathering the candles and matchbox, placing them on the dining table in anticipation of another power outage I quizzed the lack of jiggling in the matchbox as it fell to the tabletop from the top of the candles.

Damn Paul and his smoking, three matches left! I had a new box here only three days ago. Oh well nothing much I can do, I'll just have to be thrifty with my strikes.

I settled back down by the fireside. Glowing embers of orange and red. Just me and the crackle and snap of the fire. A glance of the clock told me that the concert had just started and the boys would be bayed at by thousands yet again. The pages of my romance novel turned as my quiet evening rolled along slowly. 

It all started with a bit of smoke.

Just a wiff I had smelt as I woke hours later on the sofa. The fire was settled nicely and had red-hot embers glowing like the devil.

I was assailed by more smoke hitting my nose and the fire died just that little bit more as I sat blinking tiredly. Rubbing my eyes, I stood and walked closer to the hearth.

Strange.

Smoke swirled strangely as I stared.

I decided to open the window a crack and hoped the smoke would abate. All I achieved in return was a blizzard of snowflakes attacking my eyes and face; I shut the window fast.

A creak was all it took for the snow to fall inside instead of out.

A big blob of dirty slurry mess.

Coloured from off white grey to black sooty watery snow and upon the top, like icing, a sprinkle of fresh white- my own mini wonderland lay melting at my feet along with a few halves of chimney bricks tumbled too. The chimney now, seemed to be sealed shut; hopefully no more snow could descend.